Sleepy Wombat

With the CP1A you cannot directly diff up/down an input and I do not believe that the UP inst is compatible either. A couple options.... 1. Have the bit fire a temp bit in a DIFU or DIFD inst and then use that new bit 2. If firing an instruction - ie an INC (increment) you can directly diff on that instruction with and "@" symbol placed in the inst ie @INC

The standard hostlink (sysmacway) comms are 9600 7 Even 2

Wow ! myomron.com responded in 1 hour.... GREAT SERVICE..... I have posted the response below for those interested.... User-defined Data Types (UDTs) are supported by CX-Designer (CX-D), but you will need the lastest version, v3.23. In CX-D, you must set the Host to be a CJ2 type and use Ethernet/IP communications. (A CJ2 CPU with inbuilt EIP unit must be used). The variables in CX-P must be set to Network type; publication is best so that these references arebn't used in a tag set. (CX-D uses symbol names only, but the dot separate is definitely there). Once this is all set up properly, you can copy and paste from CX-P's symbol table to CX-D symbol table, or you can also drag the selected variables between the two packages. Even arrays of UDTs are supported (the entire array is simplied copied into CX-Designer), as are arrays within the UDT. The latest version of CX-P (v9.31) even supports automatic memory allocation of UDTs!

Using the CJ2M, I really like the idea of user defined data types, and makes symbol allocation easier. HOWEVER, when using CX-Designer and copy from CX-Prog symbols to CX-Designer the addresses are broken out but cannot be allocated because CXDesigner does not accept the dilimantor of a "." as a valid character. Therefore I cannot import them, negating the usefullness of creating my own data type. #$%@ !!!!! Is any one aware of a work around ? Regards Sleepy..

Corrosion can be related to a number of things .... What are the bolts made of ? Mild steel ? or a plated type of bolt ? Or if welded, what was the rod composed of ? ie if any carbon in the rod Aluminum will be the sacrificial metal at the joint. Point to note - if you had a mild steel mounting plate (for a panel) and you mark out with a pencil - the pencil contains carbon - therefore you have created a galvonic connection with mild steel and carbon and the mild steel plate will be the sacrificial metal.. (It does not bother me because the corrosion would be negligible) However, In airplanes manufacture/maintenance, pencils are not used to mark any of the metal/ alloy for this very reason.... The mild steel to Aluminum will result in some corrosion but will depend on the make up of the steel...and the environment in which the two metals are in. (a lot of moisture/ chemicals/ salts etc which can expedite the process.) I found a better chart.... When two metals are in contact in the presence of moisture, their locations within the series indicate the risk of corrosion due to the flow of electric current between them. The closer the two metals on the list, the less the difference in electrical potential, and the less the risk of corrosion. The further apart the two materials on the list, the greater the risk of corrosion. The following are some guidelines for working with dissimilar metals and interpreting the galvanic series. With quantified potential differences between metals, the galvanic series can also be used to estimate the compatibility of different metals under varying environmental conditions using the following rules of thumb: In coastal, very high humidity, or other harsh environments, galvanic metal pairs should be limited to those with a potential difference no greater than 0.15 volts.In moderate environments, metal pairs should have a potential difference no greater than 0.25 volts.In environments with controlled humidity and temperature, potential differences as great as 0.50 volts may be acceptable. For example, consider the aluminum bronze alloy group. In a harsh environment, you may opt to limit metals to be used in contact with this alloy group to other bronze alloys, brasses of various types, copper, tin, and 400 series stainless steel. On the other hand, in a controlled environment, aluminum bronze might safely be combined with any other metal listed on the chart, with the exception of zinc and galvanized steel. Based on these rules of thumb, metals listed in the chart have been color-coded into groups that fall within potential difference ranges of roughly 0.20 volts. Metals within each of these groups may be considered least corrosion prone when used together in normal conditions. This really highlights why you should not use mild steel bolts and worse still Gal plated bolts/nuts with stainless steel. However, you can use Nickel Plated Brass with Stainless..... (just do not break the coating. of the nickel plate) It also shows how a boat made of aluminum will use zinc as a sacrificial metal to prevent corrosion. You only have to look at your own Statue of Liberty where regular maintenance in the 1980s showed that galvanic corrosion had taken place between the outer copper skin and the wrought iron support structure. The problem had been anticipated when the structure was built in the 1880s, the insulation of shellac between the two metals failed over a period of time and resulted in rusting of the iron supports. The renovation replaced the original insulation with PTFE (ie TEFLON).

