Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0
mr_electrician

Data Collection

22 posts in this topic

Hi guys, my employer has asked for me to develop a system in which data is sent from each of our machines to a data base that can be accessed from any windows computer on the current network. I am guessing I would want to display this data in excel spreadsheets. They want this done as cheap as possible so I think a SCADA system is out of the question. Our machines employ the following controllers: S7 300's FANUC CNC Controllers MicroLogix 1100 and 1400 Control Logix and Compact Logix All machines have ethernet ports except for the micro 1100's. I am not looking for detailed parts list or instructions at this point but for a nudge in the right direction and some testemonies of what others have successfully implemented. Thanks guys.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Historian is designed to do this. More here.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Try KEPServerEX V5. The server has drivers for all of the devices your are using and has a data logger plug-in that can be configured to log data,via ODBC, to Access, SQL, MySQL, or Oracle. All of those data bases can be opened and viewed in Excel. Fred Loveless Applications Manager Kepware Technologies http://www.kepware.com

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Hi, PeakHMI can do the task as defined. Edited by Mark-

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
If quality and ease of use were factors I recommend OSI soft's PI historian but they are not cheap....you get what you pay for.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Really pees me off - they want the world and do not want to pay for it!!! When are bosses going to realise they only get what they pay for!!!

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Bob as long as the fine programmers who frequent mrplc keep making something from nothing and defying the laws of physics with our manipulations of electrons, they won't learn. :)

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Bob, I am a 'grumpy old so and so and do not tolerate idiots'! My answer to those who have a problem with me or who do not have any idea what they are doing is 'get someone else'.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I am hoping you are not referring to me as the idiot! If you are then you should read your post to see how much of an idiot your are yourself. I can only build or design with what little to nill training in networking I have, and funding they are willing to pay. Ultimatley they will get what they pay for, and I will do my best to give them something that functions and delivers what they need. If I don't succeed, well at least I tried. They will have no one to blame but themselves for not using people with the right qualifications and training. If anyone wins it is me since I am sure I will learn something from this project. To those who offered USEFULL advise I thank you! Edited by mr_electrician

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Let's keep it nice guys, no one is an idiot here! I think Bob is referring to the "white collars" who as we say here in Dutch, "want a front row seat for a dime".

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
No, that was never my intent. I was referring to people who expect a Rolls Royce at a push bike price. I had one guy just recently who wanted a full blown SCADA system with 3,500 tags, full graphics, SQL logging, full trending for under $15,000! He was told to get someone else - he is, of course, still looking. Bob took my comments the way they were intended, as you can see from his response. My apologies if you read something else into my comments, I did not mean to offend you.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Are you referencing this definition? "Controls Engineer": One who controls electricity to overcome mechanical problems in design or defective equipment. Edited by RussB

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Ok...I just fell out of my chair rolling....

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Also trying to invent something in software to overcome something that has been left off the machine. Commonplace for a controls person.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
You can look for Indusoft (iws v7) with a msSQL express. If you have not thousand and thousand of tags that can do the job. And make a little script for a Excel to got get the value in SQL with some filter. These is the cheap software buy. It will cost just some labour hour more.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I wonder if PLC is working in a FTP client for Vision. This way you could send datas from SD to a FTP Server.Other solution would be if PLC will develope a Server of remote datas, maybe only adding datas to My SQL database. This kind of applications is very usual last time.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Two things to consider when designing a data collection system...Data Management and Reporting. Once the "data pig" is up and running, it will be forgotten so someone has to manage it. Be it an Excel spreadsheet or a SQL Database. And some manager is going to want you go whiz through the database and spit out a report for some obscure fact. I have designed and setup numerous data archiving systems, but had the best reporting success with WonderWare's InSQL server reporting add-on. The data reporting market changes so, so fast. My suggestion is to nudge management to find out where they want to wind up for reporting and data archival.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
There are different ways to get data from a remote device onto the PC(s). How you do it depends on the distances involved. If all of the computers in your network are in a local area network, I would take a look at a Zigbee Ethernet to Wi-Fi bridge, which connects with an Ethernet cable and transmits wirelessly through your Wi-Fi network. Here’s one from ICP-DAS: http://www.icpdas-usa.com/wf_2571.html Although these work with SCADA software packages, like InduSoft, they can also take advantage of EZ Data Logger Software, which is a free data monitoring package when used with at least one basic I/O module from ICP. Also, EZ Data Logger can display real-time graphs and export them to Excel. Here’s more info on that: http://www.icpdas-usa.com/ez_data_logger_products.html There are other options, depending on the distance you wish to transmit and the protocols of your controllers, which would need to be specified. Fortunately, there are different protocol gateways to assist with this. Edited by digguru81

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
I'm using an OLDI SAM runinng Linux. Wrote some custom C client/server applications that allow me to pull tags from any Ethernet/IP PLC on the network. Through an OpenVPN network, we could update a cetnral databse. We're currently re-evaluating this however, as the amount of custom code to support this is large. Looking at Wonderware and products from B&R. The SAM goes for about $5000, but you'll spend 100's of hours coding to make something actually work.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Going off topic a bit here, but if you're looking at using Wonderware for data gathering/MES, you should really take a serious look at Ignition by Inductive Automation instead. They've got an awesome licensing model and one of the most innovative products available.

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
You can always make you own. Siemens will support a Modbus TCP or Internet IP communication. Program your PLC - Communicate using VB via Modbus TCP - Store in a Database - Share on Intranet using ASP Check this tutorial out: http://accautomation.ca/now-you-can-have-robust-data-logging-for-free-part-1/ Regards, Garry http://www.accautomation.ca

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites
Try ICScada Lite. Its cheap enough for the task your looking for and uses a direct database access.. as well its built in to render out logged data into excel spreadsheets via a user defiend data profile. https://www.icscada.ca As well it uses a web interface for operations and administration. Runs on robust linux servers but can be configured with any old web browser, even a tablet...

Share this post


Link to post
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!


Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.


Sign In Now
Sign in to follow this  
Followers 0