Practical Tips and Techniques
We will now look at the Game of Simon for our part 5 in this series of building a PLC program. Learning all about bit manipulation and sequencers Simon is a memory game introduced in 1978. It has four colored buttons, each producing a particular tone when it is pressed or activated by the device. … Read more
We will now create a PLC with HMI Training and learning environment. We will use the Automation Direct Do-More programming software tied into the Advanced HMI learning package via Modbus TCP. All of the software is free and fully functional. Learn PLC programming and use a powerful HMI (Human Machine Interface) easily and freely. Setting … Read more
Utilizing the CX Server DDE Manager will allow us to provide a link to the information in the Omron PLC. This link can be placed on an Excel spreadsheet. Charts, graphs, etc., can be made from the data. We will create links on an excel spreadsheet from a CQM1H and a CP1L PLC. The information … 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
PLC programs are typically written in a particular application on a personal computer, then downloaded to the PLC. This downloaded program is similar to compiled code to keep the program efficient. The program is stored in the PLC in battery-backed-up RAM or non-volatile flash memory. Five Different PLC Programming Languages Albert Einstein said, “The world … Read more
Programming a PLC can sometimes be a daunting task. The best method is to break the task into smaller steps. These are the steps that I have used for years to develop PLC programs. We will apply them to a die-stamping application. Step 1 – Define the task: What has to happen? This is written … Read more