HMI Display systems serve as graphical Human Machine Interfaces that enable operators to monitor and control machinery through real-time process data visualization. These industrial-grade touchscreen panels feature various sizes, resolutions, and ruggedized construction suitable for…
ATEX is the Abbreviation for Atmosphere Explosible, ATEX refers to the risk of explosion that can occur in environments when flammable gasses or dust are present. Used by the EU Directives meant to regulate devices…
For Maple Systems, OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) represents a key performance metric used to help customers monitor, analyze, and improve manufacturing productivity through their industrial automation products — especially their HMIs, PLCs, and SCADA solutions.…
Read More What does OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) mean to Maple Systems?
Firmware is a type of software that is embedded into hardware devices to control and manage their operations. Unlike regular software that can be easily updated or removed, firmware is typically stored in non-volatile memory,…
Minutes… even seconds! Simply plug it in, power it up, type in IP address of the HMI you’d like to remote into and you’re done.
Read More How long will it take me to setup my cMT iV Display unit?
Backed by strong environmental certifications like NEMA4 and an IP66 rating, you can control your operations in harsh environments, even bad weather by using the cMT iV Series Display with a headless HMI placed in…
Read More Do your cMT iV Display units work in harsh environments?
Even the toughest equipment can break. That’s no truer than with the monitors and panels that controllers rely on for critical information, like HMIs. Screens, especially touchscreens, are the most susceptible to the forces of…
Read More For HMI screens, can a cMT iV Display unit be used instead?
Yes! Adding a cMT Display unit to your existing Headless HMI system gives you an easier view into your HMIs operations.
Read More Do your cMT Display units work with the Headless HMIs?
Using cMT Viewer, a single cMT iV Series Display device can simultaneously connect to up to six cMT and cMT-X HMIs for full access to their projects. Additionally, up to 10 cMT iV Series Displays can…
Read More How many HMIs can I connect to from one cMT Display device?
Our CMT display units come with the cMT Viewer app preinstalled. This app allows you to remotely access any HMI on the manufacturing floor, allowing you to view and modify the project, clear any alarms,…
Read More How will a cMT Display unit save me money? Why wouldn’t I just purchase an additional HMI?
Yes, adding EasyAccess2.0 will give you access to your system from anywhere in the world, not just the manufacturing floor
NOTE: Advanced mode is required to reverse the order on the SQL Table. By default the SQL Query Result Viewer will visualize data in ascending order. To change it to descending order will require enabling…
The program will be retained for the lifespan of the HMI. The program is stored in the non-volatile flash memory (solid state memory), which can last anywhere from 10 years to 100 years, depending on…
Read More How long can an HMI hold its program while powered off?
Bridge Mode allows a device to function as a network switch, forwarding traffic between LAN ports without modifying packet data. This creates a seamless connection between devices, enabling communication as if they were on the…
A compiled project file can be decompiled to extract the project file and create new library files for the embedded graphics. This will create a new .emtp or .cmtp (editable project file) that can be…
Read More How do I edit a compiled HMI or cMT series project file in EBPro?
There are many methods that can be used to set a string value to LW registers in an EasyBuilder Pro project. A useful method with a cMT series device is by using the Action Trigger…
Read More How can I set a string value to LW memory in EasyBuilder Pro?
The specifics will likely differ based on which device you’re specifically working with, but in general, LAN 1 is the port you’d use for a network connection that goes out to the internet, where LAN…
Read More What’s the difference between the two LAN ports on my HMI/cMT?
When downloading a project using a newer EBPro version or using a particular font you may likely hit the “building font file failed” error message when compiling your project: Certain fonts, such as Bahnshrift, are…
Read More How to fix the “building font file failed” error message?
A network switch is a networking appliance that connects multiple devices inside of a Local Area Network (LAN). It communicates by forwarding data based off MAC addresses. Typically switches operate at layer 2, data link…
JavaScript is a computer programming language developed in 1995 by Brendan Eich. JavaScript is utilized in web developed along side industrial control systems such as EasyBuiler Pro for automation.
