PLC' trainig for beginners

lswood · Feb 3, 2006

I have been playing with PLC's for about a year off and on, nothing real serious. I want to get serious with this, My question is where can I get the proper training?

CroCop · Feb 3, 2006

lswood said:
I have been playing with PLC's for about a year off and on, nothing real serious. I want to get serious with this, My question is where can I get the proper training?

Which PLC do you want to learn?
How good of local rep do you have?
Can you afford a starter kit?

lswood · Feb 3, 2006

I have currently a GEFanuc 350 and 347 with VersaPro programming software.
I have the basics down as far as discrete inputs and outputs. But I have trouble with the concepts of data manipulation,math, moving data, subroutines ect... Thanks

CroCop · Feb 3, 2006

Data manipulation can be tricky with PLCs and indirect adressing syntax.
Math? All the instructions are pertty straight forward.
Moves move data from one point to another.
Subroutines: read the manual, they vary from PLC to PLC.

Get specific and people here can answer. Lots of good people on here with loads of true knowledge.

lswood · Feb 3, 2006

Yes I have been coming here more recently and alot of the topics seem hard for me to understand, I guess because I have never used it before.

Thank you

lswood · Feb 3, 2006

I have been a control electrician for 9 years with other work related experience as well. Would it help me to take some courses with Allen bradley or GE? Or maybe with a degree program at a college.

CroCop · Feb 3, 2006

I've never had GE courses, but I've liked the local AB stuff I've gotten over the years.

A degree at a local college is best for learning, if that's what you're really after.

darrenj · Feb 4, 2006

a degree will not help you learn the specifics...If you want to program GE then take a GE course..if you want to understand how the plc works and how to better yourself then take the degree course..If you just need to have a little more knolage on what you are using then the distributor can help you out..Just remember you might be looking for another job sometime so a general understanding across the board may help you..\

d

geniusintraining · Feb 4, 2006

lswood said:
I have been a control electrician for 9 years with other work related experience as well. Would it help me to take some courses with Allen bradley or GE? Or maybe with a degree program at a college.

If you are looking for a degree then go back to school, if you want to get deeper into plc's then (I) think that you might be better off going with the more specific classes, I took the some of the AB courses they were good, I plan on taking a course from Ron_Beaufort when we are done with the restructuring at my current job.

lswood · Feb 4, 2006

Thanks for your resonses and advise.

Ron Beaufort · Feb 5, 2006

Greetings lswood,

you said:

I have currently a GEFanuc 350 and 347 with VersaPro programming software.

sorry, but I have ZERO familiarity with that system ... but I’m sure that there are many members here who could help you along ...

I’d recommend the following plan ... pick some type of machine that would “fit” the PLC equipment that you already have on hand ... keep it simple to begin with ... it could be a conveyor, a grinder, a press, or anything else that you’re personally familiar with ... it could be an existing machine from your work ... it could be something totally in your imagination ... but nail down something SPECIFIC ...

now write up a set of specifications for the program to control this thing ... list the sequence of events step-by-step ... something like this:

(1) the operator momentarily presses the Start button ...

(2) the grinder head must move downward ...

(3) the grinder head reaches the bottom limit switch ...

(4) etc., etc., etc.,

come up with a simple drawing of the machine ... list the I/O points ... now post your work so far ... the forum members will be able to tell you whether you’re on the right track or not ... you might need more detail here and there ...

once the specifications have been “approved” as reasonable, then start writing the PLC program ... post your work OFTEN ... right or wrong - good bad or ugly - POST IT ... if you have problems, try not to ask: “how should I do this?” ... instead say: “this is what I’ve tried so far and here is what is happening” ... it’s a lot more beneficial for you (and much more entertaining for the members) to correct your mistakes rather than try to guide you step-by-step ... and in many (most?) cases you’ll find that you learn much more by making mistakes than by getting it right the first time ...

anyway ... the basic idea is to pick a project and get started with it ...

look at it this way ... suppose that you went off to “PLC school” somewhere ... don’t you suppose that the instructor would eventually assign some type of project for you to work on? ... well, just choose a project for yourself ... would the instructor try to answer your questions? ... the forum members will do that too ... would the instructor try to help you by pointing out mistakes and steering you in the right direction? ... well, the forum members will do the same thing ...

now once the initial project has been completed, add more bells-and-whistles to it ... or just start another one ... if you want to learn about data manipulation, then add that into the specifications ... if you’re not sure how to do that, then ask ... I’m sure that someone will be glad to make some suggestions ...

now then ... you said that you have some hardware and software available ... many beginners would love to be in your shoes ... and personally I’m a firm believer in “hands-on” training ... but ... have you worked through all of the exercises at www.thelearningpit.com? ... or ... you could also write your own “machine specifications” to match the PLCs.net online simulator ...

need more hardware? ... you might pick something up on e-bay ... and if you had an Allen-Bradley system, then I myself would be glad to help ... a lot depends on your budget and on what you want to learn ...

but my basic advice is this ... the forum is here to help you ... for free ... get started ... make up a project ... post a program ... let’s see how far you can go with it ...

lswood · Feb 5, 2006

OK Thank alot, I enjoyed reading you answer and will do just that. I will try out with a small project with what i have and go from there.

PLC' trainig for beginners

lswood

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CroCop

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lswood

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CroCop

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lswood

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lswood

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CroCop

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darrenj

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geniusintraining

Lifetime Supporting Member + Moderator

lswood

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Ron Beaufort

Lifetime Supporting Member

lswood

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