How to send a CSV file to S7300 PLC?

Hello wise people of plcs.net,
I have recently been asked to get involved with a new project which will start production in the summer. Basically a CSV file containing type, colour etc needs to be read by a S7313 cpu,then a jig quality checks all components fitted and pass/fails it against the data sent from a dedicated PC. also the plc needs to send confirmation signals back to PC to allow another file to be sent etc.

OK with that out of the way i wondered what would be the most simple way of achieving this. I would assume the incoming/outgoing data would be accessed via a data block, But really this isnt something i have come across before. The only thing we have remotely near this is a visual basic application which is similar to wincc and talks via MPI but i think this is overkill.

Thanks in advance for your suggestions

Steve

Hardware:
CP5611 card for MPI or Profibus communication.

Software:
Simatic Softnet S7. This contains an OPC "server" which allows you to connect to the S7 PLC in numerous ways. Amongst the possible OPC "Clients" are Excel and Visual Basic.
There are 3rd party alternatives to the OPC server from Siemens that might be easier to use.

Hi Jesper,
Thanks for your fast response, ive been doing some research and they also have led me to "OPC Server route" amongst other things. This looks just the ticket for what we want to do.

Thanks again Steve

Hello!

I'm looking to do the exact same thing. I was just wondering what your final solution was and how well it's working at the moment.

Cheers!

R.K.