Mastering DeltaV Operate > Optimizing DeltaV Operate

Optimizing picture display

Additional considerations for optimizing the performance of DeltaV Operate are presented in this topic. 

Refreshing Displays

When a picture is saved or closed, all the data source refresh rates, tolerance, and deadbands are checked. The tolerance and deadbands are set to 0. The refresh rate is set to 1 if the rate is less than 0.5 seconds or to 60 if greater than 60 seconds. If the system makes any changes to the refresh rates, tolerance, or deadbands, a log file is created in the Pic folder.

The following recommendations may help you to optimize your system performance while implementing a refresh rate strategy.

  • Set a refresh rate of 1 second for every animation in a picture. Alternatively, use one slow rate for the objects that can have slow updates, and one fast rate (such as .5 seconds) for objects requiring faster updates. Using different update rates tends to result in slower performance.

  • Avoid using a refresh rate of .5 seconds. This is the fastest refresh rate possible and will, therefore, have the greatest impact on your system's performance. 

  • When you modify pictures that were created with early versions of DeltaV Operate, use the Refresh Rate expert to set the update rates for older pictures to 1 second or greater.

Using Auto Scale

Auto scale is a powerful and important feature in DeltaV Operate, but it can be a costly operation in terms of system performance. When adjusting your picture size, you work with the window property, and you define the size as a percentage of screen. By sizing a window by the percentage of screen, DeltaV Operate auto scales your picture, maintaining its logical coordinate system and displaying the picture at the same size, regardless of the screen resolution for the monitor on which it is displayed. (Auto Scale is an option on the Picture Preferences tab of the User Preferences dialog.)

If the time it takes to open or replace pictures is a key concern, make certain that you run resolve on the picture you want to auto scale at the screen resolution for which the picture will ultimately be viewed. For example, if you have developed a picture at a 1024×768 setting and it will ultimately run on a machine with a 1280×1024 setting, run resolve on the picture at the 1280×1024 setting to improve performance.

Resolving Displays

When you upgrade your DeltaV system, or add or delete tags from your database, it is important that you run resolve on all pictures and schedules. To access the  this feature, click the Resolve Files button on the Utilities toolbar.

Resolving Tag Groups

If there are tag groups in the picture, run resolve from the Tag Group Editor once the final changes to the picture are made. (On the Tag Group Editor dialog, click FilesResolve Tags.)

Replacing Pictures

Making both pictures the same size will improve performance of the DeltaV Replace Picture feature.

Simplifying Overview Pictures

One strategy you may choose to implement when designing your displays is to simplify your overview pictures. While some of your more specific displays may require a high level of detail, it may be possible for you to use a simpler representation to create your overview displays.

Try to avoid combining many detailed displays to create your overview picture. This will almost certainly result in a picture with vastly more objects than are necessary and may impact your system's performance.

Minimizing the Number of Open Pictures

Consider the number of pictures you have open on a node at any given time. The number of open pictures may impact the system's available memory as well as the speed with which you can access data.