ACC Automation: PLC & Industrial Control Learning
Practical Tips and Techniques
We will be looking at and explaining IP Addressing, MAC Addressing (Physical Address), Subnets, and Subnet Masks. Communication using Ethernet usually revolves around the Open Systems Interconnection model (OSI model). This model was made for computing systems to communicate without regard for the underlying internal structure and technology. IP Addressing Analogy Think of it like … Read more
Deploying an AdvancedHMI project on the industrial floor sounds like an easy task, but there are a few things that you should consider. The HMI (Human Machine Interface) user interface will run on a computer. The industrial environment is one in which temperature, dust, electrical noise, etc. are always present. This can also be combined … Read more
Using Visual Basic 2015, we will log three holding registers from the PLC, along with the time and date, into a Microsoft Access Database. We will log every minute to the database, including the information we collect from the PLC via Modbus TCP (Ethernet). All code will be done and shown so you can implement … Read more
Modbus RTU will be the serial (RS485) method in which we will communicate between the AdvancedHMI Screen and the Automation Direct Solo Process Temperature Controller. We can address up to 247 (Solo 1 to 247) devices on this master-slave protocol. A maximum of 32 devices (Nodes) on the network can communicate to the master. A … Read more
The SOLO Temperature Controller is a single-loop dual-output process temperature controller that can control both heating and cooling simultaneously. It is available in 1/32, 1/16, 1/8, and 1/4 DIN panel sizes and is UL, CUL, and CE-approved. There are four types of control modes: PID (Auto Tuning (AT) function) – Solo Control Modes P stands … Read more
People often ask “What is a PLC?” and “PLC Meaning”. A programmable logic controller (PLC) is a piece of hardware that isolates inputs from outputs. Programs are written to look at the inputs solve logic and set the outputs to perform work. Today we are going to look at the basic fundamental way we program. … Read more
I have been recently asked how you can move data conditionally on an excel spreadsheet once the information has been obtained from the PLC? Monthly data was being collected from the PLC and put on an excel spreadsheet using Omron CX-Server DDE. They wanted at the beginning of each month to move the data to … Read more
Manufacturers have software to program the programmable logic controller (PLC) or the human-machine interface (HMI). However, there are a few free tools that will help in the development of your PLC programs. We will look at three software tools and show how beneficial they can be to you. Free PLC Software Tools Synergy – Share … Read more
Sending email messages from the PLC sounds like an easy task. However, very few applications do this on the production floor. This is probably due to the networks involved, and authentication can be complicated. In our example, we will use a restricted Gmail SMTP server so that no authentication will be required. We will walk … Read more
Takt time is the beat of manufacturing. It is the rhythm of the company for making products or delivering services. Do you know what yours is? Let’s look at takt time and determine how to use it to our advantage. What is Takt Time? (Discover Takt Time) This is a German word taken from beats … Read more