WinCC V15 HMI Symbol Library: Restoring Animated Elements

The TIA Portal WinCC toolbox entry labeled "Elements" contains Siemens-supplied HMI faceplates with built-in animation states such as spinning rotors, fans, conveyors, and tanks. When this entry is missing or empty in WinCC V15 and later, the root cause is almost always a runtime-target mismatch between the configured HMI device and the project license, not a corrupted library install. This article walks through the panel/runtime compatibility chain, shows how to verify which WinCC runtime your device targets, and documents the migration path when a project is upgraded across TIA Portal versions V15 through V20.

1. WinCC Runtime Architecture Overview

WinCC ships in four distinct runtime families. Each family is licensed separately, supports a different panel series, and exposes a different element palette in the editor.

The animated motor, fan, pump, and tank objects with built-in "animate enabled state" scripting are part of the WinCC Runtime Advanced library. They are NOT delivered with WinCC Basic or the Comfort-only option set, and they are not the same objects as the WinCC Unified graphic objects introduced in V16. The HMI toolbox decides which library set to display based on the Runtime property of the HMI device in the project tree.

2. Identifying Your Project's Runtime Target

Before changing any project setting, identify the runtime that the configured HMI device is currently bound to. This determines what library content is queryable.

1. Open the TIA Portal project in V15 (or V15.1).
2. In the project tree, expand Devices & Networks.
3. Select the HMI device node (for example, HMI_1 [TP900 Comfort]).
4. Open Properties > General > Target Visualization (V15) or Properties > General > Runtime (V15.1+).
5. Read the Configured runtime field. It will report one of: WinCC RT Basic, WinCC RT Comfort, WinCC RT Advanced, or WinCC Unified RT.

3. Why Animated "Elements" Don't Appear in WinCC V15

The most common root causes, in order of frequency observed in field escalations:

3.1 HMI device is a Basic Panel

Basic Panels (KTP400 Basic, KTP700 Basic, KTP1200 Basic) run WinCC RT Basic. They do not include the animated faceplate library because the runtime interpreter does not support script-driven animation. If your project is bound to one of these panels, the "Elements" group will be absent from the toolbox regardless of the TIA Portal version. Replace the device with a Comfort or higher panel, or retarget the project to a PC Runtime.

3.2 WinCC Basic or Comfort option set is installed instead of Advanced

The TIA Portal setup can install WinCC as Basic, Comfort, or Advanced. The animated library is a compile-time artefact of the Advanced option set. Verify via Help > Installed software > SIMATIC WinCC. The installed package line should read SIMATIC WinCC V15.0 Advanced or higher. If only the Comfort or Basic component is listed, run the TIA Portal setup and upgrade the WinCC option.

3.3 Project was upgraded from a V13/V14 project targeting Basic

When a TIA Portal V13/V14 project containing a Basic Panel is migrated to V15, the HMI device retains its RT Basic binding. The upgrade wizard does not silently re-classify the device. Open the device properties after upgrade and confirm the runtime; change it to RT Advanced only if the target hardware supports it (Comfort Panel or PC Runtime required).

3.4 TIA Portal V15.0 vs V15.1 library packaging

V15.0 and V15.1 ship slightly different revisions of the HMI Symbol Library. V15.1 added additional motor and pump variants. If a project was created in V15.0 and is being edited with a V15.1 installation, the toolbox may show fewer entries if V15.0 compatibility mode is selected. Switch to V15.1 project mode in the project properties to expose the full library.

3.5 Project mode mismatch with device firmware

If the HMI device in the project tree has a firmware version that is older than what V15 supports, the editor falls back to a compatibility mode that hides the newer library entries. Update the device firmware in Devices & Networks > Device View > Device properties > General > Catalog information to a V15-supported firmware.

4. Compatibility Matrix: Panel Series vs Animated Elements

5. Restoring Animated Motor/Fan/Tank Elements

5.1 Confirm the device is RT Advanced

1. Select the HMI device in the project tree.
2. Open Properties > General > Target Visualization.
3. If the panel family supports RT Advanced, switch the runtime from Comfort to Advanced.
4. Confirm the change with OK and recompile the project.

5.2 Reload the toolbox

The toolbox caches its library state on first edit. After changing the device runtime, close all open editor windows, right-click the toolbox and select Refresh toolbox. The "Elements" group should now appear populated with motor, fan, pump, valve, and tank faceplates.

