31
Technical support / COM1, Pin 4: Is this required?
« on: May 18, 2004, 03:59:34 PM »
What are the consequences of leaving COM1, pin 4 unconnected on the T100MD888+?
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32
Technical support / Output state on powerup
« on: May 17, 2004, 11:22:47 PM »
Whenever I power up our T100MD888+ PLC some of the outputs get energized which in turn causes whatever actuators are connected to them to suddenly move. In some cases this can be a problem. Is there any way to control this?
33
Technical support / Connecting 2-wire Turck prox.
« on: May 16, 2004, 08:29:09 PM »
I'm trying to connect a 2-wire inductive proximity sensor by Turck (part # Bi1.5-G08M-AD6X-H1341) to our T100MD PLC but I'm having some difficulty. I can see that the input's LED is dimly lit when the prox is off but it then comes on bright when the prox is on. However the PLC software never registers the input as being on.
According to Turck's catalog this sensor has a voltage drop of <= 6.2 V @100 mA when triggered but I'm actually measuring 4.6 V at the input when the sensor is on. Am I cutting it too close to the 0 - 5 V range required for an on condition as quoted in the T100MD installation manual? Can anyone recommend a simple way to lower this voltage so that the PLC will see the input properly?
I guess I'm confused because this is backwards from what I envision as a leakage problem. Usually in the off state the leakage of the sensor triggers the input but this seems to be a different issue.
edit: I dealt with this using a separate relay. Messy but it seems to be the only way.
According to Turck's catalog this sensor has a voltage drop of <= 6.2 V @100 mA when triggered but I'm actually measuring 4.6 V at the input when the sensor is on. Am I cutting it too close to the 0 - 5 V range required for an on condition as quoted in the T100MD installation manual? Can anyone recommend a simple way to lower this voltage so that the PLC will see the input properly?
I guess I'm confused because this is backwards from what I envision as a leakage problem. Usually in the off state the leakage of the sensor triggers the input but this seems to be a different issue.
edit: I dealt with this using a separate relay. Messy but it seems to be the only way.
34
Technical support / Stepper motor unable to run above ~13kHz
« on: May 11, 2004, 10:58:08 PM »
I'm not trying to blame my problems on the T100MD888+. I just figured someone here might have some advice.
I've got an Anaheim 23MD series motor (combined stepper/driver deal) connected to my TriPLC. Whenever I try to drive it with frequencies approaching 13, 14, 15 kHz and higher it won't spin but it does whine like it's spinning.
The motor specs claim the following:
Maximum clock frequency: 500 kHz
Minimum clock pulse width: 1.0 microseconds
I would think this motor would be sufficient to handle whatever the TriPLC can put out for a clock signal.
Maybe my power supply is the problem? I'm using a Sola SDP4-24-100T (24V, 4.2A) to power the motor and the PLC.
Is this not uncommon? What should I be targeting if I want to try to overcome this?
I've got an Anaheim 23MD series motor (combined stepper/driver deal) connected to my TriPLC. Whenever I try to drive it with frequencies approaching 13, 14, 15 kHz and higher it won't spin but it does whine like it's spinning.
The motor specs claim the following:
Maximum clock frequency: 500 kHz
Minimum clock pulse width: 1.0 microseconds
I would think this motor would be sufficient to handle whatever the TriPLC can put out for a clock signal.
Maybe my power supply is the problem? I'm using a Sola SDP4-24-100T (24V, 4.2A) to power the motor and the PLC.
Is this not uncommon? What should I be targeting if I want to try to overcome this?
35
Technical support / Writing Single Digital Output
« on: May 11, 2004, 05:24:54 AM »
I noticed there is a potential issue with the Write Outputs command "WO" when using Host Communications. If any outputs are supposed to be controlled locally by the PLC then sending a "WO" command can override that control. One example where this is a problem is when using a stepper motor. The direction output gets "confused".
So am I right in determining that the only way to remotely control individual outputs rather than entire banks is to use the MODBUS protocol?
So am I right in determining that the only way to remotely control individual outputs rather than entire banks is to use the MODBUS protocol?
