Displaying Time Intervals in Hours, Minutes and Seconds on a Geo SCADA Mimic
Overview
In Geo SCADA Expert, it is common to work with points that represent elapsed time in seconds. However, displaying this raw value directly on a mimic can be difficult to interpret at a glance. To improve readability and user experience, you can format this value into a more intuitive hours, minutes and seconds (nnH nnM nnS) format using a Text object.
This article explains how to configure a Text object on a mimic to display a time interval in a human-readable format using built-in animation properties.
Objective
To convert and display a numeric value representing elapsed time in seconds into a formatted string showing hours, minutes and seconds (e.g., 1H 23M 45S).
Configuration Steps
1. Add a Text Object to the Mimic
• Open the mimic in Design Mode.
• Insert a Text object where you want the formatted time to appear.
2. Set the Animation Properties
• Open the Animations tab for the Text object.
Property Settings:
• Property: Format
Set this expression to 'Long Period' (including the single quotes).
This tells Geo SCADA to interpret the value as a time duration and format it accordingly.
• Property: Value
Set this expression to the point that contains the number of seconds you want to display.
For example: MyDevice.SecondsElapsed
Example Use Case
Imagine a point named Pump1.RunTimeSeconds that tracks how long a pump has been running. To display this on a mimic:
1. Add a Text object.
2. Set the Value to “.RunTimeSeconds” (using relative reference in this example).
3. Set the Format to 'Long Period'.
The mimic will now show the run time in a format like 2H 15M 30S instead of just 8130 seconds.
Visual Example
A well-designed mimic might include:
• A numeric display showing the raw seconds.
• A formatted display showing the same value as a time interval.
This dual representation helps operators quickly understand both the raw data and its practical meaning.
Conclusion
Using the 'Long Period' format in a Text object is a simple yet effective way to enhance the readability of time-based data in Geo SCADA Expert. It allows operators to interpret elapsed time more intuitively, improving situational awareness and decision-making.
