CIMConnect™ GEM Interface to Host Equipment Communictaion
CIMConnect is an object-oriented software development kit for equipment suppliers to quickly develop a GEM interface on their manufacturing equipment. The CIMConnect software product runs on Microsoft Windows and is compatible with many different programming environments including C# in Visual Studio .NET and C++ in Visual Studio 6.0. CIMConnect makes extensive use of Active X/COM technology and is specifically designed to allow the protocol and message format to be customized. It also supports multiple host connections simultaneously. This allows our customers to support any legacy interfaces and communicate with more than one GEM host.
The current CIMConnect release supports the GEM, SECS-I, SECS-II, and HSMS-SS standards. CIMConnect also supplies the tools to support the many SEMI standards that compliment GEM such the PVECI standard and GEM300 standards (E39, E40, E87, E90, E94 and E116) implemented by the CIM300 product. Many equipment suppliers worldwide have used CIMConnect to implement SECS/GEM interfaces on equipment in the semiconductor, photovoltaic (PV), electronics assembly, surface mount technology and other industries. Cimetrix actively participates in the GEM300 task force which manages GEM and related SEMI standards.
- Software Architecture
- Features & Benefits
- CIMConnect Components
- System Requirements
- Related SEMI Standards
- Additional Information & Resources
Visit the CIMConnect Resources page for more information.
CIMConnect Architecture
Features & Benefits
| Feature | Benefit |
|---|---|
| Multiple Host Connections, One Service | Reduce software development time, maintenance, and lines of code while improving quality. The GEM interface is available to multiple hosts where each may be a SECS-I or HSMS-SS connection. |
| Windows Service | Simple integration into the system. Allows automatic startup. |
| COM/DCOM API | Flexibility to develop using Visual C++, C#, VB.NET and many other Interface Development Environments (IDE) that support COM like Java and C++ Builder. Allows distribution of applications on multiple computers. CIMConnect's software performance is also outstanding. |
| SECS-II, SECS-I, and HSMS support. | It is easy to support industry standards using robust industry tested modules. |
| Fully functional SECS/GEM interface out of the box | Instead of spending time developing GEM communication, immediately focus on adding machine-specific features. |
| Dynamic GEM communication and interface configuration without recompiling | Reduce integration and setup time. There are several ways to synchronize the SECS/GEM interface with the equipment development and various equipment configurations. Use the same core SECS/GEM software for an entire family of equipment. |
| Drop in ActiveX controls for GEM required features in your GUI | Save development time |
| Interchangable Communications and Message Formatting | Support multiple SECS/GEM Hosts, legacy interfaces and emerging standards without changing the applications |
| Client/Server Architecture | Flexibility to use the CIMConnect API functions from one or more programs |
| Host software provided with the CIMConnect Development System | Verify the GEM interface software quality using professional host software |
CIMConnect Components
CIMConnect Service
The CIMConnect Service handles all communications to and from the hosts. All fundamental GEM requirements and additional capabilities including the GEM state machines are managed by CIMConnect. Applications provide data to the service, trigger events, change alarm states and implement the process state machine.
CIMConnect API
Applications communicate to the CIMConnect service using the COM API interfaces. The COM interfaces provide maximum development language compatibility and allow the use of modern object oriented methodologies. Use C#, Visual C++, VB.NET or any other COM compatible development environment. Multiple applications can interact with CIMConnect at the same time. An application can even be implemented as a Windows DLL that is loaded by the CIMConnect Service.
CIMConnect Product Tools
The CIMConnect ControlPanel is a GUI tool for dynamically configuring, monitoring, testing, and emulating the GEM interface. CIMConnect Active-X Controls provide drop-in GEM state machine and terminal service features in your GUI. Use the ActiveX Controls directly or use its source code as a template for your custom implementation. CIMConnect includes ActiveX Controls to implement the following GEM User Interface requirements.
- GEM communication status icon for the front on the operator interface
- GEM state machine view and controls
- Terminal Services interface to view and acknowledge incoming messages and to send messages
- Process Program Management
- Equipment Constant view and configuration
- Alarm view and optional clearing
- Alarm history
- SECS-II Message log
Testing Software
CIMConnect includes TESTConnect and SECSConnect. Both are available to implement various testing techniques for thoroughly testing the SECS/GEM interface.
Documentation
CIMConnect provides great documentation in .CHM (compiled HTML) format. Find the answers to most of your questions. Still have a question? Then contact our responsive Customer Support staff. CIMConnect also includes a Microsoft Word template as a great starting point for the required end user GEM manual.
Sample Applications
CIMConnect includes a diverse set of sample applications to help show you how to use it in a variety of different programming environments. Even more samples are available from our Customer Support staff. Here are a few of the samples:
- Getting Started C# in Visual Studio .NET
- Getting Started Visual C++
- Getting Started C program
- Getting Started Borland C++
System Requirements
Cimetrix supports CIMConnect for use with the following Microsoft platforms:
- Windows 2000, English, German, Japanese
- Windows XP, English, German, Japanese
- Windows 2003 Server, English
- Windows Vista (32 bit)
While CIMConnect must run on a Windows computer, it is common to use CIMConnect with equipment that have non-Windows computers. Equipment suppliers that use PLCs, Unix or QNX based control systems add a Windows PC to run CIMConnect to handle the factory communications. Software architects frequently design internal equipment networks with software applications to communicate between systems.
Cimetrix officially supports CIMConnect for use with the following Microsoft software development packages but other software development environments compatible with Microsoft Component Object Module (COM) can be used:
- Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0
- Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2003
- Microsoft Visual Studio .NET 2005
- Borland C++ Builder 6
Cimetrix supports CIMConnect for use with applications developed in the following Microsoft programming languages:
- Microsoft Visual Basic
- C++
- C#
- VB.NET
Other System Requirements:
- P6 or K6-2 processor or better
- 100 MB hard drive space
- Ethernet card for HSMS-SS communication (Protocol: TCP/IP)
- RS 232 port for SECS-I
Supported SEMI SECS/GEM Standards
- E4 SECS-I (Serial protocol)
- E5 SECS-II
- E30 GEM
- E37 HSMS-SS (Ethernet protocol)
Additional Resources for GEM Interface Software
Some of this information may require Acrobat Reader available for free from Adobe.
- Download the CIMConnect Datasheet
- Request the CIMConnect Technical Overview
- Visit the CIMConnect Resources page for more information on the product
- Download the complete white paper on the SEMI SECS/GEM Standards
- Learn more about High-Speed SECS Messaging (HSMS) and SECS-II(SEMI E5)
- See a sample GEM Compliance Statement
- Read an article in Semiconductor International, by Corina Mullen: The Evolving World of SECS/GEM - July 2001
- View the complete list of Cimetrix's SECS/GEM software products
Schedule an architecture discussion to discuss your individual project requirements.
