The HMI market is highly dynamic and in particular the level of interaction with machines has increased exponentially. We all want to see more details, to adjust many more settings on an individual basis, have access to all information on the maintenance status at a single click and – of course – to be able to access all of this information not just at a single contact point on the machine but everywhere.
OEM customers are demanding a wide range e of different new technologies, which we are addressing. Multitouch, HD or even 4k graphics capabilities in real-time, as well as for example – with larger screen applications in the medical field – gesture control are all major trends. Furthermore, visualization and control on a single multicore Panel PC with hypervisor technologies are being called for in this high-performance business sector.
We also see thin client installations with cloud connectivity serving several smaller distributed HMIs that are either stationary or mobile in tablet size or even smart phone format for in-field professionals such as maintenance personnel. We have even developed tablet PCs for the use on forklifts so that customers can use these devices as a vehicle HMI as well as a mobile tablet to improve warehouse logistics. And with Intel Quark processor technology we will even be able to build HMIs in the size of a wall mounted lighting switch.
We offer all these different kinds of HMIs for various application areas such as industrial machinery, transportation systems or medical devices. And we have a broad range of I/O and communication boards to connect these HMIs to the machines and infrastructure. But what impresses our customers most these days is not only our innovative portfolio of HMIs but also our secure and innovative ‘Smart Embedded Management Agent Cloud’, SEMA-Cloud for short, which we offer for these devices.
Using this application ready ‘edge to cloud’ solution, OEMs can build all the HMI maintenance and monitoring apps on the basis of a sophisticated IoT cloud which provides all the relevant data that is needed. Our customers’ applications can use this highly secure connection as well so that engineers can obtain the entire technological basis to enhance the reliability of end user applications with IoT and cloud based technologies. ADLINK offers IoT ready HMI products today.