IQANdesign 6 is now available

Not supporting X*2 modules means we will not be able to use this software for years.

Is there a phase-out plan for XA2's? If so please advise ASAP as I have thousands out in the field. Also, it would be great if Parker made a drop-in replacement for these phase-out plans. Something that wouldn't require a program update each time this happens. Or at the very least a module that has the same IO or more so we could just make an adapter to make something work. I know with the XA2's there are modules with more dense IO, but the MDL to MD4 switch still plagues us. 

mgoutier, you have said exactly what I've been thinking. The MDL2 disappearance was a major crisis that we will be dealing with for years to come. The more lead time we can get before the XA2 and MD3 are scheduled to end production the better. However, without an equivalent replacement, there will eventually be major problems no matter how much lead time we get.

I agree with all the previous messages. To me, the worst thing is to have to ask our customer to change the software, download a new one and so. We have a lot of machines still with IQAN 2 and MC2 + XS2 modules. We just went to IQAN 5 for some updates (G11 antenna), still with MC2 and XS2. Our customer are not used for it yet.

Even if IQAN 6 looks interesting with the Simulink toolbox, it is a big question for us now for new development. Even if we already planned to change to MC43 module, we still have on the field some machine with MC2 and XS2 modules. I don't want to ask my customer to have 3 different softwares (2, 5 and 6) to be able to connect to all his machines...

Currently, there is no phase-out plan for the MD3, MC2, XA2 or XS2.

The MD3 and XA2/XS2 are among our highest volume products, with the majority of IQAN users having at least one of these running in full production.

When they eventually do enter phase-out (it will happen at some point), there will be an official phase out period spanning over several years.

What we are trying to achieve by not including these in the IQANdesign 6 release are two things:

-one is to give the message that one shouldn't base any new machine designs on MD3, MC2, XA2 or XS2, and instead go for the MD4, MC4x and XC4x series

-the other is to give a heads-up saying that these are mature products, and do this in good time before we go into phase-out, to allow machine designers as much time as possible to start thinking about updates on machines designed using MD3/MC2/XA2/XS2.

To support existing designs, the version 5.x branch will live on in parallel with version 6, with new 5.x versions containing bug fixes and a subset of the feature updates from 6.x.

It would be likely then that we would use IQAN 5.x and 6.x next to each other. Will solution libraries be compatible at least?

Jan,

Do you mean solution libraries or external files? 

You can leave your external files (.idex) saved in version 5, and use them in version 6.

You can also leave the project files (.idax, .idsx) that you add  as additional solutions via the library manager as version 5, and use them in version 6. 

But new and upgraded solutions that we add in the solutions library that comes with version 6 cannot be downgraded to  version 5. 

I was looking in the site to buy  XC4x expansion module but it does not appear yet, Do you have any idea when it will be available for customers?

It should be possible to order XC4x-series expansion modules within a week or so, if it isn't already possible. 

Is it now possible to run simulation Simulink model and experimental data at the same time? Can I show experients vs simulation using the MD4 display?

Code generated from Simulink models can run on the MC4x, the ability to run this code is not available on MD4. 

Note that from the simulation, it is the discrete model of the control algorithm that can be used for generating code that runs on the MC4x. The simulation "plant model" will only be in the Simulink environment on the PC (or on special purpose hardware) 

So you mean even if I have MD4 and XC4x I will still need to have MC4X in order to run Simulink models? Ans isn't possible to run the Simulink vs experimental at the same time?

Yes, you will need the IQAN-MC4x to run the code generated from the Simulink model of the controller.  The functionality in the IQAN simulink toolbox  is designed to have a very time efficient way of getting from the simulation environment to deployment on a controller built for serial production, the IQAN-MC4x. 

There are updates available for 6.00 on check-for-updates, see release notes:

http://divapps.parker.com/divapps/iqan/Downloads/IQANdesign%206/ReleaseNotes6.00.49.htm

http://divapps.parker.com/divapps/iqan/Downloads/IQANrun%206/ReleaseNotes6.00.27.htm

Do the MC4XFS controllers have Simulink support yet? If not when is this planned?

Not yet, for now only the performance versions of MC4x have the ability to incorporate simulink models. 

Thank you for your collection of updated information. I have a question about compare the text type data. Such as if receive a get a text data by TPIN how to compare with another text data then judge the data was whether correctly. Thanks

Current version does not have any text compare function (but there is a feature request about it here) 

I would like to try IQANdesign6 but :

If I update a MC43 with a program made with IQAN6, could I go back with a program made on IQAN5 ?

If you overwrite your project file with a newer version, you cannot open it in the previous version. This is also the case when you make a minor update, e.g. opening a file saved in 6.07 and saving it in 6.08. 

When you open a file from an earlier IQANdesign version and press save, IQANdesign will give a question about saving a backup. But this could be easy to miss if you for example use the Save As function and pick the old file. 

I think the best method to keep track of earlier versions is to use a version management system where you check in your project files, but if you do not have this then I recommend that you actively save the files under different names. 

Thank you for your answer, but it's not my question.

My question is about the hardware. If I update a calculator MC43 with a project file from IQANdesign6. Could I update the same MC43 with an other project file made with IQANdesign5 ?

I know that when we used MC2 with IQANdesign2, If we update it with a project file made with IQANdesign5, we couldn't not send back a project file made with IQAN2 on the calculator.

Hope it's clearer.

You can always go back to an older version on the controller. The modules have a minimum software version from production; this never change when sending a firmware update. 

Not sure what the problem you had with the MC2 could have been, it might have been that you tried IQANdesign 2 or IQANrun 2 instead of a newer version of IQANrun for sending the downgrade. 

Actually I never tried. It's the people working before me that tell me that.

Thank you, it's a good news if we can go back to an older version on the controller.