The Omni-8 and Omni-16c alarm annunciators from local manufacturer, Omniflex, have been upgraded so that users can program them directly from any PC via the RS232 serial port. For this, 'Omni-16 Softset' Windows-based software is available free of charge from Omniflex.
Up to now, it has been necessary to set up the annunciators via the rear-mounted DIPswitches on the unit. While this has been a standard feature of the product for years before any competition brought it out, the convenience pales by comparison to the ease of setup now facilitated by the new software.
According to Marketing Manager, Ian Loudon: "Not only is it easier to set up the annunciators now, but the user can accomplish more complex set-up than is possible with just the DIP switches. For example, every single window can be programmed for a different alarm sequence if required. While this may not be a common requirement, there are applications for this flexibility, but it certainly illustrates the power of the annunciator."
In addition to the individual alarm sequences per window, users can have individual timers per point, enhanced programmability on the Group Alarms and four separately programmable relays that can be set up freely as required. Loudon said: "The investment in this annunciator series has been well justified as the market is still buoyant for these devices, especially as we have geared our organisation to be as responsive as possible to real market needs. It is amazing how much conventional instrumentation business there is out there if you are prepared to just adapt traditional technologies and listen to your customers.
"We have lots of new developments for our Omni-16 annunciator series in the pipeline and these will be released to market when ready. We really welcome good feedback on our range of products as we take it seriously; we test the markets internationally and if we get the green light from our major customers all over the world, we push the button on development. Having a ready international market for our products has major benefits for our South African companies as they have access to our expertise and technologies at local prices," said Loudon.
The Omni-16 panel mounted annunciator has retained its original footprint but has reduced considerably in size, mass and rear of panel depth since its first introduction in the mid 1980's. The Omni-8c is a derivative of its 16-point big brother but with only eight lamps for smaller applications. The lamps are long-life backlit LEDs available in red, green, yellow, orange and even high-brightness blue. The front panel legend, or 'engraving', is produced by printing out the details onto a clear transparency through a laser printer, trimming to size and inserting under the perspex cover. Thus it is very easy to duplicate identical annunciators from both the programming and the engraving perspectives.
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