EasyBuilder Pro allows users to select multiple objects and configure/arrange them in groups. Use the mouse to click/drag a selection box around the objects. Alternatively, hold the Ctrl key and click on each object: BLUE…
Read More How can I easily select and arrange multiple objects in EasyBuilder Pro?
The string table in EasyBuilder Pro is a centralized database for managing multilingual text used in HMI projects. By pre-configuring texts and their corresponding numbers in the string table, text can be changed dynamically on…
The Label Tag Library in EasyBuilder Pro enables the creation of a multi-language environment for HMI projects. Users can create a Label Tag Library and select suitable labels for use throughout the project. At runtime,…
A register address in EasyBuilder Pro refers to a specific memory location used to store and manage data within a system. A register is a specific storage location, typically in memory or a device, used…
XML stands for Extensible Markup Language and its a way to store information in a tree structure with tags and elements. XML Data is stored inside tags, and each tag can have attributes or nested…
In EasyBuilder Pro, a WORD refers to the size of the data type configured for the system. This is the standard size used to store data in registers and memory locations within the system. Our…
Chapter 22 of the EasyBuilder Pro Manual describes all System Registers. These are reserved LW and LB addresses that provide information/control of various HMI features. Use EasyBuilder Pro to create a set of ASCII, Numeric,…
TCP Connection Test:To use EasyAccess 2.0 VPN connection, multiple TCP connection would be made from your HMI or PC to our vpn servers. On PC, you can download our analyzer tool ea_connection_test.zip to check connections to those…
In the default project file templates for EasyBuilder Pro, there is an object that displays a visible warning that reads “HIGH CPU LOAD>95%” when the CPU utilization of the device exceeds a certain threshold. This…
Read More Why do I get a “HIGH CPU LOAD>95%” warning on my HMI or cMT device?
In September of 2019, Microsoft announced plans to support OAuth2 authentication and deprecate Basic Authentication across several services/products. These changes took effect for Microsoft Exchange and Office 365 mail servers in September of 2024. As…
In a Server-Client topology, a client is a device or application that requests and utilizes services or resources provided by a server. The client initiates communication with the server, sending requests for data, processing, or…
An APIPA (Automatic Private IP Addressing) or Link-Local Address is a self-assigned IP address automatically generated by a device when it cannot obtain an IP address from a DHCP server. These addresses are in the…
Ensure you have an available *.conf file to download onto the HMI. Inside EasyBuilder Pro navigate to the Project tab > Download (PC -> HMI). On the Download window enable “use system settings file”. Next,…
When the HMI encounters software errors such as black screen, crash, and serverdisconnected…etc., the HMI information can be collected as diagnostic reportsand sent to Maple Systems for further analysis. Diagnostic Tool is supported in EasyBuilder…
The WATCH feature allows the end-user to view the contents of a register-address in a message of an event. Users may set register-addresses from the PLC, Remote HMI, or Local HMI. The register-address will display…
All OITs are HMIs, but not all HMIs are OITs. OIT (Operator Interface Terminal) usually means a dedicated terminal with graphics and/or text that provides data/control of a local (rather than remote) piece of equipment…
What is an HMI or Human Machine Interface? A Human-Machine Interface (HMI) is a user interface that facilitates communication between a person and a machine, or system. While this can technically refer to any screen…
Using a blanket purchase order is a common strategy for customers with ongoing projects. Often, an OEM solution has continuing needs for regular fulfillment of hardware, and the management of inventories and pricing are critical…
When looking for an outdoor rated HMI, many factors should be considered as outdoor rated can encompass a wide-range of certifications and hardware specifications. Many of our Human Machine Interfaces (HMIs), Industrial PCs, and HMI+PLCs…
FDA 21 CFR Part 11, by Food and Drug Administration (FDA) of the US government, definesthe criteria under which electronic records and electronic signatures can be treated withsame degree of validity as paper-based records. Since…
Read More How to comply with CFR 211 (FDA 21 CFR Part 11) when using a Maple Systems HMI
To help keep your account secure, starting May 30, 2022, Google will no longer support the use of third party apps or devices which ask you to sign into your Google Account using only your…
When you create a recipe database in EBPro, the recipe data is actually stored in the EBPro project. You can view and edit the recipe data by opening the Recipe Database (under the Data/History menu)…
Generally, “floating point error” refers to when a number cannot be stored in the IEEE floating point representation. Integers are stored with the right-most bit being 1, and each bit to the left being double…
The device polling time, or the time between reads of a single address/tag, is influenced by a variety of factors and is dependent upon the application. From the HMI side, turnaround delay time (time delay between…
No, because the video input is constantly being updated it is not possible to overlay HMI objects on to of a video stream from an IP or USB camera.
