For Personal Use For Educational UseNovember 3, 2011
Troubleshooting PLC Circuits 1 Now Available! more
October 5, 2011
New PLC Troubleshooting Software Available November 2011 more
June 28, 2011
Simutech Multimedia Exhibiting at NTI 2011 more
June 1, 2011
New Office Location for Simutech Multimedia! more
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The Troubleshooting Skills programs have been updated and improved!
Improved tips, safety features, reporting and evaluation...and more!
Course Manager enhancements, new Custom Test feature, new and improved Guides...
With the Enterprise Edition, each Troubleshooting Skills program comes with an Instructor Guide. These manuals provide detailed information about the programs, how to use them in a class, and also provide detailed fault and circuit information. These resources are the best place to start to get an understanding of the software.
The following values take into account the time it can take users to actually sit down and work through all the learning content and then solve the core Skill Test faults.
Troubleshooting Electrical Circuits = 6-10 hours
Troubleshooting Control Circuits = 8-12 hours
Troubleshooting Motor Circuits = 10-15 hours
Troubleshooting Industrial Controls = 14-22 hours
The above values depend on each user's prior knowledge and how quickly they pick up the material, as well as their comfort with computers.
For faster users there are also Extra and Genius faults available once the core program is complete. These can be very difficult, but a lot of fun for those that want a good challenge.
Yes, once the faults from the Skill Test sections are complete, users can retry them in the Skill Maintenance section of the program.
They will be able to retry the faults from any of the diffculty levels, randomly or sequentially. The program will track their Skill Ratings and let them compare their retry results with their results from the initial Skill Test attempts.
If the time you have to use the software in your course or training program is restricted, and the users do not have time to finish the Skill Test faults, you can use the Custom Test feature in the Simutech Course Manager.
This feature allows you to select up to 8 faults from a particular program and create a self-contained test that you can assign to your students. This feature is also handy if you you want to test and evaluate a specific typr of fault or skill.
Note that the Custom Test feature is only available in the Enterprise Edition fo the software.
A good indication of your users' ability is their Overall Skill Rating. If a user's Skill Rating is over 10 then you can be sure that they not only understand, but can apply the Systematic Troubleshooting Approach.
Users with a Skill Rating between 8 and 10 have demonstrated adequate troubleshooting skills. If they have a lower Skill Rating, from 5 to 8 or 0 to 5, it is an indication that they are having problems with one or more aspects of the training.
More information about interpreting results can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, available with the Enterprise Edition.
If a user has been progressing through the faults without much difficulty and you notice that their Skill Rating suddenly drops, there are a few things you can consider. Has the user just started a new difficulty level? Do the faults they are having problems with have anything in common?
Sometimes, a user will begin a new level of faults, and will encounter malfunctions that they are not fully prepared to solve. For example, if a user starts encountering short circuits and they are missing some key information, such as knowing how to determine if the circuit is shorted, they will inevitably start having problems solving these faults.
In this type of situation, once you have analyzed the faults they are experiencing problems with, instruct the user to review the relevant learning module(s) in the program to learn the appropriate concepts and techniques.
More information about interpreting results can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, available with the Enterprise Edition.
If a user is failing due to safety errors, whether they are Personal Injury Errors, Live Circuit Errors, or Safe Work Practice Errors, it is an indication that they are not following the proper safety procedures.
While it is common for users to receive some safety errors when first getting used to the simulator, if they continue to commit safety violations it could mean that they are rushing through their attempts, not following procedures, and not treating the simulation like a real circuit.
It is important that they treat the simulator like real equipment and respect the proper safety procedures, otherwise they could develop dangerous habits. Be sure to have the user review the Troubleshooting Safety section in the program, and make sure they understand the importance and relevance of the safety processes in the simulator.
More information about interpreting results can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, available with the Enterprise Edition.
If you notice that a user is continually taking too many meter readings, in relation to the par values listed in the fault tables in the Instructor Guides, it is an indication that they may not understand the Systematic Troubleshooting Approach and/or how to apply it.
If this is the case, the user should review the Systematic Troubleshooting section in the program to make certain that they understand and can use a logical process. Retrying the Guided faults will also help to reinforce the approach they should be using.
More information about interpreting results can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, available with the Enterprise Edition.
If a user if failing attempts because they are taking too long to solve the fault, they might not understand the circuit and how it is supposed to work, or even how to work in the simulator.
In this type of situation, it is recommended that they review how the circuit works. This will ensure that they understand how the system works and that they feel comfortable in the simulator.
More information about interpreting results can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, availabe with the Enterprise Edition.
The initial password to login to the Simutech Course Manager is SCMADMIN. Once you login the first time, you will be asked to create a new password for future use.
For future reference, this information can be found in the Simutech Course Manager Guide, available with the Enterprise Edition.
