IEC61131

ControlIT
IEC 61131 Control Languages

Introduction
IEC 61131 Control Languages

Introduction
Copyright 1999 ABB Automation Products AB. The contents of this document can be changed by ABB Automation Products AB without prior notice and do not constitute any binding undertakings from ABB Automation Products AB. ABB Automation Products AB is not responsible under any circumstances for direct, indirect, unexpected damage or consequent damage that is caused by this document. All rights reserved. Release: October 2001 Document number: 3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B Printed in Sweden.
Trademarks
Registered trademarks from other companies are: Microsoft, Windows, Windows NT from Microsoft Corporation. PostScript and Acrobat Reader from Adobe Systems Inc. FIX from Intellution and 3964R from Siemens.
3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B
Contents
1 Evolution of Control Systems
1.1 1.2 1.3 Introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . History . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Control Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Monitoring Subsystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sequencing Subsystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Closed-loop Control Subsystems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Relay Logic . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Computers for Process Control . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Programming Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Programmable Controllers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . I/O Units . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Programming Methods . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Computer-based Programming Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cyclic Execution . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Distributed Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Soft PLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Programming Dialects . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Software Quality . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Software Cost . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Portable Software Applications . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reusable Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Communication with Other Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Main Objectives . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Benefits Offered by the Standard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Well-structured Software . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Five Languages for Different Needs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Software Exchange between Different Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PLCopen Trade Association . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
9
9 10 12 12 12 13 13 15 16 19 20 20 21 22 23 23
1.4 1.5 1.6
Why Open Systems are Needed

2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6
25
25 25 26 27 28 28
IEC 61131-3 Standard

3.1 3.2
31
31 32 32 32 33 33
3.3
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Contents
Programming Languages
4.1 4.2 Overview . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Common Elements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Identifiers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Constant Literals . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Variables . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ladder Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Easy to Understand . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weak Software Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Limited Support for Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Difficult to Reuse Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Instruction List . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL Language Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . IL Instruction Set . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Best System Performance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Weak Software Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Machine-dependent Behavior . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Structured Text . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Operators in Expressions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Conditional Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Calling Function Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Suitable for Complex Calculations and Looping . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . High Threshold for Programmers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Function Block Diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Syntax for Function Block Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Standard Function Block Types . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Similar to Electrical Diagrams . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Boolean Functions and Feedback are Easy to Implement . . . . . . . . . . . . . Not Suitable for Conditional Statements . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sequential Function Chart . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Chart Structure . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Steps and Transitions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Action Descriptions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Sequence Selection and Simultaneous Sequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Subsequences . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Advice on Good Programming Style . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Powerful Tool for Design and Structuring . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Other Programming Languages are Needed . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
35
35 37 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 46 47 49 49 49 50 50 51 51 53 53 53 54 54 55 60 60 61 62 62 64 64 65 67 67 68 68
4.3
4.4
4.5
4.6
4.7
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4.8
Function Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Type and Instances . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . User-defined Function Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Differences between Functions and Function Blocks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . How to Use Function Blocks in Control Programs . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Interaction between Languages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . New Life for an Old Method . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Objects in the Plant . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Data Flow in Real-time Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Program Sorting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Reuse of Code . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Control Module Concept . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Graphical Programming . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Automatic Code Sorting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Applications for Control Modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Stages of a Project . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Coding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Documentation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Commissioning . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Maintenance . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
69 70 71 72 73 74
Object-oriented Programs
5.1 5.2 5.3 5.4 5.5 5.6
75
75 77 78 79 81 81
Control Modules
6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4
83
83 84 85 86
Project Management
7.1 7.2 7.3 7.4 7.5 7.6 7.7 7.8
89
89 90 90 92 92 94 94 94
Industrial Application Example

8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4
95
8.5
Control Problem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 95 Analysis . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 96 Design . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 98 Coding . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Project Libraries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 100 Variables and Parameters . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 101 Ramp Function Block Type . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 103 SFC Sequence Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 104 Control Program . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 105 Control Module Graphics . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 106 Testing . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 107
Glossary Index
109 117
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3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B
Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems
1.1 Introduction
Chapter 1
Evolution of Control Systems

1.1 Introduction
Almost all industrial plants need some kind of controller to ensure safe and economical operation. At the simplest level, the plant may consist of an electric motor driving a cooling fan to control the temperature in a room. At the other extreme, the plant could be an entire nuclear reactor for producing electrical energy for thousands of people. Apart from their size and complexity, all control systems may be divided into three well-separated functional parts: the transducers, the controller and the actuators.
