Topics

1

Support Questions / Anyone Else Have VS Installer Suddenly Empty?

« on: February 24, 2022, 08:54:25 PM »

I opened VS Installer on one PC and it had some updates, so I opened it on my other PC to update it and it shows empty - no VS installed at all, nothing to update.

I have VS2019 and VS2022 Community installed and they both run, just Installer says no.

Go to Microsoft's Developers forum and there are posts from others of the exact same thing, but microsoft immediately closes them because they didn't run a Collector program and include the zip file in their post.

I ran the Collector and posted the result and the answer I am getting now is I deleted a folder in either ProgramData\... \VS or one in AppData\Local\ .....\VS

With so many posts of the exact thing this has to be a VS problem, or a Windows Update problem in my thinking.

Has anyone else had this come up?

Microsoft's clever answer is to delete all the VS folders in ProgramData, AppData and Program Files (86) completely and do a complete reinstallation. Since I install most of the components of VS each install takes over 8 hours, and then has to go through its First Time Ran routine., plus lose all the Recent projects links.

2

Support Questions / Anyone Having Issues With Visual Studio 2022?

« on: July 29, 2021, 06:52:50 AM »

I installed the VS2022 Preview community edition. It kept VS2019 installed and I use that for customers projects I am working on.

I have opened a new AHMI project and opened copies of existing projects.

I haven't found any glitch yet and was wondering if anyone out there has come across anything to watch out for? Whether it's Community or a paid version.

3

Support Questions / EPPlus New Version License

« on: April 14, 2021, 09:49:26 AM »

The latest version of EPPlus 5 has changed their license type.

I have searched their website and it shows to use it for a non-commercial application it is 'easiest' to register the environment variable.

However their examples are either C or web-based and I have not figured out how to do this on the VB code in VS2019, especially at the "User Level" as it says at the bottom.

Has anyone done this, and is there anything else different from the previous version (last version I used was v3)

Here is a copy from the website:

Code: [Select]

LicenseContext parameter must be set
With the license change EPPlus has a new parameter that needs to be configured. If the LicenseContext is not set, EPPlus will throw a LicenseException (only in debug mode).

This is a simple configuration that can be set in a few alternative ways:

1. Via code
// If you are a commercial business and have
// purchased commercial licenses use the static property
// LicenseContext of the ExcelPackage class :
ExcelPackage.LicenseContext = LicenseContext.Commercial;

// If you use EPPlus in a noncommercial context
// according to the Polyform Noncommercial license:
ExcelPackage.LicenseContext = LicenseContext.NonCommercial;

using(var package = new ExcelPackage(new FileInfo("MyWorkbook.xlsx")))
{

}
2. Via appSettings.json
  {
    "EPPlus": {
      "ExcelPackage": {
          "LicenseContext": "Commercial"
          }
      }
  }
3. Via app/web.config
<appSettings>
    <!--The license context used-->
    <add key="EPPlus:ExcelPackage.LicenseContext" value="NonCommercial" />
</appSettings>
4. Set the environment variable 'EPPlusLicenseContext'
This might be the easiest way of configuring this. Just as above, set the variable to Commercial or NonCommercial depending on your usage.

Important! The environment variable should be set at the user level.

4

Support Questions / BasicLabel Time Display Leading Zero for 0-9 Value

« on: October 16, 2020, 02:03:09 PM »

I have some BasicLabels displaying the month/date/year  hour:minute (and some with :second). I want to show the day/time in the PLC to match logs in it, not use the computer day/time that may be off. Also, I can click on each label and enter a correct time to write to the PLC.

I don't like the display when the time is say 1: 3: 5, I want it to show 1:03:05. What I am doing now is setting 3 bits in the PLC if the hour, minute or second are 0-9 and using them as visibility bits for 6 labels.

I have 2 for hour - one showing the 2 digit value if the bit is NOT, and one showing the one digit value with a '0' prefix if the bit is on. Sort of a clunky way of doing it.

Is there a property for BasicLabel that if it is a single digit, or less than a specified value, a prefix is added?

If it was a specified value then adding a prefix or suffux may be usable for applications other than time - temperature, pressure, level, flow, pH, etc.

5

Support Questions / VS New Update Fails Rebuild on Certificate Not Found

« on: May 16, 2020, 10:38:45 AM »

VS Community just updated today and the project I am working on repeatedly fails on Rebuild with the same message:
 An error occurred while signing: Failed to sign bin\Debug\AdvancedHMI.exe. SignTool Error: No certificates were found that met all the criteria given.

