Scribd
Upload
126 views

PLC Hardware Components

The document discusses the components and functions of a programmable logic controller (PLC) system. It describes: 1) The input/output section is where field devices connect and interface with the central processing unit. Modular PLCs use external I/O modules that plug into the main unit. 2) PLC memory stores information about input and output status using an addressing system to locate specific data. Addressing schemes include rack/slot and tag-based formats. 3) During each scan cycle the processor reads inputs, runs the user program, updates outputs, and performs housekeeping tasks to monitor the system in real time. The scan cycle time determines how fast the PLC can react to changes

Uploaded by

Joseph
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
126 views

PLC Hardware Components

The document discusses the components and functions of a programmable logic controller (PLC) system. It describes: 1) The input/output section is where field devices connect and interface with the central processing unit. Modular PLCs use external I/O modules that plug into the main unit. 2) PLC memory stores information about input and output status using an addressing system to locate specific data. Addressing schemes include rack/slot and tag-based formats. 3) During each scan cycle the processor reads inputs, runs the user program, updates outputs, and performs housekeeping tasks to monitor the system in real time. The scan cycle time determines how fast the PLC can react to changes

Uploaded by

Joseph
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 30

PLC Hardware Components

Frank D. Petruzella
The I/O Section
The input/output (I/O) section of a PLC is the section to which all fi eld
devices are connected and provides the interface between them and the CPU.
Input/output arrangements are built into a fi xed PLC while modular types use
external I/O modules that plug into the PLC.

Figure 2-1 Rack-based I/O section.


• Figure 2-1 illustrates a rack-based I/O section made up
of individual I/O modules. Input interface modules
accept signals from the machine or process devices
and convert them into signals that can be used by the
controller.
• Output interface modules convert controller signals
into external signals used to control the machine or
process.
• A typical PLC has room for several I/O modules,
allowing it to be customized for a particular application
by selecting the appropriate modules.
• Allen-Bradley controllers make a distinction between a PLC chassis and
rack as illustrated in Figure 2-2 . The hardware assembly that houses I/O
modules, processor modules, and power supplies is referred to as the
chassis. Chassis come in different sizes according to the number of slots
they contain. In general, they can have 4, 8, 12,or 16 slots.

Figure 2-2 Allen-Bradley PLC chassis and rack.


• A logical rack is an addressable unit consisting of 128 input
points and 128 output points.
• A rack uses 8 words in the input image table fi le and 8 words
in the output image table fi le.
• A word in the output image table fi le and its corresponding
word in the input image table fi le are called an I/O group.
• A rack can contain a maximum of 8 I/O groups (numbered
from 0 through 7) for up to 128 discrete I/O. There can be
more than one rack in a chassis and more than one chassis in
a rack.
PLC’s memory system
• The PLC’s memory system stores information about the status
of all the inputs and outputs. To keep track of all this
information, it uses a system called addressing.
• An address is a label or number that indicates where a certain
piece of information is located in a PLC’s memory.
• That way, if a PLC wants to find out information about a field
device, it knows to look in its corresponding address location.
• Examples of addressing schemes include rack/slot-based,
versions of which are used in Allen-Bradley PLC-5 and SLC 500
controllers, tag-based used in Allen-Bradley ControlLogix
controllers, and PC-based control used in soft PLCs.
In general, rack/slot-based addressing elements include:
Type— The type determines if an input or output is being
addressed
Slot— The slot number is the physical location of the I/O
module. This may be a combination of the rack number
and the slot number when using expansion racks.
Word and Bit— The word and bit are used to identify the
actual terminal connection in a particular I/O module. A
discrete module usually uses only one word, and each
connection corresponds to a different bit that makes up
the word.
• Illustrates the Allen-Bradley PLC-5 controller
addressing format. The following are typical
examples of input and output addresses:
• Figure 2-5 illustrates the Allen-Bradley SLC 500
controller addressing format.

Figure 2-4 Allen-Bradley PLC-5 rack/slot-based addressing format.