Transducers Actuators
Plant
Inputs
Controller
Outputs
Parameters
Status
Fig. 1 Overview of the components in an industrial control system.
The controller monitors the actual status of the plant processes through a number of transducers. The transducers convert physical properties into electrical signals that are connected to the controller inputs. Digital transducers measure conditions with distinct states, such as on/off or high/low, while analog transducers measure conditions which have a continuous range, such as temperature, pressure, flow or liquid level.
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1.2 History
Based on the status of the inputs the controller uses a built-in or programmed algorithm to calculate the status of the outputs. The electrical signals from outputs are converted into process behavior via the actuators. Most actuators create movements of valves, motors, pumps and other devices by using electrical or pneumatic energy. The operator interacts with the controller by providing control parameters. Some controllers can display process status via a screen.
1.2
History
The first control systems were developed during the industrial revolution at the end of the 19th century. The control function was implemented by using ingenious mechanical devices automating some of the most repetitive and critical tasks on the assembly lines. These devices had to be individually adapted to each task and due to their mechanical nature they also suffered from a short life-time. In the 1920s, mechanical control devices were replaced by electrical relays and contactors. Relay logic made it possible to develop larger and much more sophisticated control functions. Since then, electrical relays have been used in a large number of control systems around the world. Relays have proven to be a very cost-effective alternative, especially for automating small machines with a limited number transducers and actuators. In todays industry, relay logic is seldom chosen for new control systems but a large number of older systems are still in use. The silicon-based integrated circuit, IC, paved the way for a new generation of control systems in the 1970s. Compared with relays, ICs based on TTL or CMOS integrated circuits are much smaller, faster and also have a longer lifetime. In most control systems based on relays and ICs, the control algorithm is permanently defined by the electrical wiring. Systems with wired logic are easy to implement but unfortunately it is difficult and time-consuming to change their behavior. In the early 1970s, the first commercial computers debuted as controllers in large control systems. Since computers can be programmed they offer a great advantage compared with the wired logic function in systems based on relays or ICs.
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1.2 History
Early computer systems were large, expensive, difficult to program and unfortunately also very sensitive to the harsh environment in many industrial plants. As a result of demands from the American car industry the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) was developed in the early 1970s. The PLC is a computer designed to work in an industrial environment. The transducers and actuators in the outside world are connected via robust interface cards. Compared with an office computer, the PLC has a limited instruction repertoire, often only logical conditions. Early PLCs had no analog inputs and therefore they could only handle digital control applications. In todays industrial plants there is often a need to handle both digital control and closed-loop analog control in the same control system. These systems are often called Programmable Controllers since their operation is not limited to only logical conditions. Today, the overall control function in a plant is often distributed to a number of local programmable controllers which are positioned in the immediate neighborhood of the objects which are to be controlled. The different controllers are usually connected together into a local area network (LAN) with a central supervising process computer which administers alarms, recipes and operations reports.
1880 Mechanics Relays ICs Computers PLCs Process computers 1920 1970 1980 1990 2000
Fig. 2 The evolution of control systems since the end of the 19th century.
The operator plays a very important role in todays industry and many plant installations therefore have a computer-based Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition System (SCADA). SCADA systems have high-resolution color monitors on which the operator can select different application programs and study the status of the manufacturing process.
