GEM80 Programming Tools
GEM80 Programming Tools : Advanced GEM80 Programmer


Advanced GEM80 Programmer

The Advanced GEM80 Programmer (AGP) is the latest application in a range of GEM80 programming tools from Advanced Technical Software and has been designed to replace the aging UGP, Gemesys and GPP programming packages, which no longer work on the latest Windows operating systems. It can also convert program files created on the Systems Programmer (Yellow Box)

Whether developing a new system, upgrading an old one or fault finding,
the Advanced GEM80 Programmer will meet your expectations.


Programming the GEM80 - A Range of Powerful Features

The Advanced GEM80 Programmer offers a range of powerful features to help you write and maintain programs for the GEM80 range of PLCs. Following are just some of the features the Advanced GEM80 Programmer has to offer.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Compare Facilities

  • There are two comparison facilities, a standard compare facility which indicates what has been compared and whether or not there were any differences. If there were differences found, then the first 10 of these in each section - logic, presets, addresses, data comments, rung comments, will be displayed.
  • The enhanced File Compare facility (Developer Pro version only) lets you compare the program loaded into the AGP with another program stored on disk. You can view both sets of rungs, p-tables and mnemonics simultaneously, with differences being automatically highlighted.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Off-line RAM / Onboard EPROM

  • Ability to transfer off-line RAM files from the GEM80 and save them to disk and vice-versa. Also provided is the ability to compare the off-line RAM in the GEM80 with previously saved RAM files to see if they are the same or not.
  • Ability to blow the program in RAM on the GEM80 to the EPROM chip (if installed) on the GEM80. Also offers the ability to switch between running the program in the RAM of the GEM80 or the EPROM.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Table Monitor

  • This is displayed as a grid (similar to MS Excel). There can be 5 grids accessed via a series of tabs. Each grid can monitor up to 32 different tables within the GEM80.
  • Each tab can be given a description and the entire layout saved to disk and reloaded at a later time.
  • This window is fully re-sizable and allows items to be added / deleted even whilst monitoring.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Diagnostics Monitor

  • This is a sizable, tabbed window displaying the following diagnostics information as supplied by the GEM80:
    • PLC info (F0 to F9)
    • I/O info (whether I/O has failed or is in fault condition)
    • Serial Link info (status of serial link - dependent on how it is configured) - (GEM80-400 / GEM80-500 only)
    • GEMCAN info (status of GEMCAN) - (GEM80-400 / GEM80-500 only)

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Test Panel

  • This facility is similar to the Table Monitor, however, it is more versatile especially when testing programs. Basically it comprises of five 3x16 grids of cells. Like the Table Monitor, each tab can be given a description and the entire layout saved to disk and reloaded at a later time.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Data Logger

  • This facility allows a different way to monitor tables within the GEM80, furthermore this data can be saved to disk and subsequently converted to a CSV file which can then be read in any analysed or stored by any other program capable of reading CSV files.
  • The Data Logger Configuration window allows you to set-up what addresses to log (up to a maximum of 16). Specify when the logging will take place (at regular intervals, between certain times, on certain events or a combination of these). It also allows you to specify whether the data will be logged to file, how large the file can grow and what should happen when the file size is reached. All this information is stored with the current project file.
  • The Data Logger Viewer shows the actual data being logged. This can be viewed in a tabular format or in a graphical format (this will be a line graph for analogue items and a bit trace for digital items). The viewing of the data can be paused and resumed without affecting the logging of the data to file.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Ladder Summary

  • This is a sizable window with its own menu and a range of special features and facilities.
  • It is possible to export a range of rungs to disk and then import them into the same program or other programs (all corresponding addresses, mnemonics etc. are also exported / imported with them). Thus it is now possible to build up a series of library routines that can quickly be pulled into a new project.
  • There is also the ability to add up to 32 bookmarks (one per rung) and quickly go to any bookmark. Bookmarks each have a unique piece of user-entered text to identify them.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Address / Mnemonic Editor

  • A range of powerful tools allow you to:
    • Change a Range of Addresses
      e.g. change all addresses in the range A2 ... A9 to G2 ... G9. It is also possible to move any associated mnemonics etc. with the addresses if desired.
    • Verify Addresses
      This facility works through the program logic and checks that all the addresses used in the program also exist in the mnemonics list. If they don't then they are added and the user is informed of these new addresses.
    • Find and Replace Text
      This is a simple find and replace text facility and allows a specified piece of text to be searched for and subsequently replaced in the Mnemonic, Location and Data Comments fields.
    • Delete all Unused Addresses
      Deletes all addresses that are marked as not used in the program logic and that don't have an associated mnemonic.

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Preset Data Editor

  • This is displayed as a tabbed window. The five tabs are:
    • Presets
      This uses an MS Excel like grid to display and enter the data. All fields can be edited by highlighting the field and editing in place. Some fields may cause another dialog box to be displayed to allow the user to enter the data in the correct format. It is now also possible to copy and paste a range of p tables.
    • Serial Link 4/500
      This provides an easy to use method of setting up the p tables for configuring one or more of the serial ports (GEM80-400 / GEM80-500 only).
    • Serial Link 16-bit
      This provides an easy to use method of setting up the p tables for configuring one or more of the serial ports (GEM80-140 / GEM80-160 / GEM80-250 / GEM80-300 / GEM80-310 AND GEM80-350 only).
    • GEMLAN-T
      This provides an easy to use method of setting up the p tables for configuring the GEMLAN-T module (GEM80-400 / GEM80-500 only).
    • GEMCAN
      This provides an easy to use method of setting up the p tables for configuring the GEMCAN module (GEM80-400 / GEM80-500 only).
  • The Tools menu also allows the following features:
    • Clear a Range of Tables
    • Fill a Range of Tables
    • Insert and Expand Tables
    • Delete and Condense Tables
    • Export a Range of Tables to Disk
    • Import a Range of Tables from Disk

Advanced GEM80 Programmer - Off-line Message Editor

  • An off-line message editor facility allows the user to view and edit messages stored in the p tables in a user-friendlier manner. This feature is not available when connected to the GEM80 in dual edit mode.
  • A list of all the messages in the program is displayed, it is then possible to add new messages, edit or delete existing ones. The main method of entering messages is via a standard Windows text entry field, additional controls allow the user to easily enter special characters or numeric formats.

 

Advanced Technical Software - Contact Details

For further information on the Advanced GEM80 Programmer, including pricing information, contact Advanced Technical Software Ltd. on +44 (0)1572 727847 or e-mail sales@advancedtechnicalsoftware.co.uk.

Download a PDF file - An Overview of the Advanced GEM80 Programmer