Manufacturing Automation Was Just Waiting For A Programmable Automation Controller

Manufacturing Automation Was Just Waiting For A Programmable Automation Controller

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The programmable automation controller has sprung from the personal computer that came to life in the early 1980's. Before that time manufacturing automation was depending on a very structured, but very capable set of logic controllers. These ladder logic-based computers were extremely good at the jobs they had to do, even though they were limited in he scope of tasks that they could perform. The programmable logic controller could collect math data from a proportional integral derivative loop that is used to monitor the temperature of a processing operation. Even in such an operation as this the PLC would need assistance from added circuit boards so that temperature calculations could be done correctly. But that kind of task might be the limited scope of the ability for this PLC. Having it to perform other types of tasks like collecting and inserting data into a SQL database would be far out of its ability range. The tasks that it does are very specific and very technical in nature, but it has no ability to do a spectrum of tasks.

In the world of manufacturing automation there was a need for an expansion of capabilities over a range of jobs. A controller need to be a device that could perform duties like a PC, and extend the power and speed of manufacturing operations into a new more productive arena. The personal computer burst into the office environment and eliminated a lot of the drudgery of tasks that had to be manually done there. But the PC could not make a move from the office to the manufacturing operation either without some help from added devices. The PC was not able to do the process control tasks of the PLC, so it needed to utilize some of its memory expansion slots to add circuit boards that would allow it to do this. The fact that the PC had expandability in its basic configuration was one of the main characteristics that helped it move into the automation arena. Just having a few new boards added to the PC did not, however, make it the champion of automation that the PAC has become. Beefed up math processing capabilities, a rugged design that is able to operate in a harsh environments, and cranked up processing speed get it closer to the programmable automation controller we know and love.

The programmable automation controller that truly fills the needs of manufacturing automation must have a processor that runs in close synchronization with the software that instructs it. The PAC will be an individual platform much as a PC would be, but it would be able to do work in more than one domain. These would include the arena that used to be occupied by only the PLC, the logic domain. Other domains include motion, drive and process control. A real hallmark of this high-powered controller is the fact that it utilizes one development platform and one database for the storage of development tasks that can interact with many automation tasks. On that single development platform many different types of programs can written in many different languages to control and instruct the devices of manufacturing automation. The platform operates in an open architecture that allows for the expandability mentioned earlier. The PAC uses all the standard protocols and data transfer capabilities that allows it to be part of and communicate with the enterprise network. Data passes effectively from a PAC to the ERP system and other business related systems in the business,

When you purchase a programmable automation controller your cash outlay will be much less than if you had acquired another type system. The cost of these devices has fallen over the last few years. There is little doubt that you could not add help for a PLC to get the same processing abilities that you can get from a PAC that would cost less. Being able to change the configuration of a PLC to something different, in some cases would be difficult, in other cases, it would be impossible. However, the Programmable automation controller can be changed from tasks to task with low cost and little effort. The PLC is not designed to perform multitasking that is built into the basic design of the PAC. Language extensions on the PAC give it a further ability to get automation jobs done. For instance, some programming languages have the ability to create a blocked off memory space in RAM while a program is running. In these allocated memory space a dynamic link library can be executed to perform some special task that might be required by automation. Sometimes this DLL is written in a programming language other then the one that is used to call it to memory to run.

The PAC has inherited the open capabilities of the PC, but it has had to take on some other characteristics to make it of excellent use in the manufacturing automation arena.

About the Author:
John Mitchell is President of Provision, Inc, an online publisher of information about the application of automation in manufacturing. The company website, http://www.provinc.net, assists companies in evaluating the benefits and capabilities of automation components. Requests for quotations for automation can be submitted to the consulting engineers of leading automation companies.



Article Originally Published On: http://www.articlesnatch.com


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