36
Technical support / Output LEDs partially lit when off
« on: May 02, 2004, 02:56:38 PM »
I've got an Anaheim Automation 23MD series motor/drive attached to a T100MD1616+ here. I purchased the sinking version (23MD106S-00-00-00) of the Anaheim motor
I connected the direction and clock inputs to outputs 1 and 5, respectively, on the T100 PLC and when I power everything up those two output LEDs on the PLC are "partially" lit even though the outputs are off. I can clearly see that the direction LED toggles between bright and dim as I toggle the output.
Everything seems to work fine but I was wondering if I should be worried about this. Is this normal? What's causing it?
I connected the direction and clock inputs to outputs 1 and 5, respectively, on the T100 PLC and when I power everything up those two output LEDs on the PLC are "partially" lit even though the outputs are off. I can clearly see that the direction LED toggles between bright and dim as I toggle the output.
Everything seems to work fine but I was wondering if I should be worried about this. Is this normal? What's causing it?
37
General Discussions / Question about shielding
« on: April 08, 2004, 08:11:17 AM »
Ok, fundamentals here.
1) When using shielded cable you only connect one end of the shield, right?
2) Does the shield connect to the chassis or should it connect to DC ground?
3) If answer to #2 above was chassis then should I expect trouble if AC ground is also connected to the chassis?
1) When using shielded cable you only connect one end of the shield, right?
2) Does the shield connect to the chassis or should it connect to DC ground?
3) If answer to #2 above was chassis then should I expect trouble if AC ground is also connected to the chassis?
38
Technical support / Discovering PLCID via TBasic?
« on: March 24, 2004, 01:30:27 PM »
Is there a way for an M-series PLC to determine it's own PLCID via TBasic?
I want to interact with the PLC via the RS485 port but I also want to put other devices (namely the ICP I-7018 thermocouple module) on the same RS485 line. Unfortunately, ICP has chosen to use their own protocol rather than implementing MODBUS so I was hoping to write some TBasic code that can figure out how to handle ICP-style messages that are addressed to the PLC's ID. But I want the PLC to be able to handle whatever address is assigned to it in case I have several PLC's on the line.
Or does anyone have any other ideas for dealing with this situation? I find it really frustrating when companies offer products that use RS485 but don't adhere to any of the standard protocols for communicating on party lines. Are they so egocentric that they think people have no need for other company's products in their applications? Sure, I could add a second RS485 port to deal with ICP's modules but this is added complexity (and cost and wiring) that I really don't need.
I want to interact with the PLC via the RS485 port but I also want to put other devices (namely the ICP I-7018 thermocouple module) on the same RS485 line. Unfortunately, ICP has chosen to use their own protocol rather than implementing MODBUS so I was hoping to write some TBasic code that can figure out how to handle ICP-style messages that are addressed to the PLC's ID. But I want the PLC to be able to handle whatever address is assigned to it in case I have several PLC's on the line.
Or does anyone have any other ideas for dealing with this situation? I find it really frustrating when companies offer products that use RS485 but don't adhere to any of the standard protocols for communicating on party lines. Are they so egocentric that they think people have no need for other company's products in their applications? Sure, I could add a second RS485 port to deal with ICP's modules but this is added complexity (and cost and wiring) that I really don't need.
39
Technical support / Internal Memory vs. Data Memory
« on: February 12, 2004, 07:40:12 PM »
Other than the bit-size is there any significant difference between using the built-in internal memory variables (A thru Z) and data memory (DM[1], etc)? Is the internal memory faster?
40
Opinions & Feedback / Web boards WERE very slow (yay)
« on: February 10, 2004, 10:01:17 AM »
I realize these boards aren't all that active so there probably isn't a priority to get them running faster but sometimes it feels like you're serving them through a dial-up connection or something. It's especially frustrating when I see that I'm the only one viewing them.
Or is it just me?
Anyway, I'm not demanding improvements -- just thought I'd offer some constructive feedback.
Or is it just me?
Anyway, I'm not demanding improvements -- just thought I'd offer some constructive feedback.