I have closed & reopened the solution and VS entirely, I have tried Clean Solution-Rebuild and Build-Rebuild always with the same error

The Debug folder may have 1 file in it, or none, and 2 empty folders.

I haven't added any security to the project or deleted any files or certificates, haven't changed any settings in VS either.

I just tried the project on my laptop that (unfortunately) I update VS on it this morning also and it does the exact same thing.

6

Support Questions / FormChangeButton Show Tag Value OR BasicLabel / Button Call a Form

« on: April 06, 2020, 11:19:40 AM »

I am trying to update a project. The line has 32 stations that may have racks in them and presently the screen shows the rack number in each station, or 0 for empty, with a brick red background. If the station is the destination of one of the hoists a red background object becomes visible. The attached pic shows the objects separated for editing, otherwise the red would cover the brick red if visible.  These objects presently are programmed as BasicLabels and if clicked on the keypad allows entry of a new rack number 0 to 50.

The change I would like to make is clicking on either object for that station would bring up a small popup form that would show the station #, rack #, quantity on rack and surface area of each part, and allow entry of new values. This is an electroplating line so surface area and panel count determine plating amps.

Is there a way to get a BasicLabel to call a form?
If I change this to a FormChangeButton can I have it display the tag value and not set text?
Is there another object in the toolbox that would do this?  (I tried it and it reads "Carrier_In_Station[2]" instead of the value "3" of that tag)

I am not asking for the ability to change the background color as now it is changed by a visible bit on the second color object.

7

Support Questions / VS Faults Opening Any Page With ForceItemsIntoToolbox Error

« on: November 25, 2019, 04:29:40 PM »

I have one that I am thinking might be a bad VS2019 Community.

I can open projects that are OK on other computers, even a fresh extracted copy of ver399xR1.

But, when ever I try to open any form it shows the error screen saying it could not load zForceItemsIntoToolbox - which is a public class in the VB file. It also prohibits me from opening the ForceItemsIntoToolbox.vb code at all. I tried copying the file from another AHMI application but still faults.

This only happens on one Windows 10 Pro desktop.

Is there anything I should try before uninstalling & reinstalling VS?

8

Support Questions / PLC Control Form Change

« on: August 15, 2019, 07:51:08 AM »

I have an existing application that has been running for a few years the customer would like a simple change on.

If the operator leaves the HMI on the "Motors' screen he would like it to automatically go to MainForm, which shows line and cycle status.

I have searched the forum and found posts about menu driven forms can be controlled by a PLC bit, but that would require a complete rewrite of this.

Is there any way, either with PLC bit or value, or a timeout in AHMI itself, that could change to MainForm?

9

Open Discussion / Forum Entry Bug

« on: May 06, 2019, 05:08:05 PM »

I have been accessing this forum with the following bookmark:
http://advancedhmi.com/forum/index.php#c1

However lately, on more than one computer and with IE and Firefox, when I click on Support Questions I get a blank screen, not a 404 screen, that says the page can not be found. If I click on the latest thread reply I do go that thread, then can go back to all the categories in the forum. This also happens whether I am connected directly to the internet via WiFi or through the office firewall on the wired network.

10

Support Questions / Form Size Limited By Laptop Screen

« on: February 19, 2019, 06:59:09 AM »

I just made a update to a working HMI using VS2017Community on my laptop at a customers location. I think the project was made using AHMI ver 399s-t, or around then.  I have tested this on a ver 399x HMI and it does the same on the laptop.

The problem is that on the pages I made changes on the laptop the screen size changed to the limited height of the laptop. The HMI is 1280 x 1024 resolution and the laptop is 1600 x 900. At first I though I did something so I went back in and tried to change the affected screen sizes back, but as soon as I pressed <Enter> the size change from 1024 to 900 height. I had to borrow a monitor from the customer and open VS on that monitor, then I could set the height correctly and rebuild.

Is there a way to override this, or is it in VS itself?

11

Support Questions / EthernetIPforSLCMicroCom To Older SLC5/05

« on: November 06, 2018, 07:06:29 AM »

I have a 399verX project I am doing, adding a second control panel with a 5/05 to an existing line with a 5/05 using Ethernet now.

The 5/05 shows in RSLinx-lite ETH driver, but is not EthernetIP so it won't show in that drivers list.

I have not been able to get the HMI to talk to it either using the EthernetIPforSLCMicroCom driver.

Is there a change to this driver, or another driver, that can talk to this older SLC?

