LABTECH CONTROL
Data sheet available in Adobe Acrobat format here

 

• Advanced PID Loop Tuning
• Ramp and Soak and Cascade Control Capability
• Realtime Data Acquisition and Data Display
• On-Line Calculations for Mathematical, Statistical and Logical Functions in Real-Time
• Real-Time Multitasking
• Real-Time Process Diagrams with a Variety of Display Types, Including Trend Lines, Bar Graphs, Digital Meters and Faceplates
• Includes VisionPro Object-Based Graphic Interface
• Menu and Icon-Driven Setups for Ease of Use
• Remote viewing and control (with use of VISIONpro client)

LABTECH Control is a complete, integrated system that provides a comprehensive set of monitoring and control functions, including process monitoring, process control, real-time operator interface and display, on-line analysis and open architecture networking. CONTROL is designed so that no programming is necessary, and the emphasis is on  allowing the user to get an application up and running quickly. The Windows versions of CONTROL are graphical, intuitive and have a total Windows look and feel.

 CONTROL is a superset of the data acquisition market leader NOTEBOOK from LABTECH. NOTEBOOK application configuration files are upward compatible to CONTROL. This compatibility allows the direct transfer of real-time information from the laboratory to the factory floor. Thus, a process control system can be prototyped in a lab environment with the NOTEBOOK package, and scaled up from bench-scale to production using CONTROL - all without re-creating the control system software and operator interface screens. No other software spans the lab and the factory floor in this way.

Process Monitoring
CONTROL's process monitoring capabilities give the flexibility to configure applications with a variety of sampling rates and sensor types. Sampling rates from hundreds of thousands of points per second to a few points per hour or day may be scheduled. Each  I/O point may have its own sampling rate and trigger conditions, and global changes are fully supported. Triggers for any I/O point may come from analog, digital, calculated values,  or user interface. A trigger may start or stop the monitoring of an I/O point, can change the sampling rate for that point, and may offer visual or audio instructions to the operator.

I/O Hardware Support
 CONTROL supports a vast array of hardware devices for analog and digital input and output, as well as devices designed for specific purposes, like thermocouples, RTDs, and strain gages. CONTROL works with over 1000 of the most popular data acquisition and control plug-in boards. In addition, CONTROL works with industrial I/O, such as the  single- and multi-loop controllers and programmable logic controllers (PLCs). Through its support of DDE and Network DDE, CONTROL also supports a large number of factory-floor devices via software drivers.

 LABTECH's relationship with Microsoft¨ has given the company insights into the best way to stay within the bounds of "legal" Windows, yet still offering very fast sampling speeds.  Some of the latest advances in DOS and Windows multimedia support have given LABTECH new, faster ways to gather data. Data acquisition speeds are influenced by the speed of the processor, bus, and disk drive. LABTECH has been benchmarked to continuously sample data, store that data to disk and display the data on the screen at 1,000,000 samples a second.

 CONTROL supports password security, allowing logging in and out during runtime (version 10.1.2 only) with any of four assignable access levels.

Realtime VISIONpro
 The Realtime VISIONpro operator interface allows the graphical depiction of flows and layouts of the plant, complete with on-screen object graphic animation. VISIONpro's CRT  control panels may contain knobs and buttons which look so much like hardware control panels that operators know how to operate them without any training. The display can be  segmented allowing for the hyperextension of regions into more detailed displays.

The dialog boxes provide the operator interface while the system is running. Through the dialog boxes, the operator can perform the following functions:

• Turn data logs on/off
• Turn alarm logging on/off
• Type notes into data logs
• View the alarm log
• Change alarm limits, alarm processing, and scaling constants for any function block
• Enter data values from the keyboard
• Change PID setpoints, tune PID control loops, manually adjust analog output values
• Turn function blocks on/off

Realtime VISIONpro network client
Based on a robust and secure client/server archi-tecture, VISIONpro graphically displays data and directly controls processes in real-time. When used in conjunction with LABTECH's CONTROL or CONTROLpro software, VISIONpro can also remotely control devices through ON/OFF but-tons, knobs, or slides.

