Member Article

Choosing the Ideal HMI Panel: An In-Depth Look at Weintek HMI Options

With nearly 30 years in the business, Weintek has accumulated extensive expertise in designing and advancing visualisation panels. They introduced the industry's first full-colour 16:9 widescreen HMI panel, setting a new standard. Over time, Weintek has rolled out various HMI series, each bringing new features and improvements. In this guide, we'll review the core attributes and performance of Weintek's HMI series to assist you in selecting the right model for your needs.

Extensive Range of Models and Protocols

Weintek's current lineup includes four primary series of HMI panels, each offering a variety of customisable options. A standout feature of Weintek HMIs is their support for an impressive array of around 400 communication protocols. This wide range allows for considerable flexibility in connecting with various PLCs and other devices. With approximately 30 different HMI models available, selecting the right one can be as daunting as choosing the perfect wine from a supermarket shelf. The key is to select the model that best meets your specific needs.

When choosing an HMI visualisation panel, it's crucial to understand that while all Weintek panels can handle basic operations like PLC connectivity and parameter display, their functionality and performance can vary significantly.

Weintek iP HMI Panel Series

The Weintek iP series is an affordable and versatile option featuring screen sizes of 4.3'', 7'', and 10.1''. It excels in delivering straightforward and effective visualisations, making it ideal for projects that don't require advanced features.

Benefits:

• Supports 3G/4G dongles
• Comes with 256 MB of built-in Flash memory

Drawbacks:

• Lacks email functionality
• Does not support MQTT publishing or subscription

Weintek iE HMI Panel Series

The iE series, available since 2013, is known for its durability and sleek design. It features screen sizes from 4.3'' to 10.1'' and is suited for a variety of industrial settings. This series offers enhanced resistance to moisture, dust, and corrosion.

Benefits:

• Supports MQTT publishing and subscription
• Includes email functionality

Drawbacks:

• No database support
• Limited to 128 MB of built-in Flash memory

Weintek cMT HMI Panel Series

Despite its compact size, the Weintek cMT series offers remarkable ease of integration with splitters and other systems. It features two Ethernet ports or ETH + Wi-Fi for advanced communication between industrial machinery and IT systems, accessible via a laptop, tablet, or smartphone.

Benefits:

• Web server for effortless configuration
• SD card for historical data storage

Drawbacks:

• Does not support CAN Bus
• Not configurable as an OPC UA Server

Weintek cMT-X HMI Panel Series

The cMT-X series represents the pinnacle of Weintek's HMI technology, offering superior graphical capabilities and data synchronisation with IT platforms. It features screen sizes of 7'', 10.1'', 12.1'', 15'', and 15.6'', and integrates advanced capacitive touch technology for an enhanced user experience.

Benefits:

• Supports MQTT and configurable OPC UA Server with HDA
• Includes CAN Bus support
• Features Javascript widgets
• Equipped with 4 GB of built-in memory

Drawbacks:

• Capacitive screen technology is not available for 7'' and 12.1'' displays

EasyBuilder Pro and Weintek

Among these Weintek HMI series, you are sure to find the correct one for your individual task. Despite their differences, they all use EasyBulder Pro. It is a visualisation development environment or programme that enables you to interact with any of the visualisation panels listed above. It's available for free.

Weintek continues to update EasyBuilder Pro on his own to make the user experience and project development a nice "aftertaste." EasyBuilder Pro's functionality improves with each release, making it easier to create visualisation conditions and algorithms. Let us remind you that an effective communication architecture is critical to the success of any project.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by iCONQUER Ltd .