Data logging from PLC to excel

rejoe.koshy

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Join Date
Dec 2011
Location
kolkata
Posts
193
Hey guys,
I am looking for a low cost solution to log data from PLC to excel directly.Is this possible without utilizing any software?...My application requirements are minimal , hence dont want to invest in a software.

Pls help!!
 
Hey guys,
I am looking for a low cost solution to log data from PLC to excel directly.Is this possible without utilizing any software?
Maybe someone with a pencil & notepad :ROFLMAO:

Ok, without knowing what PLC you're using, you'd need at least a driver to read data from the PLC and expose it to Excel via DDE.

Or you can try AdvancedHMI (do some google fu).
 
The first thing that comes to mind is XL Reporter. This automatically does exactly what you want: periodically saves PLC data into spreadsheets.

The other way to do it is more manual, but it still requires RSLinx Gateway or some other OPC server. You can copy references to live OPC tags directly into excel using the following procedure:

In RSLinx, click the Edit menu, then "Copy DDE/OPC Link." Select your processor and address in the dialog box and click OK.

Then in Excel, find the "Paste Special" command. Click "Paste Link" and then ensure "Unicode Text" is selected. The value in the address is now in your excel sheet. However, this only works with live values. If you want to do more, you'll need to write some custom VB code and embed it in your spreadsheet. Probably some button that copies the current values of the cell(s) with the OPC links to different cells and then build your report from that. You could probably even script it so that Windows periodically opens Excel, runs the VB code, and saves it off into a different file. Don't ask me how though, I have no idea where to start with that.

If you want any kind of automated data logging, put "cheap" out of your vocabulary right now. Either you pay for a package like XL Reporter, or you will spend more money in time and effort reinventing the wheel to make your own custom solution. Even with my "cheap" method above, you're still paying for an OPC server of some kind.
 
Last edited:
S7-1200

I am currently using a small lowcost siemens S7-1212 plc with an internal webserver. Im logging different temperatures and other values. It is very simple to log on to the plc via its ethernet adress and read out the excel files via the webserver. A disadvantege i is that the standart memory of the plc quickly runs up but you can bye a mmc card if you need more space.

Jonas.
 
There is an AdvancedHMI sample project that shows how to read Excel files and write the data to a PLC. It's easy to start with this demo and reverse the process to make it read from a PLC and write to an Excel spreadsheet:

https://sourceforge.net/projects/advancedhmi/files/advancedhmi/3.5/SampleProjects/

The project is setup for a ControlLogix, but using Visual Studio, just change the driver to the one for a MicroLogix.
 

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