Ask the Infrastructure Specialists! Lesia’s Q&A Corner
Recording Operator’s Consoles is Made Easy with Longwatch
No more Big Brother. No more “he said, she said.” The solution is the Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder! The Operator’s Console Recorder is a software module that enables automatic recording of your HMI or SCADA operator’s console display. This tool archives exactly what the operator was seeing; it records the video that is being sent to the display itself. Before this simple solution came to the table the only way to record what an operator was seeing before, during and after an event was more of a big brother approach using an over the shoulder camera which was intrusive, intimidating and inaccurate.
This software module makes it easy to record one or more operator console displays. You see exactly which display was active, and what data was on the display, when alarms, events or messages occur. It even records the mouse movements so you can see what action the operator took. With Longwatch, video retrieval is automatic, requiring no special code or special hardware. You get results quickly, and your system is easy to maintain. Having playback of what the operator was seeing is a very valuable method for troubleshooting, training, and process improvement.
The best advantage to the Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder is that it works with the Video Historian (also by Longwatch). It offers automatic playback of video based on message mapping from external systems and extra annotation of video with SQL tags for easy organization.
For example, consider a leak at a pumping station. Investigators watch plant video taken at a remote site showing fuel oil creeping across the floor of a pumping station, real-time data being acquired from pumps, valves and the receiving tank while the leak was occurring, what appeared on the operator’s HMI screen, and the alarm screen that came up when the leak detector went off. Then, the Investigators watch the operator switch the HMI screen to live video feed from the pumping station, observe the leak, and take action from the HMI to shut off the pump. Plant video shows the arrival of a maintenance crew to repair the leak. Analysis of all data and videos show that the leak detector was poorly positioned and an alarm condition is needed for when fuel oil is being pumped but is not being received at the storage tank.
When combined with the automatic data mapping capability of the Video Historian, the Operator’s Console Recorder automatically retrieves and replays the operator’s display by clicking on a time-based alarm or system message. Work is made simple and saves a tremendous amount of time. With both solutions the issue of a leak detector being poorly positioned was quickly resolved, and improved operations for the future.
Covering all your bases mitigates insurance and regulatory issues. The combined video and historian information determined that the operator acted correctly and the spill was cleaned up with no damage to the environment. The Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder and Video Historian fill the gap between normal plant data acquisition and actual plant management because they show everything that happened during an event.
As explained above, these capabilities improve training, operations, reduce liability and overall operating costs on the plant floor. This module captures the video directly to your graphics card; no camera hardware is needed. It archives Live, DVR, and Event-based Clip viewing along with local and centralized video archiving.
With a typical three-display system, it is possible to display remote pump video on one screen, video from the operator’s display at the time of the event on a second screen, and process historian data on a third screen, creating a simultaneous view of what happened and what the operator saw. Having this ability at your fingertips makes operations on the plant floor easier and help quickly resolved issues from all angles. It also helps for learning what dos and don’ts to have for the future.
For more information on the Operator’s Console Recorder or the Video Historian, please contact Lesia Bell, your Infrastructure Specialist at 443.683.8031 or lbell@insourcess.com
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Ask the Infrastructure Specialists! Lesia’s Q&A Corner
Recording Operator’s Consoles is Made Easy with Longwatch
No more Big Brother. No more “he said, she said.” The solution is the Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder! The Operator’s Console Recorder is a software module that enables automatic recording of your HMI or SCADA operator’s console display. This tool archives exactly what the operator was seeing; it records the video that is being sent to the display itself. Before this simple solution came to the table the only way to record what an operator was seeing before, during and after an event was more of a big brother approach using an over the shoulder camera which was intrusive, intimidating and inaccurate.
This software module makes it easy to record one or more operator console displays. You see exactly which display was active, and what data was on the display, when alarms, events or messages occur. It even records the mouse movements so you can see what action the operator took. With Longwatch, video retrieval is automatic, requiring no special code or special hardware. You get results quickly, and your system is easy to maintain. Having playback of what the operator was seeing is a very valuable method for troubleshooting, training, and process improvement.
The best advantage to the Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder is that it works with the Video Historian (also by Longwatch). It offers automatic playback of video based on message mapping from external systems and extra annotation of video with SQL tags for easy organization.
For example, consider a leak at a pumping station. Investigators watch plant video taken at a remote site showing fuel oil creeping across the floor of a pumping station, real-time data being acquired from pumps, valves and the receiving tank while the leak was occurring, what appeared on the operator’s HMI screen, and the alarm screen that came up when the leak detector went off. Then, the Investigators watch the operator switch the HMI screen to live video feed from the pumping station, observe the leak, and take action from the HMI to shut off the pump. Plant video shows the arrival of a maintenance crew to repair the leak. Analysis of all data and videos show that the leak detector was poorly positioned and an alarm condition is needed for when fuel oil is being pumped but is not being received at the storage tank.
When combined with the automatic data mapping capability of the Video Historian, the Operator’s Console Recorder automatically retrieves and replays the operator’s display by clicking on a time-based alarm or system message. Work is made simple and saves a tremendous amount of time. With both solutions the issue of a leak detector being poorly positioned was quickly resolved, and improved operations for the future.
Covering all your bases mitigates insurance and regulatory issues. The combined video and historian information determined that the operator acted correctly and the spill was cleaned up with no damage to the environment. The Longwatch Operator’s Console Recorder and Video Historian fill the gap between normal plant data acquisition and actual plant management because they show everything that happened during an event.
As explained above, these capabilities improve training, operations, reduce liability and overall operating costs on the plant floor. This module captures the video directly to your graphics card; no camera hardware is needed. It archives Live, DVR, and Event-based Clip viewing along with local and centralized video archiving.
With a typical three-display system, it is possible to display remote pump video on one screen, video from the operator’s display at the time of the event on a second screen, and process historian data on a third screen, creating a simultaneous view of what happened and what the operator saw. Having this ability at your fingertips makes operations on the plant floor easier and help quickly resolved issues from all angles. It also helps for learning what dos and don’ts to have for the future.
For more information on the Operator’s Console Recorder or the Video Historian, please contact Lesia Bell, your Infrastructure Specialist at 443.683.8031 or lbell@insourcess.com
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