Earlier in the week we described what the DataStore Plus ActiveX was.
Today we walk you through the steps you need to take to add it to a FactoryTalk ViewStudio Machine Edition project.
Basic steps to setup the DataStore Plus ActiveX in ViewStudio:
Create and configure a new “on top” display to host the DataStore Plus ActiveX- Add and configure the DataStore Plus ActiveX to the new display
- Set the DataStore Plus display as the project’s new initial graphic
- Configure the DataStore Plus display to load your original initial graphic display by:
- Creating an HMI Tag
- Assigning the HMI Tag to the Global Connection’s “remote display number”
- Create and assign two macros
- Create first macro to trigger original initial graphic by setting the HMI Tag to the original initial display’s number
- Create second macro to reset the HMI Tag to “0”
- Assign the first macro to the DataStore Plus “on top” display’s startup macro setting
- Assign the second macro to the original initial display’s startup macro setting
Now on to the detailed steps:
DataStore Plus Step 1:
The first step to using DataStore Plus is to create a new graphic display in your project to “host” this ActiveX. To do so, create a new graphic display with these display settings:
On the General Tab
- On Top
- Cannot be replaced
- Display Number 999
- Maximum Tag Update Rate of .25
- Specify Size of 400 width and 400 height
- X and Y position of -401 and -401 (off the visible screen)
Note: Below is a picture of my display settings:
Explanation of above settings:
Since we want the DataStore Plus ActiveX to run while the PVPlus project is running, we need to keep the display it’s on open at all times. One way to accomplish this is to set the display as “always on top,” and “cannot be replaced.” However, we don’t actually need to see this display, so we also position it out of the visible pixel range with a negative X Y position.
DataStore Plus Step 2:
Now that our graphic display is created, we need to add the DataStore Plus ActiveX to it. To do this, choose ActiveX from the Objects Menu:
Click and drag a box on your display. When you release the mouse, you’ll be prompted to choose an ActiveX – choose the ME DataStore Plus ActiveX and press OK:
This is now what your graphic display screen should look like:
Next, double click on the DataStore Plus object and set the general settings to meet your preferences (mine are shown below:)
Do the same on the Advanced tab (my advanced settings are shown below:)
Finally, on the Connections Tab you’ll need to fill in the “File Location” (includes file name and CSV extension,) “Trigger” (this acts as an enable,) and add at least one real or string tag (my settings are shown below:)
NOTE: “FileLocation” can either be a String Tag which contains the full path and file name for your CSV file, OR it can be the actual full path and filename included within quotes as shown below:
Next press Apply and OK, then save your screen with a memorable name (I saved mine as DataStore Plus)
DataStore Plus Step 3:
In this step you need to set your DataStore Plus display as the new initial display, after recording what the initial display is currently set to. This is done in “Startup”
DataStore Plus Step 4:
Now that our DataStore Plus display is setup as the initial display, it will launch when the project runs. However, if we do nothing else we’ll be left with a blank gray screen.
So our next step is to setup our DataStore Plus display to launch our original initial display. To do this, we first need to create a new HMI tag as shown below:
Now let’s set our new “RemoteDisplayTag” to be the Global Connection’s “remote display number” tag as shown below:
DataStore Plus Step 5:
Now we need to create two macro’s. One to change our “RemoteDisplayTag” to the number of our original initial graphic display (in my case “1”.) And another to reset it back to “0” so the operator can navigate to other displays.
Below is the first of the two macros we must create. This is the one our DataStore Plus screen will trigger after opening, to then trigger the opening of our original initial display.
Note: Changing the tag associated with the Global Connection for “remote display number” to “1” will cause the system to display the graphic display with that corresponding display number. However, the operator will not be able to navigate away from that screen until the “remote display number” is changed back to “0”
Note: Always be sure when implementing “remote display number” that all your displays have a unique “display number” in display settings.
Below is the second macro we must create. It will be launched by our original initial display to reset the “remote display number” tag to “0” so the operator can navigate to other displays:
Our final step is to set our two displays to run the appropriate macros.
First, on our DataStore Plus display we need to open the display settings. Then on the Behavior Tab we add our “Macro_GotoMainScreen” to the Macro Startup field as shown below. When done press OK, then save and close the display:
Next, we need to open our original initial display and on the Behavior Tab in the display settings we need to add “Macro_ResetRemoteDisplay” to the Macro Startup field as shown below. When done press OK, then save and close the display:
At this point we’ve successfully added the DataStore Plus ActiveX to our project. Once we run our project we can open Windows explorer to look for our next CSV datalog file. Just navigate Windows Explorer to the location specified in the DataStore Plus ActiveX’s “FileLocation” property, and you should see the first CSV log file.
If you open the file in Microsoft Excel, you should find data similar to what you see in my file below:
That’s it for DataStore Plus ActiveX step-by-step.
If you have any questions or comments please don’t hesitate to let us know by either using the “post a comment or question” link below.
Until next time, Peace ✌️
If you enjoy this episode please give it a Like, and consider Sharing as this is the best way for us to find new guests to come on the show.
Shawn M Tierney
Technology Enthusiast & Content Creator
Eliminate commercials and gain access to my weekly full length hands-on, news, and Q&A sessions by becoming a member at The Automation Blog or on YouTube. You'll also find all of my affordable PLC, HMI, and SCADA courses at TheAutomationSchool.com.
- Automation Q & A for November 8, 2024 (QA022) - November 8, 2024
- PRTG’s OPC UA Server: IT & OT Monitoring for your SCADA, HMI, or PLC (P226) - November 6, 2024
- 2024 Audience Choice Poll #10: Vote for your preferred Sensor / Reader Vendor - November 6, 2024
Discover more from The Automation Blog
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
Hi Shawn,
Great instructions you’ve made here, although what I’d really like to be able to do is to log to the SD card (I can do that) but then copy to a USB stick when the operator inserts one. I know I could put an autorun file on the stick (not really too sure how to do this!) but would prefer if I didn’t have to. I’ve seen online some people have referred to using Program Launcher to do this but I can’t find out any more info on how to do it. Given how good your step by step guide is I wondered if you’re the right person to go to for help!
Dom
Good morning Dom,
Yes, you can log to the SD Card.
And yes, you can use an Autorun file on the USB Stick to auto-copy the file (like I detail in another article here on the blog,)
And yes, you could also use the Program Launcher to “run” the same .bat file the Autorun script would run.
If you have detailed questions, feel free to post them at https://Automation.Locals.com – for the price of one cup of coffee a month I try to answer all questions that come in each work day.
Shawn
Hello Shawn,
I followed your tutorial and have been able to generate csv files on my dev pc.
When I started the .mer on FactoryTalk View me station (8.10.00 CPR 9 SR 7.4) I got an error “Unable to load ActiveX control” and “cause: ME DataStore Plus: Newer file version of ActiveX control required”.
How can I update ActiveX ?
I registered the ME_DataStorePlus.ocx using the regsvr32 command but I still got the same error.
Thanks,
Definitely a version mismatch.
Typically these things are backwards compatible, so in this case it sounds like you have a newer version on your PC than what is on the PVP.
