Porting Ethernet/IP code from CLX to PLC5

I've got some code running on a Compact Logix/Control Logix using CIP Generic Message instructions.

Service Type is Custom
Service Code is 45 Hex
Instance is 1
Class is 68 Hex
Attribute is 6a Hex

I need to port this code over to some PLC 5/80E's. Series E Rev D.2

I have 50 of the PLC 5/80E's. I've been told that if I upgrade the firmware at $2,000 each or $100,000 to the latest version, I can make this code work.

Is there any other way of getting this to work without upgrading the firmware.

What is this code doing? What are the results?


Is it possible that you do this code in the Compact Logix/Control Logix and then transfer it to the 5/80E's?

The device on the other end is a GridConnect Net232 Ethernet/IP to Serial converter.


I'm feeding it packets of data which inlude strings. The strings get sent out the serial port. And the replies get packed up and sent back to the PLC 5.

As for using this code on the Compact Logix. I could use the Compact Logix as a data concentrator, but that would be bad from a network impact point of view.

I have 50 seperate lines making wire and cable. Each line has a PLC 5 and several serial gauges that measure the wire or cable and report that data back to the PLC.

Currently, we are using DH+ to serial converters to talk to the gauges, but we want to move over to Ethernet.

Each line has a local switch. We were hoping to connect the Gridconnect units into the local switch to keep the network traffic local to the individual line, since the plant wide Ethernet network is already heavily loaded.

PLC5 does not support CIP generic messages with any firmware, so firmware upgrade will not help.

Looks like you got a "special" deal on FW upgrade - if list price is $685.

dh+ to talk to the serial gauges... serial anything is slow... and plant wide is almost overloaded now???..someone needs to come in and analyze what you want your network to do cause just adding pieces on aint cutting it.

The gauges we use are "special", and they don't have an Ethernet port. They are laser diameter measurement, eccentricity measurement, lump detection, neck detection, capacitance measurement.

As for the DH+. Each line has it's own DH+ loop which might have 3 to 4 devices on it including the PLC 5.

As for the plant wide ethernet network, nobody in my department has any control over it. So, I'm not going to add to the pre-existing mess.

Actually, the vast majority of traffic on the plant network is not controls information.

Sadly, the controls network and the IT/accounting network is the same network.

ouch...you may want to mention that AB is multicast... it sends to everything on the enet network... you may realize some speed by interfacing the existing plant wide enet thru a managed switch...but I'm with you...the heck with the existing mess...heh

Your correct. Some AB stuff is multicast.

For those devices that insist on talking multicast only. They are disconnected from the plant wide network... Until we can install a mangaged switch.

From my seat, all I can do is try to avoid contributing to the plant wide network mess as much as possible.

I don't have the budget to replace the PLC5 with compactlogix.

I checked and apparently the new MicroLogix 1100 can talk CIP Generic, but my boss won't give me the budget to add one to each line to communicate with the Grid Connects and pass the data to the PLC5.

If you don't have budget to add/replace hardware, & the hardware you have now doesn't cut it, you're kinda inbetween a rock & a hard place.

I'd shelf the project until budget opened up.

I've got a call in to Grid Connect to see if they can modify their Net232 device to support PCCC. If they can do that, I would have the budget to go ahead and implement this.

I opened this thread to see if anybody has a workaround solution to this problem.

I may have interpreted your network incorrectly , but what about this ...


CompactLogix as data concentrator gathering all the data necessary from the Grid Connect. Then remessage the necessary data to the respective PLC5. Do intelligent messaging to where you only send data if the data has changed. This would reduce the network traffic on the DH+.

In addition, what about installing your own control ethernet network? This would resolve you contributing to the corporate mess. Besides, those IT guys hate our process control devices anyway.

I've already been down the path of using a Compact Logix as a data concentrator. The Compact Logix would gather all of the data from the GridConnect Devices, and then remessage it on Ethernet to all of the PLC 5/80E processors.

The problem with that is that the Compact Logix would need to reach out over the plant network to read data from the grid connect(s).

Since, we will end up with about 100 to 150 grid connects. 2 to 3 average per line. That's a lot of traffic.

A dedicated Control Ethernet Network would sure help a lot... But politically, all Ethernet wiring and connections are the property of the IT department. The only thing which I have control of is the insides of the control enclosures.

As for the DH+...getting rid of that is what this whole project is all about. Our DH+ to Serial devices are experiencing about 2 failures per day where the solution is to unplug it and plug it back in.

Can the gauges communicate RS-485 or can they respond to address based queries? That would allow you to use the serial port on the front of the PLC5 to get nfo from the gauges.

Another option may be to add one additional GridConnect Ethernet to serial converter at each plc and do point-to-point tunneling through the serial port. Basically the same idea as the 485 idea but over a different physical media.

Keith

Again, for political reasons, my hands are somewhat tied in this.

We manufacture ethernet cable. So, their is a lot of pressure on me to make this an ethernet solution.

As for the gauges themselves. They are not addressable so RS-485 wouldn't be an option.

Did you look at the http://www.gridconnect.com/uds100.html ?