I use LEGRAND duct. snap it where you like and use a special nibble tool to cut the side strengtheners... However for the duct lid - Hacksaw, then tidy up with knife

Hacksaw for cutting DIN on 98% of time If I had to heaps, then a drop saw I don't use Aluminum DIN as it is more expensive then the steel DIN Note on corrosion - Aluminum and mild steel are close to each other on the Galvanic chart - so no real corrosion problems. Regards conductivity - Here is the resistivity of of some metals - Aluminum has a higher conductivity then steel (3.5 x 10^7 S/m), therefore a better conductor.... High voltage cables are Aluminum cause cheaper then copper - not steel RESIST. COND. SOURCE ohm-m SIEMENS/m % IACS CODE MATERIAL 1.611E-07 6.206E+06 10.70 1 Steel, Cast 5.945E-07 1.682E+06 2.90 1 Steel, High Alloy 6.897E-07 1.450E+06 2.50 1 Steel, 304 Stainless 6.897E-07 1.450E+06 2.50 2 Steel, 304 Stainless 7.184E-07 1.392E+06 2.40 1 Steel, 347 Stainless 7.184E-07 1.392E+06 2.40 2 Zircaloy - 2 7.496E-07 1.334E+06 2.30 1 Steel, 316 Stainless Material ρ [Ω·m] at 20 °C σ [s/m] at 20 °C Temperature coefficient[note 1] [K−1] Reference Silver 1.59×10−8 6.30×107 0.0038 [1][2] Copper 1.68×10−8 5.96 × 107 0.0039 [2] Annealed Copper 5.80 × 107 Gold 2.44×10−8 4.52 × 107 0.0034 [1] Aluminium 2.82×10−8 3.5 × 107 0.0039 [1]

Thanks for responding back briselec... If ESTP is set to OFF, remote I/O communications continue. When the cause of the communications error is removed, the Slave Unit is automatically restored in the network. There is no need to restart or to cycle the power to the Master Unit.". So yep, the slave units will be restored if ESTP is set to OFF... as per manual... I can kind of understand the confusion, but was probably more emphasized with on the job pressure.

ah, Jay has responded with a TYPICAL RESPONSE for a TYPICAL LOGIC question... sounds logical to me

Relatively speaking you have very very little experience and do not take that the wrong way. Embarking on running your own business is not a trivial task and is one where most of us have more then 5 yrs plus ourselves in industry working in the field. Do you have a business plan ? or even know what one is ? your previous employer went bust working in the very industry that you want to get work from - what would you be doing different that would prevent this ? Do you know what your basic business running costs will be ? premises, insurance, car running expenses, equipment, computers, software for a number of plc brands, programming cables, drafting software, tax........ etc etc etc When working for yourself, there is no sick leave, holiday pay etc.. ie your rate you charge must cover all of the above and enough to cover all other things. You basically have known the other tech for 1 year... but do you really know him ? A lot of partnerships fail in the first few years, just as do marriages... What is your support like, ie will your family back you/support you through thick and thin, if living at home as i am guessing you are, at least the rent should be cheap ;) The prospect of running your own business is exciting and very challenging. But look at it this way, so is jumping out of a plane. ie there is a risk involved, have you identified them ? just my 2 cents

Well another year has flown past again. Thanks Chris for such a great forum and to all of the other mods and regular contributors throughout the year. Here's to wishing you all a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Prosperous New Year 2011. Regards Sleepy

1. On a CPM1/ CPM1A there is no communication switch. 2. All settings for the peripheral port are set by either the programming software or a hand held programmer 3. The programe listing is all over the place and does not make a whole lot of sense, however, LR areas seem to be in use - is this PLC setup to talk to another CPM1 PLC (ie serial link) If the PLC has been set up to talk a serial link (PLC to PLC) then the only way that I am aware of changing the port settings would be via a hand held programmer. Just a thought.

You are using the H series - i thought that the PID instruction in this series plc had an auto tune function. Anyways, I am a bit unclear as to what you mean by pre set the integral. You can set the P I and D via the corresponding memory areas determined by your control word. There is a setup bit that alows dynamic chaning of the P I and D values while the PID is executing, if you do not set this bit then the P I and D settings will only be initalised on the up of the enable signal line for the PID. Remember to set a value for the T constant also.

As I have said in a previous post... thanks for a good belly chuckle

Thanks for the good belly chuckle !

Its funny, as what you call a schematic I would call a "mud map". Once drawn up properly ie with a drawing package then it becomes a schematic.... Also, for the price these days I would have used a "smart relay" aka omron zen, ab ----, what ever as the flexibility is fantastic.

Glad to hear that things have picked up a bit Ron. Couldn't happen to a nicer chap...

