FT Transaction Manager to SQL Database

A string of recent sucesses has made my boss believe that I am a god, that I can do anything. Unfortunately I am human and have limitations and need help at atimes like anyone else. Here is my task:

A customer wants to log about 30 integers and be able to graph and look at them. This software will run on a dedicated laptop and they want to access this computer over there network and look at preety graphs of this data. Sounds doable. The software that I am forced to use is FT Transaction Manager and Microst SQL Database (AB part # 9356PRO2100). I had no choice in this matter and I must make this "solution" work. At this point I should tell you that I am not an IT person. I have never created a database nor know anything about SQL - the closest thing I know is how to create very simple spreadsheets in Excel. It is apparent thatthis provided software is far from a plug-and-play or turnkey solution.

The overall way this is supposed to work is like this: FT Transaction Manager is used to grab the data from the plc and stick it into a SQL Database and then I am supposed to use some ? Reporter software (I can't remember the name of the software - it may be a part or function available in the MS SQL software) to generate report/graphs from the database.

It will take a week for Rockwell to get me the software but they did provide me with a version that would work for 7 days. After a couple hours I had some partial success. I got FT Transaction manager up and running and started to go through the various steps. I madeit through step 3 of the configuration checklist and was able to define a data point (I had my laptop hooked up to a micrologix and I could online browse values in it).It is at step 4 of the Configuration Checklist that I hit a brick wall. I know nothing about SQL or databses. I now have to create a database, get it running.

Where should I go from here? I have SQL 2008 server express on my laptop, but I now realize thatthis will not let me create a database. It looks like I need SQL Server Management Studio to create a database. Again I know nothing about databases. Are there any templates of a database that could be modified? Should I pay somebody to create a simple database? Is there any addition/cheap software that would help me with this process?

I have found some good pdf's online and I think I can learn to use FT Transaction Manager. Right now it is my ignorance of databases that is my stumblig block.

Ok, I have successfully loaded MS SQL Server Management Studio. It it time to create or find and modify a database to suit my needs. If I can accomplish this piece of the puzzle for today, I will be happy. If I can get it to run and get FT Transaction Manager to find it I will be overjoyed. There are other things to learn and do after that, but those are my immediate goals.

Progress Update - I downloaded and ran MS SQL Server Management Studio Express and found it rather easy to create a simple database consisting if one coluumn for Time using date type Data Type datetime and 30+ columns of the dat type int.

The next step is to return to FT Transaction Manager and define a Data Object. I found an online pdf that might help me with this step.

Time for a short break.

I will continue to update my progress as it may someday prove helpful to someone who is stuck in the same situation that I am currently in.

If anybody has any help or tips it is welcome.

At least I continue to make progress.

I was actually able to fumble through and complete the configuration checklist. Now I need to go back to work and see if I can the data shows up in my database. Once I learn to do that, I need to learn to generate reports using this data.

The plc that I am using to test this is not the same one or type that I will be using in the real application. At work I am using a ML1100 and the real application uses a SLC 5/05. Regardless, when using RSLinx Enterprise, and not being able to browse for online tags, is there any other way to put the tags in without manually doing them one at a time?

Thanks for providing the updates on your project. I'm not a FTTM user, myself, but I've done a lot of FactoryTalk View.

RSLinx Enterprise ought to be able to browse data tables online out of the MicroLogix 1100. The very first rev of the MicroLogix 1100 Series A controllers wouldn't allow anything to browse their data tables (even RSLinx Classic ) but it's unlikely you have one of those. Try the "Refresh All Folders" right-click action inside the FactoryTalk Tag Browser.

In any case, thirty data points isn't a back-breaker.

I presume you have the User Manual, RSSQL-UM001F.

There was a pretty good FactoryTalk Transaction Manager introductory lab session (my notes say it was Manufacturing Intellgence lab MI07) at RSTechED. See if your distributor can get you the lab manual and presentation off the RSI Extranet. Often running through the disparate packages and actions needed to set up a transaction will help you get the idea of how the different parts of the system work together.

