Timer Tag
Overview
A running-time totalizer. Unlike other tag types, a TimerTag's value isn't set from a device reading — it's controlled with Start, Stop, Reset, and Restart actions (typically triggered from an Engine program, e.g. "start this timer while the machine is running"), and its value is simply the elapsed time accumulated while it has been running.
Value
The running total elapsed time, calculated continuously — it's correct at any moment you read it, not just at fixed update points.
Actions
| Action | Effect |
|---|---|
| Start | Begins accumulating time from now. |
| Stop | Stops accumulating; the total stays where it is. |
| Reset | Clears the running total back to zero. |
| Restart | Resets and immediately starts again. |
Transform Options
TimerTag doesn't support any Transform — the Transform field has no effect if set.
Type Attributes
TimerTag doesn't use Type Attributes — the field has no effect if set.
Notes
- A TimerTag doesn't hold a history of past readings the way other tag types do (there's no single moment a discrete "value changed" — it's a continuous function of elapsed time), so Cache Size and Capture Changes Only don't apply to it in the usual sense.
- Because there's no discrete "changed" event, a TimerTag also never triggers a publish or an Engine program on its own — read its value on a schedule (e.g. a periodic Engine program) instead of expecting a change notification.