RPD Vaktari Live Counters

01What it is and what it does

RPD Vaktari Live Counters is a single screen with every machine at once. Each machine has a card with the counter of the lot it is making and a colour that says what state it is in. It is meant to sit on a monitor on the shop floor or in the office, so you know, without walking to any machine, which one is running, which is stopped and which is about to finish its lot.

Vaktari Live Counters screen with six machines — **Fig. 1** · Six machines on one screen. The cards arrange themselves to fill the space.

It has no tabs and no history: it shows what is happening now. Each card can be given a target number of parts, and the screen warns, with colour and with sound, when the lot is getting close to it and when it reaches it.

It also warns when a machine that was running stops on an error: the card flashes and an alert sounds until someone sees it.

02Starting and access

On the computer where it is installed

Double-click vaktari_counters.bat, or the shortcut that points to it. A black window with text opens: it is the program that reads the machines. Do not close it; you can minimise it.
Open the browser and go to http://localhost:8762.

From another computer on the network

Type http://PC-IP:8762 in the browser, where PC-IP is the address of the computer running Vaktari. Whoever did the installation will give it to you.
It is worth saving as a bookmark: it is the only thing you need to remember.

No need to refresh

The program reads each machine every 5 seconds and the screen updates by itself. The machines, for their part, save their counters once a minute, so a figure can take up to a minute to move.

On a wall monitor

Put the browser in full screen with F11. If nobody can click on that monitor, see the section on sound alerts: the browser plays no sound until someone clicks on the page.

03The header

Vaktari Live Counters header with numbered callouts — **Fig. 2** · The header.

1: Brand and module.
2: The summary. How many machines are in each state, in the same colour as the cards. The last two, with a round dot, are the machines in pre-warning and those that have reached their target. Only the states some machine is in at that moment are shown. If any machine has its alerts off, the count is shown at the end, with a crossed-out bell.
3: Stop alerts (n) Only shown when there are active alerts, and says how many. One click stops them all at once in this browser. See section 6.
4: The sound. Turns the sound alerts of this browser on or off. See section 6.
5: ? Help Opens this manual in a new tab, in the language of the page. The manual is on rpd-eng.com, so an internet connection is needed.
6: Language Catalan, Spanish, English, Basque, French and Portuguese. The browser remembers the choice.
7: Theme Dark or Light. Also remembered.

Sound button, language and theme — **Fig. 3** · The controls on the right. Stop alerts is only there when an alert is active.

Machine names and error texts are not translated: they are shown as configured and as the machine writes them.

04The cards

A machine card with numbered callouts — **Fig. 4** · One card, from top to bottom.

1: The name of the machine. Below it, if the machine provides it, the reference it is making.
2: The state, in words. It is the same as the colour of the card says.
3: The lot counter: the parts in the lot currently on the machine. It is not the parts of the day: when the lot is reset on the machine, it goes back to zero here too.
4: OK and NOK of the lot. If the machine does not classify the parts, this line is not shown.
5: The target and what percentage of it has been made. With no target, it says + Set target.
6: How long ago the last data arrived from this machine.
7: The progress bar towards the target. Only shown if there is one.
8: The bell for this machine's alerts. To switch them off during maintenance, see section 6.

The colours

Three cards: running with target reached, no data and stopped by an error — **Fig. 5** · From left to right: running, no data and stopped by an error.

State	Colour	What it means
Running	green	the machine is producing
Stopped: error	red	stopped with an active error; the first error is written on the card
Stopped	amber	stopped with no error
No state	grey	the machine has just been switched on and does not yet say whether it is running or stopped
Stale data	grey	the machine's file has not changed for more than 3 minutes; the time of the last data is shown below
No data	grey	the machine has not written anything yet today
Reading…	grey	the program has just started and has not made its first reading yet
Unreachable	dark grey	the machine's folder cannot be read: the computer is off or the network does not reach it

Each machine is read on its own. If one is switched off, only its card goes to Unreachable; the others keep updating.

When there is an error

Card of a machine stopped by an error — **Fig. 6** · A machine stopped by an error.

1: The first error, as the machine writes it. If there are more, they are all shown when you hover over the text.

If the machine got there from Running, the whole card also flashes and an alert sounds: see section 6.

05Targets

A target is the number of parts the lot should have. The screen compares it with the lot counter and warns when it is getting close and when it is reached, so that someone can get the changeover ready before the machine makes too many parts.

Setting, changing or removing a target

Setting it. Click + Set target on the card, type the number of parts and press Enter, or the ✓ button.
Changing it. Click the target line, the one ending in a pencil, and type the new value.
Removing it. Leave the box empty, or type 0, and press Enter.
Leaving it as it is. Esc, or the ✕ button, closes the box without changing anything.

The target belongs to everyone It is saved in the program, not in the browser: every screen that has Live Counters open sees it, and it stays set even if the browser is closed or the computer restarted. Anyone with the page open can change it.

The three stages of a target

Stage	When	What you see	What you hear
In progress	below the pre-warning	the bar at the bottom fills up as the lot advances, and the target line gives the percentage	nothing
Pre-warning	from 90 % of the target	the bar changes colour and says Pre-warning · … to go with the parts remaining	one soft note, once
Target reached	the counter reaches or passes the target	the band at the bottom turns blue and says Target reached; a blue dot lights up next to the target	two notes, repeated

The pre-warning percentage is the same for every machine and is set at installation. The one in force can be read in the page footer.

Target reached band with the alert active — **Fig. 7** · Target reached with the alert active: the band flashes and asks for a click.

Card with the target reached and the alert already stopped — **Fig. 8** · The same machine after the click: the band is still blue, but it no longer flashes or sounds.

