MX OPC Configurator Ver6.05 - Quick Start (03.14)
MX OPC Configurator Ver6.05 - Quick Start (03.14)
MX OPC Configurator Ver6.05 - Quick Start (03.14)
MITSUBISHI
Quick Start Guide
MELSOFT
Integrated FA Software
MX OPC Configurator
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1.1 ...................................................................................................................................................
Compatibility with Former Versions 4
1.2 ...................................................................................................................................................
What Is OLE for Process Control 5
1.3 ...................................................................................................................................................
MX OPC Runtime 5
1.4 ...................................................................................................................................................
MX OPC Configurator 6
1.5 ...................................................................................................................................................
OPC client software 7
1.6 ...................................................................................................................................................
Installing MX OPC Server 8
1.6.1 System
....................................................................................................................................................................
Requirements 8
1.6.2 Installation
....................................................................................................................................................................
Procedure 9
1.6.3 Configuring
....................................................................................................................................................................
the service 16
1.6.4 Rebooting
....................................................................................................................................................................
the PC 18
1.7...................................................................................................................................................
MX OPC Server Quick Start 18
1.7.1 Starting
....................................................................................................................................................................
the MX OPC Configurator 19
1.7.2 Setting
....................................................................................................................................................................
Up the Driver 20
1.7.3 Creating
....................................................................................................................................................................
Communication Channels 21
1.7.4 Configuring
....................................................................................................................................................................
a New Device 31
1.7.5 Creating
....................................................................................................................................................................
Data Tags 33
1.7.6 Starting
....................................................................................................................................................................
the MX OPC Runtime Driver 36
1.7.7 Connecting
....................................................................................................................................................................
to the Server Using OPC DataSpy 37
Index 41
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MX Runtime
The MX OPC Server complies with version 3.00 of the OLE for Process Control (OPC) Data Access standard,
version 1.01 of the OPC XML Data Access standard, and version 1.01 of the OPC Alarm and Events standard.
Any OPC client application can access process hardware data through the I/O Server.
The MX OPC Server 6.05 configuration database cannot be used in the previous versions.
The MX OPC Server does not support importing of CSV configurations generated by a different version. Although
this process is partially successful in some versions, the 6.05 version will not import a CSV file created before
version 6.05 due to major changes in the database structure.
To preserve the configuration, the user can import the CSV file to a MDB database using the original
configurator, upgrade the MDB database using the MX OPC Server 6.05 configurator and then export to CSV.
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Any OPC client application can connect to any OPC server. In other words, OPC offers true Plug-and-Play capability in the
fields of HMI and industrial automation. OPC server types include OPC Data Access (DA), OPC Alarm and Events (AE), and
OPC Historical Data Access (HDA).
In addition to performance improvements, the MX OPC Runtime provides the following functionality:
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Notes
1. Supports this type only for values in signed DINT range 0..2147483647
2. Supports this type only for values in signed INT range 0..32767
3. Does not support unsigned 32-bit values
4. Does not read the correct value in all cases
5. This type of array variable is not fully supported - use of array notation [] is recommended instead.
6. When writing n-based arrays from OPC data spy, additional elements must be supplied for elements from
0 to the start of the array. For example, to write two values to an array of size 2 with lower bound 3, use
'0,0,0,1,2'.
In the event of problems getting client software to read values from the OPC server, try the following:
Select the native type of the OPC tag instead of using the default, e.g. set the requested data type to
'boolean' for BOOL tags, etc.
Ensure that any scaling in the client package is set up correctly for the possible values of the OPC tag.
Use array element notation (e.g. 'Item[0]' ) to read array elements, instead of trying to read the whole array
tag.
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• The MX OPC runtime module, which reads data from the device
• The MX OPC configurator, which defines the data to be read
The MX OPC Server runtime module can optionally be installed as a service. Services run automatically in the
background whenever the computer is started; they do not rely on a user logging in to the computer to start the
program manually.
Note: Only versions of Microsoft Windows that accommodate Unicode character sets are supported.
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Note: If your operating system (e.g., Windows NT) requires a login name, you must log in with administrator
capability before installing MX OPC Server.