Read More Can I overlay objects on a video stream from an IP or USB web camera?
When making any changes to the RW memory area, the changes are stored in RAM memory initially and after 60 seconds, written to permanent flash memory. Therefore, when testing the RW memory, make sure you…
Read More RW Memory is not saved after cycling power on the HMI
An EBPro project file is saved with a *.emtp extension (*.cmtp for CMT Series). This is the development project that can be opened and edited in EBPro. Before you can download a project to an…
Read More What is the difference between a compiled project and a compressed project in EBPro?
To address multiple devices, using the Modbus TCP/IP Gateway function: 1. Select the table for the mapped device. 2. Click the “Settings…” button at the bottom of the Address Mapping Table window. 3. Specify the…
Read More How do I address multiple devices using the Modbus TCP/IP Gateway function?
Our Macro Reference Manual provides a great deal of information and examples for programming Macros. We highly recommend reviewing the Manual, which can be downloaded from our Support Center here: https://maplesystems.com/support-center/manuals-guides There is also a very helpful tutorial…
The System Shape Libraries in EBPro allow you to customize the colors but only allow for two states. In order to have three or more states with custom colors, you must create a new Shape…
The Standard Series HMIs now support VNC (EBPro v6.03.02.257 or later). Since the B-Series do not have the VNC tab in the System Settings window to enable VNC, it needs to be done with System…
Maple Systems HMIs use the Modbus protocol to communicate with the Scadapack PLC. 32-bit floating point numbers use two consecutive 16-bit registers to contain all 32 bits. The Scadapack stores the high word/low word in…
Read More Scadapack Floating Point values are not displaying correctly on my HMI
In order to enable a VNC connection to an HMI press the System Settings Icon in the lower right corner of the HMI screen and select the gear icon. After entering the correct password, press…
Read More How to allow multiple users to connect to one HMI via VNC
When connecting to your cMT–X Series through EasyWeb, you are able to export data logs, event logs, and operation logs as well as make backups of the database directly to your PC. To connect via EasyWeb, enter the IP address of the cMT-X Series in…
If your HMI has access to the internet, you can configure the project to sync with an NTP server on a regular basis, which would allow the HMI to automate daylight savings adjustments. If your…
Read More How to automatically update HMI local time for daylight savings.
The Time-based Data Transfer Object (Global) is restricted when transferring bits. It can only transfer bits from a PLC to the HMI. It cannot transfer bits from the HMI to a PLC and therefore will…
Don’t forget your terminating resistors! Both ends of the CAN bus should be terminated with 120O resistors. Forgetting the resistors can result in signal reflection which will corrupt the data packet and ultimately result in…
Read More Troubleshooting CANbus SAE J1939 connection when no data is showing up.