Both PLC's are: SLC5/05, 1747-L552 Series A  Proc Rev 1     OS500 Ser A FRN 1

12

Support Questions / Visible By Integer Value Instead Of BIt

« on: October 22, 2018, 09:59:27 AM »

I am adding onto an existing line that has an overhead hoist moving racks in dip tanks, I will be adding 3 treatment processes to the line with a second hoist. The existing panel SLC5/05 and my new panel will have another SLC5/05. The customer wants the new HMI to be as close to the existing IFix HMI as possible so the operators won't have to relearn new control of the existing line.

I got to the recipe screen, see photo below, where IFix shows a graphic for the motion of each step by reading the step integer (1=GoTo, 2=Lift, 3=Drop, etc.)

My question - can an object in AHMI have for it's VisibleBit something like N7:11=1? I am hoping this could be simple as there will be 540 objects for the 90 steps, along with a destination value if the step=1 for each step. I don't want to have to program 540 bits in the PLC, and for the added processes that will be another 90 steps with a similar screen.

Side Note: I tried to post this but didn't reduce the size of the photo, when I hit Post it took me to a screen that said the attachment was too large, and when I clicked Back it went back to an empty page with everything I entered lost. Then on the second try I tried to make the N7 address bold by pressing CTRL-B and a popup appeared that was irrelevant and when I closed it the browser closed, again losing everything I entered.

13

Support Questions / EPPlus Syntax

« on: August 16, 2018, 03:42:54 PM »

I had a project put on hold over a year ago due to a management change at a customers. For it I started thread 1779 about logging data. Just this week it became an active task and I am having a couple issues. The code I presently have is attached.

I got it to not show any errors and rebuild successfully, and it does open on the target computer. However it does not create the .xlsx file or show any errors. I also have the code written to clear the ValueChange value - but it doesn't - it stays 1.

In a lot of examples I found there are differing syntax's for the same function. Here are a couple:

'Set the file name and get the output directory
                var fileName = "Log-" + SerialDF1forSLCMicroCom1.Read("F8:48") + SerialDF1forSLCMicroCom1.Read("F8:48") + SerialDF1forSLCMicroCom1.Read("F25:99") + ".xlsx";
                var outputDir = context.Server.MapPath(".\logs\");


'*Creates Excel file
            Using ExcelPackage As New OfficeOpenXml.ExcelPackage(New IO.FileInfo("C:\Users\Owner\Desktop\AdvancedHMIv399x\OP1Login.xlsx"))
                ExcelPackage.Workbook.Worksheets.Add(MyValues8)


But neither will work properly using VS Community 2017. The first example will not accept 'var' as a command - it tries to change it to varType, but that doesn't work either. Also, the first example setting the outputDir with 'context.Server.MapPath' shows that is not valid. Also VS will not accept the ';' at the end of each line.

I have tried fileName and outputDir in each section and at the start.

The second example won't take the line ExcelPackage.Workbook.Wor..., but does accept Workbook.Wor... as is in my code.

I also have multiple methods for addressing cells
using (var range = ExcelPackage.Workbook.worksheet.Cells[1, 1, 1, 2])              var is not accepted nor ExcelPackage, and says 'range' is a friend
Workbook.Worksheets(MyValues0).Cells("A1").Value = "Part Serial Number"       This type of cell addressing is accepted also - do both these methods work ?       

The computer is Windows 7 x64 with a serial port on the motherboard, the project is upgraded to AHMI v399x, the PLC is a SLC5/03 using DF1.

14

Support Questions / DF1 Driver PLC Type Force in Ver 399x

« on: August 15, 2018, 03:36:59 PM »

With an earlier version of AHMI to improve comm's with a SLC PLC I went into the code and forced the type of PLC (a 5/04 I think I remember)

I was going to do the same for a 5/03 in a Ver 399x project, but the DF1 driver doesn't have that section.

Does the new driver handle this differently. so this is not needed?

15

Support Questions / Object Reference Nor Set o An Inistance.." Using AB DF1 & 399Vw

« on: June 06, 2018, 11:40:40 AM »

I have a machine with a version W AdvancedHMI using SerialDF1forSLCMicroCom1 to a SLC5/03

On a screen of value entries/display most of the time it shows the correct value and can enter and change them to a new value - however I frequently get values displaying the error "Object Reference Not Set To An Instance Of An Object" I have searched the forum and the results that show are either for a very old version, or an Ethernet driver, and seem to put the fault on the driver.

This happens on 3 screens that I display and change between 2 recipes. All the other pages don't show this message on any of the values they have, and the driver is copied and pasted from MainForm with all the same settings.