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1.3 Control Applications
It is characteristic of todays industry that the demand for profitability is increasing, while at the same time there is a more frequent need to carry out changes in the control function. Because the cost of computer equipment has fallen dramatically in recent years, the cost of development and maintenance of software has become the predominant factor. In order to improve the quality and make it easier to reuse programs, there are today many more people working with object-oriented systems. In such systems the real process components like motors, valves and PID controllers are programmed via standardized program objects stored in program libraries. Such objects are well proven and have a standardized user interface.
1.3
Control Applications
It is easy to be overwhelmed by the complexity of an industrial plant process. However, most processes can be simplified by dividing them into a number of smaller subprocesses. Such subprocesses can normally be divided into three different categories. Monitoring subsystems, sequencing subsystems and closed-loop control subsystems will be further described in the following three sections.
Monitoring Subsystems
A monitoring subsystem displays the process state to the operator and draws attention to abnormal conditions which require some kind of action from the operator. The measured process values for temperature, pressure, flow etc. are displayed to the operator via indicators, meters, bar-graphs or via a computer screen. Signals can also be checked for alarm conditions. The system indicates alarms via warning lamps or audible signals, often accompanied by a paper printout. Many monitoring systems also keep records of the consumption of energy and raw materials for accountancy purposes. The system may also create automatic warnings when critical components need to be exchanged.
Sequencing Subsystems
The vast majority of all subprocesses can be described via a predefined sequence of actions that must be executed in a certain order. In such a system it is not possible to specify a momentary combination of input signals resulting in a certain output signal. Instead, the output status is dependent on an entire sequence of input signals having occurred. In order to monitor the sequence of actions there is a need for memory functions.
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1.4 Relay Logic
Sequencing subsystems have many advantages over control systems based on momentarily input status. Normally, they are easier to implement and present a better overview of the control function. It is also easier to localize malfunctions in a transducer since this will cause the sequence to freeze.
Closed-loop Control Subsystems

Many subprocesses have analog variables such as temperature, flow or pressure that must be automatically maintained at some preset value or made to follow other signals. Such a system can be represented by the block diagram in Fig. 3. Here, a variable in the plant denoted PV (Process Value) is to be maintained at a desired value denoted SP (Set Point). PV is measured by a transducer and compared with SP to give an error signal. This error signal is supplied to a control algorithm that calculates an output signal, which is passed on to an actuator, which affects the corresponding variable in the process. The control algorithm will try to adjust the actuator until there is zero error. Many control algorithms are available but the most commonly used is the Proportional, Integral and Derivative (PID) controller. Since the control function is running continuously, the PV can be made to track a changing SP.
Desired value SP PV Actual value Transducer Error SP-PV Control algorithm Actuator Process Controlled variable
Fig. 3 A closed-loop control system.
1.4
Relay Logic
The electromagnetic relay has been one of the most important components in the evolution of control systems. Relay logic systems contain a number of relays that are activated by digital transducer contacts. The control function is defined, once and for all, by how the contacts are connected to each other and to the corresponding relay coils.
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1.4 Relay Logic
All relay coils are normally used to activate one or more built-in switches. These switches are connected to the actuators in the process. If one of the relay switches is used as an alternate input contact the result will be a circuit with memory function.
Logical AND
Logical OR
Memory
Fig. 4 Three often-used logical conditions implemented with relay logic.
A relay-based control system may contain any number, from a dozen up to thousands, of relays. The relays with corresponding wiring are contained in one or more cabinets. The transducers and actuators are normally connected via plinths. The logical function of a control system based on relays is described in ladder diagrams, presenting how transducer contacts and actuators are electrically connected. The ladder diagrams not only describe the logical function but are also used as drawings when the relay cabinets are manufactured. Since relays are relatively costly and electrical wiring is time consuming, the total cost of a relay-based control system depends mainly on the number of relays used. In large plants the limited number of contacts on both transducers and relays sometimes leads to engineering problems.
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1.5 Computers for Process Control
Experience shows that it is easy to develop small relay systems with a limited number of relays, but with increasing complexity the work will demand a very experienced engineer. A characteristic quality of relay-based control systems is the decentralization of the logic function into a large number of discrete relays. Since relays are electromagnetic components they have a limited life-time. Relay-based control systems therefore need continuous maintenance and service. Another disadvantage of relay systems is that it may be very difficult and time-consuming to change the logical function in an existing plant. Today, relay logic can only be justified in very small plants with less than a dozen inputs and outputs and in plants with severe electrical interference, where computers and programmable controllers cannot be used.
