Maple Systems Inc., a manufacturer of operator interface terminals, announced two new additions to its

Operator Interface Terminal (OIT) Family. The OIT3165 features a 2-line by 20-character backlit LCD, and the OIT3175 features a 4-line by 20-character backlit LCD. Both are said to offer the same advantages as the other members of the company's OIT family.

With the OIT3165 and OIT3175, User-Definable Keys have been combined with a Slide-in Legend. User-Definable keys allow users to configure the terminal with the exact keys specific applications require, and to arrange those keys in any order. The Slide-in Legend allows for easy and inexpensive labelling of the keys with any combination of text, graphics, and colors. It covers unused keys to guard against operator confusion.

Both operator interface terminals fit into a compact 4 3 6 in. package. This allows the OIT3165 to have 24 User-Definable Keys and the OIT3175 to have 16. Choices for the User-Definable Keys include:

• Screen-Dependent Function keys—up to eight can be assigned. Each screen-dependent function key can perform a different function in each of the 500 user-definable screens.
• Global Function keys—up to 16 can be assigned. Each global function key performs one function. The available functions are the same as those offered for screen-dependent function keys.
• Numeric and Control keys—one numeric function (0 to 9,±) , one control function (arrow, help, toggle, etc.), or one numeric and one control function (for example, 0 and Help) can be assigned to each key.

The OIT3165 and OIT3175 both store up to 500 user-definable screens. Five screen types are: message, recipe, alarm, menu, and help, allowing for flexibility in application design. Messages convey information to the operator and provide an easy way of controlling the system. Up to 25 register monitors, used to display and change registers in the controller, can be embedded anywhere in each message screen. Message screens can also be chained to form multiple screen messages.

Recipes contain the parameters, up to 20 preset and 25 adjustable, to setup a batch process. These parameters are sent to the controller when the operator starts the process. Alarms warn the operator with one of nine audible alerts and then display the alarm condition. Menus allow the operator to branch to other screens. Help screens provide the operator with additional information about running the machine.

Other features are available; 16 set point monitors can be configured to monitor PLC register addresses and display a screen upon low or high limit violation; and register monitors feature 11 different formats, adjustable field width and decimal point, optional commas and leading zeros, private data entry, and linear scaling.

The terminals conform to NEMA 4/12 standards to seal out dirt, oil, water, and other industrial contaminants.

OITware-200, Maple Systems' Microsoft Windows-based configuration software, is used to setup all configurable OIT functions and then download the configuration and protocol to the OIT. OITware-200 currently supports multidrop ASCII and many PLC protocols.

For more information from Maple Systems, visit www.controleng.com/info: