Using Custom Plot Templates

A plot template can be set as either a Default or Custom plot template. Default plot templates are managed by RMCTools and cannot be edited. RMCTools will automatically determine which registers should be plotted and how they are displayed, based on the axis type. In order to change items in an individual plot template, such as plotted registers and pen color, the plot must be set to Custom Plot.

To set a plot to Custom:

1. Open the Plot Template Editor.

2. Choose a plot from the list on the left.

3. On the right side, choose Custom Plot.

Changing a Custom Plot

To edit the plot templates, make the desired changes in the Plot Template Editor, then click the Download button in the Plot Template Editor toolbar. Update Flash to retain this plot set in the controller even after power is removed from the controller.

Any changes made to a plot in the Plot Template Editor will apply to all subsequent plots uploaded in the Plot Manager for the selected plot template.

Adding and Removing Plot Quantities

Adding a Plot Quantity

1. Click New Quantity.

2. In the Plot Quantity Selection Tool, browse to the register you need, then click Add or press the space bar. Repeat to quickly add consecutive registers. Use the Groups tab to quickly add the basic status registers or tuning terms of any axis.

3. Click OK when done selecting new quantities.

Adding Quantities for Multiple Axes At Once

You can choose to add quantities for many axes at once. This can be done by duplicating the existing quantities in the plot template, or by adding new quantities to the plot template and duplicating them.

1. If the plot template does not already contain the quantities you wish to duplicate, then, In the Plot Quantity Selection Tool, add the desired registers from a single axis, so that they appear in the Quantities to Add to Plot Template box.

2. Click Duplicate for axes. The Plot Quantity Duplication Tool will open.

3. In the Quantities to Duplicate box, choose the quantities you wish to duplicate.

4. In the Axes for Quantity Duplication box, choose all the axes for which you want to add the selected quantities. Use the Select All and Clear All buttons to speed up the process if there are many axes.

5. Click OK to close the Plot Quantity Duplication Tool. The new quantities will now appear in the Quantities to Add to Plot Template list.

6. Click OK when done selecting new quantities.

Removing a Plot Quantity

1. Select the quantity to delete, and click Delete Quantity or press Delete.

Changing a Plot Quantity

1. Select the Formula cell of the desired quantity, then click the ellipsis button.

2. Select the desired register and click OK.

Changing the Order of the Plot Quantities

1. Select the quantity to move, and click Move Up or Move Down or press Ctrl+Up or Ctrl+Down.

Customizing Plot Quantities

Filter

You can choose to filter a plot quantity. This is most useful for the Actual Velocity and Actual Acceleration, which tend to be noisy. To choose a filter, select Filter On in the Filter cell of the desired Plot Quantity.

Number Format

You can set the number of decimal places for plotted quantities of REAL type:

1. Click the Format cell for the desired plot quantity and click the ellipsis button.

2. Choose from the following:

   1. Fixed Number of Decimal Places
      The number will be represented with a fixed number of decimal places. For more details, click the Help button.

   2. Fixed Number of Digits of Precision
      The number will be represented with a fixed number of digits of precision. For more details, click the Help button.

3. Click OK.

Show/Hide Plot Line

The Graph column indicates whether this quantity should be graphed with a line in the plot. All quantities will always be displayed in the Detail window, even if the line is not graphed in the plot.

Pen Color

To set the color of the graphed line:

1. Click the Pen Color cell for the desired plot quantity and click the ellipsis button.

2. Choose a color from the color picker and click OK.

Scale

To set the scale of a plot quantity:

1. Click the Scale cell for the desired plot quantity and click the ellipsis button.

2. Choose from the two options:

   1. Auto Scale
      RMCTools will automatically determine the scale based on the values of all the plot quantities in the same scale group in the uploaded plot.

   2. Manual Scale
      The plot scale will be set to the specified range.

3. Click OK. Notice that the new scale will be applied to all plot quantities in the same scale group.

Scale Groups

All plot quantities with the same Scale Group will share the same scale in an uploaded plot. Changing the scale for any quantity will apply the same scale to all quantities in the same scale group.

To choose a Scale Group:

1. Click the Group cell for the desired plot quantity and click the drop-down button.

2. Choose from the following options:

   1. Auto
      RMCTools will automatically assign the group for this item. This is indicated by "Auto-" followed by a letter that indicates the group chosen by RMCTools. For example, all position registers are assigned to group A, all velocities to group B, and so on.

   2. None
      The plot quantity will not be part of a scale group.

   3. Number
      Choose a number to assign the plot quantity to your own user-defined scale group.

Trigger Settings

To edit the trigger settings, click Edit Trigger Settings. For details on using the plot trigger, see the Triggering Plots topic.

XY Plot

To define a plot as an XY plot:

1. Check the XY Plot check box.

2. In the X Axis box, select the plot item to be the x axis (horizontal) value in the plot.

3. The x-axis scale of the plot will default to be automatic. If you wish to set a scale value, check the Manual Scale box and enter the desired range.

For more details, see Using XY Plots.

See Also

Plot Template Editor

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