hboyer90

Just curious, and this may be a dumb question, are you using voltage or current sensors/ transducers?  It looks like on the SLC you were able to choose analog voltage or analog current, the 1769-IF16c is current only.  Just wanted to make sure that you are using the correct module to start with.   Other than that, we have multiple 1769-L36ERM with the 1769-IF16c and we use Keyence pressure transducers to monitor pressure/ vacuum and also Visi-track transducers/ counters wired up to High Speed Counters for position on our shot piston tailing rods.  So, we use pretty similar equipment to what you use. I will check how we have our 1769-IF16c configured and let you know. I think as long as you are using the correct sensor with the correct module (both current or both voltage) and if your pressure is in the sensing range of your pressure transducer, then it all comes down to the analog scaling. What type of pressure sensor are you using?  What is the typical pressure range?

I'm not sure about prompting it from the PLC, I'm sure there is a way to do this, and somebody could help you with that, but you can set a time limit that after XX amount of time it automatically logs out the current user and logs in as default. To do this: in FactoryTalk View Studio expand "System" and open up "Project Settings".  In project settings click on the "Runtime" tab and there is a check-box called "Enable auto logout".  Check that box, and you can type in a time for it to auto log out the current user.   Maybe you already knew this, maybe it isn't what you're looking for, but hopefully it helps.  

You could also go to "Add or remove programs" to verify that RSLinx Lite is still installed on your machine, but unless someone uninstalled it, then it should be...

If you just had RSLinx Lite opened, you still have it installed on your computer, it wouldn't have all of a sudden magically changed to Gateway.  Go to Start, All Programs, Rockwell Software, RSLinx and RSLinx classic should be there, it is for me at least.   You're able to ping it through Command Prompt, so that's good. In RSLogix: go to "Communications" (at the top) then go to "Who Active" and make sure that you can find your processor, select it, and click "Set Project Path". Either your RSLinx Classic Lite isn't running, or the address of the PLC changed or the driver for your PLC in RSLinx got deleted/ changed.  Either way RSLogix can't find your path anymore.

As TWControls already stated, if you post the file on here, I  or somebody else can convert it for you.

Some additional, possibly helpful information: it seems to only happen with one individual/ computer. Other laptops/computers don't start the problem But, once the file is corrupted then no computer is able to open that file. It seems to only be RSLogix5000. It has happened on several different processors/programs, not just one. We have not gotten this error with RSLogix 5 or 500. It's only happened a few times over the last year and a half that I've been here. Maybe 5-6 times total, but they have all been within the last 2 months or so. The solution is to just upload the program stored in the processor and save it/ overwrite the bad program. It's fairly easy to do, but that's only a band-aid, I want to stitch up this problem for good. Any help would be greatly appreciated, thank you.

Hey guys, we use FactoryTalk AssetCentre to handle/store our PLC programs.  99% of the time it works great.  But every now and then I will get an email from one of our technicians that he can't open a program, he's getting a Checksum is invalid error.  It seems to only happen with this one individual person.  What does this error mean/ what could be causing it? I've attached a few screenshots of the error:     Thanks in advance

That makes sense, I will look at that article.  Thanks!

