WinCC Unified – Simple Sample: Program_Alarm

“Simple Samples” are small projects that demonstrate simple features. The target is giving a quick overview about the theme and be used as start point for related discussions. Follow there are a short description and the configuration main steps.

Description:

Alarm messages are an important tool for operation diagnose of process and system events. The possibility to generate messages directly from the controller's blocks reduces the HMI configuration time.

In this sample, a controller's user program generates message on a HMI, calling the Program_alarm block.

Configuration main steps:

On Controller side:

• Create a block (Block_1)
• Call as multi-instance the Program_Alarm block (Toolbox → Extended Instructions → Alarming)
• Set the alarm text (select the Program_Alarm block call, inspection window → Properties →  Alarm → Basic Settings → Alarm Text)
• Connect the Program_Alarm SIG input to a trigger signal
• Call Block_1 from OB1 (Main) so many times as necessary, connect the Block_1 SIG input to different tags so that it could be triggered individually.

TIPs:

• Program_Alarm should be called from a FB, preferably as multi-instance.
• It is possible to add variable values to the Alarm text, clicking with the right mouse button.
• If you use the same block several times, you can add variables values to the text message to personalize each call, passing parameters or getting runtime information (GetInstanceName, GetySymbolName, GetSymblePath, GetInstancePath, GetBlockName blocks, for example)

On HMI side:

• Drag and drop the controller's trigger tags to the HMI screen (to be possible trigger the alarms from HMI as demonstration proposes and to build a connection)

• Set the controller alarms (project tree → HMI → Runtime Settings → Alarms → Controller Alarms – it is already set as default)
• Place an Alarm View (“ToolBox” → “controls”)

Note: as comparation proposes, the sample project has both analog alarm and PLC alarm.

Project:

Archived program, compressed (zip)