DIO = Digital Input/Output
IO/D/FIO/EIO/CIO/MIO = Somewhat arbitrary monikers for specific DIO ports on different LabJacks.
Digital I/O stands for Digital Input and Output. Digital Inputs allow a microcontroller to detect logic states, and Digital Outputs allow a microcontroller to output logic states.
Each digital I/O on a LabJack can be individually configured to one of 3 states: input, output-high, or output-low.
Digital Input
A digital input detects if a voltage is above/below a specific threshold. If the voltage is higher than some value, the computer will detect the digital input as high/set/1. If the voltage is lower than some value, the computer will detect the digital input as low/clear/0.
Digital Output
A digital output allows you to control a voltage with a computer. If the computer instructs the output to be high, the output will produce a voltage (generally about 5 or 3.3 volts). If the computer instructs the output to be low, it is connected to ground and produces no voltage.
Example
Turn an LED On/Off using a digital I/O.
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Wire the LED as shown. Optionally connect a current-limiting resistor.
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Set the state of FIO0 to output-high on the computer. The LED will turn on.
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The LED will turn Off if the state of FIO0 is set to output-low.