Even if you have View Studio 8.1 on your PC, if you’ve applied a patch it could have updated the ActiveX, in which case (at a minimum) you’d likely need to update the firmware on the PVP to the latest 8.1x.xx.
If you’re using a newer version of View Studio, I know what I’d do – I would flash my PVP to the latest firmware matching my software (or just to the latest firmware period.)
Best of luck!
Shawn
Thanks for your reply. Maybe I haven’t described my question clearly. I’d like the customer to be enable to transfer the datalog from the PVP to their own computer by using a SD card, read and print it but can’t edit it, just like the PDF file. The Data Store Plus is a useful tool while only the .csv format is not acceptable. I’d like to know if there is a way to realize my purpose. Thx.
Good morning,
Nope, I totally understood your question, and I should add you can edit a PDF with Microsoft Word like you can edit a CSV with Excel.
Really any “report” you generate, even an image, can be easily edited, so if you need to be sure your people don’t edit the data once it’s pulled out of the PVPlus, then you’ll need another solution.
Back to the built-in “datalog” files the PVPlus Datalogs create – these can’t be “easily” edited unless you export them to CSV.
But you can view (and export) the data from them using the free, pre-installed “File Viewer Utility”
– https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/answer_view/a_id/823751/loc/en_US
If you need real secure logs you might want to check out something like XLReporter which can collect data into a secured spreadsheet for much less than an actual “SCADA” or “Historian” would cost.
Best of luck,
Shawn Tierney
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Hey Shawn,
Would you please share us some method that is used for datalog on PVP ME but not using the .csv file?
The .csv file can be easily changed on computer which makes the data not so reliable. Thx.
Good morning Aaron,
The default DataLog is not editable, plus ViewME v10 added a lot of new features for 21CFR Part 11 which will be of interest to you since it deals with reliability of data and traceability.
Best of luck!
Shawn Tierney
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Hey Shawn,
Thanks for your valuable tips. I am able to log files on my network PC hassle free. But PVP needs administration login everytime while PVP is restarted. So, i just want to know that, is it possible to auto log in network PC from PVP configuration settings on elsewhere?
Thanks,
Good afternoon @Jitendra Patel,
I don’t see anywhere to add credentials in the DataStore Plus ActiveX, so unless you’re using Windows Domain credentials to log into the PVP, I’m not sure you’ve be able to automate that peice.
Probably the fastest solution would be to either (1) make the share open to everyone so no login is required, or (2) have the files logged on the PVP and then share that folder with your PC:
– https://theautomationblog.com/setup-and-use-the-panelview-plus-7-file-server/
Best of luck!
Shawn Tierney
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Hello Shawn,
I am getting ping My PC in PVP. But i can’t find path of the pc or we can say a one folder i created in PC. So, how can i find the same?
Thanks
Good morning @Jitendra Patel,
Which can you ping from your PVP, the Computer Name or IP address?
While the computer name would be better because it’s more likely not to change, either will work if they remain static.
Next, you’ll need to know the name of the folder you have shared on your PC. For instance, if you share a folder named PVPData, then that would be the folder you’d use over the network.
To see PC folder sharing in action, try to access your newly shared PC Folder from another PC on the network.
And example of what you’d type into Windows File Explorer would be:
\\MyPCNameOrIPaddress\MySharedFolderName
It’s always best to try and get your folder sharing working between two PCs first before trying to get it working on the PVP.
Also keep in mind PVPs that allow access to the Windows CE desktop can also share folders as well as support FTP:
– https://theautomationblog.com/setup-and-use-the-panelview-plus-7-file-server/
– https://theautomationblog.com/setup-and-use-the-panelview-plus-7-ftp-server/
Best of luck!
Shawn Tierney
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Hello Shawn,
Currently i am successfully logging data to usb sticks.
Now i want to log them into network shared pc. Datastore plus is not finding my network shared by it’s PC name, ip address anything.
So, how can i run the same?
Good morning @Jitendra Patel,
If you can’t “ping” the computer name from a command prompt on your PanelView Plus, then the computer name resolution services (WINS, DNS, etc) you are using on your network is not working for your PVP.
In this case you could adjust the Ethernet settings on the PVP so that it uses your network’s name resolution service, or just use the IP address of the Networked PC in place of the Computer Name so a naming service is not required to translate the computer name to IP address.
If the Networked PC is using DHCP, then you’ll likely want to set it to always has the same IP address from within your DHCP server’s configuration.
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Hiya
I have tried to set up the ‘active x’ on PV+ version 10, but the PV+ will not write to the usb stick, which is addressed as ‘external storage2’.
The ‘active x’ button is on my start page, and highlights green, but at no time does the hmi write to the stick.
What is the point of the macros in the steps ? Surely if the ‘active x’ is in my start page it should work ?
Thanks John, Manchester
Good morning John,
With old versions of the PVPlus and ViewME you could only specify a single display to start automatically.
Due to this, we use to set the default startup display to the Display with the ActiveX on it, and then have that display trigger the user’s default display.
This is no longer needed in the latest version of View Studio since you can select more than one display to load on startup.
That said, as a test I would recommend using a single display with the activex on it. If you find it’s not logging to your USB memory stick, it’s likely a path issue.
To verify the path, exit to the desktop on the PVPlus (https://theautomationblog.com/how-to-access-the-windows-desktop-on-the-panelview-plus-7/) and then browse to your USB stick to be sure the path it correct.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney,
Instructor at http://www.TheAutomationSchool.com
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi Shawn, just curious. Is it possible to run multiple logs from the Datastore plus? For example, i have 4 elements with different data i would log but would want to log them into their own separate CSV files. Is it as easy as just creating 4 separate data store plus objects within the active X screen and simply give them their own respective data and file locations etc?
Shawn was kind enough to help me out with this originally. I have expanded it to do what you are looking for. Just add multiple Data Log components (MEDataStorePlus) to the screen. I currently have 3 going to 3 different csv files, from 2 different PLC’s.
Wonderful! Thanks Dave i appreciate your feedback. I suspected that was the case but figured id ask the question.
Thanks Dave!
Shawn Tierney
Hi Shawn,
I am trying to get DSP to log to my laptop with no luck. The panel keeps telling me invalid file path. The exact syntax I entered into FileLocation on the ME Data Store Plus Properties is “C:LogsDataFileLog.csv” What am I missing?
Thanks in advance
Afternoon Dave,
You’re “Test Running” your application on your PC, and the C:Logs folder exists and is not protected/secured/read only?
Shawn
Yes, when I test run it seems to work. When I stop the test run, it does not. Either way, test run or not, I get an alarm on the panel that the file path is invalid. My path names look correct, not protected, etc. The panel does not seem to “see” my PC. Ultimately I want to hook it to our network thru ethernet.
Thank for the quick reply!
Hey Dave,
So when you test it on your PC, do you get the csv file in C:Logs?
Once that is working it’s on to the next step.
The DSP “File Location” parameter can be either a network share or a local directory. C:Logs is a valid local directory on a Windows PC, but it not valid on the Panel which is why the panel gives you this error.
If you would like the panel to log to your PC over the network, you’ll need to use a network path.
Start by sharing your C:Logs folder in Windows, and then to check that it is working browse to it from another PC on your network and try to place a file into it to insure you have write access.