Hello, I hope you are all having a great Wednesday.  So I was wondering if this is possible, and if so, how to do it.  What I'm trying to do is get a real time speed of my hydraulic cylinder using a transducer, a 1769-HSC high speed counter module, and a 1769-L36ERM processor.  Kind of like a speedometer in my car.  I would like the number in inches/ second.   We use a hydraulic proportional valve to control a cylinder that we use to pump molten lead into our die cast machines.  Back in the day they used to use limit switched that rest on a tail rod attached to the cylinder shaft to get an approximate stroke length.  It was very crude, but it worked for what it was.  I'll explain  a little more, in case I'm not explaining it very clearly.   So on most of our machines the maximum stroke length of a normal shot is about 11".  We have different "stages" to the shot.  Stage one is typically from 0" (when the shot is all the way returned) until about 1.5", at 1.5" the valve stops and there is a shot delay for 1 second (vacuum draws some lead into the goose neck and into the beginning of the mold), after the delay second stage starts, second stage is from 1.5" to 4", third stage is from 4" to 8" and fourth stage is from 8" to 11.5" or until the shot timer finishes timing, and then another valve switches, and the shot starts it's return.  We have the different stages because we typically shoot the cylinder slower at first, and then delay and then almost maximum velocity.  We control the velocity with an analog output to a solenoid on a hydraulic valve.  For example, for the first stage we may open it up 20%, then 0% during the delay and then 85% during second, third and fourth.  Sometimes we play around with different shot delay times, different shot velocities, sometimes 3rd may be faster than 4th, ect, to get the best die casted parts.   Anyways, so in the past they would use limit switches.  One was a button head style that when the shot cylinder shaft was all the way returned, it made the switch, and we knew the shot was fully returned.  One was set at 1.5", 4", 8" etc.  They all, except for the shot return switch, were roller style limit switches.  They were all made, and once the shot reached that stroke length, they would come off the rod and we would know we were in that next stage.  So it was very crude.  If you wanted to adjust the stages you would have to climb up on top of the very hot molten lead pot, mark where the limit switch currently was (in case you needed to put it back) loosen the bracket, try to make a measurement and guess how far you moved it.  It was crude to say the least.  Some of our older style machines that don't need much tweaking still use the limit switch style positioning system.   Most of our new machines all use a VisiTrak transducer.  The shot cylinder rod that is attached to the cylinder shaft is actually threaded and then has a very thing layer of chrome plating.  The transducer sits against the shaft and counts the threads.  It transfers those counts to a Very High Speed Counter module in our PLC I/O rack.  We have a CompactLogix L36ERM processor and we use a 1769-HSC as the VHS Counter.  Then we just do some math in the PLC program and we are able to get shot stroke in inches.  We set different compare instructions, for example when: Shot_Stroke is greater than or equal to 0 AND Shot_Stroke is less than or equal to 1.5 then 1st_Stage_Bit is active.  We set up different numbers for all the different stages and still use the button head limit switch as a second method to confirm that the stroke is fully returned.   The counter is very fast.  We are able to know what the shaft stroke is at any given point.  We currently do some math using the distance of each stage and using timers to calculate inches per second of each stage.  That way we can have a nice Speed number in inches/second that we can use to make different adjustments to the shot.  Typically the first stage is about 7"/second second is: 24"/second third is: 42"/second and fourth is 2"/second.  But I want a real-time, current speed, not just the speed that it traveled through each of the stages.     Ok, after all of that explaining, I'm finally getting to my question.  How would I logically write a set of instructions that could give me current speed in inches per second.  Like i said, I am able to calculate the speed of each stage, after the shot has completed the stage, I just divide the distance of the stage (in inches) by the time it took to travel through that stage (in seconds).  But I would like to have a real time speed, kind of like a speedometer on a car.  Is this possible?  I know that the scan time on this processor is very fast and the high speed counter module counts very fast as well.  How do I do the math to get a real time speed in inches/ second?   Sorry for the very long post.  I just thought i would give you a background on what we are doing/ would like to do.     Thank you very much.

Once you have uploaded the program from the PanelView and restored the run-time and then go to open it in FactoryTalkView Studio it will tell you the version it was last opened with (the version it was written with).  See photo below:  

I've done this several times before.  As long as you have the activation sheet that came with the software, I'm assuming you're talking about either RSLogix or Factorytalk or other Rockwell software.  So you open up FactoryTalk Activation Manager and click "Manage Activations" then click "Rehost Activations" then click on the one you want to rehost and click "Complete Rehosting".  Once you have successfully done that you will insert your USB dongle and click "Get New Activations".  Follow the procedure, you will select "Download activations to a removable storage device", you will select the USB dongle and then enter in the software Serial # and product key and then "Download Activation".  It walks you through it pretty easily.  Just make sure that you have the following: Factory Talk Activation Manager The Product Registration information (Serial # and Product Key) and the correct USB dongle.  I think Rockwell requires you to use their's.  It's like a green dongle.   Very easy to do.   Here's a screenshot of the "Rehost Activation" screen:     And one of the "Get New Activation" screen:     Let me know if you have other questions, good luck.

Ok, thank you. 

Hey, so I know that I can configure the IP Address, Gateway and Subnet on the PanelView Plus terminal it's self by going to the main screen, shutting down the application, and going into terminal settings. But, is there a way to set these addresses inside the program somewhere when I'm creating the program in FactoryTalk View ME? Thanks

Hello all, so at our plant we have 40+ die cast machines. Each machine has either a PLC5 or a CompactLogix as a PLC and has a PanelView Plus 700. Each machine has different set points that we use for metal temperature, timer presets, shot velocity, etc. We use Integers in the PLC that store the value of these set points and move those numbers into the timer presets or PIDs or whatever the need would be. Several of our maintenance technicians have security to change these numbers online if we need to adjust the process. We have it set up so that a user needs to log into FactoryTalk Security to open the PLC project, and if the user makes a change to the file then it gets automatically logged in AssetCentre. That is all working well and we use this as a way to track who has changed what. See the below image for an example of this: We have our PanelView Plus programs set up so that maintenance techs can view the set points, timer presets, etc on different screens. We used to allow them to change these setpoints from the PanelView Plus which is extremely convenient for them vs running back and forth to a computer when trying to adjust process. We stopped doing this and made the PanelView tags read only because if an integer is changed from a PanelView it is not logged in AssetCentre. Which is bad for us because programs were being changed all the time, we couldn't control who changed what. In a perfect world the Maintenance technician would mark the changes in our Excel sheet where we store process changes, and mark it on the process sheet for the machine, but of course nobody could follow that, so we made them read-only. We would like to be able to track what changes are made from the PanelView Plus, because we want to be able to utilize this feature. I know there is a way to audit log changes made from the PanelView and send that data to AssetCentre, but I can't figure out how to and I can't find much useful information online that is specific to what I am trying to do. I have tried making log-ins on the PanelView program and adding users from our directory in the program. I am just not sure how to link the changes made from the PanelView Plus to the Audit Log on AssetCentre. If a change is made from the PanelView it changes the integer in the PLC, shouldn't that trigger a log in AssetCentre? Why does it only trigger an Audit Log if the change is made in RSLogix? I'm fairly new to this position, I've only been here for a little over a year, and in the industry for a little over 2 years. I would love to get this figured out but there is so much stuff that is new to me. Any help would be greatly, greatly appreciated and I am available to answer any questions about our system, I just really want to get this working. Thanks