Have a strange one here where I have had an SLC 505 go into fault and lose its memory. 1. the battery has been changed ( and considering there is generally power on these units 24/7 this should not be an issue) 2. Has happened more then once.... 3. The PLC's have been on site since 2005. 4. One SLC 505 recently suffered the same fate, but the ethernet and DF1 port are dead 5. The SLC 505 thaat failed was replaced, and one week later also lost the entire program memory. Background, the SLC panels are relatively clean - ie not full of dust, dirt etc.... There are 3 SLC 505 processors talking via ethernet to a Citect SCADA PLC via a Control Logix platform as the master. The DF1 port talks to a 550 panel view. i am at a bit of a loss, the PLC power supply is powered through a step down transformer to 110 VAC, In one SLC 505 i have an EEProm installed and Ii am hoping that that eliminates this problem, although it does not explain it. Any thoughts appreciated as to what could be stuffing up... Ie could it be a PLC Power supply model - P4 having problems ??? noise coming through the transformer to the PLC power supply ( which is ridiculous) Thanks Sleepy

If you have an ethernet connection on the PLC and the compact flash of course you can simply use FTP to transfer (copy) files from the compact flash card over the network to your computer. there are many free FTP clients out there, mozilla have even put one out there as well.

Are AB, Omron distributors interested in you running their training for them ? 1. They can reduce their training staff - another overhead 2. They do not have to have room's full of duplicated equipment for training - another cost reduction on their behalf. 3. You can teach the students real problem solving skills rather then just the how too follow these notes approach... 4. You have real problem solving life experience and a passion for teaching, it aint just another role to do in a company... These are just a few benefits that I see you can offer the bigger players and they would be made not to utilise your skills.

in your pc the gate ways shoud look like virtual serial ports, hence the wonderware software should not care and the standard Hostlink (Symac Way) Comm's RS232 should suffice. A different virtual comm port will be assigned to each PLC.

