Mo_AB_4EVER

Hi there! We are transferring a RIO network from an Automax PLC to a ControlLogix. The whole network is running good with the old PLC. I can't get the analog blocks to work with ControlLogix. Digital is working fine. I need an example of a working MSG instruction with ControlLogix and Flex I/O Current setup is this: 1756-DHRIO in plc slot 4. In port A, I have 7 1794-ASB flex io scanner, all working ok with digital. In Rack 2, I have 7 flex io modules: Group 0: 1794-OB16 Group 1: 1794-OB16 Group 2: 1794-OB16 Group 3: 1794-IE4XOE2 analog combo Group 4: 1794-IT8 Thermocouple Group 5: 1794-IE4XOE2 analog combo Group 6: 1794-OE4 Anlog out The rack config in the browser is set to Rack 2, Starting group 0, Full Rack (8 I/O groups) Let's try to understand the Thermocouple module: The module config in the browser is set to Group 4, Slot 0. The MSG instruction for BTW is set as following: Message type: Block transfer write, Source element: BTW_R2G4_DATA (a INT global tag), Number of elements: 3. Communications path: RIO, channel 4, Rack 2, Group 4, Slot 0, cached connection. The MSG instruction for BTR is set as following: Message type: Block transfer read, Destination element: BTR_R2G4_DATA (a INT global tag), Number of elements: 11. Communications path: RIO, channel 4, Rack 2, Group 4, Slot 0, cached connection. When I enable de BTR or BTW, I get error 203 codes, communications timeout. I have tried to put array tags for source and destination elements, with no success. Why do I have these comm timeouts if everything digital is working? I have looked in the old software of the old PLC, and the number of data seems to match, i.e. number of elements for read and write. Thanks for your help!

Hi there I have a project with a PL7 micro. It is linked to a FactoryCast Card, which has a website in it for operator interface. On the IP network, there is also an Anybus module, connected to a modbus 485 rtu network. The problem is, the data from the Anybus module is sent to the PLC in words %MW200 to %MW215. There is a STL program that makes %MB400 to %MB429 roll around, one byte at a time. I am under the impression that when data is moved around in %MB400-%MB429, the data in %MW200 to %MW215 moves along, in the same orderly fashion. The question is: are those two memory area the same, linked together, or are they separate memory areas?. Also, is the boolean memory area (%M1 and so on) linked to %MB or %MW memory area? Thank you!

From what I see in the project, it really looks like MB400 and 401 is bound to MW200, and so on. But the %M Memory seems (has to) be seperate, because the level setpoint is in %MW0, and most of the sequence bits are in %M0 to %M15, so changing the level setpoint would break havoc in the sequence. Anyone can confirm the bounding?

Hi everyone! My friend wants to control a roof door for regulating temperature in a greenhouse. His PLC is a TI305, with only discrete IO. I have no analog IO on the PLC. I tought of measuring the temperature with a cheap temperature sensor, rig it up to a PC that he already has, and transmit the temperature to the PLC via a DDE/OPC server. This is the ideal way because I would like to log the temperature to the hard disk also. In other words, in this project, bringing the temperature into DDE/OPC is easier than adding a thermocouple card on the PLC. Or maybe I could rig a thermocouple to a cheap omron controller that has RS-232 communication. Or maybe there are standard kits with sensor and software for DDE access that can be plugged directly into the computer via RS-232 or USB... Anyway, we need to get the temperature into the PLC, with idealy a resolution of 0.1 degres, but probably 1 degree is okay. Anyone has ideas, other solutions and/or experience regarding this issue?

All of this has been done. As mentionned above, all the digital blocks are running fine. I just tried to do the msg ladder code for the group 3 and 4, but all I get is timeouts. :( Does one of you have an working exemple of ladder code with the MSG functions?? Thanks!

