New technology sure knows how to get people’s attention. Think of those long lines of shoppers camping out the night before the release of a new product and I think you’ll agree. Or the buzz all over social media during the weeks before a highly-anticipated new device is unveiled. Or the countless number of people trading in their phones the minute a newer, improved version comes on the market. Out with the old and in with the new, right? Well, believe it or not, this is not always the case in the industrial computing arena. In fact, standard and legacy product is often prevalent. But lately, a new trend is emerging, as widescreen
industrial HMI has become all the buzz.
I like to keep an eye on industry trends, and lately I have observed most industrial computer manufacturers moving to 18.4” and 21.4” widescreen HMI with multi-touch Accutouch functionality and AMD CPUs. Whether it’s flat panel monitors or fully configured and operational touch panel computers, the desire for these solutions is turning into a need and the industry is rising to the occasion. Everyone wants the shiny new toy and as more become available, I predict that the market will continue to shift in this direction.
So, what do these solutions provide that others don’t? First and foremost, you can utilize an industrial widescreen multi-touch solution with your industrial application. This provides many additional advantages including:
- A larger viewing area,
- Updated processing,
- Accommodations for Windows 7 Pro 64-bit,
- Full HD resolution, and
- The ability to interface with the current I/O utilized with your application.
Basically, it’s the future adapting to the past, enabling the user to integrate with their current application, while updating to current technology trends that will provide support for years to come. Best of both worlds.
So far this calendar year, I have personally worked with users in multiple shops and plants in the United States to provide Advantech Widescreen Industrial HMI solutions. The solutions have ranged in variation and configuration but the result has remained the same; successful implementation for happy users with up-to-date solutions that exceed their expectations. So if you are in the market for an industrial HMI solution, I would highly recommend exploring the latest and greatest – widescreen industrial HMIs.
