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I am trying to add to this great thread and not turn it into a “my experience” type thread, but several times in my career I have experienced what everybody else has added so far and a few that have not been mentioned. Some I have experienced have been touched on by Iamjon. So hear is my 2 cents. Having a supervisor losing his temper at 3 am in the morning, and constantly asking “how long will it take to fix” does not help with your train of thought. This can be solved by standing up in front of everybody and politely telling him, “When I find the fault, you will be the first to know how long it will take to fix. Until then get the F*** out of my face and let me do my job” Along the same lines as above, we (I and the mechanic) had a problem with an old Injection molder (had a bread board wired type PLC). After a solid 6 hours of troubleshooting we had narrowed it down to a pressure switch. At that point both our managers showed up asking and suggesting this and that. 8 hours later and the next day, after re-checking everything, I walked away from the managers and got the mechanic to try the machine, at the right time I shorted out the pressure switch, and the machine ran. Come to find out an operator had adjusted the head pressure valve and didn’t inform anyone. Bottom line, managers can cause problems more than help, if you are sure of your self, stand up for yourself. Also this machine soon got an upgrade to a new PLC Adding to “ask the operator” this I have found to work 2 ways, if you know the operator and he sounds like he knows the machine, then this can be a source of valuable information. On the other hand, some operators don’t care about the machine or know it, even after 10 years running it. When an LVDT has a bad connection causing fluctuation in the PLC values, fixing the light bulb that has been out for 3 months (never been told until the machine goes down) is not high on my list. As for the “it fixed itself” problems, I have always been honest with Supervisors and Management by telling them, it’s fixed but I haven’t done anything so it may come back. I have found if they know you are just as frustrated as them for not finding anything, then they can be more understanding and co-operative if it returns. This I guess is OK when you are on site everyday in the same plant, but I can understand if you are an on call tech, and the company has to keep paying when you come out. This case would then reflect the document everything, and see if you can instruct/educate the operators to gather extra information if it happens again. And finally, EDUCATION, I had to finally take a hammer and chisel to educate some operators that a PLC program logic does not re-program itself, I have lost track how many times a machine did this because the program was wrong. Yet the machine has run for 5 years with no changes to the program. Oh look this sensor is bad, or why is this setting at this, when that setting is not in the program. Great Thread Sleepy, hope some more contribute.

Bump Just read this thread, any update TW on what the outcome was.

Update, I downloaded RSLinx lite ver 2.56, installed it (it never asked for a serial number) and everything seems OK at the moment. Extra infomation I am running XP service pack 2. Thanks again Kaiser_will

Hi, I have searched and read on here and PLCtalk.net but cannot find the problem I am having. I am having problems with communicating using the 1747-UIC USB(DF1) adapter. If I install the driver, set all the driver parameters I can connect OK. When I am done I shut down RSlinx, and close RS 500. I then remove the USB cable. If I then re-connect the cable and open up the software when I try to connect it appears to connect, but then the Ladder window has a line across the top, almost as if I am seeing two windows on top of each other, then I get the message cannot connect re-try or go offline. To get connected I need to remove the UIC driver from windows re-boot and re-load the driver. Having read various sites I decided to upgrade RSlinx, currently I am running 2.50, I am trying to get 2.54. Unfortunately when I get to the page for registered user name and serial key, I have the key, but no-one remembers who the registered user is. Is there a copy of RSlinx 2.54 anywhere else. I have not been able allow time to call Rockwell and talk to someone, I have sent and email, and I am waiting for a reply. Hoping someone else has experienced this and knows a fix.

Thanks for the quick response Kaiser_will I go try what you have suggested and also show the IT guy about the IRQ issue, to see if he can help.

Looks Like how one of my projects came out, when I first came here. It started off with we want to do A,B and C. Ordered the equipment and suitable panel, ended up with D,to Z and no time to rewire a bigger panel. Got burn't good on that and now make sure I talk to everyone involved and allow for 25% expansion.

Hi all, I am looking for help trying to communicate with a Micologix 1000. I have RS500 ver 7.10 and RSlinx Lite ver 2.5. A little background, when I started with the company we where using the AB DOS version. When I finally got some support to push for buying RS500, we had switched over to Automation Direct. So my use of RS500 has been limited when working on the older systems. the vast majority of our controllers are SLC502, I am able to communicate with them OK using our PIC interface. Now one of our sister plants sent me the Micrologix 1000, it has a flashing Fault light, I am thinking it has lost it's memory. I bought an AB 1761-CBL-PM02 cable but I am having trouble trying to communicate. I do not know if it is the Fault causing it or my settings with RS500 and RS linx lite. I have tried the DF1 Master and Slave setting, also tried the RS232 DF1 setting. I have a dedicated Seriel port, with nothing else communicating, and the PLC is a week 12 1996 product so falls out of the recalls from 2005 that faulted. If anyone can point me to literature for a step by step setup within RS500 or Linx I would be greatly appreciative

Thanks Ron, the Autocofigure worked for me. I guess not being sure what I was doing I was tripping myself up with wrong combinations. The program was still intact, the Fault was S:6=0h internal hardware failure. It cleared and now shows a fault of S:6=5h Retentitive data is lost when I try to go into run. I am assuming that this is Data that is entered from a HMI, so I am going to send it back and let the sister plant try it. Agains Thanks for pointing me in the right direction

Thanks for the reply splicer480, and conferming my thoughts on how it worked. We ordered a new one and was able to get a copy of the manual too.

