Software Standards Run Amok
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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Do you think Bill Gates’ kitchen has a blender? Probably. But it’s probably not like the one you or I have. Maybe it’s made out of solid gold and maybe it has a nuclear power source, but most of all I imagine it has a fully fledged industrial control system. Now, imagine we’re programming the control system for this blender.
Dogs, Cats and Moody Machines
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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Ever wonder what the ladder logic for a cat would look like?
Standards for the Sake of Standards
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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I love standards. I wish we had more of them. I wish the IEC 61131-3 programming language standard was actually a standard and not a suggestion. But of course, sometimes we end up with standards we could do without…
Steps without Sequencers
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
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Sequencers can easily be replaced with logic made up of contacts and coils. Each step can be represented by a single coil that is sealed in when the step is complete.
Tag Based Controllers
Sunday, March 02, 2008
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Every PLC program needs a structured tag naming convention. When the machine was designed it was already broken down into zones, areas, stations, components – whatever. Tag names should reflect this.