C-More HMI Remote Connectivity? Possible!

EA9-T8CL C-More HMI
The EA9-T8CL C-More HMI can be controlled remotely.

Have you ever wanted to check your HMI controls without actually going to your HMI? Turns out, remote connectivity is possible with some products. The C-More HMI EA9 Series is one of them.

Using an easily downloadable app, users can monitor and control their human-machine interface just like they were standing in front of it. Using an iPhone, iPod, iPad, or Android mobile device, users can access most of the main features of their C-More panel. Amazon Fire devices will also work. Feature access includes:

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The Winding History of Rockwell Automation

Rockwell Automation is one of the biggest industrial automation companies in the world. But a little over a century ago it began as a small company devoted to one product started on a $1,000 investment.

The infographic below will give you many of the highlights, but the company has continually grown through other beneficial acquisitions,mergers, and divestitures as well. This includes

  • Allen-Bradley’s acquisition of Robotronics S.A. from Matra S.A. in 1985. Robotronics S.A. was active in robot vision. (1)
  • Allen-Bradley’s acquisition of the Electronics Corporation of America in 1986 for $99 million. The Electronics Corporation of America was based in Waltham, Mass. and manufactured electronic combustion sensors and photoelectric controls. (2)
  • Allen-Bradley’s acquisition of Creonics in 1990. Creonics created motion control products (3)
  • Allen-Bradley’s acquisition and partnership with Metal Leve Controles Eletronicos in 1992 The company specialized in electromechanical industrial control products. (4)
  • Rockwell’s acquisition of Reliance Electric for 1.6 billion dollars in 1994. The company focused on motors, drives, and mechanical drive components. Rockwell also buys ICOM and Controlware around this time. (5,6,7)
  • Rockwell International acquisition of California’s Intecolor Corp in 1997. The privately held company, which built high-performance computer monitors and industrial workstations, was purchased for an undisclosed amount. (8)
  • Rockwell’s acquisitions of Dynapro and EJA Engineering in 1999. Dynapro designed HMI interface software, while EJA specialized in industrial Automation safety components. (9,10)
  • Rockwell’s acquisition of several software companies, including Datasweep in 2005, GEPA in 2006, Incuity in 2008, and ACP in 2016. (11,12,13,14)
  • Rockwell merges Allen-Bradley with Electro-Craft, moving all motion control products under the Allen-Bradley name. (15)
  • Rockwell divested itself of Reliance Electric, selling the power systems business to Baldor Electric in 2006 for $1.75 billion in cash and $50 million in stock. (5)
  • Rockwell’s expansion of its MES (manufacturing execution systems) offerings with the acquisition of Interwave in 2003 and MESTECH Services in 2019. (16,17)
  • Rockwell’s move into advanced technologies with the acquisition of vMonitor in 2013, Jacobs Automation in 2014, Odos Imaging Limited in 2017, Emulate3D in 2019, and AvNet in 2020. (18)

Rockwell Automation
Download a high-quality PDF version of this Infographic below.

For more information on our extensive on-hand Reliance Electric inventory, contact our team or take a look at our website.

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Create a Machine Training Video with this Hack

Creating a training video for your HMI doesn’t have to be difficult. Here’s an easy hack.

If you’ve ever wanted to create an instructional machine training video for one of your HMIs to use in operator training but aren’t sure how to go about doing that, we have a simple hack for you–actually, two.

Close up of an EA7-T6CL HMI from Automation Direct.  There are simple ways to create machine training videos for HMIs.
The EA7-T6CL HMI from Automation Direct.

The first hack is to use software that allows you to record the screen of your computer and edit it as you need to, like OBS Studio or Flashback Recorder. This type of software will allow you to easily record, edit, and share your machine training video even if you have little video production experience. Many of these software platforms have free versions that are entirely adequate to create your training video, as well as premium versions with more bells and whistles, like the ability to record from several monitors, add a watermark to protect your work, and to create a higher performance recording.

The second hack is to use the Game mode on your computer. This only works if you are running Windows 10, as it was a new feature with the Creators Update. But once you’ve activated this built-in tool you will have the option to record by pressing the red record button. You can toggle this button again to stop recording or use the Windows Key plus Alt+T. Then you can record the screen as you access the HMI remotely. Videos are automatically saved in your Videos\Captures folder as .mp4 files. There is also an option in settings that allows you to toggle on background recording.

If you need to repair or replace your current HMIs or PLCs, contact AX Control for more information.

AX Control Inc has a wide variety of surplus and reconditioned HMIs in stock.


Need replacements for legacy HMIs? We can help with that! Talk to our team today.