1. Before installing the software, be sure that all other applications are closed and/or disabled.
2. Insert the product CD into your CD-ROM drive. If the option to start CDs automatically is enabled in
your operating system, the CD introduction starts automatically. Otherwise, browse to your CD-
ROM drive and run the program "Setup.exe".
3. If you are installing on Windows Vista or later operating systems, you may see a warning prompt
similar to the one below. Click Allow or Yes to continue the installation.
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4. You will be prompted to install some additional required software if it is not already installed on your
computer. Click 'Install' to continue.
On later operating systems (such as Windows 8) you may be prompted to install additional
Windows features. If so, select 'Download and install this feature'.
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When the features have finished installing, you will see the screen below. Click 'Close' to return to
the installer.
5. At the Welcome screen (shown in the figure below), click the Next button to continue.
Welcome Screen
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6. The Software License Agreement dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below. Read the License
Agreement. Click Next if you accept the terms of the agreement.
7. The Customer Information dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below. Enter your name, your company's
name, and your product serial number. Click Next to continue, and confirm your registration information.
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8. The Choose Destination Location dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below. Choose the destination
location for the software installation. If you wish to keep the default location, click the Next button to continue. If
you prefer to select a different directory location for the installation, click the Change button to select a different
drive or directory. Click Next to continue.
9. The Setup Type dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below, giving you the option to install MX OPC
Server as a Windows service. Select Yes or No, and then click the Next button to continue.
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10. Click Install, as shown in the figure below, to begin installing the files. MX Component, EasySocket and
MXChange server will also be installed.
Note: You can click Cancel to stop the installation procedure at any time.
Ready to install
11. During the installation, depending on your operating system you may see a warning similar to the one below
prompting you to install the necessary drivers. Select 'Install' or 'Yes' when prompted.
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12. After all files and components have been installed, click the Finish button to complete the installation, as shown
in the figure below. If you installed MX OPC server as a service, you will also be given the option to configure the
service immediately. After choosing whether to configure the service now or later, click the Finish button.
Installation Complete
13. You may be prompted to restart your computer before using the product. If a prompt similar to the
one below is shown, either select Yes to restart immediately (and force all other running applications
to close) or No to close other applications and restart manually.
Restart prompt
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Windows 7 or Windows Server 2008 R2: click the Windows icon, then enter 'Services.msc' in the search
box and press enter.
Windows Vista: click the start button, then enter 'Services.msc' in the search box and press enter.
If a 'User account control' prompt like the one below is shown, click 'Continue'.
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Find the service to be changed in the list. The sample screen below shows the OPC enumeration service.
Right click on the service name and select 'Properties'. The service configuration screen (below) will be shown.
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Switch to the 'Log On' tab, select 'This account' and enter the username and password of the user to run as.
This procedure needs to be followed due to the fact that the MX OPC Server runtime accesses the MSACCESS
runtime database functions. In the situation where the PC is switched off while the MX OPC server is
simultaneously accessing the database, there can be damage or data may not be accessible.
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1. From the Windows Start menu, select [All] Programs > MELSOFT Application > MX OPC
Server 6.05 > MX OPC Configurator.
Note: The name of the program folder may vary depending on your local settings (e.g. language
settings).
2. This opens the Configurator for the MX OPC Server, as shown in the figure below. The screen
consists of a split window with a tree control view in the left-hand pane and a configuration view in
the right-hand pane. The Configurator provides a default standard configuration database called
MXConfigurator.mdb, which contains a sample configuration project.
Configurator Screen
The MX OPC Configurator is a client of the MX OPC Runtime that accesses the I/O Server and lets you view
and modify properties for devices and data tags. The Address Space tree control in the Configurator sets the
properties and connection parameters for the following hierarchy of server objects:
Devices: A device is a hardware device or station that uses the I/O driver to communicate with a client PC.
The device item contains the properties and methods that govern the behavior of a device. A device is
visible to the OPC client.
Data tags: A data tag is an object that makes device data accessible to OPC clients. Data tags can be
logically organized into groups (folders).