Once you have it working PC to PC, you should know the “path” to that folder
NOTE: Depending on your network settings, you may be able to use your computer name as part of the path, or you may have to use it’s ip addresses. That goes into DNS, WINS, and other network settings and how you setup the PanelView.
You may find it easier to have the PanelView log to it’s own local directory which you could serve up using the PV’s FTP or File Sharing services, and then just grab the files from the PV when you want them.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I am at the point where I can see and write to the folder PC to PC using the computer name. Still not working in the panel. In order to use the computer name, how should the panel be setup (as in what network settings)?
Thanks again
I got it working. Thanks for the advice.
Congrats Dave,
Glad I could help,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi shawn
I used your instructions to log from a PVplus 1500 to my laptop and it worked fine
will try to log to a server during commissioning
thanks a lot for your help
Josh
Thanks for letting me know Josh – hope the rest of your project goes well!
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
hi shawn
im trying to log from the panel view to the laptop for final testing, when running test application on my laptop it works fine
do I have to specify the ip address of my laptop to log back to it?
Good morning Josh,
Sounds like you want the DSP running on the HMI to log to your laptop, right?
So, DSP can log to a local file path (like C:, or USB Storage)
It can also log to a remote share, like MyPCsNameMySharedFolder
However, if you use a share and that share becomes unavailable, DSP won’t be able to log anything.
Hope this helps!
PS – Thanks for the coffee(s)!
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Hi, do we have a chance to view the data out of my logged (stored) csv file on my PV screen? MAybe with an other activeX element?
BR
M.
Good afternoon BR,
I haven’t attempted that myself, but if your model of PVP6 or 7 has Excel installed I image it would work?
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
how do I register activeX on a versaview ce
Good morning John,
Each of the free Rockwell ActiveX’s for the older VersaView CE / PaneView Plus CE has a download tech note with instructions on how to install it.
For DataStore Plus covered in this article, you can find additional information below:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/724760
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi Shawn,
I have followed all of the steps above, but am having trouble getting the .csv files to be created on my PC. I specified a file location “C:Datadataview.csv”. When I run my panelview program, no .csv file is generated to that file location on my PC. Here is the catch, when I open up my panelview program on FactoryTalk View (on my PC) and open up my Datastore activex screen and press play, it logs the data in the file location. I am working on a PV plus 6 CE.
Thank you,
Justin
Good morning Justin,
To me, it sounds like the screen is not opening when the runtime starts.
I have seen this before when screen control is used via global connections – basically the PLC was telling the PVPlus to display a different screen before the DSP screen could load.
One quick test would be to change your DSP screen so that it displays in the visible part of your PC screen – that way when you run it on your PC you’ll be sure it is being displayed.
Please let us know how you make out!
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Thanks for the reply Shawn. I can see the activex screen pop up briefly when i first start up the panelview, then it goes away as it should. I think my issue is that i am not saving the data on the panelview to an area that i can access with an external PC. I am trying to access the datastore data from an external PC connected to the panelview via Ethernet. I believe i need to set up a network location or FTP server.
Good morning again Justin,
Hmm… from what you describe, it does not sound like the DSP screen is set to “On-Top” and “Cannot be replaced” and therefore it won’t stay open allowing DSP to run and log data (which is what I suspected and why I suggested repositioning it to the visible pixel area of the display.)
Once it’s staying open and logging, you can change the screen x and y position so it’s off to the side of the viewable area, because it must stay open all the time and On Top and Cannot be replaced is our only option to do so in ViewME.
As far as storing the CSV files in a location your PC can access, I often store them in the same folder as I set for the FTP server on the PVPlus to share, so that part should work great as long as the WinCE folder path used for the FTP server is the same as you enter into the DSP config.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hey Shawn,
I have a difficult application im trying to repair and seek your expert guidance. I having one HMI (panel view plus 1000) communicating to two PLC’s. The tricky part is the PLC’s are working together as a primary and secondary system. Both PLC’s run the same program with all inputs and outputs wired in parallel.
Question i have for you is;
Is there a way to setup in the networking settings to assign a primary controller and secondary controller ?
Good morning Ryan,
While RSLinx Classic has had “Alias topics” for many years now, I can’t find where Rockwell ever added a similar feature to RSLinx Enterprise.
Last I heard, it was on the list of new features to be added but got dropped in favor of supporting several new Logix features.
So one option might be to use Rockwell’s sample code to change the IP address on the PLC’s network card itself programmatically:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/27917
Note: You may also need this patch
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/38590
Another option is found in Rockwell’s Hot-Backup for CompactLogix app note where they recommend having HMI displays for each PLC, and only displaying the screens for the current master PLC:
http://literature.rockwellautomation.com/idc/groups/literature/documents/at/highav-at001_-en-e.pdf
PS – With ControlLogix redundancy the IP switching is done automatically in hardware, so no changes are needed in the HMI.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Problem solved. Per knowledge-base answer 731211, the activex will not start a new file if the trigger is not active. Since I was only trying to capture one set of data in 12 hours I didn’t have the trigger active at the specified times.
Good afternoon Danny,
Thanks for the update – you know now that you say that it makes sense!
Have a great week,
Shawn Tierney
Yep. All true. I may try two DSP objects on the single display as mentioned in an earlier entry and start two different files each day in that way.
Good morning Danny,
Please let us know how you make out!
Thanks,
Shawn Tierney
I have another curious problem maybe you have some insight on. I have the activeX trigger set to write data only once every 12 hours, only one row. I also have it set to start a new file at specified times and set two times each day, on two separate lines, both a few minutes before the data is captured. However, it seems to have a mind of it’s own about starting the new files. Some days it starts two, some days one, some days not at all and the data is always just added to another row in the last file it created.
Good afternoon Danny,
Sounds like some strange behavior… do you have the DSP ActiveX on a single display that is always running? If so, and the display is set to update at a reasonable rate (twice as fast as the data collection time) and you’re direct referencing tags then what you’re seeing would be quite unexpected!
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Putting the path in an HMI tag solved the connection problem. Although I’m sure my original problem as not enclosing the path in ” ” . My other issue was a bad tag in the trigger postion. It was never changing to 1. Seems to be working fine now. Thanks for the help.
Good morning Danny,
Thank you very much for sharing how you solved your issue!
I’m going to add a note about the “quotes” above as a lot of people miss them.
For future visitors who may get the same error:
Testing your app on your PC is a good way to check your trigger, and browsing to your path right on the PVPlus is a good way to verify it’s correct (the PVPlus, PVPlus 6/7 and PC all have different paths for USB flash drives and Windows folders so it gets kind of confusing!)
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Seeing this on a panelview plus 6 700 version 6.1. I’m trying to put the path in a string tag now per Knowledgebase article 493999. I’m not seeing the “Unable to activate connection” but so far still not writing to external storage.
Danny,
Did it work on your PC (with a PC path like C:) when you test ran it?
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Hello Shawn,
I have a similar problem to Nick from July 17. With my path set to USB Storagedatastorereport.csv I get the “Unable to activate connection: USB… . I tried wqith another folder in my documents and set the path to My Documentsdatastorereprt.csv and got the same message. What am I missing?
