Developing a hybrid programmable logic controller platform for a flexible manufacturing system

Material handling in manufacturing systems is becoming easier as the automated machine technology is improved. Nowadays, most of the research aims at increasing the flexibility and improving the performance of the automatic guided vehicle (AGV). In this paper, designed and made AGV in the Industrial Control Laboratory in Royce Lab at the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology will be presented. For controlling the navigation of the AGV, a newly developed controller integrated fuzzy logic with programmable logic controller will be used. By using integrated fuzzy logic controller with programmable logic controller (IFLPLC), the flexibility of AGV will be increased and we achieved great advantages, which can be used in future. Since this AGV uses programmable logic controller and fuzzy logic controllers together, then it will be useful for factories which implement flexible manufacturing system (FMS). Online maintenance and sending the commands to other machines from AGV and so on are the advantages that can be used in FMS. The aim of this paper is to propose the practical example of IFLPLC. The designed AGV is able to reach the target. Further researches are required for collision avoidance and selecting the best way in FMS

With the rapid advancement of science and technology, the role of technology in industry is also increasing, particularly through automation that simplifies and enhances work process efficiency. To support this development, education plays a crucial role in enhancing students' competencies. One relevant subject in industrial technology is Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). In PLC education, trainer tools are used to help students understand industrial control concepts. At Politeknik Manufaktur Bandung, particularly in the Mechatronics and Automation Engineering Technology programs, the use of PLC trainers is still limited to basic input-output features. Survey results show that most students only understand Ethernet communication protocol and have never connected more than one PLC in a single system, resulting in a limited understanding of inter-PLC communication. This research aims to develop a trainer that teaches various PLC communication protocols, including Controller Link, DeviceNet, Serial RS-232C, and Ethernet, with inter-PLC and HMI communication implementation. The system uses three PLCs, where an Omron CP1H PLC as the master uses Controller Link to communicate with another Omron CP1H PLC as a slave, DeviceNet for remote slave devices, Serial RS-232C to communicate with an Omron CJ2M PLC as a slave, and Ethernet connected to Human Machine Interfaces (HMI) Omron NB7W and Kinco GL070E for PLC data monitoring. Based on the assessment results, the overall trainer tool evaluated received an effectiveness score of 95.1% from 6 aspects of the assessment. This trainer is expected to enhance students’ understanding of PLC communication protocols and their applications in integrated systems.

The characteristics and applications of the system for welding machines based on SCM , based on PLC control system and PC-based industrial control system was introduced. It has certain significance to the design of welding machine control system.

This paper proposes a machine vision module for PLCs (Programmable Logic Controllers). PLC is the industrial controller most widely used in factory automation system. However most of the machine vision systems are based on PC (Personal Computer). The machine vision system embedded in PLC is required to reduce the cost and improve the convenience of implementation. In this paper, we newly propose a machine vision module based on PLC. The image processing libraries are implemented and integrated with the PLC programming tool. In order to interface the libraries with ladder programming, the ladder instruction set was also designed for each vision library. By use of the developed system, PLC users can implement vision systems easily by ladder programming. The developed system was applied to sample inspection system to verify the performance. The experimental results show that the proposed system can reduce the cost of installing as well as increase the ease-of-implementation.

A vacuum-pump control system has been developed using programmable-logic controllers (PLC) for the 2.5-GeV storage ring at the Photon Factory, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization (KEK). There are sixty-six Ti-getter vacuum pumps at the storage ring. Evacuation of gases in the storage ring is done by controlling the current in the titanium filaments in the vacuum pump (max 50 A). A PLC has a TCP/IP network port, 16-bit-digital output ports connected to sixteen solid-state relays (SSR) for current control. The PLC can simultaneously control up to sixteen pumps. These vacuum pumps are connected to SSRs which chop the AC current so as to control the current in the pumps. To operate the pumps, the pump current must have a trapezoidal-shaped current form. The PLC is configured so that the current in the pumps has a trapezoidal form associated with pre-heating, evacuation, and cooling-down phases of the pump. PLCs are connected to a personal computer (PC) through the network. The PC can automatically control the PLCs by sending a set of commands through the TCP/IP network. The commands specify the duration of the current form. Upon receiving a command from a PC running under WindowsNT through the network, the PLC generates pulse-trains through the digital output ports to trigger the SSRs in association with the operating phases. The design of the vacuum-pump control system is discussed.

Programmable logic controller (PLC) is a reliable platform for regulatory control in industrial environment. Capability of PLC as an automation solution platform is getting enhanced over the years. Advancements in PLC capability open up possibility of deploying advanced control and optimization solutions on PLC. Optimization solver is primary building block of the advanced automation solutions; feasibility of deploying open source optimization solvers on PLC is uncertain because of platform related constraints. This work evaluates feasibility of deploying open source optimization solvers on PLC and highlights deployment challenges for PLC platform. Optimization complexity is varied using widely used generalized test functions to assess limitations of PLC platform. A realistic case study of parallel compressor train load allocation optimization is presented to validate the analysis findings and discuss a practical application of optimization on PLC platform.

