Demo: getting started and limitations

1. What can the demo do?

The Windows demo lets you configure process screens, save projects and try controls and displays locally in Play mode. The ZIP includes Java, standard images and offline help.

Communication drivers are not available in the demo version. This includes Modbus. An IP address, imported table or full-version project does not enable a real connection. Activated add-on libraries are not included.

2. Is the demo limited to Modbus addresses?

No. Address configuration and active communication are separate things. You can prepare and import symbol tables for Modbus, Siemens S7 and OPC UA. In a project with no selected communication driver, the table’s simulation values become local initial values when Play mode starts.

New table rows may start with Modbus defaults. These are initial settings, not an address-space restriction. Start with the matching example CSV for S7 or OPC UA. Addresses, data types and other fields must fit the table format.

Local simulation does not test PLC reachability or validate a Node ID on an OPC UA server. It does not automatically emulate a real PLC program.

3. Getting started

1. Extract the entire ZIP into a separate writable folder. Run PamaGlawe.exe.
2. Create a new project and save it once under its own name. This establishes its name and folder structure.
3. Use PLC table → Import CSV to select a suitable example table from the project folder.
4. Use Edit table to set the Simulation value column. Link a value display and, if needed, a value input to the same symbol.
5. Save the project and press F5. Check the initial value and local input in Play mode.

For your first test, use a new demo project and a CSV table. Importing symbols is different from opening a complete project that already contains a driver selection.

4. Where are the examples?

After saving for the first time, look inside the project folder at Kommunikation/Beispiele/:

• 01-Modbus-TCP/Kommunikation-Modbus-TCP.csv
• 02-Siemens-S7-Moka7/Kommunikation-Siemens-S7.csv
• 03-OPC-UA/Kommunikation-OPC-UA.csv

Your project’s own symbol table is stored at Kommunikation/<ProjectName>_SYMBOLIK.csv. Saving a CSV and saving a project are separate actions. See the PLC table guide.

4.1 Animate a test system: four-light junction

The demo can show a changing process. Value input fields write local signals; linked traffic lights, displays and other objects respond to them. From 2.61.513, the virtual PLC also runs automatic sequences entirely inside PamaGlawe, without an external simulator. Communication drivers are not available in the demo version.

Download the junction demo project · Automatic operation requires 2.61.513 or later. Version 2.61.512 supports manual operation of this example. The project labels are German; English instructions are included.

1. Extract the example, open PamaGlawe_Demo_Kreuzung.jvz and save it once under your own project name.
2. Press F5, then click Start on the virtual PLC panel. All four lights initially show red.
3. North/south and east/west take turns: all red, red/amber, green, amber. Each change between roads includes an all-red phase.
4. Ampelpause activates flashing mode while the virtual PLC keeps running. East/west is the minor road: its amber lights alternate one second on and one second off. North/south stays dark.
5. Normalbetrieb returns to the automatic sequence, starting with all red.
6. For manual experiments, first press Pause or Stop on the virtual PLC. Enter a value and press Enter: 0 = off, 1 = red, 2 = amber, 3 = red/amber, 4 = green. Each input controls the two lights of one road.

Pause freezes the virtual PLC program; Weiter resumes it. This differs from Ampelpause, which is a programmed flashing mode. Leaving and restarting Play mode reloads the initial values. The example is an editable learning model.

Vehicles, ambulance and flashing amber mode

The junction demo includes four cars and a randomly triggered ambulance with flashing blue lights. The ambulance gets priority; vehicles already crossing clear the junction first. Waiting cars may move aside and return to their lane afterward. This is demonstration logic, not a complete traffic or safety controller.

Flashing amber mode makes only the side road flash amber, changing state every second; the main road stays dark. Normal operation restarts the sequence with the shared all-red phase.

Copying the navigation bar also copies button functions and target pages. Remove unwanted buttons afterward and check their destinations. Avoid editing a project in PamaGlawe and externally at the same time: saving an older open version can overwrite external changes.

Pause/Stop: assigned traffic-light outputs go to 0 (off), and junction cars stop where they are, including inside the junction. Continue resumes the stored program state. There is no automatic junction-clearance or all-red restart sequence after Pause/Stop. The demo illustrates visualization and V-PLC functions; clearance times and a defined restart sequence can be added to the V-PLC program.

The separate car on the right demonstrates target movement and heading. Its example targets are generated in flashing amber mode. X/Y are offsets from the editor position. A new target changes its heading while moving. Target movement runs independently of the V-PLC; speed 0 pauses the image.

Page change: stops the previous page's V-PLC and clears its assigned outputs. The destination page has its own stopped V-PLC. Press Start there to run it; switching languages does not transfer the previous controller's RUN state.

In flashing amber mode, the north/south cars use a separate movement permission while their lights stay dark. Ambulance priority can still stop them. This behaviour is specific to the demonstration.

Tank demo and nibble states

The prepared PamaGlawe_Autotest project contains German and English junction and tank pages. This describes the current development version; the public ZIP may be older. Check the advertised download version.

Press F5 for play mode, then Start on the V-PLC. The tank alternates between filling to the upper limit and draining to the lower limit. The example uses 5% and 90%; depending on the step size, the lower switching point may be slightly below the limit. Stop the V-PLC before manual experiments.

Add the bit values: 0 = automatic/off, 1 = automatic/on, 3 = manual/on, 4 = fault/off, 8 = maintenance/off. Buttons toggle individual bits; Reset clears all four. Image and text mappings show the combined value from 0 to 15. Fault or maintenance stops automatic draining; the V-PLC clears the on bit. Your own project logic must explicitly implement this interlock.

Variable-driven image movement · Multilingual pump alarms

Pause/Stop: closes the inlet valve and clears the pump run bit. Tank level, sequence phase and the other pump bits remain unchanged. Continue resumes without catching up the pause time. The output assignment is explained under V-PLC: Start, Pause, Continue and Stop.

5. Common questions

Why is there no driver selection?

Communication drivers are not available in the demo version.

Can I connect an external Modbus, S7 or OPC UA test server?

No. This demo build cannot establish driver connections to test servers either.

Why does my value stay unchanged?

A simulation value starts as an initial value. Changes require local input or configured simulation logic. Also check the symbol assignment.

An existing project does not show simulation values.

A complete project may contain a saved driver selection. Communication drivers are not available in the demo, but importing table initial values requires a project with no driver selected. Try the same CSV in a new demo project. Contact support about converting an existing project.

The help shows more features than my demo.

The shared help also documents the full version and add-on libraries. A help article does not activate a feature.

6. Related guides

• Create and save a project
• PLC table and CSV examples
• Application and project settings
• V-PLC: configure local sequences
• Libraries and activation

For support, include START-DEMO, your demo version and the step concerned.