If you are wondering how you can assign tags for dynamic limits in a Numeric Object, take note of the “Usage…” note in the Object Properties window. The Numeric Object uses the tag assigned in…
With the Allen-Bradley Compact/Control Logix “Free Tags” drivers in EBPro, you can import tags using an .L5X project file exported from your RSLogix software. This method is preferred over using a CSV tag file, because…
There are no macro instructions that allow a macro to directly interface with table data in a SQL database. The data would need to be copied from the database into local HMI memory before it…
Read More Interfacing with an SQL database table: the SQL Advanced Query Object vs. Macro
A VESA mount is a standard hole pattern that allows HMIs, displays, industrial monitors, and panel PCs to be securely attached to mounts or arms. Most Maple Systems devices use either a 75×75 mm or 100×100 mm VESA pattern (check your model’s datasheet for exact details). Compatible mounting options include fixed wall mounts, swivel/tilt brackets, desk arms, and heavy-duty industrial arms, as long as they match the device’s VESA pattern and weight requirements.
These instructions describe the process required to email your HMC or MLC project file or transfer it to a different directory. In order to open the project when it has reached it’s destination, both the…
In EBPro v6.05.01.565, a variable check is performed when saving and compiling a Macro. This check will trigger a “warning W2: variable not initialized.” for each ‘declared’ variable in the macro which has not been…
Read More Why am I getting a Macro warning W2: “Variable not initialized.” after upgrading EBPro?
If the “Storage Space Insufficient” message pops up on the HMI screen (Window number 8 in EBPro), it is likely caused by not having a USB flash drive or SD card connected to the HMI…
Read More Storage Space Insufficient message pops up on HMI screen
When using a Maple Systems HMI, the project, recipe (RW, RW_A, db), data log, event log, and operation log files are stored in permanent HMI (flash) memory. There are several ways to clear data in…
For the cMT series, the controls for the event display are found in the settings for the event display on the screen itself while the project is running in real time, instead of in the…
Yes. You can dynamically change the address referenced by an object using the index feature. This allows you to create and indirect pointer or offset into PLC or HMI memory. In the object properties window…
Read More Can I change what address an object is referencing at runtime?
This feature allows the HMI programmer to enhance the update rate of data received from the PLC. When the addresses of PLC registers displayed on a screen are blocked close together, the HMI can optimize…
Since the Settings window for the cMT-FHDX does not have an option to enable the VNC server, you can do it with a System Bit in the HMI. LB-12092 is used to enable/disable the VNC…
This can be done by using a PLC control object (found on the Objects tab in EBPro) select “Type” as “Change window” and select a register/tag on your PLC for the trigger address. When the…
Read More Using the PLC to change screens or windows on the HMI / cMT.
There are several ways to accomplish this. To set a few registers or bits you can place Set Bit or Set Word objects on the common window (window #4). These objects have an option for…
Read More How to initialize data on my PLC from the HMI at power on?
If you open a project in EBPro that was created on another computer and the fonts appear too large, there is a setting in the display properties of the computer that may need to be…
One issue that can cause the HMI to freeze or respond very slowly is large graphics in the HMI program. This requires extra processing by the CPU to resize the graphics when the windows change.…
There are multiple ways to toggle a bit in MAPware7000, One option is to use the Toggle bit in the “Quick Buttons” menu or the Toggle bit task available for screens and task buttons. Another…
Read More How to set / reset ( latch ) a bit or coil in Native Ladder logic
In the Native Ladder programming environment, there are multiple ways to set a bit. One option is to set a bit from the screen using buttons and tasks. Another option is to use logic. You can…
Read More How to set / reset a bit or coil in Native Ladder logic (MAPware7000)
To display the entire string the number of words needs to be set in the ASCII display object. On the general tab of the ASCII object’s properties window click on the address settings button: Set…
No, the serial number for the HMI is not stored in a system register, and can only be found on the sticker on the back of the HMI. If you would like to have this…
Read More Is there a system register that stores the HMI serial number?
On the Home tab in EBPro in the “Editing” category there is an Find/Replace tool (icon of eye-glasses) that can be used to find and change the names of tags used in the project.
Read More Where are the Find and Replace tags in EasyBuilderPro?
This depends on the driver. Some drivers will allow you to configure the word order globally for the driver. This would be done from a Data Conversion button on the Device Settings window. In EBPro…
Read More Can I reverse the word order for a registers I’m reading on a PLC?