Good morning Danny,
Are you seeing this issue on a PanelView Plus, PVPlus 6/7, or on your PC?
Each has a different path, which I believe needs to be enclosed in quotes (as shown above) or contained in a string tag.
And are you also using v8?
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Hello Shawn,
I would like to log values on two different time bases. The first group is a 5-minute time base. The second is a 1-hour time base. After looking through the settings, it looks like I’m limited to a single timebase only, regardless if I use the default data logging or the ActiveX. Would the solution be putting two activeX controls on my initial screen, or is there a reason that wouldn’t work?
Just wanted to say I just tried it and it appears to work. Simply placing two activex controls on your initial screen will allow you to save to separate folders and log on separate time bases.
Good afternoon Brian,
Thanks for the heads up!
I’ve also run multiple DSP ActiveX’s without issue to create multiple csv files with different tags and time bases.
But I could never find anywhere where Rockwell states they support more than 1, although it does seem to work well!
Shawn Tierney
Hi Shawn,
Having a bit of trouble creating the .csv file.
I have a PVP6 2711P-T6C20D8 running the latest version of FTView Stuido (version 8) and have updated the PVP6 firmware to the latest version also.
I have
My path in DataStore Plus is:
Storage Card2datalLog.csv
When I run the application I get the following errors:
Unable to activate connection Storage Card2DatalLog.csv
Any ideas?
Cheers
Nick
Good morning Nick,
On your PVPlus 6, if you exit to Windows and browse your drives, I think you’ll find that your PVPlus 6 has a path of “usb storage” for your USB memory stick.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn Tierney
I also passed parameters through parameter list option which is present in button properties but even though if I passed two separate parameter list from two separate button to open two seperate displays, if I open first display by pressing first button as soon as if I press second button first display overwrite with second display in run mode, even though both are seperate display and pressed by seperate button.
If you could give snaps or more setting details with example then it would give me clear idea.
Regards
Sagar
Good morning Sagar,
I did some additional testing again using FTView 8.0, and the only time I could not get the same popup to display twice was if I passed either the same Parameter File or Parameter List to the second instance
But as long as I passed different files or lists I didn’t have an issue displaying the same popup twice.
One step I did take to insure the popup (on top) graphic display didn’t open over top of itself was to enabled the “Display Position” option on the “General” tab of the Goto button. So for each button that displayed my faceplate with a different parameter file or list, I used a different “Left Position” (in pixels) so they would popup on different locations on the display.
PS – If you send me your email address using the “Contact” link on the top of the page, I’d be happy to email you my test project.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
With this setting during Factorytalk view machine addition in run mode, while opening faceplate by pressing soft button its open at one location similarly if I press other button its opens at another location(changed position of X and Y for two faceplates at different X and Y location) but In that case first gets hide and second getting open.
I want to open two separate faceplate at two different location.
I tried all above setting by check in check out but still its overlapping.
Please provide appropriate solution.
Regards
Sagar
Good morning Sagar,
I tested it out this morning in version 8.0 and ran into the very same issue. I initially could not display the same popup screen twice at the same time.
However, I found if I passed either a parameter file, or individual parameter, as long as the values supplied were different I could then display the same popup twice at the same time.
Note – I didn’t have to actually use the parameter passed to the display on the display.
This appears to be a minor bug. It seems the issue is a popup can only be displayed twice (or more) concurrently if each instance is unique.
It also appears if the popup screen is called a second time with identical properties as the first instance, the new instance will not appear, even if the second request is to display it in a different x,y location on the screen.
I even found passing different parameter files did not work if both parameter files were identical. The actual tags or values passed had to be different.I found this also happens with a global object on the screen.
While it’s highly unlikely in a product environment you would pass the same parameter values to two different popups being displayed at the same time, I do think it is possible for this to happen randomly.One way to work around this issue would be to include an additional, unique parameter when displaying each popup, even if you don’t use that parameter on the display itself (i.e. #10 = “Popup Instance x”)
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Good Afternoon. Thank you for your reply
I mentioned required answer in following points.
1. Trying to allow an operator to open two faceplates using two different buttons.
2 .I made 2 separate button on display to open different faceplate but the faceplate is a global object.
3. I have created faceplate in global object and referring the same in display by using parameter passing. 4. It is not Rockwell faceplates.
5. Display settings for faceplate are mentioned below:
a) General Display type option is selected to on top b) Cannot be replaced option is checked in. c) Size in pixels width =244 and height = 176
d) Position X= 100 and Y=100
e) Support multiple languages option is checked in.
f) Maximum tag upload rate is 1 sec.
I’m using factory talk view machine addition.In that I have an issue to open multiple display as face-plates (more than 1) at once in run time but during if one opens other gets hide (overlapping).Suppose If I want to run two parameters at a time, I can’t access the two face-plates at once.kindly please provide solution.
Good morning,
Are you trying to automatically display two faceplates, or are you trying to allow an operator to open two faceplates using two different buttons?
Are the two faceplates you’re trying to open the same faceplate, or two different faceplates?
Are these faceplates you (or someone you know) created, or are they stock Rockwell faceplates.
If they are Rockwell faceplates, specifically which ones are they?
If you (or someone you know) created them, what are the faceplate’s display settings?
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi sir,
I need to transfer ftp files to remote server can u guide me which HMI or scada should I use
vinod,
All PanelView Plus 6 and 7 models have an FTP server which can serve up a folder on the PVPlus via FTP.
It’s common to see users setup the DataStore Plus logger to store the CSV files in the FTP folder in order to be able to access these CSV files remotely via FTP.
For more information about the PanelView Plus 6 and 7 FTP server, see the below public Rockwell tech note:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/603763
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Dear Sir,
Please guide me for data logging using Active x control on storage device(pen drive) in pvp600 hmi.
Thanks
Good morning Digember,
If memory serves me correctly, with the old VersaView CE and PVPlus CE the path for the USB Memory stick was storage card2, while on the new PVPlus 6 it’s now usb storage
So, in the procedure documented in this article, in the last part of step 2, replace “c:……” in the “FileLocation” field with the correct path for your version of PanelView.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Dear Sir,
file location should be “usb storagedatalogg.csv” ??
where datalogg is folder in pen drive.
hmi is pvp 6.
That looks correct,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Dear Sir,
Please guide me for datalogging using Active x control on storage device ftv ME.
Thanks.
Plz post step by step setup of email sender activex
Good morning rohit,
Thanks for your request,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
expecting you soon post the same….
Good morning rohit,
Since Rockwell has already extensively documented the use of the Email Sender ActiveX at the below link, I won’t be revisiting that topic anytime soon:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/164511
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
thanks for reply shawn….above link is not opening its shows an error ”
Not available
‘Locked’ answer-You may not have a TechConnect contract or be linked to your contract (see answer 50871).”
i think its problem with my account which i just created…can you please post the pdf here….thanks
rohit,
Rockwell has marked that knowledgebase article as requiring a support contract to access.
And that content, like the content on this website, is copyrighted and therefore I do not have the rights to repost it.
I just checked ViewME version 6.1 and 7.0 documentation and they also seem to have no info on this activex, however it is documented in the v8 help.
Not sure what else I can do except ask Rockwell to make the above tech note public.
