Overview

It can be difficult to troubleshoot data on an embedded target while your application is running. In the same way a debugger helps you debug your application code, MPLAB Data Visualizer helps you debug your data. With MPLAB Data Visualizer, you can see how key data points in your application change during runtime, e.g. visualize values captured by a sensor on your development board.

MPLAB Data Visualizer has the following features:

• Capture data streamed from a running embedded target via serial port (CDC) or the Data Gateway Interface (DGI)

• Concurrently stream data and debug target code using the MPLAB®X IDE

• Decode data fields at runtime using the Data Stream Protocol format

• Visualize the raw or decoded data in a Graph as a time series or display the data in a terminal

• Analyze plotted data using cursors to measure bandwidth, pulse width and more

MPLAB Data Visualizer comes as a stand-alone application and as a plug-in to MPLAB X.

System requirements

The MPLAB Data Visualizer plug-in must be installed in MPLAB X version 5.30 or later for correct operation.

Hardware tool support

MPLAB Data Visualizer supports targets that stream data over a (virtual) COM port, as well as tools implementing the Data Gateway Interface (DGI) USB interface.

When using a COM port, any target or board can be supported, also user-specific boards. The DGI interface is supported by the Microchip Curiosity Nano and Xplained Pro platforms, as well as the Microchip Power Debugger and Atmel-ICE.

In order to ensure the best possible user experience, make sure that kits or tools used with the MPLAB Data Visualizer are updated to the most recent firmware version.

Documentation

Documentation is shipped with the product and can be opened from the DataVisualizer User Interface once started.

To install MPLAB-Data-Visualizer-Standalone(Windows), download this package and open it in IDE.

Supported Products: MPLAB X

Release Notes

What's New in v1.1

• Quick actions for plotting data or viewing data in the terminal
• Choose whether to plot Variable Streamer fields on same or separate axes
• Simplified data stream protocol configuration
◦ Fewer steps means its easier to start visualizing multiple variables

•Graph enhancements
◦Plot several signals on the same axis for easy alignment and zoom
◦Organize axes on different rows, resize, and position
◦Inspect values of data points
◦Use cursors to measure signal width, frequency, and duty cycle

•Notable fixed issues
◦Under heavy system load data timestamps could drift so that data plots appeared delayed compared to actual events (DV-1280).
◦Deleting an field/variable in the plot wizard before a name was assigned could crash the application (DV-1265).
◦When streaming data on serial port, data could be timestamped so that parts of plots looked stretched or compressed (DV-1186)

Customer support

Microchip provides online support via our web site athttps://www.microchip.com/support.

Special Considerations

When streaming timestamped data over DGI from an Xplained Pro or Curiosity Nano kit,too high data rates can lead to buffer overflows and reduced stability of operation. This also applies to Debug GPIO. The Data Visualizer UI will display a warning when the kit or tool indicates a buffer overflow condition.The sample rate at which buffer overflows are likely to occur depends on the PC and the system load.For GPIO it could be down to a few kHz sample rate at system load. For other interfaces it is typically higher.

To get the expected result when streaming data, it is important to configure the target system properly.Study the user guide of the target development board or tool carefully as it can contain important information.

Known Issues

DV-806 Plotted data can look distorted at certain zoom levels. This happens because the Visualizer reduces the resolution of old data as internal buffers fill up, in order to save memory.Workaround: Pause data streaming while investigating data. Environment: All platforms

DV-807 Discarded data count under decoder statistics sometimes increases and resets to 0.This happens when data frames are split across multiple packets. When a full data frame is received, the discarded byte count resets back to 0. Environment: All platforms

DV-835 Cannot connect to ttyACM0 for streaming data. Workaround: add your user to the dial out group and log out, then log back in. Environment: Linux

DV-1089 When renaming a variable streamer field and the field is plotted, the plot source is disconnected. Reconnect the plot source by selecting the new name in the plot options. Environment: All platforms

DV-1152 COM port may not be grouped with the kit interfaces. In this case the COM port will be listed under the serial port section. Environment: Linux

DV-1153 DGI-enabled kits might not show up if a debug session is in progress in MPLAB X when MPLAB Data Visualizer standalone is started. Workaround is to stop the debug session and unplug then plug in the kit. 
Environment: MPLAB X IDE 5.30 Standalone MPLAB Data Visualizer

DV-1176 Interface configuration is not applied after DGI overflow. To ensure correct operation after overflow, reconnect DGI. Environment: All platforms

DV-1335 In the plugin, when the Data Visualizer tab is maximized it will cover floating windows.A workaround is to dock the floating window. Environment: Win 10  MPLAB X 5.40

DV-1342 When a COM port is selected as Variable Streamer source and the Stop button is pressed,the port can only be reconnected from the Connections panel. Environment: Win 10  Standalone

DV-1347 A false valid frame can sometimes clear the variable streamer error indicator even though there is still a mismatch with the protocol. Environment: All platforms

Owners

• Microchip
• MplabDvTeam

Copyright

Copyright Microchip

Tags

• MPLAB_X
• Standalone
• Kits
• Development
• Debugging
• DataVisualizer_Standalone_MPLAB

Dependencies

• • No dependencies.

Version History

Version	Downloads	Last updated	Approved
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1677 (latest stable)	546	Tuesday, July 23, 2024	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1665	1,634	Tuesday, February 27, 2024	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1664	381	Tuesday, January 30, 2024	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1331	3,080	Friday, May 19, 2023	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1320	9,608	Monday, December 19, 2022	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1160	12,418	Tuesday, March 15, 2022	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1136	640	Friday, January 21, 2022	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.3.1113	1,948	Wednesday, October 27, 2021	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.2.956	1,168	Wednesday, May 12, 2021	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.2.835	4,493	Wednesday, September 23, 2020	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.2.834	61	Monday, September 21, 2020	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.1.793 (this version)	692	Thursday, June 11, 2020	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 1.0.675	528	Friday, December 20, 2019	yes
MPLAB-Data-Visual... 0.1.438	429	Friday, May 24, 2019	yes