When you want to read 32-bit register using a word addressed protocol like Modbus all you have to to is set the format to a 32-bit format (32-bit signed, 32-bit unsigned, 32-bit float) on the…
Read More How to read a 32-bit register using a 16-bit protocol like Modbus?
The current base window ID is stored in system register LW-9050. This is the ID of the window currently displaying on the HMI. Please refer to the EBPro Programming Manual for more information on system…
Read More How can my PLC know what window the HMI is displaying?
Method 1: The GetData and SetData functions can be used to transfer data from one tag to another in a macro. Use GetData to grab the value from one tag and store it in a…
Read More How to transfer data from one PLC to another using the HMI, or from PLC to HMI.
To get the HMI into portrait mode: First, make sure the HMI project was created in portrait mode.Second, go into the System Settings window on the HMI and make sure it is set to 90…
For PLCs with fixed addressing like the Allen-Bradley MicroLogix Series, data must be stored in consecutive registers in order to sample multiple data points and store the data in a single datalog file so that…
Read More How to sample multiple channels with an Allen-Bradley CompactLogix PLC
The issue could be related to the firmware version on the PLC. Currently, Get Tag Info seems to work with firmware v20 and v24 but not anything higher. If this is the case we recommend…
Resistive touchscreen surface material is PET (polyethylene terephthalate, also called polyester). Capacitive touchscreen surface material is tempered glass. Both surfaces can be cleaned with the following method. Using a cleaning solution of 75% alcohol or…
EBPro can read/write to tags that use the STRING Data Type. The default STRING Data Type in RSLogix5000 has two elements: A DINT that is used to record the length of the character string, and…
Read More How to display Allen Bradley CompactLogix Strings in EBPro?
See section “HMI Operation” in the EBPro Programming Manual. System bits LB-9047 – “reboot HMI (set ON when LB-9048 is on)” and LB-9048 “reboot-HMI protection” can be toggled on either through use of a macro…
Read More Can I program my HMI to automatically reboot or reboot manually from the screen?
If you cant find your HMI Model number in EBPro, you may have an older version. Please download our latest build of EBPro here: Software Downloads If you still can not find your HMI model…
PLW and PLB memory cannot be used in macros. This is because macros only run on the host and do not run in separate instances on each of the clients.
Read More How do I access the Private Local (PLW) registers using macros?
Once you convert your Standard HMI project to a cMT project, or create a new cMT project, it is not possible to convert back to a Standard HMI model. However, Standard HMI projects can be…
Read More Can I convert a cMT model project to a Standard HMI model project?
This is the specific purpose of the cMT Gateway devices, but the HMIs and other cMTs can also perform this action in a different way. In EBPro you can use the Macro feature with the…
Read More How can I transfer data (mapping tags / addresses) from one PLC to another using the HMI?
Refer to section 2.4.2 Upload (HMI->PC) in the EBPro Programming Manual.
Read More How do I get the project off an HMI? How do I upload a project from an HMI
There are system bits that can be set to delete the event history in HMI memory. For example LB-9023.
Read More How to delete or clear the event HISTORY in local HMI memory or on USB.
To fix this issue, simply open the System Parameters > Extended Memory > click “OK”. Then the project should compile.
Read More How do I fix “Extended Memory X: This model does not support SD cards” compile error?
Our HMI displays do not support the Telnet protocol. However, since Telnet is an ASCII-based protocol, it may be possible to communicate to a Telnet client using the Free Protocol in EBPro. This uses the…
Read More Is there any way to connect to a Telnet client through a HMI?
There is a system register that is used to control pass-through mode, LW-9903. When you write a 0 to the register, it is in normal pass-through mode and the HMI can still communicate with the…
Open up the project in EBPro, navigate to the Home tab. Open the System Parameter Settings and navigate to the System tab. Select the option to Disable sound output. Save the project, compile, and download…
Read More How to turn off Beep sound on HMI (EBPro, EZwarePlus)
When HMI memory is full system bit LB-9035 HMI free space insufficiency Alarm will be set on and the HMI will stop recording data to memory.