Use Continue Mode Processing

As described previously, under normal circumstances Batch Manager waits until a process or transfer phase becomes Done or Aborted before running the next phase in the recipe. This behavior can be changed by enabling the Continue Mode property for a phase in the recipe. When Continue Mode is encountered in a batch, Batch Manager starts the phase as it normally does. However, Batch Manager does not wait for the phase to complete before moving on. As soon as the phase returns a status of Run or Held, Batch Manager continues in recipe processing.

Any phase that has the Continue Mode property enabled and that is processing remains in the active phase list and can be monitored and controlled in the same way as any other active phase. If recipe processing has moved to a subsequent operation or unit procedure, the operation or unit procedure with a phase running that has the Continue Mode property enabled is shown in cyan. This color coding allows an operator to easily identify unfinished operations.

Note: Use caution when you enable the Continue Mode property for any phase within a loop object. Because of the risk of re-running an active phase, batch processing does not proceed into the loop in which a phase with the continue mode property enabled is active. As soon as the phase completes, batch processing proceeds into the loop.

Because the phase is running normally, it also must finish just like a normal phase. Batch processing does not end until all phases have completed. Therefore, any phase with the Continue Mode property enabled is required to complete either normally according to the internal phase logic or based upon some external signal.

A good example of the use of the Continue Mode is vessel agitation. It is not unusual for agitation to span multiple operations. When this is required, the recipe builder is generally forced to use one-shot phases that start the agitator and then complete or to use complex branching to keep the agitator running throughout the course of the multiple operations. Using one-shot phases is undesirable because even though the agitator remains running, the phase is no longer active and cannot be controlled. The branching option is also undesirable if the recipe builder does not have experience with the process. The Continue Mode option allows the agitation phase to be placed in the recipe as required without complex branching and remains active until it ends on its own or until another phase or external signal tells the phase to end. Thus, it is always visible and can be controlled.