HMI

HMI (Human-Machine Interface) is the operator-facing visualization and control layer on top of industrial controllers — typically a panel-mounted touchscreen or a SCADA client — that lets a human start, stop, monitor, and intervene in a machine or process. In a PLM context, the HMI is the surface where shop-floor operators interact with the digital work instructions, recipes, and live telemetry that the upstream engineering record produced.

What it covers

• Screen design for situation awareness, alarm triage, and procedural guidance (per ISA-101).
• Tag binding to PLC and OPC UA address spaces.
• Alarm management and historian access integrated with the control system.
• Operator authentication and role-based action gating for regulated environments.
• Convergence with electronic work instructions — MWI viewers, AR overlays, and HMI screens are increasingly the same surface.

Relationships (see sidebar)

• Dependency of the MES Process Simulation, Industrial Connectivity, and Virtual Commissioning capabilities — they all need an operator-facing surface.
• Supports the Manufacturing Execution and Service and Maintenance processes.
• Closely related to Manufacturing Work Instructions and PLC control logic.