Help & info request on slc500 or similar systems

Hi!

My name is Edil Cajigas; I'm a student at the Polytechnic University of Puerto Rico. Right now I'm working on a project for one of my classes. The project consists on analyzing and designing a system to control the air conditioners and lights for 3 rooms in the university's lab building. The system must be autonomous and it should monitor temperature and the presence of people inside the rooms. It also has to be accessible from a web browser in order to manually control it from a remote location.

At this moment we don't have to build our own system or software. The professors ask us to find information on equipment available on the market capable to do that task. So far we have concentrated our attention on the Allen Bradley SLC500 system family, the 5/03 in particular. We found that the system have a module, the 1761-NET-ENIW, that provides web access and compatibility with XLM codes, but we don't know if that module is compatible with the 5/03 PLC model, neither we can find price info.

I will appreciate any suggestions, ideas or where to go to find more information on how to accomplish this. Also I need to know were can I find a price list of the components needed for the PLC to work and where to find information on movement sensors and digital thermostats. Eventually we will have to create our own code for an interface between the DS1 protocol and a HTML web page. Is there an alternate option to program the PLC other than the RSview software?

Thanks for your attention!

You should also take a look at the AutomationDirect.com web site. Their PLCs, especially the Dl-06 series, will be a lot less expensive than the SLC platform. Thier new software has some web enabled equipment. They also offer remote I/O that you can use in conjunction with PC based control logic. They also have some sensors that you could use. They have a discount program for educational institutes, but I believe Allen Bradley does as well.

Hello Edil
Automation Direct is a good bet and It's not expensive.
Where in PR are you? I get to Fajardo often to work on a customers machine and PLC.

You might want to consider the AB MicroLogix 1100, perhaps one for each room
http://www.ab.com/programmablecontrol/plc/micrologix1100/controller.html

You have to register first, but you can get list price for AB products here:
http://shop.rockwellautomation.com/

Just remember most people pay some amount less than list price with the AB line.

Hey, Ken, Tom, Gas, thanks for your help!

I will check the sites right away.

The university is located in San Juan but I live in Bayamón. Bayamón is like 15 to 30 minutes from San Juan and San Juan is like 45 minutes to an hour and 30 minutes from Fajardo it all depends on traffic conditions. I hope you had a good experience while visiting us.

Again thanks any other comments or ideas will be welcome.

Edil
I always have a good experience in Fajardo.
Puerto Rican food, sunshine, Presidente beer and beautiful women. The folks at the plant I visit are some of the most knowledgeable people that I get to visit.