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1. Right-click the Address Space tree control of the Configurator screen and select New MX Device
from the pop-up menu, as shown in the figure below.
2. The MX Transfer Setup dialog will be shown. You can either select an existing transfer setup, or
(as in the example below) select <New...> to create a new transfer setup.
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3. The New Transfer Setup dialog will appear. Enter a name for the new transfer setup (Serial in the
picture below) and select <Default...> as the template, then click OK.
4. The new transfer setup can now be edited using the Communication Setting Wizard, as shown in
the figure below. Specify the communication type to use on the PC side, as shown in the figure
below. In the PC Side I/F field, select the Serial connection type from the drop-down list. By default,
you will only see the physical COM ports that are actually available on your computer. If you are
preparing a configuration to be used on another computer which has different COM ports, check the
All ports box to show a full list of possible serial ports. After entering the details, click Next to
continue.
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5. Now you must specify the communication type to use on the PLC (device) side, as shown in the
figure below. In the PLC Side I/F field, select a communication type from the drop-down list as the
connection type to use for the selected channel. Click Next to continue.
6. Select the network Station Type and CPU Type (if applicable) from the respective drop-down lists,
as shown in the figure below. Click Next to continue.
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7. Click the Finish button to complete the communication channel setup, as shown in the figure below.
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8. The MX Transfer Setup dialog box appears with the new transfer setup selected, as shown in the
figure below. Each network node is shown graphically, with the node properties shown under the
graphic. The left-hand side of the dialog lists the configuration properties for the PC side. You can
double-click the image of a node (or double-click the properties list) to edit the configuration
properties. The right-hand side of the dialog lists the configuration properties for the PLC device side.
You can double-click the image of the PLC device (or double-click the configuration properties list) to
edit the PLC device side configuration properties. You can also click the Configure button to return
to the Communication Setting Wizard. Click the OK button to save the changes.
Note: For complete information about channel configuration properties and the Communication Setting
Wizard, see "Configuring the address space" in the user documentation.
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1. Right-click the Address Space tree control of the Configurator screen and select New MX Device
from the pop-up menu, as shown in the figure below.
2. The MX Transfer Setup dialog will be shown. You can either select an existing transfer setup, or
(as in the example below) select <New...> to create a new transfer setup.
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3. The New Transfer Setup dialog will appear. Enter a name for the new transfer setup (Ethernet in
the picture below) and select <Default...> as the template, then click OK.
4. The new transfer setup can now be edited using the Communication Setting Wizard, as shown in
the figure below. Specify the communication type to use on the PC side, as shown in the figure
below. In the PC Side I/F field, select the Ethernet board connection type from the drop-down list.
Select a module number from the Connect module drop-down list. Click Next to continue.
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5. Now you must specify the communication type to use on the PLC (device) side, as shown in the
figure below. In the PLC Side I/F field, select Ethernet module from the drop-down list as the
connection type to use for the selected channel. Specify a Host name and a Port number. Click Next
to continue.
6. Select the network Station Type and CPU Type (if applicable) from the respective drop-down lists,
as shown in the figure below. Click Next to continue.
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7. Click the Finish button to complete the communication channel setup, as shown in the figure below.
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8. The MX Transfer Setup dialog box appears with the new transfer setup selected, as shown in the
figure below. Each network node is shown graphically, with the node properties shown under the
graphic. The left-hand side of the dialog lists the configuration properties for the PC side. You can
double-click the image of a node (or double-click the properties list) to edit the configuration
properties. The right-hand side of the dialog lists the configuration properties for the PLC device side.
You can double-click the image of the PLC device (or double-click the configuration properties list) to
edit the PLC device side configuration properties. You can also click the Configure button to return
to the Communication Setting Wizard. Click the OK button to save the changes.
Note: For complete information about channel configuration properties and the Communication Setting
Wizard, see "Configuring the address space" in the user documentation.
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1. The Basic tab of the Device Properties dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below. The
communication type (e.g. Serial, Ethernet, etc.) is shown in the PC Side I/F field, as shown in the
figure below.
