I am looking for a HMI software, where I can visualize a small plant (valves, pipes). The color should change according to the state. A click should also be handled. I would like to provide my own software as open source.

I have found some open source software, but they are all in Java or do not fullfill my requirements (no vector graphics; pipes cannot change the color)

Therefore my questions:

1. Is there already such source available which I could maybe help to develop further?

2. Are there any suggestions for file formats, e.g. is there a file format for the definition of the screen and its items (valves etc.)?

I had already found 2 nice software:

visual.sourceforge.net: interesting, but the author seems to have changed completely to Java.

pvbrowser.org or .net?: Uses QT Designer; So there is no vector graphics possible, but only buttons etc.(But maybe there would be a way to include a pipe by using a Qwt Widget, which is supportet).

Greetings
Ernst Murnleitner

 

Please visit http://osiis.homelinux.org and post your informations there!

Greetings,

JPB

 

You may want to try http://www.kinesix.com

 

If you don't mind CE you may want to consider using the Siemens panels. TP170B through MP370. There is an SDK that you can download from www.open-platform-program.com that you can use to develop functions for ProTool, ActiveX controls, or even develop your own HMI using embedded Visual C++. ProTool already has everything you need in the way of factory symbols because it utilizes the Reichardt Symbols that you find in other popular HMI packages. You would be better off using ProTool and then adding your own ActiveX and functions to expand its capability.

Ron

 

I know pvbrowser can do OpenGL (and VTK, looking at the website), which would be a bit of an overkill but would definitely do what you want - and it'd give you nice 3D shading (if you can spare the CPU power).

I'm not sure of the exact capabilities of the QDraw widget; it sounds more like what you want, but it might be too primitive.

Jiri
--
Jiri Baum <[email protected]> http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jirib
MAT LinuxPLC project --- http://mat.sf.net --- Machine Automation Tools

 

Thank you for your message.

I wanted to have something vendor independent. In fact, I am looking for something like protool/pro. I already used the TP170B. The problem here is, that it only runs protool and it is not possible to run a own application. I did not mention it before, but the control program which is programmed in c++ needs to be run on the same panel. At the moment, it runs under linux, but it could be ported to windows.

Greetings
Ernst

 

Dear Jiri,

thank you for your answer.

I wanted to edit the screens like you can do it with siemens protool/pro.

Using pvbrowser you can make the screens with QT Designer. Though I could solve all my problems with programming, it seems not to be possible to design a screen with overlapping (non-vertical and non-horizontal) pipes or other items (as QPixmap for example):

If I draw the background image and place another image on it, the order is changed if you click the background image - the background image goes to the foreground and the smaller image is not visible anymore. This could be solved by changing the order in the sourcecode, but you cannot edit the process picture anymore, because there is no way to bring a widget in the background.

Greetings

Ernst

 

Not true that the TP170B will not only run ProTool. It is true that the image was developed around ProTool but you can write your own app using embedded Visual C++ and the TP170B SDK that you can download for free after you register at www.open-platform-program.com. There are three different SDKs that you can download- Application (so you can roll your own, independent of ProTool), ActiveX (so you can add your own ActiveX controls to ProTool) and Function (so you can add functions to ProTool). Siemens will even create a custom image for you if the quantities are there. I am sure there is a price adder but it may be worth it to have an inexpensive
panel like the TP170B with your application on along with things like ethernet, Web Browsing as well as server or possibly OPC Server capability.

Ron

 

Hi All

The MP370 is available in a thin client version without Protool.

DP

 

Well--- kind of. The Thin Client option is just that. It is not a Thin
Client image unless you had an image custom made for you, which Siemens will
do. It is true that with this option, which is loaded onto the MP370 via
ProSave, you can connect to a Server via RDP; however, unless you had a
special image created, ProTool is still there in the image. You may not
have loaded a project that you created but the runtime executable is still
there. With the thin client option you can set up the panel to Auto logon
to the server when the panel boots up.

This does bring me to an interesting point though. If you did use ProTool
and simply configured a button in your project to connect to the Server you
can essentially have two HMIs in one. ProTool is still running in the
background and can be controlling and monitoring the local process, ie a
machine. The operator can Alt-Tab back to ProTool if need be. On the
server you might have WinCC or Wonderware. You can auto login to one of
those applications and control and monitor the whole process from your local
panel. What is really nice about this is that if for some reason your IE
network goes down the MP is still attached to the local process via Profibus
or other. ProTool will come to the foreground once the RDP determines there
is no longer a valid network connection. The operator now has local control
of the process.

Ron

Donald Pittendrigh wrote:
Hi All

The MP370 is available in a thin client version without Protool.

DP

On October 8, 2003, Powers, Ron wrote:
> If you don't mind CE you may want to consider using the Siemens panels.
TP170B through MP370. <

<Complete thread at
http://www.control.com/1026182598/index_html >

 

On October 21, 2003, Ernst Murnleitner wrote:
> Using pvbrowser you can make the screens with QT Designer. Though I
> could solve all my problems with programming, it seems not to be
> possible to design a screen with overlapping (non-vertical and
> non-horizontal) pipes or other items (as QPixmap for example):

Right, these things do tend to be somewhat grid-like. Try asking on the pvbrowser mailing list, though - there might be some way to do it, and even if it can't do it right now, they'll be interested to know what features people are looking for...

> If I draw the background image and place another image on it, the
> order is changed if you click the background image - the background
> image goes to the foreground and the smaller image is not visible
> anymore. This could be solved by changing the order in the sourcecode,
> but you cannot edit the process picture anymore, because there is no
> way to bring a widget in the background.

There must be some way of changing the stacking order, but I'm not familiar enough with QT Designer - again, try asking on the mailing list (this time the QT Designer one).

At worst, you can save the project, swap the two clauses using a text editor, and then load it up again; but there's almost certainly a more user-friendly way of doing it.

Jiri
--
Jiri Baum <[email protected]> http://www.csse.monash.edu.au/~jirib
MAT LinuxPLC project --- http://mat.sf.net --- Machine Automation Tools

 

Dear Jiri,

Thanks to Rainer Lehrig (PVBrowser) whoa asked Trolltech:
The order can be changed (put to foreground) by doulble clicking on the item list. An image can be placed in the background by using a frame with a picture.

Greetings
Ernst