Mitsubishi Electric has launched a new model range in the form the GT25 series designed to strike a balance between high performance and cost efficiency. Also new to the GOT family is a larger 15-inch variant of the high-end GT27 series, now the largest HMI on offer from Mitsubishi Electric. Accompanying the new hardware is also a new release of the user-friendly GT SoftGOT2000 Soft-HMI. Standard GT25 operator panels are available in 8.4, 10.4 and 12.1-inch sizes. The 8.4 and the 10.4-inch models also available in white and without a USB port on the front for food & beverage industry applications. Standard VGA displays on the smaller sizes ensure top quality graphics at 640x480 pixel resolution and for the most demanding applications the 12.1 inch size with SVGA resolution is also available.
The GT25 series ranges between the classic GT23 and the high-end GT27 series with extensive functionality and connectivity via Ethernet, CC-Link (IE), RS-232, RS422/485 and USB. In the event of a problem for example, the operator can use the document display function to find a relevant help document, such as a manual or a photograph of the machine component and view it directly on the GOT, allowing the error to be located and rectified as quickly as possible. In order to do this, the operator has a wide range of troubleshooting functions to choose from with ready-made hardware monitoring pages on the GOT. "There will be no need to keep paper copies of service brochures anymore and operators won't have to spend ages searching through them.
The GOT means that you have all the information you need at your fingertips", explains André Hartkopf, Product Manager Visualization for Factory Automation - European Business Group of Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. Significantly the GOT2000 series also offers a powerful MES gateway system via which the operator can communicate directly with a database at management level. This MES interface function enables the GOT to communicate directly with an SQL, Oracle or Access database without an intermediary computer, adding practicality and speed to operations through its enhanced features. With the backup and restore function, an operator can use the GOT to access various devices within the system; saving the parameters of a frequency inverter or a PLC program onto an external memory device such as an SD card or a USB stick, for example. If a component needs to be replaced, the parameter data or the program can be quickly transferred to the new device via the GOT ensuring maximum uptime. With the VNC remote access function operators can also connect to the GOT remotely, display the current system status and control the machine via the normal GOT screen.
Alarm data, hard copies of screenshots or recipes for example can also be transferred between the GOT and a PC quite easily using the FTP server functionality. Like almost all Mitsubishi Electric components, the GT25 models are fully backwards compatible. "Backwards compatibility will be of enormous benefit to system manufacturers and operators in the future as it will enable components from subsequent series to be integrated into an existing system without the need for any system adjustments or modifications at all", explains André Hartkopf. "The very user-friendly and powerful GOT2000 series offers an outstandingly strong price-performance ratio, particularly now we have introduced the GT25 HMIs."
Further innovations from the GOT2000 series The just launched 15-inch version of the GT27 series comes with an outstanding extensive range of functions shared with the GT27 models, along with the largest display within the GOT2000 series with a full 1024 x 768 pixel resolution at 4:3 ratio. Additionally, Mitsubishi Electric has actually also introduced the first GT21 models, extending the basic end of the range. In the near future, this extremely compact range from the GOT2000 series will include screens from 3.8 to 5.7 inches. The features on offer embrace Ethernet network connection, data logging on SD cards, long-life, energy-efficient LED background lighting in five colours along with other useful advantages such as backup and restore, FA Transparent**, multi-channel and operator authentication functions. Beside this the new GT SoftGOT2000 HMI software has been launched. It can be used to carry out GOT functions on a PC without the need for GOT hardware. This software can even be used to connect and monitor various system components.
