Real Time eXecutives, Inc. Report Builder for RTXHDB

The Report Builder for RTXHDB is a powerful but easy-to-use package for building process and manufacturing reports. It allows users to get the information they need in a format they want by using commercially available Microsoft Excel. It is made up of five main parts, Quick Report, Variables Add-in for RTXHDB, RTX Report Writer, RTX Scheduler and the Alarm Report.

Quick Report: The Quick Report program is designed to provide a quick and simple way of viewing data from the RTX Historical Databases. All you need to do is choose a database, choose a subset, choose a time span, select one or more tags, and display the data. Unlike the RTX Report Writer, which depends on Excel and the Variables Add-in for RTXHDB, Quick Report is a stand-alone program that only requires access to historical data. Even though the program is simple, it has some important features: (1) Data can be previewed and printed;  (2) Report Definitions can be saved and used again at a later time; (3) Data can be exported to a CSV, HTML, or XLS file; (4) A simple graph of the data can be displayed; (5) The Average, Minimum, and Maximum value for the time span can be displayed; (6) The number of tags and time slots you can access is limited only by the amount of hard disk memory available.

Variables Add-in for RTXHDB: Our Excel Add-in, Variables Add-in for RTXHDB, allows a user to define the report layout and data to be included from the RTX Historical Database. Free formatting, using Excel, not only provides user familiarity with the reporting package, but also flexibility when defining the layout of a report. Presentation of the reports can be enhanced by choosing one of several chart formats and by adding color to highlight information. Report templates and macros can be defined for frequently used formats. Users can quickly view or recall a cell’s definition and format. Tags utilized within the reporting structure can be sorted for fast identification. To save time in plants with multiple units, the user can replicate reporting styles for each unit. This enables the user to make changes to reporting style in one place.

 RTX Report Writer: Once the report template is complete, the RTX Report Writer is run to add the report to a report definition file. The report definition file contains specifications such as type of report (e.g. printed, saved workbook, etc.), workbook name, etc. Also, the RTX Report Writer uses Excel's Automation Server to activate Excel, load a pre-built workbook, and produce a report. The report can be printed on the default Windows printer or it can be saved as a file either on the local PC or anywhere on the network. The RTX Report Writer is ideal for scheduled shift reports, daily reports, etc.

RTX Scheduler: The RTX Scheduler is used to schedule the periodic execution of the RTX Report Writer. Arguments are passed to the RTX Report Writer telling it which report definition file to use. The report definition file tells the RTX Report Writer which Excel Workbooks to open for collecting the historical data and how to print the reports; either to a printer or to one of several different file formats.

Alarm Report: The Alarm Report program is used to develop reports for monitoring alarm conditions. The report definition is based on three tags taken from one of the RTX Historical Databases. One tag represents the measured value of concern, another represents the high alarm limit, and the third represents the low limit. During the report period, whenever the measured value goes into or out of alarm, a line is written to the report indicating the date and time, a description of the measured tag, the alarm condition, the current value, and the violated alarm limit. There are three report periods available, Last Month, Last Day, and Last Hour. The execution of reports can be scheduled using the RTX Scheduler.

FEATURES

• Configuration of required report can be accomplished on a Personal Computer.
• Quick Report can be learned quickly and easily.
• Report builds can occur at a scheduled time or periodic intervals.
• RTXHDB Applications – Expressions and Functions allow data reduction before creating finished reports, producing very compact and efficient reports.
• Print report to the default Windows printer.
• Save report to text files (one file per worksheet).
• Save report to an XLS file with RTX data links converted to values.
• The Report Writer normally runs in a quiet mode - neither the report writer nor Excel is visible during execution.
• The Report Writer can be used in an interactive mode to build report definition files and define report properties.
• Automatic generation of unique report file names based on system date and time so that reports can be accumulated in the same folder.
• Any number of report definition files can be built, and each report definition file can contain many report definitions.
• Presents quality reports through various formatting styles, colors, addition of clip art, and charting.
• Provides information prior to and following a plant outage.
• The Report Writer can be scheduled using the RTX Scheduler.

•  Alarm Reports can be done quickly and easily.

Specifications

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