Leveraging the Internet
 VISIONpro allows developers to leverage the power of the Internet for real-time remote access to any part of the process. From across the street or around the world, VISIONpro allows monitoring of process parameters from any attended or unattended location. Data can be sourced from local devices as well as from other devices connected via any  TCP/IP-based network, including corporate LANs, intraorganizational WANs, or the Internet.

Remote Instrument Support
Remote Instrument Support provides a communication interface to RS-232/485 and GPIB  instruments. GPIB support provides the power and flexibility to easily design, test, and implement a variety of GPIB data acquisition and industrial control applications.

• Queries multiple devices on a single communication port (RS-485)
• Operates simultaneously with other hardware interface devices (i.e. plug-in devices)
• Supports industry- standard GPIB interface boards (7210 chip compatible)
• Sends output values to instruments, such as smart valves and transmitters, for precise control
• Includes a debugger that allows for the interactive creation and testing of command files

Datalogging and Storage
As data is collected, values, tag names, and alarm conditions may be time-stamped and stored directly to disk, allowing you to save results from an almost unlimited number of process runs. Data can be written to disk either continuously or in response to event/alarm trigger or operator commands. Pretriggering allows you to set the system so that when an event or alarm occurs, data just prior to the occurrence will also be displayed and logged. CONTROL stores data in standard file formats compatible with analysis, database and  word processing programs. CONTROL handles data logs intelligently. CONTROL supports the manual or automatic closing and renaming of data logs. CONTROL handles all system boundary conditions, including a full disk.

 Alarms
LABTECH Control software also performs alarm and limit monitoring. Alarms can be triggered when a variable reaches or passes a predetermined value, or as a result of a calculated variable or operator action. All systems support multiple alarm states: Hi-Hi, high, normal, low and Lo-Lo, which can be displayed on the computer monitor and logged to disk. The system can be configured so that when an alarm occurs, the operator is notified and must acknowledge the condition.

Process Control
 LABTECH Control provides a comprehensive series of control functions. Alarm and bang-bang control features allow for the turning on and off of equipment for closed-loop control or to indicate alarm conditions. PID loops provide closed-loop control for constant or variable setpoints. Setpoints can be entered through the keyboard, automatically through on-line calculations, or as a preset schedule of values stored on disk. Control loops have a block-structured architecture. Each control block implements individual control algorithms for specific variable inputs and control outputs. Cascade control-the ability to have the output of one control loop act as the input to another-provides you with an added degree of freedom when configuring your control strategy.

Advanced PID Loop Tuning
PID Control provides proportional-integral-derivative control for temperature control, flow  control, level control, and other control applications that require closed-loop analog output. PID Control can be applied to control any process variable in the system. This feature allows for the specification of ramp-soak cycles and recipes from other blocks, as well as configuration of cascaded PID loops. With Control, operators can elect to retune a loop at any time, without shutting down the control loop.

System Expandability
CONTROL allows for customization by the addition of C, C++, and Visual Basic programs and linking them into the system. This customization supports the creation of unique icons and allows for input from any other block. Output may be displayed, written to disk, and used as input to other blocks. This customization may also be initiated on a periodic or event-driven basis. LABTECH also offers a fully documented Driver Toolkit for interfacing unique devices.

Client-Server Architecture
 LABTECH applies the Client-Server model to process control for Windows-based users of CONTROL. Using the industry standard LT SPEEDWAY technology, networked  systems can easily be built by connecting Operator Interfaces, CONTROL, enterprise databases, and thousands of other PC packages. Due to this architecture remote control panels can be used to monitor and control a number of systems throughout a factory.

At LABTECH, we've been developing real-time data acquisition and control software, teaching seminars, and supporting our customers for 18 years. During this time, over 100,000 copies of NOTEBOOK and CONTROL have been used in a vast array of  PC-based data acquisition and control applications. Your purchase of LABTECH software is backed with a 30-day money back guarantee. We offer 30 days of free technical support  via telephone, and telephone support can be extended with an annual contract.

System Requirements

Windows:
Microsoft Windows 9x/Me/NT/2000/XP
200MHz Pentium or Pentium compatible Computer
64MB Memory

 

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