Conversion of PLC5/250 to CLX

Hi,
We have one PLC which is PLC-5/250. We have its backup code. We need to upgrade it to ControlLogix. Is there any way to convert this code into ControlLogix code? Also, I do not know how to open this file (As it seems to be having with some quite old software - older than AB 6200.).

If anybody knows about this, please help me out in this. I would appreciate the detailed reply.

Thanks in advance.

Regards,
--Rahul.

What's the file extension(s)?

rahulkumardave said:

Hi,
We have one PLC which is PLC-5/250. We have its backup code. We need to upgrade it to ControlLogix. Is there any way to convert this code into ControlLogix code? Also, I do not know how to open this file (As it seems to be having with some quite old software - older than AB 6200.).

If anybody knows about this, please help me out in this. I would appreciate the detailed reply.

Thanks in advance.

Regards,
--Rahul.

Click to expand...

Hopefully a hard copy program printout is available.
I've done a few of these conversions the old fashioned way, typing by hand. Not all instructions convert properly and the way the 250's memory and program areas are layed out can be very confusing.

You can use Excel to import and manipulate the I/O tags into a format Clgx can understand, and import, but other than that I recommend type it in yourself

Ian

There's a consultant named Pete Jack in Seattle who has developed PLC-5/250 to ControlLogix conversion tools that he uses in his automation consulting business. I think that hiring him to perform the conversion will be more cost-effective and faster than getting software tools and learning the old controller's architecture yourself. I'll send you his e-mail address via PM.

I've had Pete do a conversion for me from 5/250 to CLX. It worked fairly well, but there are some instructions that do NOT convert at all - and a lot of things that do not convert nicely. It gives you a great starting point, but, at least in my program, still left alot of work.

When doing a conversion like this, I always ask if a straight conversion is desired, or if it would be better to just start over. PLCs have a lot more capability today than they had 20+ years ago. My experience is that it's typically better to just start over and rewrite the code than to convert it.

When you do a conversion, you convert the existing problems/deficiencies AND introduce a whole new set of issues...

Also, the PLC5/250 had its own special version of 6200 software.

OZEE said:

I've had Pete do a conversion for me from 5/250 to CLX. It worked fairly well, but there are some instructions that do NOT convert at all - and a lot of things that do not convert nicely. It gives you a great starting point, but, at least in my program, still left alot of work.

Click to expand...

It certainy does leave a lot of work. I inherited one of these conversions and I discovered one major flaw.

The conversion creates an individual tag for all booleans where a simple DINT alias would have sufficed. Example, the conversion created an individual tag for Output_30_bit_00, Output_30_bit_01, etc. I just created 1 DINT OUTPUT30 and aliased that tag with the output. Done the same for Ins,Timer and bits and by doing this the program size shrunk from 1.3Meg to 800K. By doing this I freed up enough memory in the PLC to resolve MSG timeout errors that occured with Basic Modules.

As OZEE stated, the conversion works, but there is still quite a bit of work to do.

OZEE said:

My experience is that it's typically better to just start over and rewrite the code than to convert it.

Click to expand...

I'll second that.

I've converted 1774 to PLC3; PLC2 to PLC5; PLC5 to CLX; PLC5/250 to SofLogix 5; Wizdom Paradym to SoftLogix 5.

I use the original program as a reference and an aid in understanding the machine / process - then re-implement the logic for the new platform. I usually manage to eliminate a few problems and add some beneficial features in the process.

When it comes time to commission the new system, I know how it works. If I had an automated conversion or a straight rung for rung conversion done manually, I would spend a lot of time chasing my tail and going through the process of understanding the process at the wrong end of the project.