How to Set Up a Shop Floor Kiosk in EDGEBIC

To set up a shop floor kiosk in EDGEBIC by User Solutions, install the kiosk application on the terminal, point it at the same database the planner application uses, then bind the session to one work center and one instance in the Select Work Center dialog. The kiosk is a separate touch-first application that shares the planner's database directly, with no server in between. Once a terminal is bound to a machine, it shows that machine's queued jobs and operators can start punching.

This post covers the one-time terminal setup. Starting jobs, counting pieces, and completing operations are their own tasks, all indexed from the shop floor execution guide.

Before You Start

Step 1: Point the Kiosk at the Shared Database

The kiosk connects to the same database the planner application uses. On a single-site deployment that is the shared database file; on an enterprise deployment it is the SQL Server instance the planner already talks to. There is no separate kiosk server, and no API tier sits between the terminal and the data. Confirm the terminal can reach that database with a Windows account that has write access before you bind anything.

Step 2: Launch the Kiosk and Open the Select Work Center Dialog

Launch the kiosk. On first run the Select Work Center dialog opens and asks you to pick the work center this session is bound to. This dialog is the entire binding step, and the header's Switch WC button re-opens it any time you need to rebind.

Step 3: Choose the Work Center and Instance

1. Pick the work center from the list.
2. Set Instance to the physical lane or machine within that work center. Instances are numbered from 1, so a three-machine work center offers 1, 2, and 3.
3. Click OK.

The instance choice is the part people get wrong. Every punch made in this session records against the instance you pick, so a session bound to the wrong lane produces real hours logged against a machine that never ran. Get the label and the machine to agree before the first tap of the shift.

Step 4: Save the Binding So the Terminal Remembers It

Tick Remember this selection before clicking OK. This writes the work center and instance to the terminal's local settings file, so the kiosk opens on the same machine every morning. On a terminal that permanently serves one machine, this turns daily setup into zero setup: the operator launches the kiosk, types a name, and starts.

If a terminal genuinely serves two neighboring machines, leave Remember off and rely on Switch WC at each changeover, or model the machines as two instances of one work center and let the scheduler place work across both.

Step 5: Identify the Operator

On the main screen, the operator types a name in the Operator box. That name stamps onto every punch and is the only identity the kiosk carries. There is no login, no PIN, and no badge scan on the kiosk: it trusts the floor. A blank name makes the history drawer useless weeks later, so the name goes in once at shift start.

Operator-level scheduling with skills and certifications is a separate planner-side capability, covered in operator and skill scheduling explained. The kiosk's free-text name and that scheduling model are independent of each other.

What Changes When the Kiosk Is Bound

How to Check It Worked

The idle screen names your work center in the header and shows a real job in the NEXT UP panel. If it reads No schedule queued for this work center, either nothing is scheduled here in the current window or the terminal is bound to the wrong machine. Use Switch WC to confirm the binding, and REFRESH after the planner runs a new schedule. Once NEXT UP shows the expected job, the terminal is ready and the first START SETUP will begin real tracking.

Common Mistakes

• Binding to the work center but leaving the Instance at the wrong lane. The punches look fine and land on the wrong machine's capacity. Match the instance to the physical machine before the first punch.
• Skipping Remember this selection on a fixed terminal. The operator rebinds every morning, and one distracted rebinding puts a shift of work on the wrong machine.
• Expecting an offline buffer. The kiosk writes live to the shared database. If the connection drops, punch when it returns or enter the day through Manual Entry.
• Treating the Operator box as a login. It is a trusted free-text name, not a credential. If you need to constrain who is scheduled to a step, that lives on the planner side, not here.

Next Steps

With the terminal bound, the first real task is how to start a job on the kiosk. For the wider picture of how punched time becomes schedule data, read actuals tracking explained.

Every task in this library is indexed on the EDGEBIC how-to hub. To see a terminal running beside a live planner schedule, book a walkthrough of EDGEBIC and bring the machine you would put a kiosk on first.