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
thanks….now what else i can do….just waiting for rockwell to make it public….:)
I checked this morning and it’s not public yet – did you check the help on the ActiveX itself?
I mean can you place the activeX on a display, and either use F1 or right click on it to access help about it?
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Thanks for the information,we just applied it on site..thanks shawn sir.
You’re very welcome!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
Can you run multiple ME data Store Plus ActiveX Controls in an application?
Thanks,
Brian
Good afternoon Brian,
I know several people who have multiple DSP objects running on the same popup, but I can’t find anywhere that Rockwell has tested a limit or has any recommendations.
So I can only recommend testing it out first before you go into production.
PS – Would love to here how you make out if you do give it a try
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi Shawn, I’m really having trouble getting my screen to run the initial display. My application uses the screen control tags also. I tried your Macros, but it just comes up and says “NO SCREEN SELECTED” How do I use external screen control and load up the datastore screen, then go to my main screen and then set to zero in this case? I tried in the logix, but the current screen number doesnt change to 999 my datastore screen number when I boot up.
I’m in the Philipines for 4 more days, could use some help quickly.
Thanks for your help.
Good morning Phil,
I’ve been in the same situation – let’s walk through this step-by-step with the hopes of making things clearer:
1) First, we need to make the DSP screen the default screen so it will display first on boot.
– Sounds simple enough, right? But when the PVP boots, I’ve found that sometimes the PLC screen control tag will override the boot screen in an attempt to load a different screen 🙁 This results in the DSP screen never loading.
– Your idea to try to manually trigger the DSP screen when this occurs was a good one, and I’m not sure why it wouldn’t work if you had setup the DSP screen properties with a screen number of 999?
2) Second, once the DSP screen loads (as an on top, can’t be replaced, off to the side of the visual display space screen,) it should trigger a macro that changes the screen control tag from 0 to the number of your main screen (probably 1.)
3) Third, when your main screen loads it also runs a macro to set the screen control tag to a 0, thus allowing the operator to change screens.
– In two and three above, as long as the PLC is sending the PVP to a valid screen it shouldn’t matter if it overrides these macros. However, if the PLC interrupted the loading of the DSP screen, but didn’t trigger a valid screen, nothing would get displayed.
In conclusion, when then PVP boots it’s very important that it’s allowed to load the DSP screen first before the PLC is allowed to command it to a different valid screen. In the situation I encountered, the PLC would interrupt the DSP loading, but then commanded screen 0, so we would end up with no screen displayed 🙁
To get the PLC not to interrupt the boot up of the PVP, and it’s initial loading of the DSP and Main screens, we’ll need to be sure we don’t allow the PLC to command a screen during the PVP project boot-up process.
One way to do this may be to not allow your PLC code to change the PLC screen control tag from 0 until it sees that the PVP project has been booted for few seconds. If you mapped the seconds of the PVP clock to a PLC tag under global connections, that seconds tag should not start updating until the PVP has booted most of your project. If this is the case, you would just need to create a line of PLC code that would keep the screen control tag at zero until the PVP seconds had been updating for a few seconds.
An alternative way may be to use an “if then else” expression in the screen control tag field itself, under global connections. This expression would need to use an internal memory tag set to 0 until the panel booted, and loaded the DSP and then the main screen. After those screens had loaded, the PLC screen control tag could then be used for screen control (I haven’t tried this myself – just a thought.)
Hope this helps!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I managed to get the DataStore plus trend object to log my data over time, thanks to your tutorial, but can not seem to display the trend. The visual trend object works with the data stored in the older, limited “Data Log Model”, not the data stored in the DataStore Plus object. One of the major limitations of the older Data Log Model you can not control when it starts or stops taking data, so it just trends all day long, scrolling off screen and taking irrelevant data points when you are not running your process. The new DataStore plus solves this problem by using a Trigger to turn off logging when it is not used. Is this true? You can now trend the data when you want, but you can’t see the trend?
Gooding morning Pat,
I agree, there is no way for the Trend to trend data from the DataStore Plus csv files.
So, since you can only trend with the older DataLog data files, you may wish to set those up to log only “on change” with a small dead band and possibly even a heartbeat. Doing this should allow you to avoid a large amount of redundant data from being logged.
Also, I think it was in version 7.0 where the Datalog was upped from a max of 300K values to 1mil, so it might be worth upgrading ViewStudio and your firmware to at least 7.0 to get this expended support,
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
I am running SoftLogix 5800 with FactoryTalkView ME. My system will have 4 stations doing a process. The process can take several days to complete. Each station can start/stop when the operator tells it to. I need to log batch information based on the start time and when the process stops. I only see a way to start/stop a file based on a time or periodic time or never. I assume I will have to generate 4 of these, one for each station. I am not sure about starting/stopping logging into a new file.
Good morning James,
You may want to tie your “batch running” bit to the “trigger” field so you only get data logging when the batch is running.
Then you may also want to tie a “batch path and name” string tag to the “file location” field. When a batch stops (and logging stops,) and the system is prepping for the next batch, your code could change the name portion of the string tied to “file location” to give you a new file for the new batch about to start.
In this case you would also want to set “create new file” to never since new files will be created when the ActiveX control sees a new file path when attempting to log again.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hopefully someone can help me. I am still wrestling with thw same project that I was trying to rebuildd some months ago. I was able to get the original apa file from the vendor along with the associated mer file. if I try to convert the apa back. it can not complete when it gets up to uncompiling the Popup_DataStationPlus graphic. When I open the apa file there is no active X content in the Popup_DataStationPlus graphic. I try to add the ActiveX and I get the message, “The display can not be saved with missing Active X contols. You mustdelete the missing ActiveX controls before saving the display.” Ii is not imperative that it works as everything is being collected on a Ifix SCADA, but I am stubborn and am seeking to find out why. I am wating for the latest FTV studio to grt delivered from AB because the vendor also sent me a updated file that is in the new format. I am hoping that may work. None the less have you ever heard of this error?
Good morning,
Yes, if the ActiveX used in the project was of a newer version than the one you have installed you will see this error.
However, if the version you have installed in the same or newer than the one you used in the project it should work.
You also have to keep in mind that the ME ActiveX’s that come installed on the PVPlus 6 and 7, and installed with ViewStudio 6+ are new, and not the same as the ones you download and install on the older VersaView/PVPlus CE and ViewStudio 5.1 and lower.
So what I’ve always done is used the same or greater version of ViewStudio (5.1 or 8.0, depending on if it’s a PVP or PVP6/7.) However, you may also need to install the same or later patch roll-up too if the original creator of the project installed he patch roll-up.
Here’s a public tech note from Rockwell with more information:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/117375
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn,
Some days ago i left working 4 DataStore at the same Display on a PVPlus 1000 6 with 7.00 firmware, their work perfectly but 3 days after they stop.
i delete previous applications, and previous generated .csv files but still not working, i have another PVPlus 1000 6 7.00 firmware where i test first application and where still perfectly working.
Do you have any suggestion?
Ramiro,
I haven’t run into that issue, and I’m not sure have many DataStore Plus objects running at the same is supported.
