TA150 and WPF Container Controls

[csanders]

Has anyone used any of the WPF container controls like the stack panel, group box, or expander? When I add these in the xaml file for the screen, any buttons or analog numerics nested within these controls are not listed in the object browser and the project will not validate.

I have looked through the sample projects (Demo_TA150), I found that the grid control is used, but it is nested in a symbol control like this:

Code: Select all

  <nacs:SymbolControl BorderBrush="#FFADC1D9" Background="#FF8FA4BE" Name="SymbolControl3" Width="531" Height="489" RenderTransformOrigin="0.5,0.5" Canvas.Left="12" Canvas.Top="219" Panel.ZIndex="2">
    <nacs:SymbolControl.Template>
      <ControlTemplate TargetType="nacs:SymbolControl">
        <Grid>
          <nacc1:Rectangle Fill="{TemplateBinding BorderBrush}" />
          <nacc1:Rectangle RadiusX="9" RadiusY="9" Fill="#FFFFFFFF" Stroke="#FF000000" />
          <nacc1:Rectangle RadiusX="6" RadiusY="6" Fill="{TemplateBinding Background}" StrokeThickness="10" Margin="4,4,4,4" />
        </Grid>
      </ControlTemplate>
    </nacs:SymbolControl.Template>
  </nacs:SymbolControl>

Is it possible to nest controls like the Expander or GroupBox inside of the SymbolControl? If so, what purpose does the SymbolControl and ControlTemplate serve?

[Ron L.]

The underlying operating system of the iX Panel TA150 is Windows Embedded CE 6.0 which does not have support for WPF.

You may have better luck with the Industrial PC line of panels that has Windows 10 which supports WPF.
https://www.beijerelectronics.com/en/Pr ... anel___PCs

[csanders]

In the code snippet from the demo project I posted uses the <Grid> tag, and this project if for a TA150. Is the <Grid> control used in this project not a WPF control?

When I change to project target to PC, I experience the same behavior as described in the original post. Is it possible to nest hmi controls like the analog numeric within other WPF controls and still have access to the properties in the designer?

[Skylar]

The WPF syntax you see in the Demo applications is not true WPF. There are certain feastures that were implemented in iX to parse code in the same syntax as WPF, but beyond those examples you see in the Demo projects, there is no support for WPF.

The exception for this is when you are targeting an actual PC, like the line of products Ron directed you to above.

[csanders]

I have changed the target type to PC, but when the iX controls are nested in a WPF container control, the hmi control cannot be selected to modify properties like the size or tag. Is this normal behavior in the iX designer?

[Ron L.]

If you nested one of the iX Developer specific controls in something other than an iX Developer screen, I would not expect the UI tag editing or properties UI to work.