The target does not stop the machine Vaktari only warns. The machine keeps making parts until someone stops it: in the figures, the lot is already at 1,001 % of the target. And the target does not remove itself either: when the lot is reset on the machine, the percentage starts again with the same target.

06Alerts

The screen warns about three things, with colour and with sound:

Alert	When it fires	What you see	What you hear	How to stop it
Pre-warning	the lot reaches the pre-warning percentage of the target	the bar changes colour	one soft note, once	no need: it does not repeat
Target reached	the lot reaches the target	the blue band flashes	two notes, every 30 seconds	by clicking the card, or with Stop alerts
Error	a machine goes from Running to Stopped: error	the whole card flashes	three low beeps, every 30 seconds	by clicking the card, with Stop alerts, or by itself when the machine leaves the error

The same card in error in the two phases of the flashing — **Fig. 9** · A machine that has just gone from Running to Stopped: error. The card alternates between these two looks every half second.

When the error alert does not fire

When the machine stops without an error: it goes to Stopped, in amber, and does not alert.
When an error appears on a machine that was already stopped.
When the machine was already in error when the page was opened. In general, nothing sounds when the page is opened: alerts only fire when a machine changes while the page is open.

Stopping the alerts

One card. Click it, anywhere other than the target line or the bell.
All at once. The Stop alerts (n) button in the header, which is only shown when one is active.
By itself. The error alert also stops when the machine leaves the error, whether it goes back to Running or stays Stopped.

Stopping an alert does not change anything on the machine or remove the target: it only silences that alert in this browser. If another screen is open, it will keep alerting there until someone clicks. If the machine fails again later, it will alert again.

Switching off a machine's alerts

When a machine is under maintenance, being tested or stopped on purpose, there is no point in it drawing attention. That is why every card has a bell at the bottom right.

Card of a machine with its alerts off — **Fig. 10** · A machine with its alerts off.

1: Alerts off Clicking the bell, the machine stops alerting: it neither flashes nor sounds, for errors or for targets. Click it again to switch them back on.

The card keeps showing the state, the colour and the counters as usual. The header summary shows how many machines have their alerts off.

It applies to every screen Like the target, it is saved in the program, not in the browser: every screen stops alerting for that machine, and it stays that way even if the computer is restarted. Remember to switch them back on when the maintenance is over.

The sound button

What it says	What it means	What a click does
Sound on	alerts will sound	mutes them
Sound muted	alerts do not sound; the coloured bands are still shown	turns them on
Click to enable sound	sound is on, but the browser is not letting anything play yet	unlocks it

The browser asks for a click Browsers do not let a page make sound until someone has clicked on it or pressed a key. After opening the page, or restarting the computer, one click anywhere is needed. On a wall monitor with no keyboard or mouse, whoever does the installation can start the browser so that it is not needed.

The choice of sound on or muted is remembered in each browser separately.

07The machines on the screen

Which machines are shown, under what name and in what order is set by a text file next to the program, maquines_counters.txt. It has one line per machine, with the name to display and the folder where the machine saves its files, separated by a semicolon:

Threader 1 ; \\PC-THR1\Vaktari\THREADER1

The order of the lines is the order of the cards.
A line starting with # is ignored.
Nothing needs restarting: the program reads the file again when it changes, and the screen adapts by itself to the number of cards.

Editing this file is a job for whoever administers the installation. One detail worth knowing: targets are saved under the machine's name. If a machine is renamed in the file, its target is lost and has to be set again. The same happens if its alerts were off: they will be on again.

08The footer

Vaktari Live Counters footer — **Fig. 11** · The footer.

How often it reads, how many machines are configured and at what percentage the pre-warning fires.
The version, on the last line, in bold. It is the first thing you will be asked for if you have to report an issue.

09Common problems

What happens	Why	What to do
The page does not open	the program is not running	Start `vaktari_counters.bat` again and leave the black window open.
It opens on this PC but not from another	the address is wrong, or the firewall is blocking port 8762	Check the address. If it is right, tell whoever did the installation.
Cannot reach the server	the program has stopped or the network is down	What is on screen is the last data received. Start the program again; the page reconnects by itself.
A card says Unreachable	that machine's computer is off, or the shared folder is not responding	Check that the machine's computer is on and on the network. The other cards are not affected.
A card says Stale data	the machine has not saved anything for more than 3 minutes	Check that the machine's SCADA is running. The time of the last data is shown on the card.
A card says No data	the machine has not written its file yet today	If the machine has not started, this is normal.
OK and NOK are not shown	the machine counts the total but does not classify the parts	Nothing to do: the machine does not provide that value.
The counter went back to zero	the lot was reset on the machine	It is the lot counter, not the day's. The target stays.
No alert sounds	sound is muted, or the browser is waiting for a click	Look at the sound button. If it says Click to enable sound, click it.
A machine never alerts	its alerts are off	Check whether the card says Alerts off and click the bell to switch them back on.
The ? Help button does not open the manual	the computer has no internet connection	The manual is only on the web, at rpd-eng.com. Open it from a computer with a connection.
The alert keeps sounding	an alert has not been stopped: a reached target or a machine in error	Click the card that is flashing, or the Stop alerts button.
Could not save the change	the program did not respond when saving a target or the bell	Try again. If it happens again, check that the program is running.
A machine is missing, or there is one too many	the machines file is not the right one	Tell whoever administers the installation. See section 7.
Configuration file … not found	the machines file is missing, or empty	Tell whoever did the installation.

If you have to report an issue, note the version shown in the page footer and take a screenshot of the whole screen.