Images and Symbols

I'd like to know where do you guys search for symbols/images to use on the displays/buttons. I would like to know why softwares never support .ico files.


And which is better: .bmp .jpeg or .gif ?

Thanks in advance!

Display Buttons

Tarlazao,

I assume your talking about an HMI? Which brand/software are you using? I'm very familiar with Mitsubishi GT Designer but that's about it.

We try and use standard functionality that normally comes with the SCADA software. Most of them have pretty good standard library stes.

Otherwise where we have to design images we use bmp editor and modify symbols to what we need.

Rheinhardt

AlwaysaStudent said:

Tarlazao,

I assume your talking about an HMI? Which brand/software are you using? I'm very familiar with Mitsubishi GT Designer but that's about it.

Click to expand...

Rheinhardt said:

We try and use standard functionality that normally comes with the SCADA software. Most of them have pretty good standard library stes.

Otherwise where we have to design images we use bmp editor and modify symbols to what we need.

Rheinhardt

Click to expand...

You are right, AlwaysaStudent! Im talking about HMI/supervisory systems, nowadays Im using FTView ME, and like our friend Rheinhardt told us we have to design images .bmp, but It takes a long time and sometimes the images are difficult to draw... So I would like to know if we have a image library to download...

Library

tarlazao,

So I have a pretty good library going for my GTDesigner but after looking into it, the program saves the objects in different library formats, none which are easy to convert to .bmp or .jpeg.

I'm surprised that there isn't an open library out there that is available. I think we need to all join forces and make one!!? :site: lol

I can manually convert the files over to the right format. If you have any specific need I can give you what I have. I think your looking for the same thing I'm looking for, a comprehensive one stop library of images.

Sorry I couldn't me more help.

AlwaysaStudent said:

tarlazao,

So I have a pretty good library going for my GTDesigner but after looking into it, the program saves the objects in different library formats, none which are easy to convert to .bmp or .jpeg.

I'm surprised that there isn't an open library out there that is available. I think we need to all join forces and make one!!? :site: lol

I can manually convert the files over to the right format. If you have any specific need I can give you what I have. I think your looking for the same thing I'm looking for, a comprehensive one stop library of images.

Sorry I couldn't me more help.

Click to expand...

Thanks AlwaysaStudent! If I need a image I will ask you!! lol

I agree!! It would be very helpfull if we had a library of images...

tarlazao said:

...which is better: .bmp .jpeg or .gif?

Click to expand...

Weintek says jpeg is slower loading. I would expect bmp to be the quickest loading.

See this link for symbols.

bmp is the quickest.

Finding graphics, Mr Google.

I tend to find that many HMI libraries include terrible graphics as standard, because they've just been taken from previous versions of software. There are a few systems that have good graphic libraries (Citect and Wonderware, for example), so I tend to steal graphics from them or make my own.

If you are smart you can pinch them out of Crimson - bit basic but not too bad.

I must also agree with the comment about pinching them out of Citect and Wonderware - i have old copies of Citect as well before it all became 'Schneiderised'. There are now only bmps of Schneider PLCs for example. I was also fortunate enough to obtain some Citect bmps that they use on their own projects and are not in the commercial package.

Exactly.

If you're using any HMI or IPC with half decent resolution, nothing stops you from using Photoshop or similar for graphics. A couple of years ago now, I got sick of seeing the same old styles out in industry and designed a new looking tabbed menu system and layout for a PVP 1000.

Just be careful and don't fall into the trap of spending hours and hours making your HMI pretty. Photoshop can get addictive

I use Crimson mostly and find that png is the format that supports a transparent color and works best if I need to use an external image that may need to show what is behind it, like a screen shot for the tank layout, showing the data box or other HMI object underneath through a cutaway that is in the middle of the bit-drawing.

To make my own images, I still use Paint.net with its simple and effective layers, toolbox, and photoshop-esque menu tools to get effects, then collapse the layers into a png, lowering the size so that I minimize the impact on the application for storage and loading, or just bmp if they are monochrome or greyscale and don't need transparency. Then drag and drop on to a page in crimson, set the z-order, expand its properties as needed.