2. In the Name field, type a name for the new device, and type a description for the device (optional). To
specify which connection type and which physical connection (COM) port to use for the selected
device, click the Configuration button to launch the Communication Setting Wizard for the Primary
device.
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3. Click on the Advanced tab to set the advanced parameters for the Primary and Backup devices, as
shown in the figure below.
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5. When you have finished configuring the device properties, click the Save button. The new device
appears under the Address Space tree control, as shown in the figure below.
Note: For complete device configuration properties info, see "Configuring the address space" in the user
documentation.
Note: Data tags can be logically organized into groups (folders). You can configure as many folders as
required. You can even create subfolders for each group to create a hierarchical organization of tags. See
"Groups" in the user documentation section "Configuring the address space" for details.
1. Right-click on a device in the tree control of the Configurator screen and select New Data Tag from
the pop-up menu, as shown in the figure below.
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2. The Basic tab of the Data Tag Properties dialog box appears, as shown in the figure below.
3. In the Name field, type a name for the new tag, and type a description for the tag (optional).
4. Set the parameters for the I/O Address and data Access Rights.
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5. Click on the Advanced tab. Check the Enable Tag check box to activate the tag.
6. Set the Data Conversion and Data Type parameters for the tag.
7. In the Alarms tab of the Tag Properties dialog box, you can check the Generate Alarms check box
to make the server generate a limit alarm and/or a digital alarm based on the data item value.
8. When you have finished configuring the tag properties, click the Save button. The new tag appears
under the Device tree control.
Note: For complete information about data tag configuration properties, see "Data tags" in the user
documentation section "Configuring the address space".
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With the introduction of the OPC Foundation Plug and Play communications standard called OPC Data Access,
and recently the OPC Alarm and Events Specifications, a universal diagnostics and analysis utility was needed
by industry. This need is filled with OPC DataSpy.
The OPC item browser mode allows you to browse for OPC-compliant Data Access and OPC Alarm and Event
servers, as well as OPC Historical Data Access servers, and to provide basic information allowing users to
view, test, and troubleshoot any OPC third-party servers. The OPC monitors provide real-time monitoring of
OPC server data.
The OPC DataSpy user interface consists of the following elements:
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Once the MX OPC Runtime driver is running, you can connect to the MX OPC Server via OPC DataSpy. For this
Quick Start, you will use OPC DataSpy provided with the MX OPC Server installation:
1. Open OPC DataSpy from the Windows Start menu by selecting [All] Programs > MELSOFT
Application > MX OPC Server 6.05 > OPC Data Spy > DataSpy.exe. This opens OPC DataSpy,
as shown in the figure below.
Note: The name of the program folder may vary depending on your local settings (e.g. language
settings).
2. From the left navigation pane, expand the "OPC Items" item by clicking on the "[+]" symbol to the
left of the icon. Expand the "My Computer" section then the "OPC Data Access" section then the
"Mitsubishi.MXOPC.6" section.
Users will then see all configured devices listed underneath "Mitsubishi.MXOPC.6" and can
browse groups and data tags accordingly.
3. Right click on any selected tag listed beneath "Mitsubishi.MXOPC.6" and click on "Monitor". Next,
click on "Data Monitor" that is listed underneath OPC Items when that section is fully collapsed. In
the right navigation pane, users will be able to see the values associated with selected tags.
4. If your client application does not support reading a single bit within a word or reading one element of
an array, you may still be able to use these features by changing the name of the item that you add.
To access a bit within a word, define a new tag with an address such as D12.1 (bit 1 within the word
at address D12, with bit numbering starting a 0 for the least significant bit) and set the type to BOOL.
If write access is not required, a client can also address a bit within a word tag using the item syntax
"tagname.bitNr" (e.g. tagname.0 for bit 0) - this is a read-only custom "OPC property" of the tag item.
A client can address a single element of an array tag using the item syntax 'arraytag[elemNr]' (e.g.
arraytag[2] for element 2).
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5. To Write to Tags, right-click on the tag name in the right navigation pane. The "Enter a Value" dialog
pops up. Users can then enter values in the text entry box.