41
Opinions & Feedback / Product suggestion
« on: February 11, 2004, 09:54:28 AM »
One thing that I don't like about the T100MD888+ I've been working with this week is the style of connector used for the I/O. The main problem is that they are very difficult to pull off -- especially once the board is mounted inside a cabinet and there's no place to fit a screwdriver to pry up the connector.
I seriously worry that I'm going to damage the board -- either the header pins or else a nearby component.
I suppose Phoenix connectors are pricey options but there has to be something better than what's on there now that is still somewhat affordable.
Anyway, just a thought.
I seriously worry that I'm going to damage the board -- either the header pins or else a nearby component.
I suppose Phoenix connectors are pricey options but there has to be something better than what's on there now that is still somewhat affordable.
Anyway, just a thought.
42
Technical support / Bizarre LCD display problem
« on: April 23, 2003, 03:35:27 PM »
We just bought a T100MD888+ starter kit along with the MD-HMI interface and as soon as I powered it up I started seeing strange things on the display.
It looked like there was supposed to be some sort of default welcome screen with a clock and some other stuff but many of the characters where wrong--to the point where it was almost unreadable. I was hoping it was just a corrupted program or something.
But now I think that something is faulty. I created a test program that printed screenfulls of each printable ASCII character and it's pretty obvious that something is wrong. Every other character in the ASCII set had problems. By that I mean characters with an odd ASCII code printed fine while those with even ASCII codes had trouble.
Has anyone else seen this or should I just arrange for an RMA and get a new HMI or PLC?
It looked like there was supposed to be some sort of default welcome screen with a clock and some other stuff but many of the characters where wrong--to the point where it was almost unreadable. I was hoping it was just a corrupted program or something.
But now I think that something is faulty. I created a test program that printed screenfulls of each printable ASCII character and it's pretty obvious that something is wrong. Every other character in the ASCII set had problems. By that I mean characters with an odd ASCII code printed fine while those with even ASCII codes had trouble.
Has anyone else seen this or should I just arrange for an RMA and get a new HMI or PLC?
43
Technical support / Linux?
« on: May 05, 2003, 05:55:53 AM »
Since TLServer is apparantly a pure java program, am I correct in assuming it should run in Linux once the Linux version of the Java runtimes are installed?
If so, is anyone doing this? Any feedback?
The pain and suffering of keeping computers up to date and legit with Microsoft's bloated software isn't worth it for an application like this. Leaving TLServer running on someone's working desktop makes it vulnerable to too much (accidental closure, etc.). Having it running on and old discarded PC running Linux that no one would bother would be so much more attractive.
If so, is anyone doing this? Any feedback?
The pain and suffering of keeping computers up to date and legit with Microsoft's bloated software isn't worth it for an application like this. Leaving TLServer running on someone's working desktop makes it vulnerable to too much (accidental closure, etc.). Having it running on and old discarded PC running Linux that no one would bother would be so much more attractive.
44
Technical support / Separate power supply for an output?
« on: May 08, 2003, 05:32:40 PM »
I'm running my T100MD-888+ with a 24v power supply. I have an LED strip that requires 12v and I want to use one of the PWM outputs as a "dimmer". Can I connect a separate 12v supply to this load or am I asking for trouble.
45
Technical support / Jogging with a joystick
« on: August 05, 2003, 01:16:55 PM »
I'm thinking about using the T100MD888+ as a 2-axis stepper controller. I want to do this using an analog joystick. I read this post but something about this answer bothers me.
A joystick should be controlling speed and direction, not distance (typically). Converting the joystick value to a distance and then plugging that into a call to STEPMOVE doesn't sound right to me. Wouldn't you get a "stuttering" effect as the motor accelerates and decelerates repeatedly for each STEPMOVE call? Can you call STEPSPEED on the fly to change pps?
So am I missing something? Is it possible to use the T100MD888+ for smooth jogging using a joystick?
A joystick should be controlling speed and direction, not distance (typically). Converting the joystick value to a distance and then plugging that into a call to STEPMOVE doesn't sound right to me. Wouldn't you get a "stuttering" effect as the motor accelerates and decelerates repeatedly for each STEPMOVE call? Can you call STEPSPEED on the fly to change pps?
So am I missing something? Is it possible to use the T100MD888+ for smooth jogging using a joystick?