Issue
My controller was working well for years until 3 months ago, then it began giving red errors and warnings like:
- Red: Tracker already passed (gate)
- Red: Synch Point 2 out of synchronization. Got=11 / Expected=12
- Amber: Time of 50 ms passed and no result from reader
- Amber: More results than triggers
- Etc.
What is going on?
Background
The GT controller is based on the Windows operating system with an added real-time kernel. On a standard machine, thousands of events happen a second, and they all must be handled in microseconds, like triggering the inkjet or camera, opening a gate.
Therefore, it is very important to realize that, while the controller is based on a PC (ever wondered why your laptop took 2-3 seconds to process a simple key input ?), it cannot waste a second in tasks other than controlling the production line, the inkjets, the cameras, photocells, gates, and all other elements in the line. The controller has been tested to do this at very high speeds and throughput.
Now, every time one installs a new program in the GT controller, especially antivirus programs, this real-time behavior (e.g. handling events in microseconds) might be negatively compromised. If you need to disinfect a controller, install MS security essentials, run it, then uninstall it.
The same happens when a controller is connected to an internal domain, many tasks get scheduled automatically by the system that will occur at any moment and affect badly the real-time behavior of the controller. Be careful of your internal LAN, separate from a controller with a good switch.
Possible Outcomes when installing other programs
- You might miss the production of one product or even produce it twice. This is very bad !
- You might burn the belt with the UV lamp, produce a fire.
- The gate might be opened at the wrong time.
- The production log might be wrong because there is a fatal stop of the line
Conclusion
Do not install other programs on the GT controller. If you do, you are on your own, your responsibility.