Configurations of TRAX Training Simulators

SIMULATOR CONFIGURATIONS

TRAX offers four different simulator configurations: Fully Emulated, Fully Stimulated, Hybrid, and Virtual. Each of these configurations, described below, has its advantages, and should be evaluated relative to your training needs, budget, and available resources.

Fully Emulated	Fully emulated systems use an emulation of both the control logic and the human machine interface (HMI). Emulation is achieved by translating the plant control logic and graphics into the simulator environment, effectively reproducing the functional operation of the actual controls and the graphic interface of the HMI.


Fully Stimulated	Fully stimulated systems use the control vendor's hardware for both the control logic and the operator consoles. By means of a specially-designed interface, the simulator process models communicate directly with the actual controllers, which then transfer information to the HMI. The same control files that are used in the plant are loaded onto the controllers, and the same graphic files that are used in the control room are loaded onto the simulator HMI consoles.


Hybrid	Hybrid systems are a combination of the Fully Emulated and Fully Stimulated systems described above. The control logic is translated as described for the Fully Emulated system. The operator interface uses the actual control vendor's operator consoles, which are connected to the emulated control logic. A specially-developed interface allows the control logic and operator interface to communicate with one another.

Virtual

The virtual simulator uses the actual code from both the control logic and the HMI. The control logic is "wrapped" in a software envelope that allows it to run on a PC instead of the hardware controller used in the plant. This results in the exact same functionality as the actual controls in the plant. In a similar fashion, the simulator HMI screens use the actual DCS graphics, but set up so they can run on PCs. The HMI on the simulator is an exact reproduction, in both functionality and appearance, of the actual graphics in the plant.