RS Logix 5 and 500 Tools Usage

In RS Logix 5 and 500 if you have Custom data monitors do they import when you import database comments into a program or do you have to do them a different way?

I use the custom data monitors but how and when do you use the other monitors?

Can you help me understand the purpose of the below and in what situation to use them?

Custom Graphical Monitors

Recipe Monitors

Trends

Also these things do not appear to be in contrologix and we have the enterprise version?

Tim Ganz said:

In RS Logix 5 and 500 if you have Custom data monitors do they import when you import database comments into a program or do you have to do them a different way?

I use the custom data monitors but how and when do you use the other monitors?

Can you help me understand the purpose of the below and in what situation to use them?

Custom Graphical Monitors

Click to expand...

If you want to view binary data as crude indicators, or even have very simply toggle buttons that work much like an HMI. The CGM also allows good flexibility in arranging the data physically to match your machinery or a user friendly visualization of the data relevant to a system.
The actual work of editing a CGM is a bit tedious, since there are no snap/grid marks, and the objects are a little "weird" and require some experimentation to figure out.

Tim Ganz said:

Recipe Monitors

Click to expand...

Think of the recipe monitor like a CDM with indirect addressing. I have one system in which a group of files represents a recipe of data related to sorting, weighing, and palletizing parameters. There are Strings, Integers, Floats, and even some binary data. When I open my recipe monitor I put an asterisk as a wildcard character in the addresses I want to view, then there's a little "spinner' in the lower right corner so I can control the index. That value in the corner gets substituted for the asterisk in the list of displayed values.

Tim Ganz said:

Trends

Click to expand...

I use trends to monitor things that I want to look back at later, so I can go eat lunch or perform other tasks while waiting for a problem to be recorded. I don't use them for data collection, as there are better methods for that. I usually monitor analog values, like pressure or temperature, but sometimes I use them to plot the timing of binary data.

With any of these neat tools, once created, you can drag and drop them between instances of RSLogix5/500. Also, you can copy and paste them between applications. They are not part of the comment database, however.

Tim Ganz said:

Also these things do not appear to be in contrologix and we have the enterprise version?

Click to expand...

Yes, after using RSLogix500 Pro for a few years, going "back" to RSLogix 5000 truly is a step backward in certain aspects.

EXAMPLE (TWO) CGMs

The top CGM is a visual for a long conveyor system and its motor states and photocells. Notice that I could not make a curved conveyor...maybe I could but did not want to waste a bunch of time on that...it is very effective as it is for a programming tool. The one on top of it is an overview with all the details needed to see what is going on in the palletizing cell. There are quirks in the CGM, like when I first go online, I must hit the stop button and then the play button to refresh the string tags. The values apparently get cached with the .rss files and are usually stale until I do that.

Recipe monitor

This little booger also can show stale data depending on how the data gets changed (workaround is to open the data view window for that file for a couple of seconds), but it's extremely handy for managing the 60 different recipes when I need to add something or make changes.

Binary trend

Example of trending bits to look for timing issues ...

Thank You Okie PC for the screen shot examples they will be very helpful.

You said they are not part of the comment database so do they stay with the .rss file or with that install of logix on that computer?

By copying the .rss file that contains them and moving them to another computer will I have the cdm,cgm on the other computer when I open the .rss file?

They are embedded in the .rss file so they will stay with the file if you open it on a different PC. Just remember to save the file after you spend half a day getting all your pixels aligned!

They are part of the .RSS file.

An .RSS file is a special kind of file format known as a Microsoft Structured Storage file. A structured storage file is a larger master file that contains multiple folders and files. Here is a screen shot of the contents of an .RSS file showing the structured storage file contents. Notice that there are folders in the .RSS file for custom data monitors and trends.



Even though I've shown the innards of .RSS files I don't recommend trying to edit its contents with anything except Logix500.

(edit, I see Paul beat me to it)

In RS Logix 5 and 500 if you have Custom data monitors do they import when you import database comments into a program or do you have to do them a different way?

Click to expand...

No. The CDM was part of the project file, but they are not included with a database import/export. You can copy and past from one project to another.

The trending function wasn't actually part of RSLogix 500 in earlier revisions. However other software like RSLogix 5 or RSLogix 5000 did include trending and having those packages activated trending in RSLogix 500. Weird I know. I'm not sure when it happened but eventually trending was included and activated with RSLogix 500.

The Custom Data Monitor function in RSLogix 500 is now called the Watch View or Watch Tab in RSLogix 5000. Not exactly the same, but very usable. Prior to v18 the contents of the window could not be saved meaning you had to rebuild the window each time you wanted to look at your data. But v18 added the ability to save the Watch Tab contents so that it could be recalled. There is also a separate tool called the Tag Data Monitor that can be run for the Logix 5000 but it is not integral to RSLogix. It runs as a separate program and requires a paid version of RSLinx Classic (not Lite). It was close to the CDM. But now with the Watch tab I get what I need. And there are some nice touches to it that I really like.

OG

Operaghost said:

....Prior to v18 the contents of the window could not be saved meaning you had to rebuild the window each time you wanted to look at your data. But v18 added the ability to save the Watch Tab contents so that it could be recalled.
OG

Click to expand...

I have a V19 file open right now, and created a quick watch scenario.

I cannot see anywhere where this window can be saved, and frankly I didn't believe this facility existed. But if you show me how I will be humble....

EDIT : humbly stating that once you give the quick-watch window a name, it becomes part of a list of quick-watches you can choose. I learnt something today - thanks OG

Not quite as clever as CDMs, 'cos you can't "quick-watch" more than 1 scenario at a time.