About faceplate graphics creation

This section describes the general steps to create a faceplate graphic, which consist of the following:

• Determine the graphics on a faceplate that should be shown or hidden to support different graphic configurations.

• Determine the valid and invalid reference states that will show or hide graphics on a faceplate.

• During design time, set faceplate compatibility mode at the root level or canvas of the graphic.

Determine the Graphics that Run in Faceplate Compatibility Mode

Consider the graphics that will represent the equipment to be controlled and monitored from a faceplate. Determine the unique qualities of each piece of equipment that will need to be shown on the faceplate by a graphic. These unique qualities are the object attributes, such as a PV attribute or ON/OFF attribute. The presence of these attributes based on the configuration of the graphic determine how the faceplate is built.

Determine the Valid and Invalid Reference States that Show or Hide Faceplate Graphics

Determine the reference states when faceplate graphics need to be shown or hidden for all configurations of equipment represented by the graphics.

In the example of using a faceplate to manage fixed-speed and variable speed pumps, a meter should be hidden when an operator is managing a fixed-speed pump. When running a fixed speed pump, a reference to a meter's PV custom property is invalid and will hide the meter when it is running in faceplate compatibility mode.

Set Faceplate Compatibility Mode

Set faceplate compatibility mode for those graphics that appear on a faceplate that must be hidden to support a specific equipment configuration. Faceplate compatibility mode can be set on graphic groups and the root level or canvas of a graphic. For more information about the inheritance rules of faceplate compatibility mode for grouped or nested graphics, see About graphics visibility during runtime.

In the example of using a faceplate to manage fixed-speed and variable speed pumps, the meter should be hidden on the faceplate when an operator is managing a fixed-speed pump.

Graphics include the Boolean FaceplateMode property. When a graphic's FaceplateMode property is set to True, the graphic is hidden when it contains an invalid reference to a target. In the following example, a CheckBox graphic element toggles the state FaceplateMode property of a meter graphic to enable or disable faceplate mode compatibility.

When the operator selects a fixed-speed motor from the faceplate, the meter's PV custom property reference becomes invalid, which will hide the meter when its FaceplateMode property is True.