Developing HMI Projects and Executing HMI Applications
An HMI (human-machine interface) system provides users to operate remote controllers. When the HMI application is executed, the HMI system communicates over a controller network with remote controllers, usually visualizing their data on an HMI device. Then users can monitor and operate the controllers.
An HMI project is an ordinary project created in CODESYS that also contains applications for HMI devices. It contains at least one HMI application, but is can also contain multiple HMI applications and one or more PLC applications.
You can create an HMI project that contains multiple HMI applications for different HMI devices. Moreover, an HMI project can also contain IEC applications for controllers. When designed so that it contains exclusively PLC control software or HMI software, the advantage to HMI developers is that you can focus on the user interface and the implementation of the user concept (ease of use, intuitive and clear operation). A separate IEC developer then works at the same time on the control application.
The HMI runtime system is a software that runs on a Windows platform where you can execute your HMI application. In this way, an HMI system is available for operating and monitoring a remote controller. The runtime system makes an HMI device out of an ordinary industrial PC. A time-restricted demo version is provided in the delivery of CODESYS Development System. You need a single license for unlimited operation.
Starting the CODESYS HMI
In the Windows start menu, select the desired version of CODESYS and then CODESYS Control Win V3 folder below that.
⇒ A list with the installed runtime systems is expanded.
Select the HMI runtime system CODESYS HMI.
⇒ The runtime system starts. The HMI symbol (
) appears in the taskbar. It indicates that the runtime system is executed. Now the HMI device can be detected with the network scan function and used. You can download an HMI application to the device.
With the help of the functions of the data source manager, an HMI application can communicate with any number of different controllers. You can access data on the controllers by means of data source variables and then use them for visualizations. These variables can be used in the visualization editor as usual with visualization elements.
Moreover, you can link the following object types into your HMI application and use its functionality:
Alarm configuration
Trend recording
Image pool
Text list
Recipe manager
Unit conversion
These objects are listed in the HMI features view.
