Open communication standards, advances in software, and the paradigm of the integrated enterprise continue to extend the reach of human-machine/machine-machine interfaces.

Joe Bartolomeo, director of Rockwell Software's visualization business, tells IEN: "This sector faces some misperceptions: that Web-based HMI is the end-game, that technology and security do not support all real-time performance expectations and the commoditization of visualization tools and maturity of HMI products. Meanwhile, the absorption of HMI vendors by automation vendors for single-source supply has proved a stumbling block." Scott Coleman, director of marketing for Rockwell's information platforms business, adds: "Many customers elect not to move to open systems, fearing viruses could bring down their control systems and compromise their plant operations." (Click here for more.)

Stefano Zanetti, software product manager at National Instruments, observes that "seamlessly accessing data through wireless devices" will be a major challenge facing HMI/MMI in the next few years. He expects "widespread adoption of wireless HMI in the future." (Click here for more.)

Bill Lydon, WAGO's advanced electronics product manager, also points to "the growth of a wide range of devices that need to be supported including handheld computers, PDAs, voice recognition, smart cards, and other user interface." (Click here for more.)

And Andrew Brodie, product manager for HMI software planning at Siemens Energy & Automation, predicts that "ease of integration to MES and business systems will become increasingly important as manufacturers move toward a digital business design. Currently the cost of integrating shop floor systems to business systems can be very costly and time consuming."

Security concerns will increase "as customers and production come closer together electronically," Brodie adds. "As plants go online, the potential for disruptions in production may increase as formerly isolated facilities now have a connection that malicious individuals can attempt to take advantage of," he continues. "HMIs will need to work with firewalls and have inherent security that minimizes the opportunity for unapproved interactions." (Click here for more.)

Increased functionality and more smart devices pose challenges too, according to Will Salley, president of Delta Systems Inc. "Machines are becoming more specialized so custom HMI development becomes more complex and time consuming, even though the tools are better," he says. (Click here for more.) Erica K. Rice, at workstation supplier Production Basics, adds safety and ergonomics to the list. (Click here for more.)

Coming Attractions: Color, Voice Recognition, Ease of Use

"The options for display, monitoring, and controlling real-time field points from virtually any computer are expanding rapidly," Lydon observes. "The proliferation of standard Ethernet means that off-the-shelf Web browsers such as Internet Explorer can be used to remotely view real-time data, control machines, and processes."

States Jon Giardina, PLC product marketing manager at Omron Electronics: "You can expect hybrid touchscreen products that deliver the flexibility and performance of a panel PC running HMI/SCADA, and the ease-of-use and maintainability of a traditional dedicated industrial HMI." Also in development -- "dedicated industrial HMI that can display multiple color video images from devices such as vision cameras, security cameras, and PC video cards." (Click here for more.)

The HMI sector will see widespread deployment of Thin Client technology, predicts David Hancock, vp of marketing at Automation Control Products. "Software companies are working feverishly on web type interfaces that do not require the full HMI to run on the target machine, and hardware companies are offering scaled down hardware in the form of Thin Clients," Hancock observes. He also believes that "with the emergence of the latest wireless specifications, a handheld (640x480) LCD based Thin Client" could increase use of portable PC interfaces in industrial applications, since "bandwidth requirements for a Thin Client are low enough that screens display as quickly as they would on a full PC screen." (Click here for more.)

Bartolomeo believes industry will see "Automation Objects with properties and attributes for logic control, graphics, animation, alarming, etc. and the support of more biometric inputs, such as voice recognition." And Rice expects advances in "machine management training -- mechanical and troubleshooting vs. production or assembly training."

Software and equipment are being integrated "through supporting standards such as OPC that allow seamless integration of third party devices," according to Zanetti. Lydon contends that "software integration using standard Windows services and open architecture TCP/IP Ethernet is making integration simple and cost effective for many applications that cannot support the cost of a traditional HMI/MMI."

Scott Kortier, Xycom's GP/GLC product manager, believes that "combination products, HMI and control in one package, integrated Ethernet, CompactFlash and Web access along with live video will solve a host of problems for OEMs and end customers alike." (Click here for more.)

Will some plants be run remotely in the future? Bartolomeo says, "The answer is yes and no, depending on security and protection. The capability will be there, but intellectual property is a major issue. Customers will most likely view remotely, but control locally. HMIs are really about directly interacting and controlling processes; alarms and annunciation will be more practical to manage remotely."

Kortier concurs: "One would think that the proverbial 'Lights Out' facility of the future would be here by now. The truth is, we are almost there. I am torn as to the pros and cons: Remote monitoring is possible and happening now. Data can be collected in real time and production and inventory levels can be obtained from the front office or even from another facility, miles away. An HMI that takes on the functions of push buttons or other capabilities of remotely starting/stopping machines presents safety issues. Another pitfall would be the initial expense for the added software/hardware needed to automate processes normally completed by humans (material delivery, and exception handling)," according to Kortier. Still, the "sprawling plants of today" lend themselves to some remote operations, he says.

"I think the 'employee-less manufacturing plant' is a bit mythical, sort of like the 'paperless office,'" Salley adds. "Virtual control will become a greater part of the process but humans have incredible abilities compared to even the best machines. What I do think you'll see is machines doing things that require more judgment and dexterity."

The human touch is irreplaceable, Rice agrees. "People make the machines. They are needed to maintain the machine's proper function, repair them when they break, upgrade them when they are improved, and replace them when they are out of date, or out of life," says Rice.

Brodie seems more optimistic about the possibility of remote HMI: "In several industries, many distributed sites are already run remotely," he tells IEN. "As the pervasiveness of automation and monitoring technology increases, many smaller facilities could be completely automated and go remote."

How can companies plug in the latest HMI/MMI technologies with existing systems and components? According to Zanetti, "open software environments that leverage the latest PC connectivity technologies, such as wireless, Bluetooth, and Ethernet, will be the glue for the integration of the heterogeneous systems we typically see in today's production floors."

Adds Lydon: "Legacy systems can be interfaced to newer technologies in virtually all cases, but an analysis of the cost of ownership should be done against replacement with newer technology, including the opportunity cost of not taking advantage of new technology. This analysis should be done considering at least the next three years of maintaining the legacy technology," Lydon notes.

There are various approaches, Bartolomeo tells IEN, "depending on the technologies that have already been embraced; if the vendor has embraced open standards such as OPC, ActiveX, VBA, then the transition should be less painful."

Thin Client technology eases the transition, according to Hancock, since "there is no requirement to modify the software that the company is now running. Windows applications that run on standalone, distributed PCs run just as well on a Windows terminal (Thin Client) without the overhead of the PC support." Meanwhile, Thin Client systems "can co-exist with current systems. Once a server is configured correctly, individual PCs throughout the factory can be replaced one by one with Thin Clients as needed," Hancock observes.

"I think Industrial Ethernet is going to be the common thread that ties all these things together,"

Salley concludes. "The days of writing a driver for every !@#$% piece of hardware are gone, but gateways to legacy networks are appearing from a number of different companies, whether it's a serial port, fieldbus, or proprietary protocol."