An interesting read.... on the US economy.... extracted from www.munknee.com http://www.munknee.com/2010/10/the-great-dollar-devaluation-disaster-is-only-just-beginning-and-you-are-the-intended-victim/ "The Great Dollar Devaluation Disaster" is Only Just Beginning – and the Intended Victim is YOU! October 17, 2010 by Editor · Leave a Comment I'm mad as hell about the shellacking our government has planned for you … for me … and for millions of other honest, hard-working Americans … and I absolutely refuse to stay silent while good people are stripped of their life savings, investments and even the retirement funds that are due to them … and by our own leaders. Words: 2120 So says Larry Edelson's (www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com) in an article* which Lorimer Wilson, editor ofwww.munKNEE.com, has reformatted into edited [...] excerpts below for the sake of clarity and brevity to ensure a fast and easy read. (Please note that this paragraph must be included in any article reposting to avoid copyright infringement.) Edelson goes on to say: If it's hard for you to believe that our own leaders have turned on us – that they are intentionally attacking your wealth and financial independence and that they have already begun executing their plan – I certainly understand but please – for your own sake and for your family's safety – hear me out. U.S. Has an Utterly Unpayable $127.8 Trillion in Debt Obligations Ask anybody about how much Washington owes and they're likely to say the national debt is somewhere around $12.8 trillion. As shocking as that massive number is, however, it is just a fantasy — a tiny fraction of the gargantuan amount our government really owes. In actual fact, our real national debt is nearly TEN TIMES GREATER! In addition to that official $12.8 trillion national debt, Washington has written $108 trillion in off-budget, unfunded IOUs on Social Security, Medicare, Medicaid, its prescription drug program, its veterans benefits programs and its Federal pension programs that must also be paid. That adds up to more than $120 trillion and that's not even counting the $1 trillion the new health care bill will cost us or the trillions in NEW deficits projected over the next 10 years! The truth of the matter is that, altogether, our leaders have obligated us … our children … and our children's children … to pay off an utterly unpayable $127.8 trillion in debt. Global Investors in U.S. Treasuries Are Recoiling in Horror Until recently, we could count on overseas investors to buy our treasuries — effectively loan Washington the money it needs to pay its bills. In fact, foreigners fully fund over HALF of our borrowing addiction, holding $9.7 trillion in U.S. securities — including almost $4.6 trillion in bonds. They are horrified these days, however, at our leaders' inability to manage the nation's finances and wondering if we'll be able to make good on our obligations to them and starting to snap their wallets shut. a) In November 2009, for instance, China — the world's largest investor in U.S. government debt — became a net SELLER of treasuries. b) In December China sold a whopping $34 billion worth of U.S. government bonds with others following suit: Net overseas holdings of short-term treasuries fell by $53 billion. c) In January 2010, foreign net purchases of U.S. Treasury securities plunged a shocking 69.8%. Japan, the second-largest foreign holder of U.S. debt, was also a net seller. d) In February 2010, Beijing sold yet ANOTHER $11.5 billion of U.S. Treasuries, making that four consecutive months of dumping U.S. bonds. [Editor's Note: Don't forget to sign up for our FREE weekly "Top 100 Stock Market, Asset Ratio & Economic Indicators in Review"] This is all happening because Washington's debts have finally reached the point of no return – they are absolutely, positively UNPAYABLE! We have reached the point of no return. What are the Alternatives? The simple truth, of course, is that Washington will never repay the full $127.8 trillion it owes. Think through the alternatives: 1. Borrow our way out of debt? Virtually impossible. As we've seen, foreign investors who have loaned us the money that Washington needs to stay in business are already fed up. They're worried that we'll never be able to repay what we owe them. They're now becoming net SELLERS of treasuries so it's nearly impossible that they'll be willing to throw trillions more of their money our way. Plus, even the mere hint that Washington was trying to borrow trillions more would crush bond prices and light the fuse on an interest rate explosion that would kill the economy. 2. Implement massive spending cuts? A snowball's chance in hell! The White House and Congress will continue doing what they've always done and what they're doing right now – finding dozens of outrageous new ways to waste your money and plunge us even deeper in debt. Meanwhile, Washington WILL make a show of addressing the crisis by delaying the retirement age for Social Security from age 65 to 68 and by reducing benefits. How does that help you? It doesn't. It just dilutes down what you're already owed even more so if you're looking for any meaningful cuts in wasteful spending in Washington, forget about it. Any real cuts needed to make any noticeable dent in the government's $127.8 trillion debt would probably cause riots in the streets and guarantee a quick end to the career of every politician who voted for them. 3. Raise taxes drastically? Sure, the Obama administration will raise your taxes but even the White House says that the most startling proposals would only generate an additional $43 billion in revenue. $43 billion, however, is only 3% of our $1.6 trillion annual deficit and only about one-third of one percent of the total $127.8 trillion Washington owes. At that rate, it would take 300 years to repay our government's debt with new taxes! In fact, it would take new taxes of $1.1 million for every U.S. household to pay off this debt. Nobody has that kind of money, of course, and besides, a tax increase representing just a fraction of that amount would surely kill this feeble recovery, drive unemployment into the stratosphere and light the fuse on a Great Depression that makes the last one pale by comparison. That leaves Obama and Bernanke with one and ONLY one alternative … 4. Devalue the U.S. dollar? When war strategies to vanquish enemies wind up killing innocent civilians, it's called "collateral damage." Similarly, when political strategies to vanquish debt wipe out your wealth, the same term applies, and right now President Obama and Fed Chief Bernanke know that there is ONLY one way they can ever hope to make good on their massive debt obligations and that is to devalue the U.S. dollar! Only then can they hope to repay Washington's debts — by doing it with cheaper dollars. Obama and Bernanke also know that by doing so, they're also gutting the value of every dollar you earn, spend, save, invest and plan to use in retirement but they think they have no choice. To allow Washington to default on its debts and obligations would almost surely cause the entire U.S. economic house of cards to collapse — and the blame would land squarely on the Obama administration's shoulders. You? You're little more than collateral