pandersen

So far it seems that this isn't possible, which really blows my mind. I just want to assign a static string to a string tag, the same way you would assign a number to a numeric tag: String := "Teststring"; Apparently this isn't valid syntax, so I can't do it. An incredibly horrible workaround would be to assign the ASCII values to each element of the DATA array and then manually set the string length, but that is really a last resort. Does anyone know any possible way to use a string literal in ControlLogix without jumping through major hoops?

Putting the religious discussion aside, it depends on how you compare deaths to traveling. Do you care about deaths vs. distance traveled, deaths vs. number of complete trips, or deaths vs. time spent in travel? Personally I think deaths vs. time spent is the best comparison, because planes travel several hundred km/h, so deaths/km will be very low. Planes also make vastly fewer numbers of trips due to the large distance they cover in one trip and having less planes in the world than trains, buses, cars, etc. The majority of accidents happen on takeoff and landing, so while you are in the air you can rest easy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_safety#Statistics

RSNetWorx for ControlNet and/or DeviceNet with the Diagnostics add-on is probably all you will ever need (for AB systems). Of course experience helps a lot as well, since errors are not always as they seem.

RSLogix 5000 V17 is supported on SP3, it is RSLinx that is not (not sure why there is a discrepancy... RSLinx is critical to the usefulness of RSLogix) http://rockwellautomation.custhelp.com/cgi...p?p_faqid=52120. I wonder how many years it will be until Windows 7 is supported? As for the McAfee problem, are you able to fully boot into safe mode, or does it get 'stuck' like you mentioned when all the system files being loaded are flying past the screen? I would recommend uninstalling SP3 in any case if it is possible.

I don't have experience with Micrologix analog signals, but in ControlLogix, CompactLogix and FlexIO modules that I have used there are status bits that will indicate out of range faults for each channel. You would monitor these bits and ignore the reported signal if they are high. Does something similar exist in the Micrologix?

I'm curious if many people have found a project at home that used some sort of PLC. Myself, I needed a way to top off my fish tanks while I was away on long term installs or other trips. I went to eBay and got a cheapo Micrologix 1000, a few float switches and a pump and put it all together. While I was at it, I used the Micrologix to control the lights instead of the garden timer I had. Add in some basic data collection, and it is complete. Sure, I could have done it without a PLC quite easily, but wheres the fun in that? To take it further, I am working on a .NET program that will talk to the Micrologix over serial (using code from Archie's great app available here.)and post on Twitter when the tank is low, when it is filling, and so on so I can keep track of it from afar. Overkill, maybe, but it is fun!

Seconding Bryanr. Program scoped tags are viewable by any OPC server. They show up as if in a folder named after the program.

I would also suggest the Bit Field Distribute instruction rather than masked moves or bit shifts for turning the inputs into numbers (as long as you have RSLogix 5000, of course. I am not sure it exists in 500) BTD(Local:1:I.Data,0,ThumbWheel1Value,0,4) BTD(Local:1:I.Data,4,ThumbWheel2Value,0,4) BTD(Local:1:I.Data,8,ThumbWheel3Value,0,4) BTD(Local:1:I.Data,12,ThumbWheel4Value,0,4)

Therefore you have to make the screen 'Replace' type and assign it a number. Use a Back button to return to the previous screen. You cannot call an on-top type screen based on conditions in RSView ME, so you have to use a replace type screen instead.

Can you give some specifics on what you control? If I ever build a house I will want to do some automation from the ground up. It is always fun to see what other people have done.

You should be able to recover most but not all of the application. - Create a new, empty project. - Set all the options under the System tree to match the old project as best as you can remember - Right click on Displays, choose Export and Import. - Navigate to the .gfx files that are on the slave drive. They should be (if you are running Windows XP) in <slave drive>\Documents and Settings\All Users\Documents\RSView Enterprise\ME\HMI projects\<project name>\Gfx - Import them all - Right click on Alarms, choose Export and Import. The alarms file is stored under the M_Alarms folder - Rinse and repeat for Global Objects, Information Messages, Macros, Data Log Models, and Recipes. Only difference is you choose Add Component into Application instead of Import and Export. I believe you have to re-create any HMI tags and communication configuration from scratch.

I think your best bet would be to convert it to an MPEG2 format. Same format as DVD video. Any media player will be able to play it without additional codecs. Here is a guide using free tools: http://it-from-inside.blogspot.com/2008/11...-mov-video.html

The trigger type 'Bit' is meant to be used with bit arrays. Try setting the trigger type to 'Value'. On the Messages tab, make sure your message is tied to that specific trigger and that it's trigger value is 1.

Which company did you get the control from? I'll need something similar for a future project but for .NET.

I agree with Peter when he says that the PLC is just a piece of stuff unless someone knows how to make it go. Honestly putting any PLC into service in a factory in the US is more of a concern to me than where the PLC came from. It only takes one PLC to make a thousand or million pieces of product that is what popquiz calls wealth generating. Plus, you can't outsource controls engineering as well as you can traditional PC programming :)

RSLinx Enterprise can be an OPC server....if you have the correct license. Unlicensed, it only provides data to RSView. In fact, for large tag counts (10k or more), I've had Rockwell tell me that RSLinx Classic won't work and to use Enterprise.

I've used DeviceNet, ControlNet, and Ethernet/IP and I have to say I like Ethernet/IP the best. Easy to connect everything and easy to debug when there is a problem. Connectivity issues only bring down 1 device if your network is set up properly. As for the remote devices themselves, I love using SMC's EX500 gateways. The only downsides with Ethernet/IP is that you have to know how to set up the network so it doesn't get bogged down with all the unicast traffic. With any decent amount of devices a managed switch becomes a must, so there is a little more $$ involved, but I think the ease of use and reduction in debug time outweighs the cost.

Why is this getting so complicated? ScottC already posted the cleanest, quickest answer which can be easily applied to any modern programming language. KISS!

Could you use a cam profile to do the transformation?

Cool stuff! I went to Purdue and almost got involved in this, but then left after a year.

I did a little searching (I am interested in this, too) and Rockwell's SoftLogix along with a 1784-PM16SE PCI SERCOS card would do the trick. The only problem is there is a lot of $$$ involved as well. Of course, you would still need Logix5000 to program the SoftLogix controller, but you get rid of the need for a physical PLC rack, power supply, and so on.

We normally take an image of the hard drive using Acronis or Ghost before shipping the machine to our customer. We usually don't install large factory-wide systems like Wonderware or RSView SE, so this works well for us.

You would need the hardware to communicate with the drives first. Do you have anything that would take the place of the PLC SERCOS card?

You need to add it as a device in your I/O configuration in Logix 500 or 5000. It looks like the 1336 drives are already defined so you just need to pick it out of the list. I'm not sure how Logix 500 works, but with 5000 once you create the device, global tags will be created with the name you assigned to the drive.

He didn't reformat, that is unacceptable. He still has the problem and Rockwell still has no clue. They even sent out a tech to our site to look at it and he couldn't fix it.