Intelligent Automation – Limitless Possibilities with the HELIO API
by Christian Rudolph 20.10.2026
Article 8 min reading time
A modern HMI platform combines user-friendly interfaces with the processes behind them. The HELIO API opens HELIO to external applications, scripts, and AI agents—laying the foundation for intelligent automation from engineering through to operation. It will be officially released with Version 26.3 at SPS 2026. The first implemented applications and additional use cases demonstrate how it can reduce manual labor and enable the design of new workflows.
Integration into the HMI Development Process
HMI development doesn’t end with designing screens. Text must be translated, variants adapted, and user interfaces documented. During operation, machine data must be analyzed, and information from other systems must be made available at the machine. These tasks are often performed separately—involving duplicate data maintenance and manual transfers.
The HELIO API makes many functions—which were previously used manually via the HELIO IDE—accessible to external software as well. This allows scripts, AI agents, and other applications to execute tasks in HELIO and handle recurring steps. Each process step can be automated or continued to be handled manually. This keeps the workflow flexible and the results traceable.
While the HELIO SDK enables custom controls and functions on the front end, the HELIO API provides access to the back end and processes. The two complement each other: custom interfaces on one hand, integrated workflows on the other. The API allows data to be retrieved, processed externally, and results to be fed back. Technically, it is based on HTTP and follows the OpenAPI specification.
Concrete Benefits Instead of AI Hype
Not every task requires AI. What matters is what becomes easier in everyday work: less duplicate data maintenance, fewer manual handoffs, and faster access to information. Therefore, the first question is not “Where can we use AI?” but“What problems do we want to solve?”
Traditional automation executes defined steps according to fixed rules. Intelligent automation links such processes with information from other systems and the appropriate tools—and, for suitable tasks, with AI as well. For clearly defined steps, a script may be the simpler and more reliable solution; an AI agent can help where, for example, a draft needs to be prepared.
The bottom line remains the result. The applications already implemented for centralized user and recipe management demonstrate this immediately: they integrate administrative tasks into overarching workflows—entirely without AI.
Open interface. Free choice of tools. Full control.
HELIO provides the open interface; you bring the tools of your choice. This makes HELIO more than just AI-ready: External AI applications and agents can be integrated without the platform dictating a specific tool. You choose the solution that fits your task.
This means an open connection without being locked into a specific provider. You decide which model to use, where it runs, what data it receives, and how long you want to use it. Local AI or a solution without any AI at all are also possible. The interface keeps your choice of tools open.
Responsibility remains with the user: They define the task, select the tools, and approve the results. Automation handles the preliminary work—but the responsible team decides whether the result is technically correct and useful in practice.
Possible Applications
The following examples provide inspiration for your own integrations. What information is currently missing from the HMI? Which tools would you like to connect, and which tasks would you like to have them perform together? The HELIO API not only offers starting points for simplifying existing workflows but also opens the door to new processes—tailored to your machines and processes.
Automated Translation
For machines used internationally, multilingual support is part of everyday operations. The most time-consuming part is the manual process: compiling texts, sending them for translation, and then re-entering them.
This process can be automated via the API. HMI texts are exported, sent to a translation service, and then reimported. Specialized services and tools are just as suitable for this as AI applications.
This results in language and regional versions with less manual effort. Company-specific terms, regional variations, and existing translations can be incorporated into the external process. Context is also crucial for an accurate translation: Where does a term appear in the HMI? What function does it refer to? Is the same term used elsewhere as well? When this information is taken into account, ambiguities can be better identified and technical terms translated more consistently. This reduces the risk of inappropriate translations. The same process can be reused for future changes.
Practical Example: External User or Recipe Management
Changing user roles or retrieving the appropriate recipe: Using the HELIO API, such tasks can be integrated into a higher-level management system instead of being performed manually on each HMI. External user and recipe management has already been implemented with a beta customer.
A central identity management system can serve as the starting point for external user management. The API is designed to query users and roles in a HELIO project and to modify role assignments from an external source. For example, if an employee changes their area of responsibility, a connected management process can adjust their role in HELIO. The integration determines which machines are included.
In recipe management, the recipe code enables targeted access: A higher-level application can load an existing recipe using this identifier. For example, this allows the appropriate recipe for a production order to be retrieved without having to select it manually on the HMI. The external system handles the mapping between the order and the recipe.
Automated Manual Creation
Describing user interfaces, explaining functions, creating screenshots: Manual HMI documentation is time-consuming. Every change may require updates. Especially in custom machine building, the effort increases due to custom interfaces, different user roles, and language versions.
The HELIO API can provide project information and automate screenshot generation. An external application processes this information into draft descriptions and compiles text and images into a manual template. The process can be run again if changes are made.
The editorial team reviews the content, adds technical and safety information, and approves the manual.
Predictive Maintenance & Process Optimization
Machine data is read via HELIO, analyzed externally, and evaluated. Action or maintenance recommendations derived from this data are fed back into the HMI and displayed there in the appropriate operating context. The same approach can be used for process optimization recommendations.
The key is the feedback loop back to the machine: Insights are useful in day-to-day operations only if they reach the people who can take action—rather than remaining solely in a separate dashboard for production management.
The connected system handles the analysis; HELIO makes the results usable at the machine. With appropriate data quality, suitable analytical methods, and coordinated integration, reliable recommendations can thus be provided.
Agentic Engineering
Navigation, operator screens, displays, and input fields: Many HMI projects start with similar basic structures. AI agents can handle this preliminary work and create an HMI directly in HELIO according to a developer’s specifications. Existing HMIs can also be used as a starting point: A connected agent can automatically evaluate screenshots and manuals and use them to prepare a direct port—we have already successfully tested this approach. Alternatively, the initial migration can serve as the basis for UX/UI optimization.
The developer describes the requirements or provides existing documentation; the agent then uses the API to implement an initial draft based on this information. The developer subsequently reviews and refines it using the HELIO IDE. This eliminates the need for manual transfer from a separate design.
The benefits include less routine work and results that become visible sooner. The user interface concept, technical accuracy, and quality remain the responsibility of the development team.
Open to Existing Systems and New Ideas
HELIO does not have to solve every specialized task on its own. External applications, scripts, and AI agents can be integrated via the HELIO API without modifying the HELIO Core. Custom processing and automation remain within the integrated systems.
The separation of the platform and integration facilitates further development: HELIO provides the common foundation, while the integration maps out the specific workflow. This allows for targeted organization of versioning, maintenance, and customizations.
API integration must also be tested, documented, and checked for compatibility when changes are made. However, this effort remains clearly defined and does not require modifications to the software core.
Conclusion: Open Connectivity, Targeted Automation
Intelligent automation doesn’t require AI everywhere. It needs the right tools and tangible benefits: less manual work, easier access to information, and processes that support people in their work.
The HELIO API provides the open foundation for this. It connects the HMI to existing applications, your own scripts, and the AI of your choice—without being tied to a specific provider. This allows you to automate recurring tasks and implement new ideas. You decide which tools to use and which results to adopt.
☑ Automate recurring tasks and reduce manual work
☑ Connect existing systems to create integrated workflows
☑ Make information available where it’s needed
☑ Implement your own ideas without modifying the HELIO Core
☑ Freely choose tools and maintain control
Learn more
HELIO API and extension options
Test HELIO
Christian Rudolph Management