Hello to all A-B Ethernet communications Gurus out there. Here's your new challenge. I want to establish communications over Ethernet between a B&R Automation Power Panel model 220 and a ControlLogix 1756-61 Cpu via a 1756-ENBT. So far I set up a "Generic Ethernet Module", pointing to the IP adress of the IF5 port of the PP220. The problem is that I am not programming the B&R PP220, just the A-B side. What I'm looking for is the right numbers to punch in for input, output and config assembly instances in the general tab of the module. Are these numbers predefined for B&R of are they setup in the user code of the B&R?? Has anyone of you out there already done this, and could post some help and sample code for the B&R PP220 that I could forward to the programmer? Thanks in advance, that would really help us out!

Found my problem. In fact, I didn't have a problem. Using UDT's as InOut parametes work. I just tried it again and it worked, don't know what I had done wrong. Those controllers are SO great. See ya!

Hi everybody! Let's say I want to make one subroutine that will handle multiple similar pieces of equipment. Seems to me that I must use the CPS instruction to copy each individual structure into a "multiplexed" structure, call the routine using the JSR with the multiplexed structure in argument, then CPS again the multiplexed structure into original structure of the equipment. And then repeat the three rungs for every similar equipment. Am I doing this right, or is there a better way to do this? Also, is there a way to "build" a tagname for indirect referencing? As an exemple ,we used to do with adresses, N[N7:0]:[N7:1], where N7:0 is the file pointer and N7:1 is the item pointer. Now with tagnames, can we use Machine.[stringtag].Status, Where Stringtag would contain "Section1", "Section2", "Section3" and so on? Thanks for your help!

Update on my issue: I think what I'm looking for is an add-on routine. Now the problem is a little bit different: In the Add-on definition configuration window, In the Parameters tab, I can't define tag using a user-defined data type. Why? This would be so simple if I could! I would just call the Add-on routine with all the individual similar pieces of equipment with the UDT as an In/Out parameter. This way, each time the Add-on would be called, the paramaters would be transfered and the values would follow to the routine and back from it. Is there a way to work around this?

Hello everybody Does anyone of you know if there is an OPC/DDE/OLE/Whatever driver out there that can run on QNX (Linux) and speak to a GE 90-70 over Ethernet/IP? We have an application running with a PCIM card over a Genius network. The card is a full length ISA board, and we are running out of hardware to support this card. Hopefully we could translate the application to communicate to the PLC via a standard 3com PCI ethernet card. Any advice on this one, please share! Thanks

Well if you know how to use indirect adressing on the DM words, I would suggest to move your IO to DM words using a simple XFER box, then use indirect adressing on the DM. That's what I would do. Good luck

That sounds interesting. Do you have some details about how did they do that? If the GE ethernet protocol is available, it would be "easy" to write your own driver. Does anyone know where it can be found? Thanks again

Well, this actually is a good idea, but now I think I'm going to install standard modems on each end, hook em together with a little power supply to simulate a phone line, then have a NetDDE connection between the two wonderware stations. In this way, I can exchange a lot more data, and since it's a temporary solution, I don't have to worry about supporting this setup for too long.

Hello everybody I need set-up a SNP network over modem communications. Let me show you the setup: Two computers running Wonderware Intouch using GESNP DDE driver and two 90-30 plcs. Acutally each PLC is communicating to it's own computer directly. Each PLC is in a different building, about 5Km apart, and I have a direct wire with 3-4 free pairs. What I want to do is to setup a network where both computers can talk to both PLC, and where the PLC could use COMMREQ's to send some data to each other. Ideally, If I could manage to have an extra db-9 at each end for laptop programming, that would be great. I have already seen in manual GFK-0262G on page C-12, that SNP can be multi-dropped. So adding a 422-232 converter, a pair of modems and another 422-232 converter between two drops should do the trick. Has anyone of you already done this and can confirm that the setup works? And, if possible, what brand of modem you used, and so on... Thanks again in advance your good advice. Mo

InControl is a software PLC. Now for the many those of you who are wondering: "Exactly why would a sane person want to control costly machinery by a computer, running Windows Operating system?" The answer is simple: InControl is suitable for things that "real" PLC's can't do. Of course PLC's can do just about everything. That's why InControl is so rarely used. My local wonderware salesman told me he had installed InControl just once, in a project where they had gazillions of tags to be logged at freaking high speed in a SQL database. I don't know how many tags at what sampe rate, but it made the best PLC's out there go dizzy. So the logical way was to install dedicated IO's on a PC and they ran everything locally, including the SQL Database. And that was the only InControl project he knew of...

