micrologix recall

[TimWilborne]

i get that unexpected run time error as well

Ok, I misunderstood one of your post and thought you said that it did fault with the output removed.

But the LED not working unless the laptop is plugged in still leads me to a ground problem

Or, is it possible that your 24 VDC is getting tied to your 120 VAC somewhere in your output wiring? You did say you switches had 120 VAC indicators. You are not using Neutral and 24 VDC common for the same thing are you?

 

[russrmartin]

I've seen the faults you posted about previously. After reading this post, #1, a 12 guage ground wire is plenty large enough, the 10 guage will not help, I seriously doubt. My first course of action would be to grab a different controller, download the existing program you're trying to use, and test again. If I had to bet, I'd say you have bogus processor.

Also, I may not be following this correctly, but are you wiring 2 contactors to the same output? If so, you may have a problem with the output handling the contactors. If this is indeed what you are doing, a way to check would be to use another output, program the coil to come on same as the output you're trying to use, and wire 1 contactor to both outputs and see if they fault.

 

[Hydro Power Guy]

You may also want to check your output with a small load, i.e. a control relay instead of testing it with no load attached.

 

[fleez28]

i made certain not to tie in the 24v common with the 120v neutral, completely seperate runs, my grounding seems fine, i get 0v to neutral and 120 from L1, i have no spare processor to test, i did test a small load (the switch light) and it worked fine, with the laptop connected though, and didn't work when disconnected, what i have is 2 contactors and 1 light off of 1 output, as i stated earlier they work fine individually but not together, which i need them to because i don't have anymore output terminals left, it seems the only way this works now is to just force on the outputs i need on and to just kill the power all together to stop it, my inputs do what they should in the program when these outputs are forced on, no faults occur, i hate to do this because i know it will eventually damage the memory permanently, but i'm at a loss to why this is happening

 

[TimWilborne]

The laptop in the equation is just baffling me.

Call your local distributor and see if they have a unit they could loan you that way you could eliminate the controller as the problem

 

[fleez28]

that's the part i don't get either, i can understand somewhat why the contactors could fault out the processor, but have no clue why the selector switch lights only light up with the laptop connected, going to try a few diffrent things and i'll give you an update soon

 

[TimWilborne]

Another thing that leads me to believe it is in the wiring is that your unit has relay outputs. Too much load would probably just burn them up, not fault the processor. I don't guess you have any wiring diagrams your could post do you? Heck a picture of it might help at this point.

 

[gbradley]

...what i have is 2 contactors and 1 light off of 1 output, as i stated earlier they work fine individually but not together,

Have you tried putting a relay in between your output and the contacters and light?
Perhaps too much current is flowing through the Micrologix output?

 

[Mickey]

If you are running your laptop from an AC adapter, disconnect it and run
only on batteries. This might lead to TWControls thought about a path
thru the laptop neutral or ground. Just a thought.

 

[TimWilborne]

Have you tried putting a relay in between your output and the contacters and light?
Perhaps too much current is flowing through the Micrologix output?

This one definately has me at a loss but the BWA has relay outputs, it wouldn't pull anymore current through the Micrologix. It is a contact closure.

If you are running your laptop from an AC adapter, disconnect it and run
only on batteries. This might lead to TWControls thought about a path
thru the laptop neutral or ground. Just a thought.

Excellent idea

 

[fleez28]

i'm on my way back in to check this out, i currently do not have a wiring diagram for this project, but will try and come up with something at least generic, good idea about disconnecting the adapter, i'll try that, i'm getting the feeling my voltage read from L1 to neutral was false, i'll need to try some of these suggestions and get back to you guys, again i much appreciate all the help

 

[ChuckM]

It seems I have one of these. Mine will run fine for a while, then throw out the Retentive Data Lost fault a couple of times in a week and go back to running OK. I was starting to wonder about it as it always seemed to do it on third shift when I was sleeping good.

 

[Mickey]

It seems I have one of these. Mine will run fine for a while, then throw out the Retentive Data Lost fault a couple of times in a week and go back to running OK. I was starting to wonder about it as it always seemed to do it on third shift when I was sleeping good.

http://domino.automation.rockwell.com/applications/kb/RAKB.nsf/0/4903CCF7CEC2E3CF85256AFB006EDF45?OpenDocument

 

[fleez28]

well i'm back, good thing is i resolved the light issue, the one that would only light up with the laptop hooked up, all i did is run a grounding jumper between the two seperate enclosures and upped it to a 12 awg wire, although both enclosures were grounded properly as individuals, i get the feeling that one ground run being quite a bit longer may of had something to do with it, now they're both tied in to on another and functional, unfortunately i have to wait until monday to put in an order for the surge suppressors i need for my contactors, so i'm still unsure if that will solve all my fault issues, if this doesn't work then i can be almost sure i have a defective controller....

by the way, i was on automation direct's web site looking for a surge suppressor that is compatable with my contactors and had no luck finding any in the same (GH) series, does anyone know of a vendor who stocks suppressors that can be universally used by any brand contactor, it seems everywhere i look the manufacturer states that their suppressors are designed specifically for a certain model in their product line

i have a 120v coil on it, and i don't need to mount it directly on the contactor, so just free leads from a suppressor is fine, i'll fabricate up a mounting bracket if needed

again i appreciate all the helpful suggestions

 

[russrmartin]

Surge suppressor or not, I'd advise using the output to turn on something like an ice cube relay, then letting the relay turn on your contactors. No particular reason other than my preference, but I'd sure think that your output is going to last longer, and if you don't have any other outputs to use, 1 bad output means you're buying a new processor. Just food for thought.

Russ