Core Structure

Overview

B&C Transit 5th generation Office Systems are easier than ever to support and maintain.

Systems are designed such that all processor and internal bits required for display are defined in external databases or files that represent field points.

When an application is started, these points are dynamically created as data objects that represent areas of the system.

Data Object Construction

Data Objects

An example of a data object is a platform. As one might suspect, a platform has certain properties that other field points may not have, and therefore the data object is unique. A platform will have a list of indications and controls. The following illustration shows how dynamic data objects are constructed. A data object will contain a list of processor controls and indications, as well as some other properties unique to the data object type. These core data objects within the software serve as the real time database for the application systems.

Dynamic Graphical Screens

When a B&C Transit developer creates a GUI screen for a project, that screen file is saved externally to the office control system, and then dynamically loaded into the office system the next time it is started. The GUI visual object is created from a file external to the application program that will reside within the network server. This approach allows transit authority developers to alter graphical screens without shutting down, distributing, or disrupting workstation applications.

Dynamic Graphical Creation

The application parses the screen file containing information about the specific graphics page, builds the graphic objects, assigns properties from the file to the objects, and finally, draws the graphic object on the screen. This sequence of event occurs only on startup and happens extremely fast.

With each office system, the transit authority is also provided with the system graphics editor. This editor allows the support personnel to modify graphics as required over the life of the office system. The B&C Transit graphics editor works like many other MMI (Man Machine interface) graphic editors. Graphics are select from a pallet, plopped on the screen, moved around at will, sent forward or back for visibility, and allow special properties of the graphics object to be set, such as color, visibility, and flashing based upon certain conditions.

Graphics Creation

Assigning Core Data Objects to Visual Graphical Objects

Feel the Power

More powerful than most MMI graphical interfaces, B&C Transit Graphical editors allow full expressions to be used in graphics instead of just simple TAG names (or scripts that must set internal TAG names).

Assigning Indications to Graphics

The example on the right is a "much" older generation graphics editor (again, we don't want to give out all our secrets on the new stuff) that appears when the user selects a graphical object in the editor.

Note that expressions can be entered, and the colors and visual representation of those graphic symbols altered based upon whether the expressions (combinations of data objects) result as true or false.

Graphic Object Expression Editor

Send mail to mkirk@bnctransit.com with questions or comments about this web site. Last modified: 04/07/06

Send mail to mkirk@bnctransit.com with questions or comments about this web site.
Last modified: 04/07/06