ILMU AUTOMATION

Table-based editors make it easier to create and edit objects of the same type, e.g. for variables, texts or messages

Convenient find and replace functions allow you to carry out a project- wide search for objects, to carry out central rewiring of variables and to find and replace texts. Apart from this, the cross reference list gives you direct access to all the objects in the project.

Handling graphics in different formats is much easier. Using a graphics browser, you can display supplied graphics and your own pictures, process them and integrate them in a project screen using Drag & Drop. If you want to process the image, the system automatically starts the associated external editor.

Faceplate technology

WinCC flexible has a large number of basic and enhanced objects and graphics that are scalable and can be dynamized;you can use these objects in your pictures. The Symbol Factory, for example, contains a large number of general and vertical market representations with different colour depths. Apart from this, you can combine project-specific faceplates from simple picture objects and store them in the library.
You can now use tags to interconnect the dynamic properties of a faceplate‘s picture elements, e.g. the design and visibility.
This means that at runtime you can, for example, hide and display individual components of the faceplate or of the complete faceplate in dependence on a tag value. You can carry out modifications in the entire project from one central location and the system then changes the module at the same time in all the screens of the project where it is used.
 

Fig. Interconnection dialog for faceplates

You can use faceplates without needing to invest a lot of time and effort in wiring, since they can be linked with structured data types. Each time you use the faceplate in a picture, you only need to configure one structure variable of the same data type on the faceplate to establish the complete link.

Scripting

As standard, WinCC flexible offers a large number of dynamic options for objects. However,  if you want to be even more flexible, in projects with 270 Series Panels and above you have available VBScript, which is a powerful and easy to learn script language based on Visual Basic. You can immediately leverage your Visual Basic knowledge. The IntelliSense function allows you to quickly program accesses to runtime objects and to simply establish control sequences within the script. Script debugging is possible during engineering using the Simulator and, if required, at runtime.

Fig. Integrating scripts into the function list

Import- und Export functions

You can export any configured messages from a project to CSV files. These exported data can be expanded externally (with MS Excel, for example) and reimported in a project. Reuse reduces configuration effort for new projects. All properties of a message will be imported. A test routine ensures that there are no messages with the same message number in the target project. You can use the export-import function to exchange message texts that are to be set up in several languages with translators.
You can also export and import tag data. This way you can import tags from different control programs (Step 7, AllanBradley, etc.) in WinCC flexible projects. There are converters for the programming software of the major vendors (Rockwell RS Logix500, Modicon Telemecanique PL7, GE Fanuc VersaPro). These converters translate the vendor-specific formats into the Excel format so that all tag information can be imported to WinCC flexible at the touch of a button.

Function overview

With SIMATIC HMI operator control and monitoring devices, the runtime software is on-board and, depending on the equipment‘s hardware, this gives you different HMI functionality and performance profiles. The runtime functionality can be expanded using options.  Some of the options are only available for Panels of a specific class and above, others are integrated to a certain extent.

• Functionality of basic Runtime Softtware
  • Operator functions,
  • Graphics and trend representations,
  • Alarm system,
  • Report and logging system,
• Functionality of Runtime options
  • Archiving ,
  • Recipe management ,
  • OPC communication
  • Sm@rtClient/server concepts
  • Service & Diagnostics across the Web
  • Logging and tracking of operator actions ,
  • Process diagnostics

Due to its individually scalable system functionality, with WinCC flexible you only pay for the functionality that you need to solve your current HMI task. You can also flexibly extend the runtime functionality at any time using Visual Basic scripts.

User interface

• Static text and graphics display as well as vector graphics
• Graphics displays for different standard graphics formats, e.g. bmp, .jpg, .wmf 
• Pushbuttons and switches for process operation 
• Date/time fields 
• Numeric and alphanumeric input/ output fields
• Symbolic and graphic input/output fields
• Dynamizable graphics from the SIMATIC HMI symbol library
• Bar charts, analog display, sliders 
• Trend graphics with paging and zoom functions and cursor line 
• Alarm displays with operator controls 
• Technological screen modules created from basic system objects

Alarms and logging system

Alarms and messages

The system generates messages in WinCC flexible in three ways:

• Bit messages,
• Analog messages
• Messages via message frame alarm procedure Alarm_S/Alarm_D with SIMATIC S7

Using freely defi nable message classes, you can determine the acknowledgement response and the representation of the alarm events.

Logs/reports

In WinCC flexible, you can output logs or reports on a time- or event-driven basis. In this context, you can design the layout in any way you like.

User administration

Even the basic system guarantees access protection which means that only authorized personnel have access within the scope of their responsibility at the operator panel. In this context, each user is assigned to a user group with defined function privileges.
This prevents unauthorized users from changing recipes or starting process steps without permission, for example.
Apart from this,  two-component authorization comprising a user ID and password, password aging (to ensure that passwords are renewed on a regular basis), blocking users by the administrator and automatic logout if users are inactive for a relatively long period of time are additional system functions that ensure high quality standards in production.
 
With WinCC flexible 2008 new functions have been added:

• Adjustable number of invalid login attempts
• Optionally, the login can be reduced to just the password
• Hierarchical authorizations among the administrators
• Individual groups can be excluded from the password aging
• Hidden password entry