As we discussed last week, there are some key factors to creating an effective HMI experience, including layout, navigation, and design elements, like color and text. But one area that should be closely examined is the graphics, especially when doing a redesign of your operator interface.

According to a feature article in Control Engineering Magazine's newest issue, "The graphics that appear on operators HMI screens are an essential part of daily operations and the most tangible aspect of the control system to many operators because those graphics are their point of interaction with the system." The article goes on the explain some of the key considerations for how to improve your HMI graphics, like defining the needs you want your graphics to meet and reviewing the graphics on your older models so that it is a seamless transition for an operator and no functionality is lost.

Designing your HMI graphics can be a substantial challenge, its important to bridge the gap between what you want to convey about the instrument and what you want the operator to understand. Keeping things simple and straightforward will help keep a facility safe and productive, which is always our ultimate goal. 

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