Water level control and pressure control are implemented in many at several industrial processing such as water dam, petrochemical processing plant, pharmacy and food processing plant, overhead tank, waste processing plant, electricity plant, etc. This study analyses a simulation and a needed components for automatically water level control system implementation using programmable logic controller (PLC). The water level control using PLC is designed to control the water level and prevent waste the water from a water tank. PLC is one of devices of automated controller which mostly used. Use of PLCs in industries are indispensable to control parameters which required high precision. In this research studies water level control system using PLC as primary controller and human machine interface (HMI) as remote controller that could visualize state of a system work (plant) in real time on computer screen and could gather field data as well. Main device for this research is Omron PLC CP2E type and touchscreen HMI Omron. At the prototype is used a water tank and a water container (to be one with the water resource), and in the HMI is showed the pages of home, control panel, and plant. From the result of the diagram ladder and the HMI design are got the system run well. The application from this research could be learning media in the system control laboratory for the subject of industrial control system and the others, related to it.


 In this project, design and construction of an educational module has been carry out, allowing understand in a practical way, the concepts related to: control system, instrumentation, actuator, programmable logic controller, SCADA system and control algorithm. Module’s principal components are main tank, reserve tank, piping system, fittings, differential pressure transducer, turbine flowmeter, rotameter, control valve, solenoid valves, servovalve, centrifugal pump, PLC and a personal computer (PC). With this, automatic flow and water level control were achieve, through the implementation of a PID control algorithm. In the end, operation tests have been perform, generating changes in set point, and generating disturbances, to observe the response of the process and assess the control system.
 
 Keywords — control system, instrumentation, flow control, level control, PLC, SCADA, PID controller

Industrial communications play a key role in data management of industrial process. Devices from different types of manufacturers needs to exchange information in order to meet the specifications of the process. This paper presents implementation of the communication between Siemens PLC (Programmable Logic Controller) and Eaton Variable Frequency Drive (VFD) monitored by HMI (Human Machine Interface). The stand contains PLC, HMI, Variable Frequency Drive, electrical sliding couple, electrical sliding brake, LAN module, DIN rail, circuit breakers, electrical wires, communication cables and tower lights. The Siemens PLC S7-1200 has attached a PROFIBUS-DP Master Communication module CM 1243-5 manufactured by Siemens, which communicate by PROFIBUS cable with Eaton SVX 9000 PROFIBUS DP option board. The hardware configuration contains modules interconnected by PROFIBUS and Ethernet/IP protocols. The software, including PLC programming and HMI, is designed to control the motor by VFD through PROFIBUS. The system is controlled by PLC locally but also the control can be performed through Web.

A model based on a Petri net (PN) is proposed for controlling flexible manufacturing systems (FMSs). The model can describe not only normal sequential processes but also interruptive exceptional handling processes by means of simple structures. A layered structure and two types of token are introduced into a PN to describe exception handling and error recovery. An application in which this model was used to program a programmable logic controller (PLC) is described. The description of cell control can be simplified by the model. >

Method for Increasing Energy Efficiency in Flexible Manufacturing Systems: A Case Study

In order to develop, test, and validate system control software for managing flexible manufacturing systems, most laboratories have constructed an experimental testbed using actual manufacturing equipment. These experimental systems typically occupy a large amount of lab space, cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to construct, and require considerable human expertise to operate. In addition, given their experimental nature, there is little or no opportunity to recapture the costs through the manufacturing of commercial products. We propose an alternative solution for providing the essential testbed. Using dedicated micro-controllers (programmable logic controllers), we have developed a physical emulator for a flexible manufacturing cell which faithfully replicates the operating characteristics of an ensemble of physical equipment that would typically comprise a flexible manufacturing system. The proposed system has several unique advantages over the traditional testbeds. First, it is inexpensive and can easily be replicated at other laboratories. Second, it can be easily reconfigured to consider alternative manufacturing scenarios. Third, it can consider an emulated environment that is far more complex than those that are typically addressed by testbeds using actual equipment. Finally, it is totally reliable and safe, and it requires minimal expertise to operate. The paper discusses the design and operational characteristics of the developed emulator along with its anticipated uses and current limitations.

FTU toroidal magnet power supply slow control using ITER CODAC Core System

The paper introduces a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) / Human Machine Interface (HMI) system incorporated along with machine learning (ML) classifiers. Although some other studies have incorporated ML techniques to predict and control petroleum product terminals in terms of concentration, the proposed framework incorporates Add On Instruction (AOI) programming, PLC, and ML methods to automatically monitor petroleum products terminals. The framework adds an AOI in programming to achieve maximum usage of processor capabilities. Moreover, it uses AOI for programming in cooperation with the ladder diagram (LD). This leads to simplifying the LD graphical programming language, reducing the time of scanning, and making facilitate troubleshooting. The AOI is merged with ML to automate tank level detection and maintain good operational conditions and consequently protect these expensive essential assets. The introduced framework consists of three stages. The first stage is the PLC programming phase where the PLC is created using Add-On instructions. Next, HMI graphic displays are drawn and linked to the PLC tags in the following stage. During the third stage, the actual process readings are applied to the system based on ML algorithms to test its functionality. The proposed system results indicates a reduction in the LD number, highest program size, and maximum time of scanning. The results indicate that the AOI can help to trace the program more easily in fault situations. Besides, additional program instructions could reduce processor memory, system construction costs, and upgrade projects.

Use of computer aided management information systems in the food and beverage industry in Germany