Source: Image Used with Permission of Rockwell Automation, Inc.
Figure 2-5 Allen-Bradley SLC 500 rack/slot-based addressing format.
Source: Image Used with Permission of Rockwell Automation, Inc.
Figure 2-6 SLC 500 bit level and word level addressing. ( a ) Bit level
addressing.
If the memory size is 1 K word ( Figure 3-5 ), it can store 1024 words or 16,384 (1024 3
16) bits of information using 16-bit words, or 32,768 (1024 3 32) bits using 32-bit
words.

Figure 3-4 A 16-bit word.

Figure 3-5 1-K word memory.


Figure 3-8 Addressing of I/O modules using the
octal numbering system.
Discrete I/O Modules
Discrete input modules perform four tasks in the PLC
control system. They:
• Sense when a signal is received from a field device.
• Convert the input signal to the correct voltage level for
the particular PLC.
• Isolate the PLC from fluctuations in the input signal’s
voltage or current.
• Send a signal to the processor indicating which sensor
originated the signal.
• Allen-Bradley modules are color-coded for
identification as follows:
Figure 2-21 illustrates the current flow relationship
between sinking and sourcing outputs to a DC output
module
Program Scan
• When a PLC executes a program, it must know—in real time—
when external devices controlling a process are changing.
During each operating cycle, the processor reads all the
inputs, takes these values, and energizes or de-energizes the
outputs according to the user program. This process is known
as a program scan cycle.
• Figure illustrates a single PLC operating cycle consisting of the
input scan, program scan, output scan, and housekeeping
duties. Because the inputs can change at any time, it
constantly repeats this cycle as long as the PLC is in the RUN
mode.
Figure PLC program scan cycle.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_b0S_UL0u4
• The time it takes to complete a scan cycle is called the scan
cycle time and indicates how fast the controller can react to
changes in inputs. The time required to make a single scan can
vary from about 1 millisecond to 20 milliseconds. If a
controller has to react to an input signal that changes states
twice during the scan time, it is possible that the PLC will
never be able to detect this change.
• For example, if it takes 8 ms for the CPU to scan a program,
and an input contact is opening and closing every 4 ms, the
program may not respond to the contact changing state. The
CPU will detect a change if it occurs during the update of the
input image table file, but the CPU will not respond to every
change. The scan time is a function of the following:
• The speed of the processor module
• The length of the ladder program
• The type of instructions executed
• The actual ladder true/false conditions
Figure 5-8 shows an overview of the data flow during the scan
process. For each rung executed, the PLC processor will:
• Examine the status of the input image table bits.
•Solve the ladder logic in order to determine logical
continuityUpdate the appropriate output image table bits, if
necessary.
•Copy the output image table status to all of the output
terminals. Power is applied to the output device if the output
image table bit has been previously set to a 1.
• Copy the status of all of the input terminals to the input image
table. If an input is active (i.e., there is electrical continuity), the
corresponding bit in the input image table will be set to a 1.
Overview of the data flow during the scan
process.
Figure Scan process applied to a single rung program.
Figure illustrates the scan process applied to a simple single rung program.
The operation of the scan process can be summarized as follows:
• If the input device connected to address I:3/6 is closed, the input module
circuitry senses electrical continuity and a 1 (ON) condition is entered into the
input image table bit I:3/6. During the program scan, the processor examines
bit I:3/6 for a 1 (ON) condition.
• In this case, because input I:3/6 is 1, the rung is said to be TRUE or have
logic continuity.
• The processor then sets the output image table bit O:4/7 to 1.
• The processor turns on output O:4/7 during the next I/O scan, and the
output device (light) wired to this terminal becomes energized.
• This process is repeated as long as the processor is in the RUN mode.
• If the input device opens, electrical continuity is lost, and a 0 would be
placed in the input image table. As a result, the rung is said to be FALSE due
to loss of logic continuity.
• The processor would then set the output image table bit O:4/7 to 0, causing
the output device to turn off.
There are two basic scan patterns that different PLC
manufacturers use to accomplish the scan function
Allen-Bradley PLCs use the horizontal scan by rung method. In
this system, the processor examines input and output
instructions from the fi rst command, top left in the program,
horizontally, rung by rung.
• Modicon PLCs use the vertical scan by column method. In this
system, the processor examines input and output instructions
from the top left command entered in the ladder diagram,
vertically, column by column and page by page.
Figure Scanning can be vertical or horizontal.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_b0S_UL0u4
END

You might also like