1.5
Computers for Process Control
The first computers that were developed during the 1950s were very large, expensive machines. Such systems were mainly used for administrative tasks like payroll administration, accounting and banking. The operations performed were most often batch processes. Microprocessors, developed in the 1970s, started a dramatic revolution resulting in much smaller and cheaper computer systems. During the 1970s, many control systems were developed using microprocessors as controllers. The most important advantage of computers, compared with wired logic, is that the programmed control function can easily be altered. Computers are also very suitable for performing arithmetic calculations and for storing huge amounts of data. A standard computer, however, is not equipped for communication with industrial equipment. Another disadvantage is the high learning threshold for developing computer programs. Early computer-based control systems needed extra interface equipment in order to handle real-world transducer and actuator signals. These interfaces normally had to be individually developed for each plant. Since then, several vendors have developed standard interface modules for both digital and analog process signals.
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Programming Methods
All computer programs consist of a number of instructions which tell the computer what to do when the program is run, or executed as programmers prefer to say. Because computers process binary information, the computers instructions are very different from our own verbal ways of describing the actions we want it to take. In programming, therefore, various aids are used to process and translate our verbal function description into the computers own language. These aids are ready-made computer programs which can be purchased relatively cheaply.
Machine Code and Assembler
Most computers have a limited set of instructions which carry out simple operations such as fetching data, storing data, adding numbers, etc. By combining a large number of such machine codes into long programs, the programmer can get the computer to carry out very complex functions. In order for the program to work, however, it is very important to follow the rules on how instructions should be used and combined, often called the syntax of the program. Because machine codes are binary or hexadecimal numbers, the job of programming is made easier by using what are known as assembler instructions. Each of these instructions has a three-letter name (memo-code), such as LDA for fetching data and ADD for adding two numbers. A ready-made program known as an editor is normally used when writing assembler instructions into the computer. An editor program has basic word processing functions for entering and correcting text. Before the assembler program can be executed, the memo-codes must first be translated into hexadecimal machine code. The translation to machine code is done by another program called an assembler. Assembler programs of this kind can be bought for most types of computers. Apart from the actual translation, the assembler program can also help in checking syntax and in calculating logical jumps within a program. Assembly is normally carried out on the same type of computer as will be used for program execution, but there are also assembler programs, known as cross-assemblers, which can be run on other types of computers. Test running of assembler programs is made easier by special programs that allow part of the program to be executed step by step. Using these so-called debugging programs, it is also possible to simulate real-life signals so that the function can be tested without having to connect the computer to the process.
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Start
Editing using editor LDA IN1 L1 Test-running using debugger SUB C CMP B BNE L1 ADD D Functioning properly? Yes Stop No STO OUT1 Assembler
Assembling
F6 0A A9 23 12 E3 F8 76 06 A3 45 D3 A2
Fig. 5 In low-level programming several supporting programs are used, such as an editor, an assembler and a debugger, in order to translate the program into machine code.
Programming using assembler instructions has both advantages and disadvantages. The work demands a thorough knowledge of the technical workings of the computer. In most cases, the problem description also has to be restructured so that the required function can be obtained using the instructions available in the computers repertoire. The completed program is entirely matched to one particular type of computer and cannot be transported to another type of computer. On the other hand, a properly written assembler program gives good performance and the optimal usage of the computers memory. This is important in, for example, industrial robots and where very large series are to be produced. Working with assembler is often called low-level language because the instructions are similar to the computers own way of working.
Compiling and Interpreting
The work of programming is made considerably easier if the program is written in what is known as a high-level language, which is translated into machine code by a program-based compiler or interpreter.