Thanks Ken for your reply. I think I found the Rockwell document you are referring to you and it has proved to be very helpful.

Would you happen to know if FT Historian can be used with SLC processors? I've learned a lot in a very short time to get to where I am at and after getting this far the customer wants to know about Historian. I thought Historian was geared more towards the Controllogix platform. They want Historian used because it has some compatibility with Pi from Osisoft. However, it seems to me that any high end data software such as Pi should be able to work with file in a database.

FT Historian can work w/ any OPC server if so licensed. It will also work just fine w/ PLC5, SLC, Micro, Compact, Controllogix.

It isn't just compatible w/ PI btw, It is based off an older codebase of PI itself. Correct me if i'm wrong here Ken.

Also, if you setup an ODBC connection to your shiny new DB, you can use Excel to do graphing and whatnot on your data.

About the best way I have found to display data from the SQL database is to use the query function in Excel. It is not as fancy as some of the software but everyone that uses the data knows excel. What you do is create the excel worksheet and have a date cell and range on it and when they plug in the date the query pulls all the data within that date range. When you set up the excel query, it looks like the MS Access query setup and you reference the date cell in the worksheet. It will fill up the tab with all the data and from there you can create graphs that will change when the user changes the date. The best part about it is the query is part of the excel file so anyone on the network that has the excel file gets the data. For me I don't want to be the person that is always in making new graphs because someone wants to the data a little different. I proide them the raw data and they make it their own.

If anyone wants sample of this and some instructions on the set up, let me know. The date format can be a pain to get the format correct, but once it is set, it works great.

select date_time,int1,int2,etc from yourcooldatabase where date_time is between 'blah' and 'laterblah'

In the Excel query I select all the collumns that I want and under the date/time in the criteria field I use "Between [start] & [end] and wnen you save and go back to excel you can assign the cells under query parameters.

I suck at SQL Querys but am learning!

Thanks for all the input. Apparently there is some new compatibility betwwen Pi and Historian:
http://domino.automation.rockwell.com/applications/gs/emea/gsemea.nsf/pages/jun1105

Regardless of whether this compatibility is of any real significance, the customer wants FT Historian - end of discussion. Therefore it looks like all my work in the last three days has gone mostly to waste. The FT Transaction Manager & MS SQL Database can be made to produce the graphs they want, but they want Historian.

Unlike other Rockwell products, it appears that when it comes to the difference between ME, SE, and EE is more than just a matter of scale when it comes to Historian. Every Historian ME overview that I have read make mention of the clx platform, whereas the SE overview does not mention clx. The SE overview mention a server, a data collection computer, and a client computer.

Here is what I need to know:

1. What version of Historian can be run on a single computer to serve as the collector of data and also use that computer as a server to just 5 or less computers? Is this possible? In reality I expect that 1 or two people will probably want to look at this data in any day.

2. Does the use of Historian require the use of any additional software products such as SQL server, FT Historian, FactoryTalk, Rslinx, etc.?

3. What is the minimal system required to ccomplish this?

The ME platform is module based iirc and lives in a CLGX chassis.
The SE platform sits on some servers and is server/client based.
EE is wayyy out of scope for what you're doing.

The smallest # of tags they offer for SE is 250, might be a touch overkill

FactoryTalk Historian SE Server Machine:
FactoryTalk Historian SE 25,000 points and below
Minimum: Intel Pentium D, 3.2 GHz, 1GB RAM
Server class OS

FactoryTalk Historian SE Live Data Interface Machine:
Minimum: Intel Celeron D, 3.0Ghz, 512MB RAM
Server or Workstation class OS.

Thanks Dravik. Does FT Historian SE does not need any supporting software? Is the Live Data Interface Machine the computer that connects to the plc/s? Is it possible to use a single computer rather than two seperate computers since we are talking about a very minimal amout of data and users? Does Historian SE have an unlim ited number of client licenses?

It is time for me to go to bed.