Allen Bradley 1762 "Blank" Expansion Module?

I'm working on developing a standard program across about 6 or 7 dozen machines that contain nearly identical controls, with the exception of one specialty I/O card that only exists on about half of them.

Is there any way to make the 1762 (Micrologix 1100, 1200, 1400) expansion I/O skip a slot? Right now I'm dropping an old spare I/O card from the shelf and clicking "Ignore Configuration Error". I was wondering if anyone out there made anything like an "Empty Slot" card that I could put in there.

Thanks in advance.

two questions.

#1. if you skip modules, how will your wiring number system work? how will you debug the system when a module has been inserted after say 5 years of machine operation and the maintenance guy is chasing his tail because of the inserted module?
#2. can you put the speciality card at the very end?

regards,
james

IIRC that's not chassis based io so not sure why you need a blanking slot? Put it on the end and problem solved?

Or just remove the ribbon cables on the modules slide apart and insert. Are you thinking customers buying your machines may want this card added later?

If the issue is prints leave a blank page for it.

If you don't want to put it on the end leave slack for the wiring to move without removing from the module.

Its called an Address Reserve Module. The 1769 Family has one (1769-ARM) but I don't see a 1762-ARM listed in the catalog.

Well, there is no real customer. We make machines for ourselves. In house controls and engineering. Just trying to make it easier for our guys building the panels and troubleshooting the machines. And easier on myself writing the programs and keeping them updated.

The reasons for not removing the card and sliding everything over is so that all the I/O addressing stays the same. My specialty card is in Slot 2. So everything used in Slot 3 through Slot 7 would have to change addresses between the machines. Prints would change numbering, etc. If I keep a blank slot 2, it allows the same numbering and prints to be used across all machines.

These machines have been a work in progress over the last 10 years and each revision adds a little something extra to them that gets updated back along the rest of them.

Their modular nature makes it hard to keep the specialty I/O module as the final slot because the specialty I/O is part of the base machine. And everything modular on it is added after.

I figured something like a "blank" card didn't really exist, but thought I couldn't really be the first to think of it. For now I think I'll just keep plugging in a dummy card.

Edit:
I see. Thanks TC. I imagine 1769-ARM exists because of the shared I/O modules with Compact Logix, and Compact Logix needing the same flexibility as the Control Logix.

It does look like the 1769-ARM only works with the CompactLogix controllers. The module is not available as a selection for the ML1500 in Logix500. I suspect this is due to the fact that the Logix500 platform requires you to configure entries in the input/output image tables while that is not relevant on the CompactLogix platforms. Even if such a module existed chances are it would cost as much as an 8 point dc in card. I understand your desire for consistency. If its that important then build in the cost of the 8 point input and simply use it as a place holder.

I use the 1769-ARM for Compactlogix systems that we want to have configured the same as a ControlLogix system, however since the CompactLogix has a built in e-net port I need a place holder for the ENBT card that would be in a ControlLogix chassis. Its a convenient way to keep the IO addressing aligned.

Ya. I figured cost wouldn't make it nicer than a simple input card. I'd imagine even if they did make it, it wouldn't be used hardly at all and there'd be that factor increasing production costs.

It was less about a cost savings, and more about just thinking about using something designed for the purpose, rather than having an input card sitting there unused.