Connecting a PLC via USB cable

[Jowsh]

Hello everyone, first of all thankyou for all the help you've given me through other peoples' Q&A's.

My situation is;
-I am halfway through programing a PLC
-My old computer died, so I bought a new one, which doesn't have the port for the RS232. So to counter this, I got a cable that goes from the PLC to USB ~ Problem is, in RXLinx I have no idea how to find it.

Any help on how to configure RSLinx would be greatly appreciated

Thanks

Josh

 

[Bob O]

Welcome to the forum.
You need to buy a USB to Serial Converter and they are not all equal. Search the forum and you should be able to locate a brand that others recommend to be used with AB.

Good Luck

 

[Ron Beaufort]

Greetings Josh ...

a Keyspan is my favorite brand – it seems to work best with the RSLinx DF1 driver's Autoconfigure feature ...

suggestion: try the DF1 Autoconfigure button – you might get lucky ...

if the brand that you bought won't Autoconfigure, then you'll have to enter in all of the PLC's connection parameters (baud rate, parity, etc.) manually ...

the best headstart on what to enter is to open your latest program file (offline of course) and check the Channel Configuration to see what settings are being used ...

as for the "Comm Port" setting, you might just have to experiment and try one setting after another until you find your USB device ...

worse news: some USB to Serial adapters just don't seem to work reliably with RSLinx at all ... if yours seems to fall into that category, buy a Keyspan and that should take care of most of your connection problems ...

you might also post again and tell us what brand you bought – and exactly what model of PLC you're working with ... maybe someone can come up with some more detailed suggestions ... the more we know, the more we can help ...

survival tip: always ask the forum for advice BEFORE you buy something like this ...

hope this helps - and welcome to the forum ...

 

[rdrast]

So far, my Keyspan adapter has worked with every piece of equipment I've tried, with the added bonus of holding its actual comm port number setting no matter what USB port it's plugged in to.

 

[JesperMP]

To add to Rons suggestions:

In the setup of the USB to serial driver, you probably have to select a COM port. RSLinx does not "find" this COM port automatically, you have to specify it in the setup dialog of the DF1 driver.

 

[Jowsh]

Ok thanks for all the replies.,
@Ron, the model of the PLC is "MicroLogix 1000"
The cable I have is;
Standard PLC > RS232 with a RS232 > USB2.0 adapter on the end.

Thanks for the tip, I only found these forums when I started encountering problems -.-

Thanks

 

[mordred]

For a micrologix 1000 you need 1747-PM02 cable
the keyspan USB adaptor does work well other USB adaptors that do is the AB-9300USBS
also the Omron CIF31
however the Omron does not work on the contrologix platform at higher communication rates which is why I bought the AB model. (don't have the Keyspan but been on this site listening to everyone recommending it to know it works well)


Sometimes you can get away with off the shelf USB converters however they do not work in all cases

 

[TConnolly]

It is also a good idea to change the power management settings of your USB ports if you are going to be using it to communicate with a PLC. Right click "My Computer" Pick properties. Then pick the hardware tab and open the device manager. Click the + to expand Universal Serial Buss Controllers. Right click on USB Root Hub(S) and pick properties. Click on the Power management tab and uncheck the Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power box.

 

[MrDavid62]

Thanks Ron! although this post is 13 years old your suggestion here saved the day! I have been fighting with this issue for three days with my new laptop.

Ironically I should of remembered that's how you did it because I was a former student of yours in Charleston around 7 years ago!
Thanks again!

 

[tripstuf2]

+1 for the Keyspan USA19hs...also when you hook up, you can go to device manager and select the keyspan usb serial port in the drop down, it should show deice with a (com#) for the address it uses. You can click on the port settings tab and set your comm protocol. Then hit the advanced tab and it will allow you to change the com port to whatever you need.(ie...com3).

This has been my goto for years, it works.

 

[parky]

you have to be careful on selecting the right USB/232 converter there are plenty on those websites like well you know which ones many are the older chipsets & they have been superceeded there are no drivers for win10/11 so will not work on anything above win7. tried in vain to find a driver for one but no success. cannot remember which chipset it is but believe it was the PL203 or something like that.

 

[tripstuf2]

The Keyspan USA19hs works with win 10/11, I have both and NO issues whatsoever. I believe they are now Tripplite/Eaton owned.

 

[joseph_e2]

It's interesting to see ghost threads pop up with the same answer still being the right one. I still have my original USA19HS adapter that I bought in 2011 after using someone else's and seeing reviews (probably this thread...). It's been taped closed for at least 6 or 7 years after bouncing off the concrete floor one time too many. And it still works perfectly. The only devices it hasn't worked with also haven't worked with any other virtual COM port (PIC module, PLC2 adapter from Excel Automation) and only work with built-in ports. Ironically, it works better with AB devices than AB's way more expensive model.

 

[arpus4KM]

Another vote for the USA19HS. The software it comes with it very handy as well, has diagnostics built in as well as a snooper too!

Also, they have drivers that run back to windows 98 for the USA19HS, so it's an option for almost any computer that you need an adapter for.

 

[OkiePC]

Since we're reviving a dead horse, I will beat on it some too.

I have 3 different USB to RS232 converters and one of them is also an old taped together USA-19HS. My favorite of the three is this one:

https://www.plccable.com/industrial-usb-rs232-usb-serial-plc-programming-w7-xp-rs232/

It's got lights and a nice long cable.

But there was one device that neither of those would work with but a cheap old crusty Goldstar that I found in the bottom of a pile of cables I inherited did work. Carry more than one. One day it will pay off and reinforce the pack rat habit.