Crimson 3.2 Emulator
Abstract
This document describes how to use the Emulator feature in Crimson 3.2.
Products
CR1000 series HMIs
CR3000 series HMIs
DA30D Data Stations
Graphite series HMIs and Edge Controller
FlexEdge Controllers DA50A and DA70A
Use Case
This applies to situations where you want to simulate running a Red Lion device, without the hardware, on your PC. This enables you to simulate operation for most capabilities and features. However, there are some exceptions, the Emulator will not support any features that require option modules.
It can support serial and Ethernet communications with the built-in communications ports. It can link its virtual ports to the Ethernet ports and/or serial COM ports you specify on your PC to enable communication with external devices.
Note the Emulator does have a built-in 15-minute timeout. After the timeout expires, you need to reopen it. There is not any way to bypass this timeout.
Required Software
Crimson 3.2
Emulator Configuration
Before using the Emulator, you need to configure it for any external communications that are required. To do this, select Link | Options, and check the box for Send to Emulator. Then click on the Configure button to open the Emulator Options dialog.
If you want to simulate serial communications, configure the Serial Port Mapping section to map the virtual serial ports to your PC’s available serial COM ports.
If you want to simulate Ethernet communications, in the Ethernet Mapping section, use the dropdown list to select from the available Ethernet adapters on your PC.
By default, the Emulator will open on your main monitor. You can optionally select Use Second Monitor to start it there.
Database Configuration
If using any external communications, you need to make sure the database is properly configured to run with your PC’s configuration.
For Ethernet communications to work, make sure you set the Ethernet port’s settings to an IP address in the same subnet range as your PC’s Ethernet adapter. You can use DHCP if there is a DHCP server available on that network. if you are using a static IP address, then the IP address you set must be in the same range to be able to communicate with devices on that subnet.
For serial communications, make sure you have the PC’s COM port settings configured to match the Port Settings you will be using with the serial driver in the database.
The Emulator will support most of the features available on a real HMI. This includes the System Web Server and Application Web Server. It also support features that require a memory card, such as Data Logging. The Emulator will store the data logs in its image files. You can access the data log file via the web server as if it was running on a live system.
Starting the Emulator
To start the Emulator, you need to have the Send to Emulator box checked in Link | Options. You can also do this by selecting the Emulator’s shortcut button on the buttons bar. It will be highlighted in orange when it is selected. Then with that selected, you select Link | Update or Link | Send, just like you were downloading to a device, to start the Emulator. This downloads the database into the memory image files for that Emulator.
Troubleshooting and Recovery
If you have issues with the Emulator getting hung up or crashing, you may need to delete the temp files it uses for virtual memory. You can do this in Emulator Options by using the buttons in the Emulator Memory Image section. If you click on Delete Files, this deletes all the Emulator’s memory images.
Each model of HMI or controller will have its own virtual memory image files. If you only want to delete specific a memory image, select the Show Files button. This will open Explorer to the location for all the image files. Each Emulator model that you run will have its own folder for its temp image files. You can manually delete the specified folder to remove just the files for that specific model.
After deleting these files, then restart the Emulator. This will be like downloading to an HMI with no database in it.
Disclaimer
It is the customer's responsibility to review the advice provided herein and its applicability to the system. Red Lion makes no representation about specific knowledge of the customer's system or the specific performance of the system. Red Lion is not responsible for any damage to equipment or connected systems. The use of this document is at your own risk. Red Lion standard product warranty applies.
HMS Technical Support
If you have any questions or trouble, contact HMS Technical Support by clicking here.