Regardless of the primary definition of this term, usability means more than just ease of use. There are 5 other important “E” benefits that help describe usability: efficient, effective, engaging, error tolerant and easy to learn. The more of these benefits in any given product, the higher is the level of a user’s satisfaction and success.
Usability – one characteristic, many roles
At a plant, the usability of a valve controller plays a major role in a number of situations. Whether you need to install a valve controller on actuators in volume production, quickly replace one in real field conditions or interpret its diagnostic information – simplicity is highly beneficial. In addition, usability helps operators make the correct settings, and therefore, adds to plant productivity and safety.
Local and remote valve controller operations
As existing devices have been designed over a few decades, there are big differences in their usability. Most digital valve controllers operate with their own local user interface or remotely over digital communication. Older devices most often have a button or two, and a small LCD giving parameters that need to be interpreted with the help of a manual. The latest devices have large graphical displays, guiding the user to the correct findings and actions.
Usability via a remote connection is less dependent on the valve controller hardware. It is more about designing an interface to interact with the valve controller. When setting the parameters of the valve controller, some manufacturers allow too many possibilities, which makes things more complicated for the users. The same applies to valve diagnostics. The amount and way of presenting the available can vary data, requiring specialist training for correct interpretation.