If I had to guess, I would imagine this is a memory issue, maybe even a memory leak. I would suggest displaying the memory counters to see if the memory usage grows every day until the DSP stops working…
Please let us know how you make out,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi Swan,
I talked with somebody in tech support who told me that the trigger I was using (an number 1) shouldn’t have work from the beginning, it must be something that changes from 0 to 1, so I create a 1 hour pulse in PLC that I used as a trigger.
In this moment 4 DSP in the same display are gathering data from 3 different PLCs over ETHERNET/IP working perfectly.
Ramiro Garza
Ramiro,
Very glad to here you have it running! I’ll have to test the trigger myself some more as using a 1 is working for me.
Thanks,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
If using data store plus to store data to mmc card, what is the path? I used the same path as ab recommends for the logging feature with a new sub directory, but nothing is recorded?
Good morning acd,
Did you test run it on your PC, and did it work there?
The easiest way I know of to confirm your file path on your PVPlus is set correctly is to exit ViewME on your PVPlus 6 or PVPlus CE and use Windows CE Explorer to navigate to your folder of choice to see the exact folder path.
With the old PVPlus and PVPlus CE, the path for the USB Memory stick was storage card2 while on the new PVPlus 6 it’s now usb storage.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Oh BTW – Found a solution to my problem,..After contacting AB, we determined the SD card was the culprit. Apparently bigger isn’t always better. The 64 GB SD cats was way too fast for the card reader I purchased. It was a Class 10 SD card which is is rated for very fast video and large photo’s…The recommendation from AB was to go to a Class 4 SD card. When I purchased the class 4 16-GB SD card at Best Buy and tried it , it worked great!!…So now we can hot swap the SD card whenever we want to swap the SD cards for analysis. Thanks Shawn for you replies.
Jim,
Thank you for sharing your discovery with us! That’s very good info to know,
Take care,
Shawn Tierney
Oh BTW – We decided to log our data to the SD card. I bought a 64GB card & installed it but i was now how do I tell the PV+ to copy the CSV file to it?
Jim,
I think the easiest way to find the new SD card’s path would be to plug it in and then browse to it like you did before by exiting to the desktop.
I don’t have a unit here atm so I can’t look myself, but I think it’s something like USB Storage 2
Then just updated the ActiveX settings with the new path and you’re good to go!
NOTE: I have a client who ran into an issue putting the optional “template” file on the removable media. While logging to the external storage directly works well, and survives removal and replacement of the SD card, the activeX never expects the template file to disappear (if that feature is used) – if it doesn’t find it when it boots it can lockup. So long story short, if you use the template feature, it may be best to store the template on the PVP6 itself.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
Was able to successfully get the file created on the SD card but every time i remove the SD card from the PV+ and install it on my card reader, to open file up on my laptop, (WIN 7) it wants to format the SD card even though I already formatted it. My IT guy thinks that the PV + is causing this….has this ever happened before, and is there a solution?
BTW – I tried this with 2 different SD cards, both 64 GB, both do the same thing….I might also add that if I do format the SD card, then the SD card will be accessible, but blank. Putting it back into the Panel View Plus again, then begin to log data again, new file will get created, you can see the file when you allow acess again, but when you remove the SD again and put it into the card reader again, the PC says it needs to be formatted…weird….still looking for a solution….don’t want the customer to keep accessing the PV+ just to get a CSV file….Perhaps there is an alternative way to remove this file and get it to my laptop?
Jim,
I haven’t seen that error message myself, well except every time I plug my USB stick into my PC 🙁 but I never select format and it works fine. However, I totally understand that isn’t a great solution.
You could use the Autorun.bat file we discussed previously to copy all .CSV files from the PVPlus to your removable media – I wouldn’t expect Windows 7 would want to format the card just because CSV files were copied, however it always wants to format my USB since the day I bought it, and I’m not sure why Win 7 does this.
Sorry I don’t have a definitive answer,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn,
Im using a thumb drive witht the following AutoRun.Bat file and a PanelView Plis 1000
Factory Talk 7.0.55.13
My AutoRun.Bat is as follows:
@echo off
copy “windows*.* “USB Storage”
echo copy process complete
My active X is setup as follows:
FileLoaction: “WindowsdataLog.csv
Trigger = 1
Float01 = systemSecond
Float02 = systemMinute
Float03 = systemHour
I leave the thumbdrive in the PV+ but don’t get the CSV file as expected. What am I doing wrong?
Jim
Hi Jim,
Hmm. Let’s try this new AutoRun.bat:
@echo on
cdwindows
dir
Now a few thoughts:
I’m not sure windows is a valid directory (I don’t have a PVP6 here atm,) so turning on ECHO and trying to CD should tell us if it is. The DIR will tell us if there is anything in the folder, and if it’s a system folder that could also be an issue?
You might try to create a new folder just for your CSV files – you could do it with a script like:
CDApplication Data
MD DataLogs
You might also need the leading “” in the ActiveX log path, like “Application DataDataLogs”
Well, those are my thoughts – please let us know how you make out!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn,
Well, Shawn here’s what I did….I did have to change things around a little. The CSV files were there, and worked as your instructions above. There is a Windows directory in the PV+. What I did to make things a little easier, was to activate the desktop, by going into Terminal settings and then Desktop Access Management and then NOT setting the password and the challenge question (unlock).
Then when clicked on OK button the PV+ it brought me to a windows desktop. i connected a USB mouse and I went into My Device, then into the directory called Windows, looked for any CSV files and found two of them, the files were named in the proper date format as noted in your step 2 above, where under the General Tab, you set the file to change daily at midnight, which is what exactly what this did last night at midnight!!!
I edited the AutoRun to the following:
@echo on
cdwindows
copy “Windows*.csv” “USB Storage”
This copied the two files to my USB thumb drive, which i then was able to open up on my laptop.
Thanks for your help and OLD DOS suggestions….Its been awhile I used these OLD DOS commands…kinda brought back some memories!!
Jim,
Thanks for your reply and sharing how you go tit to work!
Yeah, talking about all these old DOS commands does bring back some memories of the old days 🙂
Thanks,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
OK thanks. I will try. I will also try to get my hands on 5.1. I am not sure if it is 5 or 5.1. For Sure the firmware is 5.1. This has become a quest that I want to be able to de-compile the runtime that I have in the PVP1000 because I know there are others that have had the same problem. I would like to be able to solve it, to help others. Thanks for your time. If I solve it i’ll let you know. Howard
Thanks Howard,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
OK after walking away for a couple of days and getting back at it tonight, I do have a little more info. I don’t have 5.1 so I am still trying with 6.1.
Here is the error. I am still searching but I think it may be to do with active-x on the CE panel, but that is just a theory.
X Unable to save ‘POPUP_DATA_STORE_PLUS’ IN ‘EN-US’
i Unrecognized error occurred creating control (ME DataStore Pus)
! cause: ME DataStore Plus: Newer file used.
! Different ActiveX control loaded for display Data_Store_Plus than when saved.
I was only seeing the top line as I didn’t know the window could be resized. Any help with this error? Thanks Howard
Howard,
I can confirm the DataStore Plus that comes with 6.1 is a newer version than the one used in 5.1.
Question – do you get this error when you use the Application Manager to restore the .MER, or when you try to open the restored project in 6.1? Also, are you running Windows 7 64 bit?
