The operator panel is the face of the machine: the right touch technology, the right connection and a readable screen design directly reduce downtime and operator error.
Basics 01
A resistive screen works by pressure: it is reliable with gloves, with a stylus and in oily or dusty conditions, which makes it a safe choice for shop-floor machines. A capacitive screen works by the finger's electrical effect: brighter, multi-touch and more fluid, but it may not work with thick gloves. The HMI-R9 family is resistive; the VO Panel PC and the QT teach pendant are capacitive.
HMI & Panel PCBasics 02
An HMI panel is built to run the operator screen: it boots fast, needs no upkeep and works alongside the PLC. A Panel PC is a full computer, chosen when you need to run SCADA, data collection, custom software or a software-based controller. The VO Panel PC runs Windows 10; the QT teach pendant runs Qt6 on Ubuntu.
HMI & Panel PCCommissioning 03
Keep colour for what needs attention: show normal conditions plainly in greys and alarms and abnormal states in bright colour. Give each screen one job, make dangerous commands ask for confirmation, and always print values with their units. This approach is the basis of the ISA-101 standard for high-performance HMIs.
Commissioning 04
The HMI and the PLC usually talk over Ethernet. In a CODESYS-based system a CODESYS-compatible panel such as the HMI-R9 accesses the PLC variables directly, so tags do not have to be defined twice. Plan the IP addresses of the panel and the PLC on the same subnet, and keep the machine network separate from the office network.
HMI-R9 seriesDrive code, motor, controller and the alarm code you see: with those we reach the right answer faster.