5.3 Add the device to a screen

1. Open or create a screen under HMI_1 > Screens.
2. From the toolbox, expand Elements > Motors (or Elements > Pumps, Elements > Tanks).
3. Drag the desired faceplate onto the screen canvas.
4. In the Properties window, set the AnimEnable tag reference to a Boolean PLC tag (for example, "HMI_Tag_1" or "DB1.DBX0.0").
5. Set the AnimSpeed tag reference to a Real tag controlling rotation RPM, if the faceplate exposes this property.

5.4 Verify the animation script

Each animated faceplate binds to two internal properties: the enable signal and the speed/level signal. The script is hidden in the compiled faceplate; do not edit it directly. If the animation does not run on the panel, check the tag connection in the screen and the polling rate in HMI Tags > Properties > Acquisition.

6. Migrating Projects Across TIA Portal Versions (V15 → V20)

Projects created in TIA Portal V15 can be opened in V16, V17, V18, V19, and V20. Each upgrade may affect library availability, device firmware compatibility, and runtime option set.

For Unified runtime projects, the documentation page Devices not fully supported (RT Unified) lists specific HMI device versions that lose full support on upgrade. If a Comfort Panel in a V15 project has been re-fingerprinted as a Unified Panel in V20, the animated "Elements" library disappears and is replaced by the Unified faceplate set, even if the panel was originally a Comfort model. In that case, downgrade the device version in the project to its V15 firmware or migrate the screen content to Unified faceplates manually.

7. Building Custom Animations When the Library Is Unavailable

When the HMI device cannot be changed to RT Advanced and the animated library is therefore absent, build a manual animation using the basic toolbox primitives. The technique applies to any TIA Portal version and any runtime.

7.1 Animated motor using SVG and a tag

1. Insert an SVG graphic onto the screen (Toolbox > Graphics > SVG).
2. Import a static motor symbol from the WinCC graphics folder, for example @Motor_M_DIN.SVG.
3. On the same screen, insert a Polygon positioned over the rotor area of the SVG.
4. Open the polygon's Properties > Animations.
5. Add a Rotation animation: Tag = HMI_Tag_RPM, Range 0–1500, Angle 0–360°.
6. Add an Appearance animation: Tag = Motor_Run, Range 0 = grey, Range 1 = green.

7.2 Animated tank fill using a bar

1. Insert a Bar primitive (Toolbox > Elements > Bar).
2. Set Process value to the level tag, e.g. Tank_Level_Pct.
3. Set Min = 0, Max = 100, Direction = bottom to top.
4. Under Properties > Appearance, assign a colour range from red (low) to green (high).

7.3 Spinning fan using a circle and a tag-driven rotation

1. Insert a Circle primitive and overlay a Polygon for the fan blades.
2. Bind the polygon's Rotation animation to a Boolean tag that toggles from the PLC every 100 ms (use a clock bit in the PLC, e.g. Clock_2Hz).
3. The visual rotation rate becomes 600 RPM, matching typical fan animation reference.

8. Verification: Confirming Element Availability

1. Open a screen under the HMI device.
2. In the toolbox, scroll to the Elements group. The group should be present and populated with Motors, Fans, Pumps, Valves, Tanks, and Conveyors.
3. Drag a motor object onto the screen. Its Properties > Animations panel should show at least one predefined animation named AnimEnable or AnimState.
4. Compile the project: Project > Compile > Software (rebuild all). A successful compile without warnings related to the HMI Symbol Library confirms the runtime is bound correctly.
5. Start the simulator: Online > Simulation > Start with the screen open. The motor should display the static symbol when AnimEnable = 0 and animate when AnimEnable = 1.

9. Troubleshooting Matrix

10. Best Practices for Project Longevity

• Document the runtime binding of every HMI device in the project header comment. This avoids confusion when projects move between engineers.
• Keep TIA Portal installation, project version, and HMI device firmware in lockstep. A V15.1 project with V15.0 device firmware is a known source of invisible library entries.
• Avoid mixing Comfort and Advanced runtimes in the same project. If one panel must be Advanced, target the entire project at RT Advanced to ensure the toolbox shows the full library uniformly.
• When migrating from V15 to V20, check the Unified compatibility page (Devices not fully supported (RT Unified)) for any panel that is no longer fully supported and pin the device version explicitly.
• Use the Use custom graphic for motor property when a customer requires a specific brand faceplate; the underlying script and tag bindings are reused and the visibility on different runtimes is preserved.