ProView is a Production Monitoring system for watching the progress of your machines. State of the art networking technology is used to provide the operating status and product count of each machine in your plant. Parts get automatically counted, while providing intelligent feedback from your operators. The standard display mode shows a color coded line for each of your machines. Each line can optionally show a job description, work order number, Pcs/Min, Total for Job, Actual pcs made, and the amount of time it has been running in that state. Different colors can be selected to represent different states such as Stopped, Offline, Running Slow, At Speed, Running Fast. Any fault conditions are displayed on the line for that machine if supported by the machine.
ProView not only displays the production counts and status of your machines, it also will generate reports showing the detail of the machines over a specified time. The standard Machine Status Report shows the status of all machines on the network. There is also an option to automatically write the report out to a web page to be shared in your company or viewed over the Internet!
ProView not only displays the production counts and status of your machines, it also will generate production reports. The standard Production Report is broken down into sections based on the jobs (work orders) you have running through those machines. This report can be automatically printed at the end of each shift.
The ProView Production Monitoring System uses standard networking systems to collect and display status and production information on your machines. The system integrates very well with Sencorp Sentrollers. On a Sentroller system, ProView ties into the Sencorp machines using a standard local area network. "Mailboxes" are setup for the ProView software and the machines to communicate using the proprietary Sencorp network protocol. This gives the ability to poll the machine for status and production data, and also allows Sencorp machines to share tool files over the network. The ProView software takes advantage of special "Hooks" in the Sencorp HMI software to interact with the operator, doing such things as asking the operator for the current Work Order number and required production rates. In fact, all status, process, and event history is available over the network. Supervisors and setup people can actually view any screen on the Sencorp machines. This does not effect the operator, and is very safe. Remote viewing of Sencorp HMI screens over the ProView system will not change the operating status or settings of the machine. In fact, while you are viewing different screens like the Temperature Graph Screen, the operator can be operating the machine from the Adjustment Screen! If you are familiar with the operation of the machines, you already know how to view machine information from ProView because you operate the ProView HMI View software exactly like you would at the machine.
Both Windows and DOS based Sencorp machines can be connected to the ProView system using a standard local area network with any of a number of communication protocols. Other machines can be connected into the ProView Production Monitoring System as well. Below is a sample of the ProView system connected to various types of machines:
The diagram above shows five machines tied into the ProView system. The Sencorp machines with Sentrollers are tied into the system using a standard local area networking system. Those connections are represented by the Blue wires. The most common networking hardware for this supervisory/production monitoring level which is in use today is Ethernet. Ethernet and Fast Ethernet systems are more than capable of delivering this type of information on time, and with the addition of high speed switching hubs, Ethernet is deterministic enough to be used for low-level control signals in an environment where other devices are tied to the Ethernet.
Machines without Sentroller computers but with PLCs can be connected using any number of different industrial networking systems like Device-Net, Can Bus, Profibus, etc. Those connections are represented by the Green lines. Interfaces to PLCs can also use standard serial interfaces such as RS-232/RS-422/RS-485. The interface to the PLC from the Sentroller is RS-232, and is indicated by the Purple lines. While tying directly into the PLC on a machine may at first look like an attractive option, you must keep in mind that the interfaces to these machines are not standard, and while the addition of process parameters to the ProView database is possible, the cost may be to high for what you get in return.
Any machine at all (with or without a PLC) can be tied into the system using a sensor to indicate a cycle from the machine. Those connections are represented by the Red lines. These sensors typically are proximity switches or limit switches. Optionally, a second sensor can indicate that there is material in the machine, and is not just "dry cycling". A third input on older machines can be used for the operator to use a switch to select the down time reason. This option gives you the basic Machine Running vs. Machine Not Running information along with the production counts at a relatively low cost.
This is just an example of the kind of networking solution we provide. If you're looking for this type of application, or you need a custom networking application to solve a specific problem, then contact us at info@swe-eng.com We'll be glad to help.
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Last modified: June 10, 2002