Programmable Logic Controllers (PLC)

PLCs (Programmable Logic Controller) and Safety PLCs are digital computers used for automation of electromechanical processes.

Programmable Logic Controllers:

• Control most any kind of machinery, process controls, assembly lines, test equipment, lighting, amusement park rides, etc.
• Designed to read multiple inputs and control multiple output arrangements.
• Designed to operate around extended temperature ranges, have immunity to electrical noise, and have resistance to vibration and impact.
• Today, known processing speeds are as fast as 9.5ns. A nanosecond (ns) is one billionth of a second.
• Operates in real time, output results must be produced in response to input conditions within a fixed time.
• Programmed in a variety of ways using Ladder Diagram (LD), Structured Text (ST), Sequential Function Chart (SFC), Function Block (FB), Instruction List (IL), PLC open motion control function blocks, Visual Basic, C, C++, and IEE 61131 programming languages.
• Programs for control machine operation are stored in battery-backed or non-volatile memory and can be OEM protected.
• Interconnection between HMI (Human to Machine Interface), OIT (Operator Interface Terminal) has become one the most interactive parts of the PLC family, therefore giving the operator a means of changing product, reading error messages, operating the machine in manual or automatic modes, viewing an operation through a camera, seeing the operations status, or almost anything you can think of.

Wizard Questions

1. What type of inputs and outputs are required and how many?
2. Are there any requirements for remote I/O, if so how many I/O and at what distance?
3. Are there any Servos, VFDs or Robots and how many?
4. Is there a HMI requirement, if so what size of HMI and how many?
5. Is there a need for Networking, if so what type of networking and how many connections?

If you have a automated process, machine or lighting requirement, Cates has a PLC solution!