Hi guys, looking to pick the vast wealth of experience here. I have a Slitter Machine (John Dusenbury Co. Inc.) which has a SMC E/P Regulator valve on it. The part number is Old (NIT-201-T302) and I am still reseaching how these work. I have +15Vdc and 0V but no voltage on the Sig wire. Am I correct in saying that a varying voltage on the signal wire will open the valve propotionally? In other words, no voltage=no air, higher voltage=higher air pressure. Thanks for any help in advance

Maybe my frustration of lack of spares misled my post. I agree with what you are saying Paul, and I agree there is a practical reasoning behind keeping specialty (High dollar) items that might fail in a year or ten years is bad buisness. But I have had production down for longer than need be because of a 110V relay Double Pole, or a $20 Proximity Switch. OK sorry to side track the thread.

Just adding my .02 cents Having served a 4 year Electrical apprenticeship in England (1986), we where cross trained in all fields we could expect to come across, mechanical, welding, sheetmetal work etc. PLC's where in our Plant but not really established in my early years. By my third year we where buying lines from Japan with Robots and PLC's here is where the fun began. Most of the 'Old timers' where set in there ways that if a air valve need to be removed, then the electrician disconnected it, the Mechanic removed it, and same with a motor, So imagine the look on the 'Old timers' (electricians) when they saw the PLC cabinets, they took a step back I went a step forward and have never looked back. By the time I finished my apprenticeship, the new apprentices where being trained more to be a Maintenance Technician. My next company was slowly moving towards Maintenance Tech's also. Now with my job here in the states, I have gone a full circle back to the old attitude of a mechanic does not touch wires and an electrician doesn't touch nuts. This is a attitude myself and the Mechanical Supervisor are working together to eliminate. As far as my job scope here now, when I was hired it was for Electrical design fo rmachines we build in house, I have designed the system and wired the machines. Since this side of the job has gone quite, I now troubleshoot/fix production machines, I have hung 3" conduit with the Electricians and recently was awarded a 5 axis CNC machine to program because the Machine shop only know how to program 3 axis Mt attitude is if I am working the day goes by quicker, if I am asked I will change the lights too. But it hasn't got that far yet.

Spares? What's them? Unfortunately our company policy is spares sitting on shelves are a waste of money. So what do we do, well, when we need something urgent we pay overnight shipping to get what we need and lose 24hrs+ of production I really like my Job, but some of the management decisions seem to come from the twilight zone.

In a word Nothing, we recently had an old Square D Panel which caused us problems. It all started when a 400A breaker went bad. We got a new 600A and turned off all 5 breakers then the main 2000A. We changed out the bad one, then switched on the main and turned on 4 of the 5. The last one a 600A Breaker would not switch on, just kept tripping. So we ordered another 600A. Again when it came in we turned off all 4 breakers then the Main and changed out the second 600A breaker. Came to turn on the Main, it would not set. Now we needed to overnight a 2000A breaker. Bottom line non of these breakers have been turned off in 25 years, and that is as long as my boss has been here, how long before that, probably not since the initial installation and nobody knows that date.

I'll second that

a quick google led me to saying it is manufactured by Siemens http://www.plccenter.com/buy/Siemens%20Bui...hnologies/U01PM Not much help finding a manual though.

Wow this is burning the old brain cells, I'm probably wrong, but I'm reading this, this way. 2 162 162 ---] [-----] [-----------------(out) 5 161 l ---] [-----] [---- 160 l ---] [------------ with the OR STR tying all three lines together. edit, hmm my vertical lines do not show up, changed to l, still not showing in the correct spot. Hopefully you get the idea.

I agree with Budman, HMI's are passing me by here but not PLC's. A good source to start reading could be Automationdirect's web site. They have online manuals for there range of PLC's. While there are slight language changes between manufactures, the basics are really similar. Good Luck and welcome to the forum.

20 Years ago, when I worked for and Automtive company, we had to check suspension arms for cracks. This was done on a production conveyor, the part was washed down with some kind of iron water, we then ran the parts throught a magnetizer and an operator would use a black light since the iron in the water would stick in the cracks. after that they where de-magnetized and washed down again. I am not too good on all the details as is was 20 years ago

Probably the same thing, but I've always known those symbols to be Safety Interlocks.

Is that why Bristol Airport was closed Thanks for posting

I've been asked, by my company to build an automated Die electric tester to be sent to China. There are four tests; two are Die electric, which entails applying 2.5KV to a motor for 1 sec. I have 8 other stations working now; the difference is they are all controlled by one PLC in a separate main panel. I am trying to keep the station enclosure as small as possible, and having the PLC and contactors/relays in one enclosure. My concern is whether the 2.5KV wires may affect the PLC. Obviously my control wiring will be shielded and routed away from the HV wires, but it's the PLC in general I have concern for. I called Tech support and once they heard 2.5KV they started back pedaling and telling me to call my local AHJ, since once you get over 1KV it’s a whole new ball game. (insert 'Shrug' icon Anybody have any experience with HV enclosed with a PLC? Off note, I've tried to post this three times now, when I go to post it I get page cannot be found. If this time it works it could be because I did not encounter a run time error, by not inserting an icon?

Thanks for all the replies and advice. I going to go back and rethink the enclosure part.

Good point thanks for the tip. here's a link to the die electric tester I'll be using 3605D

The 2.5KV is only present for 2 - 1 sec pulses during testing. This is controlled by the PLC. The Die electric tester which provides the 2.5KV is separate, but its output wires go into the cabinet. I am going to interlock the door to halt the PLC when open. This way if the PLC is not running it cannot tell the Die electric tester to test, so there should be no chance of encoutering the 2.5KV with the door open.