damage. If the only way to delay default is to rob you of everything you've worked for and everything you're counting on to see you through retirement — that's evidentially just fine with them. What is the Government Doing to Resolve the Situation? Our government has begun intentionally debasing our own currency by: 1. Flooding the World with Unbacked Paper Dollars Money is subject to the laws of supply and demand just like any commodity. If you want to lower the price, simply increase the supply. Just do that and the buying power of the greenback will plunge. Your bank statement may still say you still have $25,000 but in truth, when you go to spend that money, it only buys as much as $18,000, or $15,000, or $12,000 used to because the value of your money has been stolen from you. Just in the last two months alone, the Fed has agreed to create $1.25 trillion out of thin air to buy mortgage-backed securities including another $300 billion to buy U.S. Treasuries alone. The liabilities on the Fed's balance sheet have roughly DOUBLED — from $1.2 trillion a year ago to more than $2 trillion today – and the actions announced by the Fed in March are most likely to expand that to well over $3 trillion over the next year! From September 10, 2008 to March 10 of this year, Bernanke has increased the nation's monetary base from $850 billion to $2.1 trillion. That's an irresponsible, irrational and insane increase of 2.5 times in just 18 months — and you must not underestimate its sweeping historical significance: Nearly 218 years ago, Treasury Secretary Alexander Hamilton established the dollar as America's national currency when Congress passed the Coinage Act of 1792. Since that memorable date, the United States has suffered through one pandemic, two great depressions, 11 major wars, and 44 recessions. Four U.S. presidents have been assassinated while in office. Hundreds of thousands of businesses have gone bankrupt and tens of millions of Americans have lost their jobs but not once has the U.S. government ever resorted to the kind of extreme abuses of its money-borrowing and money-printing power we're seeing today! 2. Defaulting on its Debts by Devaluation You've probably been hearing a lot lately about how overvalued the Chinese yuan is and how that gives the Chinese an unfair trade advantage and how hard the Obama administration has been working to convince Beijing to raise the yuan's value against the dollar in order to level the playing field but the only problem is that it is all a lie. The truth is, the average Chinese worker earns a tiny fraction as much as American workers do. Even if the yuan DOUBLED or TRIPLED in value against the dollar, Chinese products would still be far cheaper on world markets than U.S.-made products so what's the real reason why Washington is so desperate to have China INcrease the value of the yuan? Simple: By doing so, they will be automatically DEcreasing the relative value of the dollar — and they'll be able to repay China, and everyone else who owns treasuries or is owed money by Uncle Sam using CHEAPER dollars! Don't think it's going to happen? Well, let me tell you something: For the last nine years I've been warning that China would keep the value of its yuan extremely low — so it could keep its exports cheap, build up a massive trade surplus with the U.S. and a huge pile of cash but I also warned that, as soon as it had a big cash hoard and a strong enough domestic consumption to sustain its economy WITHOUT such massive growth in its exports to the U.S., it would let the yuan get stronger, driving DOWN the value of the U.S. dollar – and that day has come. China will soon go ahead with a yuan revaluation — and dollar devaluation. Such a revaluation ot its currency won't negatively impact China nearly as much because Beijing has been preparing for this the entire time by gobbling up natural resources left and right, not only for strategic supply needs, but also to hedge against the inevitable U.S. dollar devaluation. The steps are now in motion: a) Singapore, for the first time in its history, pushed the value of its currency higher. b) The Korean won, Malaysian ringgit, Indian rupee and Taiwan dollar will likely soon begin to rise rapidly against the dollar. c) China will probably soon end the yuan's peg to the greenback and allows its currency to move higher. Be Advised: You Are the Intended Victim! With each and every revaluation, YOUR dollar is worth LESS and make no mistake about it: This is nothing more and nothing less than highway robbery and YOU are the intended victim! The greenback has already plunged as much as 33% in real, trade-weighted terms since its 2002 high. By that measure, every dollar in your wallet … in your savings account … in your brokerage account … and in your retirement account is worth only 67 cents. The handwriting is on the wall: This great dollar disaster is only just beginning. Obama and Bernanke have no choice. Either they dramatically devalue the dollar over the next three years, or they go down in history as the first administration to default — to welch on the government's debt obligations. *http://www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com/dollar-doomsday-2010-protect-your-wealth-and-profit-9283 (Uncommon Wisdom is a free daily investment newsletter from Weiss Research analysts offering the latest investing news and financial insights for the stock market, precious metals, natural resources, Asian and South American markets. To view archives or subscribe, visit http://www.uncommonwisdomdaily.com.) Editor's Note: - The above article consists of reformatted edited excerpts from the original for the sake of brevity, clarity and to ensure a fast and easy read. The author's views and conclusions are unaltered. - Permission to reprint in whole or in part is gladly granted, provided full credit is given as per paragraph 2 above.

My first question would be ... are there other places available for rent around or are you in a hot spot so to speak. The reason I ask, is that if there are a number of vacancies around then wouldn't the land lord be in a stronger position if the place is rented, ie what about month to month terms with a 90 day notice or the ilk. having to sign a three year deal is bogus as far as i am concerned, leases are cheaper the longer you sign them, but you have already been there for three years.. paid your rent.... looked ofter the place... ie you are a good tenant, that should be worth noting. Apart from reducing the leasing period, I like the idea of renting the facilities. What about local town halls or similar ? From an outsiders point of view, the US economy is in pretty dire straights at the moment. (I will try an support your economy next year as i am hoping to make a family trip over there.....might be able to finally afford it)

so when online, why don;t you do a power flow monitor (click the glasses (specticals) icon), then you will be able to determine why the logic isn;t firing the right coils and associated contacts. Progamming practices - 1. I never use inverted outputs 2. Looks like spagehti code to me, ie all over the place, not easy to debug, and typical of a program that has been written on the fly (while comissioning)

My first question would be what has changed at the installation.