A Real-Time Logging System for Managing Multiuser Equipment


X.-Z. Li


Nebraska Center for Materials and Nanoscience , University of Nebraska , 855 N. 16th St. , N201 NANO , Lincoln , NE 68588 xzli@unl.edu


Abstract: A real-time logging system (RTLS) has been developed for managing multiuser equipment such as modern electron microscopes that are operated or controlled via a computer. The RTLS is designed to log the usage of the computer and thus the usage of the equipment. The RTLS is a small-size Java program, which is easy to install and use. It has two basic interfaces, a log-in interface and a logbook interface. The fi rst is a semi-transparent shielded layer that covers the computer monitor until a successful log-in occurs, and the second records instrument usage.


Keywords: Facility management, real time, logging system, software, RTLS


Introduction Scientifi c research instruments oſt en have many users. Computer soſt ware for management of the equipment is required in order to make the usage of the equipment effi cient. Basically it includes a calendar for users to make a schedule and a logging system to record the usage. T e management soſt ware can be an integrated system or an independent system. An integrated system may be convenient, but it could be costly. An independent system is more simple and fl exible in that it can include an online calendar and an offl ine logging system. In addition, many free general-purpose online group calendars can be used for laboratory scheduling, for example, Google Calendar [ 1 ], Localendar [ 2 ], and Zoho Calendar [ 3 ]. T is article describes a real-time logging system (RTLS) designed for managing multiuser equipment [ 1 ]. It was designed originally for the author’s home research center to automatically manage the 24/7 usage of equipment in real time. T is RTLS may be helpful for other research groups or facility centers that have a similar need.


Design and Implementation


We assume that an instrument, for example, a modern electron microscope, is operated through a computer; thus usage of the instrument can be logged as usage of the computer. T e RTLS has been designed and written for this purpose. Figure 1 shows a fl owchart of the soſt ware design for automatically logging usage of the instrument. T e three main functions are marked with bold frames. T e log-in interface is a shielded layer that covers the computer monitor with input fi elds for the identifi - cation (ID) and the password of a user ( Figure 2 ). T e logbook interface records the usage information, which can be displayed or shrunk into iconized size ( Figure 3 ). T e registration interface is used to enter/edit the user’s information and to generate the user’s ID and password ( Figure 4 ). For older instruments without computer control, the RTLS can be used as a logbook only. In this case, the RTLS can be installed in a computer near the instrument. T e RTLS was coded in Java and tested for computers with


Microsoſt Windows OS (XP and later versions). Figure 2 shows the log-in interface of the RTLS, which is a semi-transparent shielded layer with fi elds for the user’s ID and password. T e semitransparent shielded layer allows the parameters of the instrument to be monitored all the time. Figure 3 shows the


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Figure 1 : A fl owchart of software design for the RTLS. Three main functions are indicated in bold frames.


logbook interface of the RTLS in normal status. T e Start time is shown as the time when user logged in. T e Current time is a digital clock, which is synchronized with the computer system time. T e logbook allows the user to switch between a normal status and an iconized (not shown here) status. When the user logs out, the log-in interface is restored, and the usage information and user’s note is saved in formatted text fi les. T e RTLS may also be used in a registration mode. When the administrator (ID = Admin) logs in, the registration interface displays instead of the logbook, as shown in Figure 4 . T us, new user information can be registered, and the information of registered users can be edited. T e RTLS system itself can only be terminated when the administrator logs in.


Installation and Usage Availability of the RTLS . An executable landyne_rtls.exe


fi le and a user manual have been packed in .z7 form, and the compressed fi le is available at this author’s webpage [ 4 ]. T e installation of the RTLS is simple and straightforward. T e RTLS package should be decompressed to the landyen_rtls.exe and a user manual in a dedicated folder, for example, c:\landyne\ rtls\. A shortcut can be created and moved to the desktop in Windows OS. Java Runtime Environment (that is, JRE 1.8.0 or up) [ 5 ] is required to be pre-installed on the computer.


Figure 2 : A snapshot of the log-in interface in the real-time logging system. A semitransparent layer in gray is on top of the computer monitor. This is the central part of the monitor. For log-in, users are required to fi ll in their ID and password.


doi: 10.1017/S1551929517001018 www.microscopy-today.com • 2018 January


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