Hugh. Now I'm in trouble. Ethernet is out of the question, they don't want to upgrade their PLC. The problem is that they are relying on a carlo gavazzi dupline module to exchange 4-20 mA signal from one PLC to another. That system broke down recently and they want to install something else. By the way, they are going to upgrade the plant in a drastic way in a year or two. Then they will put in Ethernet comm. They just want a cheap solution in the meanwhile. The cheapest solution is, obviously, "wait for the upgrade"... Any suggestions?

Thanks a LOT for this download link. This patch saved my booty today!

Souds good, never thought that automation direct made such things. I'll take a look, thanks!

Yeah, the initial setup will be just like that. The real issue here is logging the actual temp, as well as using it for control. I've seen the 1-wire sensors on the web, I think they are worth giving a shot. Thanks for the info, Pierre!

It is a viable solution, but this implies some programming on the PC side, if drivers don't exist for the said controller. I was thinking of an out-of-the-box solution, containing a temp sensor and a software CD that puts the temperature available via DDE or OPC.... Thanks anyways

Hi everyone! I am trying to communicate with a Panelview 300 micro. It is communicating with a SLC5/03 on channel 0. The channel 0 is setup on DH485, at 19200, Node adress 1, Token hold factor 1 and max adress 31. The part number of the PV is 2711-M3A19L1 series A rev C, Firmware 4.41. It really looks like I need to configure RSLinx with the PIC driver. I have tried to configure RSLinx with RS232, auto-configure, with the 1747-PIC/AIC driver, tried to use different cables, adding a null-modem, etc etc. The panelview will not show up in RSWho. The funny thing is that the PV300 communicates with the PLC just fine. How can this happen? Then I tried to communicate with another PV300 in the plant, and it runs fine. So my laptop and my cable is OK. What is going on??

And how does this passthru configured in RSLinx??

That sounds good. My main concern would be that the ABTCP driver from wonderware could simply not recognize the emulated CPU. At least there is a plan B, using RSLinx. Did someone tried this setup with the wonderware driver? Thanks Firetubes!

I want to know if someone has made a signifiant project using Rockwell Software RS Emulate 500, emulating a SLC5/05, along with Wonderware Intouch using the ABTCP driver. Now please don't tell me "I drawed one windows showing the seconds of the real-time clock and it works", I want to know if it can handle a LOT of tags. Let's say that my goal is to simulate a rather large program in the SLC5/05, and that I want to show data on the Wonderware, around a thousand tags, integers and bits. I also want to put many Wonderwares in network, all polling on the same "simulated" plc. Have some of you already did something like this and confirm to me that it works?

Hi everybody, this is my first post on this forum, I hope you can help me with this one! Does anyone know a reliable and easy method for gearing to axes electronically with a servo drive? Basically, what I want to do is buy a servo drive with two encoders: One on the servo motor itself and one on a "master" shaft. The Servo motor shaft (later called the slave shaft) will follow the rotation (forward and reverse) of the Master shaft. The Master shaft is already controlled by a motor, but that does not change the project. It could as well be turned by hand, the slave shaft should respond. I need to be able to jog the slave shaft and to "enable/disable" the electronic gearing as needed. I also want to be able to change the gearing ratio easily, with a keypad o simple visual basic program or some other easy way. The motor power will be under 1HP and the 1000 pulses/rev on the master encoder should be more than enough. I should be kept in mind that I want to do electronic gearing for now, but later I could want to do more "acrobatic" stuff with it. But much later. So, does anyone have a good idea?