Siemens to AB software translation

[Ken J]

Some Indian, who has never programmed a PLC in his lifetime, is telling me that AB has a software program that will translate Siemens ladder logic directly into AB ladder logic. I have never heard of such program. I have programmed AB RS Logix 500 for almost 10 years and just started programming Siemens this year.
He also insists that Siemens can do the same thing with AB ladder logic.

Comments are welcomed.

 

[PhilipW]

I wouldn't be surprised if such tools exist in-house. I know for example that RA have an in-house web tool to convert Wonderware projects to RSView32.

Typically they are kept up their sleeve for competitive account attacks and such tools generally are not a 100% conversion. They can't be as PLC/HMI feature sets do not map 100% onto each other. For example how would ControlLogix currently handle an S7 Derived Function Block?

CLX can achieve much the same result, but at the current Version it does not support a direct FB format. The I/O and comms structures are totally different, the task and program organisation are quite different, etc. The rules around defining UDT's are different, the optimisation of data structures, and so on are all different.

Of course the ability to convert the logic from one format to the other is valuable, but it cannot be more than 85% of the job at best. And the end the result may be a kludge anyhow.

On the other hand who knows what some clever Indian in a Bangalore software lab has dreamed up...

 

[darrenj]

i second PhilipW's statment..even if it was "translated" i wouldnt trust it..Cutler hammer translated some HMI files for me from Panelmate 1000- panel mate 5000.. All of the info got across but the spacing, sizing and centering was a mess..I had to go thro 10 pages of each HMI (there was 7 HMI's..thats 70 pages!!) re spacing and changing Font sizes...While the conversion saved some time in retro spect it didnt save a whole lot..

 

[Unregistered]

I work with people like this all the time (and when I say like this , I mean like this) . I have guys who have the gaul to tell me how to solve problems , when you wouldn't let them change the batteries on a handlamp .
I tend to call them the SAS (stand and stare) .
I find the best test is to give them the job - you will soon find that this software becomes quickly unavailable mister .
As we all know conversion between platforms inside one manufacture is a pain , jusy how you expect to convert between manufacturers I don't know .
What would happen if most of my Siemens routines where FB's , it would be a pain to convert by hand yet alone using software.

 

[DanielCamacho]

My opinion...

If you think of the different softwares as Languages... then go to some of the online language translaters you will see that they can not translate 100%. Then if you gave the same text to a person skilled in both languages to translate you will get 100%. My point is that there is no possible way to do this with software... You will end up with code, but it will not be usable, and the time to troubleshoot will cost you more in the long run than to hire someone who speaks/codes the language.

 

[JesperMP]

Having worked a bit Siemens and AB, my sincere estimation is that an automatic translation from Siemens to AB is impossible.
This because most "real" S7 programs contain some Statement List code.
S7 STL can only be reliably converted to AB Ladder by a seasoned programmer.

If the S7 code is 100% Ladder, then I think it could be done.

 

[Ken M]

I think you can consider Siemens' own conversion software to translate from TI to S7 as an example here. In this case Siemens had full access to both sets of operating system code given that they had bought TI's controls business.

But anyone who has used this package (supplied with STEP7, just like the S5 to S7 translator) will know that it ends up trying to recreate a TI PLC in an S7 environment. It loses many of the nice touches that the TI system had (was there ever a better single instruction than TI's drum timer? - quick, someone start a new poll) and it doesn't make use of many of the intrinsic features which are in S7 PLCs. And of course there are elements which just can not be translated automatically at all: for example, if there are any references in the TI program to Status Words, the translator leaves this to the user to decide how they want to handle it.

And with reference to DanielCamacho's analogy to human languages, take two people who speak both languages in question and ask them to do separate translations. You'll get two different versions as a result. Who is to judge which is the better and reflects more accurately the original intention of the source material?

Don't worry guys, programmers aren't out of a job yet!

Regards

Ken.