Hey guys, I just had a quick question. So when I use FactoryTalk View Studio for my PanelView Plus Terminals sometimes I will need to upload a program from a PanelView that I have never connected to before. In order to upload/download I will first need to add the device in RSLinx Enterprise. I'm still a little confused on the difference between RSLinx Classic and RSLinx Enterprise, but anyways the method I usually use is just open an existing program in FactoryTalk View Studio, and go to RSLinx Enterprise from there and add it. Is there a more direct way to add a device rather than opening a FTV Studio project? There is no standalone RSLinx Enterprise application, correct? Thanks

My normal procedure right now if I want to communicate with a new PanelView Plus Terminal is to first launch a pre-existing application in FTView Studio, then go to Connections then to RSLinx Enterprise then right click on Ethernet and add a device. Then I find the PanelView Plus terminal model/ revision, put in my IP address and then the driver is added to RSLinx Enterprise. From then on it's always in there, I can upload/download no problem. I was just curious if there was an easier way to add a new driver in Enterprise other than launching a pre-existing application which takes several minutes to load.

As mentioned above disable your wireless connection and also if you are connecting directly from your laptop to the Ethernet port on your PLC then you will need to use a crossover cable. If you are going through a switch or router then you can use an Ethernet cable. Hope this helps. :)

Also, I was talking to my Rockewell/AB rep and he said that there may be an add-on instruction created by the manufacturer for this specific model that would allow me to communicate via normal ladder logic, if not then I will have to set it up as a generic Ethernet module or use message instructions. I'm not sure what he's talking about with the add-on instruction. Any thoughts? Thanks Howard

Hello, I am trying to get a Fanuc R-30iB controller added into my RSLogix program. The PLC is a CompactLogix 1769-L30ER When I search for new modules to add I see a pre setup Fanuc Robot Ethernet module, but I can't get that to work. I tried following Fanuc's instructions and setting it up as a generic ethernet module, but I couldn't get that to work either, it just says i/o not responding for that module. I am definitely able to ping the Fanuc controller, so I believe I am seeing it. When I add the controller in RSLinx, it's there, but there is no icon next to it's name. I'm guessing because its a fairly new controller, and it came out after the version of RSLinx that I'm using? Don't I need to download the EDS file for the new controller so that Linx can recognize it? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks

I forgot to answer your other question, sorry. Yes, this one definitely has the Ethernet option. I set up the IP address and was able to ping it and everything. I added it as an Ethernet device driver in RSLinx and it sees it as a Fanuc Robot, but it doesn't have an icon for it, just a little yellow question mark, no red X, just a yellow question mark. If I open up it's properties from RSLinx, it is able to give me the Manufacturer, the Model, the Revision, and some other info. So I do believe that I am communicating with it, I just think that RSLinx must need it's EDS file so that it can see it. Not sure if that affects the PLC being able to see it or not. Anyways any help is always appreciated. Thanks Howard

Ok, thank you for the write up. The work instruction would be great, if you still have it. I am very new to PLC programming, only 2 years of schooling and 1 year of work experience, and this is my first time working with Fanuc other than teaching simple pick and place points. If it matters at all, we have two 32 point DC input modules and 1 32 point DC output module connected to the CompactLogix. Thanks again. Howard

I'm not a huge IT/ computer guy, we have a department for that, so I'm not sure how to create windows accounts, but if you have the users already created it's really easy to create groups and give them different permissions.

Yes, we use this type of security in our facility. We have 50+ different die cast machine, all with their own PLCs. We give a few of our maintenance guys permission to make changes, but most can only view the program for trouble shooting purposes. We set up the security in FactoryTalk Administration Console. We have different Windows Linked Users and we can put them in different groups (maintenance, programmers, etc) and then we give the groups different permissions. Edit: I'm not sure the best way to display higher res photos on here, so here is an Imgur link. You can click on the pictures in the link and it will expand them to higher res. Photo 1: http://i.imgur.com/lFzyReL.jpg Photo 2: http://i.imgur.com/QT2dmDj.jpg Howard

But on a related note, can someone help explain to me what user defined tags are and how to use them, same with AOI? All i have ever used on RSLogix5000 is direct addressing and alias tags. Is a user defined tag just when I create a global tag? Thanks

On an unrelated, I want to know where this horrifying saying come from. Who skins cats? How many ways can there be? So many questions.