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello, thanks for getting back to me so quickly. If I try to restore the runtime application (Mer) that I pulled off the PVP-1000 it fails with the messages I posted above. I actually was able to get ahold of a slightly older revision of the program that is in the PVP from the company who wrote the application. I can restore the archive but when try to compile the runtime I get “Unable to copmpile the file ‘C:….Dl9076GfxPOPUP_DATA_STORE_PLUS.Gfx’ into the runtime file. Would you like to continue creating the runtime file anyway? If I choose yes, I get a greyed out screen that says “Unable to open the inital display ‘.POPUP_DATA_STORE_PLUS.Gfx’.Please check to see if the display is valid and try running this project again. Aborting runtime exicution. Also, I dont know if there is any signifigance to this or not, but at times when rebooting the PVP-1000’s I get “No Screen Selected” on the display. and I cannot close it out. I have to rebbot the display and choose the runtime file in order to get the PVP-1000 to start. Thanks again for your assistance. Howard
Good morning Howard,
On the specific issue of not being able to compile the runtime, specifically the POPUP_DATA_STORE_PLUS.GFX, I think the easiest thing to try would be to deleted and recreate that graphic display in 6.1 (I also suggest using the application manager to make a copy of your application first, and editing the copy)
There are a lot more details about this at the below link:
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/117375
I don’t think I’ve run into this myself because I keep a copy of v5.1 around on a VMware image, but it does seem like version 6.1 with the latest patch should work as expected. However, recreating the popup with all the same settings may be a quicker fix.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Dont know if you can answer this or not, but I have an application in 5.10, that every time I try to restore the runtime .mer file back to project .apa file it hangs when it tries to process Data_Store_Plus graphic screen and gives me the message unable to restore project. Check that the disk is not full or if the project already exist. I actually was able to get one of the project files from the controls company that built it, except there were some field revisions from an employee that no longer worked at the company. Anyhow when trying to build the runtime it tells me that the the Data_Store_Plus display couldn’t be compiled and ask if I want to continue anyhow, but it leads to an inoperable runtime file. Any insight on why I would be having this problem? I am trying to rebuild with a borrowed laptop with FTV SE 6.10. Thanks in advanced. Howard
Howard,
I haven’t run into that issue. I would attempt to restore the 5.1 .mer with ViewStudio 5.1 to see if you got the same issue? Also, if you’re running Windows 7 64 bit, try it on Windows 7 32bit.
Best of luck!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
If I wanted to log a single event on demand can I turn the trigger on and off. When The trigger goes high and the data is logged at that instance. Then turn it off when I get the Handshake bit back? Is this how you would log a single event? I do not want a run data logging continuously because it will give me multiple transactions of then same part data. Looking for something like the snapshot command in SE.
Brian,
The “trigger” connection does enable or disable all logging by the DataStore Plus activeX.
I imagine if you set, “Log periodically every” to 10 seconds, and then only turned on the “trigger” connection for one or two seconds (just long enough for the PVPlus6 to see it on) you would only get 1 row of data for each on pulse of the trigger, similar to the snapshot in ViewSE/View32.
However, I haven’t tried this myself, so I’m not sure if any unforeseen issues will arise. If you do try it I’d be interested in hearing how you make out,
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
After Trying this I ended up setting the screen refresh rate to .25 seconds, the periodic scan to 1 second. Once I set the Trigger bit it recorded the reading and set the handshake bit to one. Then it reset the trigger to zero and the handshake bit to zero on its own. Seems to work well for my needs.
Awesome – thanks for the update!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Did you latch the trigger bit in the PLC? If so did the handshake bit unlatch the trigger?
Shawn, is there a way to check if there is a USB plugged in before writing to the USB folder to create the .csv file?
Alek,
That is a great question – I don’t think there is anyway to do this via the DataStore Plus ActiveX detailed above. Because of this we’ll often put an Autorun.bat file on the USB stick so when it’s inserted it copies all the datalogs from the PVPlus to itself.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I need to log 6 values daily. These values will change once a day. So I want to log by using on value change method. I also need to export the log to a csv file and copy the csv file to a usb stick. It seems that DataStorePlus active X only support periodic log and not on change log. Any suggestion for doing this on a PVplus 6. Thanks
Good morning Dany,
Not looking like the DataStore Plus is going to work for you.
The built-in PVPlus Datalog function can log on change, and there is a free utility to convert it to a CSV file.
You can also choose a custom file path for that log file, but it might be better to try an autorun.bat file on your USB memory stick to automatically copy the datalog file from it’s original location to the memory stick.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
The version 6 panels are web servers by default. Any computer can access the panel with a web browser by entering the IP address in the address bar. Unfortunately, the internal memory is limited. The server can be setup to have “Storage Card2” as the root directory.
First, enter the Windows CE from the terminal settings. Enter the Desktop Access Setup screen. Select “Allow” and enter “password” for the password. Press OK and from the main terminal screen, select Exit. The Windows CE desktop should be displayed.
It helps to have a usb mouse and keyboard to complete the next steps. If not, use a stylus.
Select Start and Run. Enter regedce
Note: Tread lightly in this area.
Expand HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE
Expand Comm
Expand HTTPD
Expand VROOTS
Select the folder listed as “/”, The Default path may be setup as WindowsWWW. Doubleclick the value of Default and change to Storage Card2.
Other default settings can be set here, but it is recommended to review these options before making unnecessary changes. Click the X to exit out of the registry edit screen.
Select Start, Settings and Control Panel. Doubleclick on Services and verify that WEb Server is green. There are other services that may be helpful also.
Doubleclick on Server Config and enter Web Server tab. Check the “Allow Directory Browsing” (to view list of csv files from browser) and set the Default Web Page to a customized html file that is loaded along with the csv files on the Storage Card. Example wwwindex.html Click OK and select “yes” to restart services.
Check the connection by entering the Panel’s IP address in a browser. Even without a start page, the server will list the files.
Re-Enter the ME Terminal and set the Desktop Access to Disallow. You have to re-enter the password information and provide challenge questions. It is recommended to still use “password” if there are other owners.
The CSV files can be viewed using a Javascript html file. RGraph (http://www.rgraph.net/) is a great resource to customize website graphs. My version of a graph linking to a DataStore CSV file is here: https://github.com/DaDaDadeo/Batch-Capture/blob/master/graph.html
Thanks DaDaDadeo for the info!
Sincerely,
Shawn Tierney
In my case, I needed separate files for each process recording. This helps with creating charts and graphs without
There is a way to create files for capturing data from individual cycles.
Panel tags (named MemoryTags in this example) are created to allow users to
change settings from a screen.
DataStoreAddress is 82 character retentive string tag
CycleCount is a string tag that converts a PLC tag from an integer.
DataStoreON is a digital bit tag
{[clx]CycleStatus.InProcess} is a PLC BOOL tag
FileLocation expression:
if MemoryTagsDataStoreAddress == “”
then “Storage Card2” + {MemoryTagsCycleCount} + “_YourMachineName.csv”
else {MemoryTagsDataStoreAddress} + {MemoryTagsCycleCount} + “_YourMachineName.csv”
Trigger Expression:
((systemSecond % MemoryTagsDataStore_Interval) == 1)
and
MemoryTagsDataStoreON
and
{[clx]CycleStatus.InProcess}
This expression uses the modulus function. If the DataStore interval is set
to 10, a record is created every 10 seconds.
