Hello All,
Problem: Many systems currently have a poor practice of using a single login for all operators. When a process cannot stop to change operators, the operators must turn over to one another with the process active, but a "chain of operation" must be maintained so that each login is tied directly to a specific operator.

Question: Is there a preferred method using one or multiple stations, where one operator can control the system and hand off control to another login such that positive control of the process is maintained and the operators are recorded correctly?

I see a possibility here for the following:
1. Operator A logs into Ops. Station 1
2. Operator A operates for a while and is the operator of record
3. Operator B logs into a second station and performs turn-over with Operator A
4. Operator A logs out of the system and now Operator B is the operator of record and may operate

Thoughts?

Thanks,
Matt

Hi Matt,

When you login to an operator station, there is a Linux user and a Proview user involved. You first login as a Linux user and then usually automatically as a Proview user when you start the operator enviroment with a specific OpPlace. The Proview user is specified in the OpPlace object. The Proview user has privileges that are matched against the access for objects in the process graphics that has some action defined. So with the privileges you can control which parts of the plant a operator can operate.

Operators can have different Linux users but they can share the same Proview user and thus have access to the same plant parts. They can also have different Proview users with the same privileges and then will also have access to the same plant parts.

Sometimes you have an equipment that should be able to be controlled from different operators, but absolutely not at the same time. I don't know if this was part of you question , but we haven't any solution for this in the operator environment yet. So far I think it has been solved with plc programming, but we have had some ideas of a single user that only one can be logged in as at the same time. So to perform a specific task the operator has to switch to this user and will be rejected if anyone already is logged in.

/Claes

Claes,
Thanks for this. I think we're close to my answer.

Just for clarity, let me restate the problem:
I need is to switch between two operators seamlessly and have the system record that the operator is a different human (switching from one Proview user to the another), but we must have an operator working all the time (not necessarily operating equipment, but monitoring the same information with the *possibility* of using the equipment). The first operator would then log out, and the second operator would be running the system alone. But, for a brief period, either operator (human/Proview user) could independently control the system in case of a problem.

Could I have two identical, but separate, Proview users, that can be logged in at the same time?
I understand that they cannot operate the same equipment at the same time, but could *either human/user* operate the shared equipment alone?
Will displayed indicators show up in both places with no issues?

Thanks again for the help.
-Matt

Matt,

Both operators will have the same view and see exactly the same information about the process. The question is if they can affect the process by pushing buttons, moving sliders and entering values etc. One way to do this is to set the same privileges on both operators. But is also possible to adjust the access of the buttons to allow operators with different privileges to operate the buttons.

Let's say we have to operators, op1 with privilege Operator1 and op2 with privilege Operator2. Every button, slider, input field has an Access property and if a button has access Operator1, only op1 is authorized to press the button. Likewise if access is Operator2 only op2 is authorized. But you can also set access to Operator1 | Operator2 and then both will be authorized.

It's also possible to set several privileges on an operator so by adding Operator1 to op2, op2 will be authorized to do the same thing as op1, but in addition to this also operate buttons with access Operator2.

/Claes

1. Thanks for the reply Claes. Sorry that it took me so long to respond...

2. So, this has come up again, and I would like to sort rehash it just a bit.
If I have two operators, and they are logged in at the same time, could I build in a switch that allows on operator to change from spectator to operator, and vice versa?
Could I essentially build a control set where operator 1 (the current operator) provides a permission (by means of a switch) that says "another operator may now take control", and then the other operator could (by means of a switch) *take* control, so that there is a smooth hand off of the controls, simply by changing the permissions?

Thank again for all your hard work!
-Matt

Matt,

The only way to change the privileges is to login or out from the operator window menu or with the xtt commands 'login' and 'logout'. With the commands you can login and out from buttons in a graph and also by using a script put restricions on the login. In the example below I have created two pushbuttons that only allows login if a digital value is zero, that is if noone else is logged in. Note that this digital value is a PublicDv as you might not have write access for an unprivileged user otherwise.

/Claes