Introductory PLC

[debstu]

What exactly is a Programmable Logic Controller, and what does it do?

[Steve Bailey]

If you click on the 'Online Tutorial' graphic at the top of the page, you'll go to the table of contents for Phil's book. You'll save yourself a lot of sarcastic responses if you read it first. After having done that, come back for clarification of the points you don't understand.

If you're willing to expend the mental energy to get the information from the page into your brain, you'll find people at this site willing to help you understand what you're reading. In that light, this site can be heaven.

If you expect to be spoon-fed answers to random questions without having to exert any effort towards understanding, you'll find this site is hell.

[Tom Jenkins]

When the targets are this easy, it's not even fun to take shots at them!

[jvdcande]

Yeah, a real sitting duck! If the number of posts were the only factor to determine our level of knowledge, answerring this kind of questions would make us all guru's in no time!

[JDW]

O.K., O.K.
I'll tell Deb what it is.
It's a Vulcan mind-meld device to be used by non Vulcans.
Real Vulcans didn't need the device to read and control your
thoughts. A real breakthrough in psychc. warfare.

I WANT TO KNOW IF I GOING TO GET MY KIDS BACK

I DONT THINK YOU ARE REALLY PSYCH IF YOU ARE REALLY YOU WOULD KOWN THE
TRUE.

[Stickel]

DEBAR is confusing.....

[ECIowner]

The secret in this down economy is to be creative. As all of you know, when money is tight, automation integrators suffer (or go under). So, what is the key to a successful integration business. How about you find ways to save money (real money) by using automation...COST SAVINGS? If you can save a company 300k a year in REAL money, and you can do this by them only spending 100k one time..why wouldn't they? For example:
A company I am associated with has a job that requires a 9" lenght by 1" round tube to be cut from a 20 foot random length tube. After this 9" length tube is cut, it has to have a 45 degree cut on one end and then gets bent like the letter "J". After this is done, the tube is taken to a robotic arc welding cell where the tube is then welded to another component. This company was outsourcing the tube and simply used the finished product tube. It was costing them 300k a year to have this tube made. To make a long story short, I worked with a build shop and had a mechanical line built that I did the automation on (all servo and all Allen Bradley). We sold the line to this company for about 100k. They now make the tube in house and best of all, we made this line FULLY automatic. Once a week, they have to load a bundle of 20 foot tubes in a loader. Several times a day, they do quality checks. It produces about 3000 tubes a shift. The company paid it back in 4 months. They saved 200k the first year. Next year and on, they save 300k per year....and I made a good name for future cost savings..
I have pics of this line and would be glad to show anyone intereted. Just email me.

[rsdoran]

A PLC is an electronic device incorporating a microprocessor that was designed to replace relay control circuits. You connect inputs; buttons (start/stop etc), switches (toggle and limit), and more and the plc uses the program to initiate the output devices; motors, lights, etc.

ECIowner you can upload the pics here by clicking display pictures below the reply window.