Quickpanel

GE Quickpanel (IC754) Selection Guide

General Electric (GE) is well known as a multi-industry conglomerate with hands in more market sectors than we can count.  In Industrial Automation, users know GE for both their electrical distribution and process control offerings, though in many cases by the names of their subsidiary companies or acquired product lines.  GE’s QuickPanel Human Machine Interface product family is a good example, having joined GE’s portfolio through acquisition and later expanded under several different business unit names.  In this article, we’ll examine one particular generation of the QuickPanel lineup identified by its part number prefix - IC754 – and the multiple series found within this family.

GE's QuickPanel Family Lineup

The Industrial Automation market has long known General Electric (GE) as a prominent manufacturer in the space – albeit one that has struggled to foster a stable identity.  GE’s history reaches back over 150 years to founder Thomas Edison’s first incandescent light bulb, and today is a behemoth corporation with close to 170,000 employees operating in nine industry groups across the globe. 

As the company’s electrical services group expanded into the industrial market in the mid-1900s, it spun up a dedicated business unit known as GE Industrial Solutions which focused on power distribution gear.  This venture increasingly led into industrial automation applications, which eventually paved the way for the formation of the GE Fanuc Automation Corporation joint venture in 1986, adding the Japanese automation hardware/software manufacturer to GE’s portfolio.  In 1998, GE expanded its automation line with another acquisition, this time of Total Control Products company (and specifically, their operator interface lineup), rebranded under GE Fanuc business unit’s name. 

While GE automation and electrical sales volumes were respectable, the company found itself largely unable to realize true market leadership against competition from mature industry giants such as Allen-Bradley and Siemens.  GE’s next move was to restructure, downsize, and focus on markets in which it was much better established.  In 2009, GE and Fanuc dissolved their partnership, with GE keeping portions of the hardware line in-house under a new division named GE Intelligent Platforms.  In 2018, GE sold off its electrical distribution business to ABB, and in 2019, did the same with the Intelligent Platforms group to Emerson, effectively ending GE’s venture into automation and electrical markets.

Today, looking for information on GE’s legacy products can be quite confusing.  Most product names can be found in multiple generations across periods where each product line was under a different parent company (IE Total Control, Fanuc, GE Fanuc, GE Intelligence Platforms, or Emerson Automation Solutions), so users should take care to look for documentation that is specific to a product’s manufacturing date, version, and revision. 

For the rest of this article, we’ll root our discussion in the year 2012, pulling information from GE’s Intelligent Platforms product catalog document ##GFA-406H, dated 2012.  Information for this generation of IC754 QuickPanel interfaces is relatively verifiable across multiple sources still available, which appear updated and refreshed after the preceding split between GE and Fanuc.  The IC754 part number prefix extends back to the early 2000s, though much of the earlier information appears to be a rehash of Total Control’s original documentation that we cannot confirm follows the generation change that occurred when the part numbers migrated from TC’s “QP” to GE’s “IC”.

The QuickPanel IC754 family was offered in View and Control models, which we’ll describe below separately as they are built around different use cases and feature sets.    

We’ll omit model numbers in the OEM series (IC754”O”…) as these devices may have minor differences to View and Control models as modified by the system manufacturers reselling these devices.  Generally, “O” variants support all hardware and applications as their equivalent-version “V” and “C” models, however, they may have some incompatibilities with various software.  As time goes on and driver versions become harder to find, additional incompatibilities may arise.

QuickPanel View Features

Available in a variety of display sizes, the QuickPanel View visualization solution provides the tools required for advanced application needs of the time.  By integrating the best-selling QuickPanel family of touch screens with software, QuickPanel View delivers flexible, scalable performance on a rugged hardware platform.