Note: If you are writing a floating point value, the period (.) character is always used as the radix character
(e.g. '123.4' not '123,4'). If you are writing to an array item, the values should be separated by
commas (,).
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Memo MELSOFT
MEMO
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Index MELSOFT
Creating 33
Index Properties 33
Device layout 21
Device properties 31
Devices 19
-A- Directory
Installation 13
Access rights 33 Target 13
Administrator 9 Downward compatibility 4
AE 4 Driver
Alarm and events 5 Setting up 20
Alarm/Events 4
Alarms 33
-E-
-B- Earlier versions 4
EasySocket 14
Backup device 31 Enable tag 33
Backwards compatibility 4 Ethernet communication channel 26
Baud rate 20 Creating 26
-C- -F-
Cable 20 Folders 33
CD-ROM 8, 9
Choose destination location 13
COM Port 20
Communication setting wizard 31
-G-
Communication settings wizard 21 Generate alarms 33
Communications channels Genesis 7
Creating 21 Groups 33
Compatibility 4
Configuration database 4
Configurator 8 -H-
Starting 19 Hard drive space 8
Configuring a new device 31 Historical data access 5
Configuring OPC server service 16 HMI 5
Connecting to the server with OPC DataSpy 37
Creating a serial communication channel 21
Creating an ethernet communication channel 26
Creating communications channels 21
-I-
Creating data tags 33 I/O address 33
CSV 4 I/O driver 6, 19
CSV file 4 I/O server 4
Customer information 12 iFIX 7
Install as service 13
Installation 8, 9
-D- Installation complete 15
Installing MX OPC server 8, 9
DA 4 inTouch 7
Data access 4, 5 Introduction 4
Data bits 20
Data tag properties 33
Data tags 19
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Index MELSOFT
-L- -Q-
LabView 7 Quick start 18
QuickFail 5
-M-
MDB 4
-R-
MDB file 4 Ready to install 14
Memory 8 Rebooting the PC 18
MX Component 5, 14 Restart computer 15
MX OPC Configurator 6, 19 RSview 7
MX OPC Runtime 5, 19, 36 Runtime 8, 36
MX OPC Server 4
MX Runtime 4, 19
MX Transfer Setup dialog 21 -S-
MXChange server 14
Serial communication channel 21
MXConfigurator.mdb 19
Creating 21
Serial number 12
-N- Service 8, 13, 16
Service installation 13
New data tag 33 Setting up the driver 20
New MX Device 21 Software licence agreement 12
Start button 36
Start menu 19
-O- Starting the driver 36
Starting the MX OPC configurator 19
OLE for process control 5
Starting the MX OPC Runtime Driver 36
OPC 4, 5
Stop bits 20
OPC architecture 5
Stop button 36
OPC client 4
Stopping the driver 36
OPC client software 7
Stopping the MX OPC Runtime Driver 36
OPC Data Access 4
System requirements 8
OPC data spy 7
OPC DataSpy 18, 37
Organisation 12 -T-
Target directory 13
-P- Testing 37
Transfer setup 21
Parity 20
PC side I/F 21
PLC 5
PLC side I/F 21
-U-
Previous versions 4 UNICODE 8
Primary device 31 Upgrade 4
Process control 4, 5 User account control 9
Process hardware 20 User name 12
Processor 8
-V-
Versions
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Index MELSOFT
Versions
Previous 4
Video card 8
Vista 9
-W-
Welcome screen 11
Windows 8
Windows NT service 13
Windows Vista 9
Wizards
Communication settings 21
-X-
XML 4
XML data access 4
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Microsoft, Windows, Windows 7, Windows Server 2008, Windows NT, Windows XP and Windows Vista
are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States and other countries.
Pentium is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries.
Other company and product names herein are either trademarks or registered trademarks of their
respective owners.
MX OPC Configurator
Quick Start Guide
Mitsubishi Electric Europe B.V. / FA - European Business Group / Gothaer Straße 8 / D-40880 Ratingen / Germany /
Tel.: +49(0)2102-4860 / Fax: +49(0)2102-4861120 / [email protected] / https://eu3a.mitsubishielectric.com