What is also helpful is that the version 6 panels by default are set up as
web servers and file servers. The CSV files can be displayed as graphs and
accessed from a web page.
Browser Example: http://192.168.0.20/graph.html
Hello Mr.Shawn,
Can I design a button which it is used to delete logging memory on panelview plus? Because in costumer plant, they need a button to delete logging memory without go to configuration menu..
Good morning teddyhariyanto,
That is a great question. I don’t see any means built into the ActiveX to do this. I wonder if you could use the ME Program Launcher ActiveX to run a batch file that would delete all your datalogs?
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn, Is csv file automatically created after we have set me file location on data store plus or we should create a csv file? Currently, I am looking for solution how to record data log of trend by using sd card (But not AB SD Card)? Thanks and sorry for my bad english
Good morning teddyhariyanto,
The CSV is created automatically by the DataStore Plus activeX, and the good news is if you remove the SD card and put in a new one, the DataStore Plus will create a new CSV file on the new card, and keep on logging.
The build-in Trend uses a totally different logging mechanism, the “DataLog,” and while you can have it’s compressed file saved to the SD card too, there are a couple of disadvantages to doing so. First, if you remove or replace the SD card while the project is running, you’ll need to reboot the PVPlus to get it to start logging again. Second, you need a free utility from AB.com to extract the data from the compressed DataLog file.
What I recommend is (a) use the DataLog for “historical trending”, and also (b) use the DataStore Plus activeX to create user friendly CSV data files.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hello Shawn! I’m new here and I have a question. The DataStorePlus activex control works in a panel view 6 600 panel?
Thanks and excuse me, my english is not very well.
Pablo.
Hi Pablo!
Thanks for your comment! Yes, the good news is all PanelView Plus 6 models support the DataStore Plus.
There is also an older version of the activex which is supported on the PanelView Plus CE (VersaView CE) but unlike the PVPlus 6, on the old CE boxes it needs to be installed by the user.
Have a great day,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Hi Shawn,
I have an older panelview plus 600 (2711P-T6C20D) which I believe was replaced with (2711P-T6C20D8). Would i need to install the older version of activex for this one and if so what is involved in doing so.
Thanks,
Good morning Rene,
Great question! While all PanelView Plus 6 models allow access to the Windows CE desktop, and come pre-installed with all the available add-ons, the same is not true with the older PanelView Plus models.
To use any of the add-on ActiveX’s, like the DataStorePlus ActiveX, on older models you need a CE version like the PanelView Plus CE or VersaView CE. Unfortunately, neither came in the 6″ size.
If you did have a “CE” model (or pre-6.0 PC ViewME runtime) then you would get the ActiveX files from Rockwell’s Knowbase.
The pre-6.0 DataStore Plus ActiveX specifically can be downloaded using the link below (requires Rockwell support contract:)
https://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/app/answers/detail/a_id/35155
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Can I log data from PVP6 to Laptop.
Ashish,
So you can provide a path for the logger to log too. I’m assuming you could use a network share to log data too, and that network share could be a folder on your laptop. However, if your laptop was off no data could be logged.
So, I think it would be better to have the PVP6 log to it’s own FTP server folder, and then you could just copy the files off it via FTP when you can them.
Hope this helps,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I am using this to log 17 floats and 2 strings. This control logs 100 floats and 50 strings. Can you limit the amount of connections so that the .csv file doesn’t have a bunch of blank columns between floats and strings?
Also, is there a way to trigger a new log file with an external tag trigger?
George,
Sorry for the delay but work has been brutal. I did check my system the other day and I didn’t have any extra columns, only the few for the tags I was logging. Didn’t get to check on the tag triggered snapshot – I’ll try and look tomorrow,
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I am having the same issue, all 100 floats and 50 strings are logged to the CSV file even though only a portion of these are used. Also, all of the column headers are generic, e.g. “Str 1”, “Alg 2 “, etc. I am using FTVS and firmware 8.0.
Ryan,
Let me try it in version 8 to see if I get the same thing. Are you using Tag names for the headers?
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
I’m using direct PLC tag references, not HMI Tags. Could this be the issue?
I can live with the unused columns showing up…
Ryan,
In my previous usage of this utility I always used direct references like you, as opposed to HMI Tags.
Quick question – which setting do you have selected for “file headers?” Looks like the options are:
– default
– template
– use tag names
Thanks in advance,
Shawn Tierney
PS – I’m out of town on vacation so it may be a few days until I can try it here.
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Shawn,
That was the issue! I could have sworn I had set this to use tag names, but I think through the course of troubleshooting I had changed this back… little embarrassed now 🙂
Thank you for the prompt replies (especially while on vacation!). I just discovered this blog, and it has already proved useful in other subjects, as well as an interesting read.
You’re very welcome Ryan – glad you got it working!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I think I figured out the issue with logging the unused column headers (although I haven’t been able to test this): check the box “Log assigned connections only.”
Thanks for the heads up Ryan!
Shawn Tierney
I have an application where my initial graphic uses a parameter file. How do I include the parameter file when using “Macro_GotoMainScreen” ?
John,
Thanks for your question!
The “Macro_GotoMainScreen” changes a tag value which in turn triggers the RemoteDisplay global connection to launch your main screen.
Also under global connections you can specify a “parameter file” to go along with the remote display triggered.
Hope this helps!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
Can I have a remote file location? I tried this and get error message cannot set the log file location for DataStore Plus. Cause; invalid file path. I’m using 192.168.1.37″c:userspublicpublic documentsDataStorePlus_log.csv
Morning,
If you are using a PVPlus 6, the easiest way to choose your “File Location” – the destination for the CSV files – is to exit to the CE desktop and browse the internal storage with Windows Explorer. Here’s some sample paths:
The folder where the .MER files are stored is:
Application DataRockwell SoftwareRSViewME
The root of a USB memory stick installed in the PVPlus would be:
USB Storage
If you want the CSV files to be stored in the default FTP location, open the control panel on the PVPlus 6 and edit the FTP server to find/change which folder it’s serving up.
If you want the CSV files stored in a network share, first browse to the network share on your PC, and then use the same path for the CSV “file location” (like MyPCMySharedFolder)
Hope this helps!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com
I am writing the csv file to My Documents folder on the panelview which uses windows ce. How do I transfer that file to my pc?
Morning Bob,
I think the easiest way would be to turn on the FTP server. Then you can access your PVPlus 6 CSV files from Explorer by typing in the IP address of your PVPlus 6, like ftp://192.168.1.20 (assuming your PVPlus6 is at that address.)
You may have to tweak the FTP server so it shares the folder you currently save your CSV files to, or change where you save the CSV files to match the default FTP server folder.
Other options would including saving the CSV files to the external storage (i.e. an SD Card plugged into the back of the PVPlus 6) or across your network to a network shared folder.
Hope this helps!
Shawn Tierney
Join my free community to follow along! You can also become a member and support our work at: Automation.Locals.com