The QuickPanel View was sold with several key value propositions, such as:

1. Information Delivery - Acting as the bridge between the enterprise system and the plant floor, QuickPanel View provides information, not just data, that the operators need to run the machines, and that management needs to run their business.  QuickPanel View is a critical link to a well-integrated manufacturing operation.
2. Scalable - As your information requirements grow, so will your hardware needs. QuickPanel View products are exceedingly scalable to grow with your needs.
3. Seamless Connectivity - As your need to monitor and collect data grows, you may need to connect to a wide variety of devices.  Unless your operator interface has seamless connectivity, you may face delays and headaches.  That is why QuickPanel View comes standard with a large number of built-in drivers to connect with the world of automation devices.
4. Other Key Advantages:
   • Cost-effective replacement for push buttons and pilot lights
   • Data collection, trending, system security and other functions
   • Adherence to global standards UL, ATEX, CE

QuickPanel View Models

The QuickPanel View family is broken up into three marketing categories, intended to describe the intended applications for each group.

QuickPanel View Loaded Terminals

• Description: Medium to large applications where communication to multiple devices from different vendors is required.
• Features:
  • Connectivity: Serial, Ethernet and Fieldbus networks
  • View and VB Scripting
  • Compact Flash
  • Document Viewers (doc, xls, pdf)
  • Historian Collector
  • Web Publishing
  • View and Integrated Control
• Available Sizes:
  • 15" TFT-Color
  • 12" TFT-Color
  • 8" TFT-Color
  • 6" TFT-Color
  • 6" Mono

QuickPanel View Intermediate Terminals

• Description: Medium sized applications communicating to multiple devices.  Applications using Programmable Automation Controllers or Programmable Logic Controllers.
• Features:
  • Connectivity: Serial, Ethernet, and Fieldbus networks
  • View and VB Scripting
  • Compact Flash Card
  • Historian Collector
  • Expandable Memory
  • Web Publishing
• Available Sizes:
  • 12" TFT-Color
  • 12" Mono
  • 8" TFT-Color
  • 6" STN-Color
  • 6" Mono

QuickPanel View Basic Terminals

• Description: Ideal for small applications. Using point-to-point serial connectivity.
• Features:
  • Serial Interface to PLC
  • View Scripting
  • View Functionality
• Available Sizes:
  • 6” TFT-Color
  • 6" Mono

QuickPanel Control Features

QuickPanel Control combines flexible, integrated control with visualization on a single, rugged hardware platform for more functionality in a smaller space.  It provides access to a broad range of I/O, communicates via a variety of networks, and enables remote monitoring of your systems.  By integrating the QuickPanel Control family of touch screens with software, QuickPanel Control delivers flexible, scalable performance on a rugged hardware platform.

The key differentiator for the QuickPanel Control lineup is found in its ability to directly network to I/O interfaces and serve as the master controller for small to medium-sized process applications.  Interface cards were produced for GE’s 90-30, VersaMax, and Genius I/O expansion racks, as well as for DeviceNet and Profibus networks.

QuickPanel Control Modes

QuickPanel Control models are a bit more straightforward than their View counterparts, thanks to their inherently large feature set that natively supports multiple configurations across their fewer models.  Simply put, for most use cases, users only need to choose a screen size, color or mono display type, and an overlay.

QuickPanel Accessory Considerations

A wide range of accessories are available for the GE QuickPanel IC754 family of Operator Interfaces.  To find accessories for your particular year and version of panel, we suggest looking up the applicable GE Control Systems Catalog and / or your specific models’ User Guide to obtain the correct part numbers (or contact your local legacy product hardware distributor).

QuickPanel accessories include:

• Communication Cards
• Starter Kits
• PCMCIA Memory adaptor cards
• Memory Expansion modules
• Mounting Gaskets
• Mounting Clips & Power Connection Kits
• Stainless Steel Bezels
• Panel Mounting Adaptor Kits (IE, installing an 8” panel into a legacy 9” cutout)
• IO cables (QuickPanel Control)
• PLC / Network communication hardware and cable kit (QuickPanel View)