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The difference between compilers and interpreters is that the compiler first translates the whole program before it is executed, while the interpreter translates and executes the program instructions one by one. This means that compiled programs are executed considerably faster than interpreted ones. The most common high-level languages are Pascal and the closely related language C. Both of these are normally compiling high-level languages. An example of an interpreted language is Basic. Instructions in a high-level language are reminiscent of mathematical functions, and are therefore relatively easy to use. All high-level languages are highly standardized, and the main parts of the programs can be written so that they are independent of the type of computer on which they will be run. The actual matching to the computer is done by the compiler or interpreter in the process of converting it to machine code. Programs that are written in highlevel languages are often known as source code, while the compiled result is called object code.
Source code in Pascal
02 0C A7 43 37 E3 F8 86 16 A2 45 A2 05 A3 12 7B
Profit := Income - Cost IF Profit>20 THEN PRINT "Profitable" ELSE PRINT "Loss" END Compiler
Fig. 6 Programs written in a high-level language are totally machineindependent and are translated to computer-specific machine code by a compiler program.
The programmer writing in a high-level language does not need to know the technical details of the design of the computer or its memory. Another advantage is that completed programs can be moved to another type of computer, assuming that a suitable compiler is available. The disadvantage of programs written in high-level languages is that they take up more room in the memory than corresponding programs written directly in assembler (machine code). This also means that the performance of the computer is used less efficiently.
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1.6 Programmable Controllers
1.6
Programmable Controllers
In answer to demands from the car industry, several vendors, in the early 1970s, presented the Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). The PLC is an industry-adapted computer with a simplified programming language. Early PLCs were originally only intended to replace relay-based control systems. Since then, PLCs have developed into the most commonly used type of control systems in all kinds of industrial plants, from small machine control systems, up to entire manufacturing lines in large process industries. Independent of brand and type, most PLCs contain three functional parts: the central unit, the memory and the I/O unit, all communicating via a bus unit. The central unit coordinates all activities in the PLC and executes the control program in the memory. The process status is monitored and sampled via the I/O unit. Apart from logical instructions an increasing number of todays PLCs also have arithmetic functionality. Many vendors are therefore using the term Programmable Controller instead of PLC. Programming of PLCs is normally carried out on an external computer-based engineering station. The compiled program is downloaded to the central unit and then into the program memory via a serial channel or via a LAN. Some PLCs have an option for using the engineering station for online process status presentation, while the control program is executing.
PLC Engineering station
Memory
Central unit
Bus unit
I/O unit Input modules Output modules
Transducers Actuators Fig. 7 The components of a programmable controller system.
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I/O Units
A characteristic quality of the programmable controller is that it is designed to live in and interact with an industrial environment. Most controllers have a modularized Input/Output unit (I/O) for direct connection of the transducer and actuator signals. The purpose of the I/O unit is to convert the process signals to the lower signal level used in the controller and also to suppress electrical transients from the plant equipment. This is often achieved by optical isolators containing a lightemitting diode and a photoelectric transistor linked together in a package. Since there are several different signal levels in a typical plant, many I/O units allow the use of exchangeable I/O modules. Such an I/O unit can easily be customized to the specific signal levels of the plant. The most commonly used I/O modules are digital DC inputs and outputs with the signal levels 24 V or 48 V. Many vendors also offer modules with AC inputs and outputs with signal levels of 110 V or 220V. A growing number of programmable controllers have arithmetic functionality. Such systems have a need for analog input and output I/O modules. Most analog transducers represent a physical value as a current within the range 4-20 mA, with 4 mA indicating the minimum value.
Programming Methods
The first PLCs used a programming language based on relay ladder diagrams. The program was entered via a programming terminal with keys showing contact symbols (normally open/normally closed), relay coils and parallel branches with which a maintenance electrician would be familiar. The programming terminal compiled the ladder diagram into machine code which was sent to the controller for execution. With the controller executing the control program was presented on a screen, with energized contacts and coils highlighted, making it possible to study the application and also, if necessary, to debug the program. Programming with ladder diagrams is a very intuitive method, especially for people with previous knowledge of relay-based control systems. Therefore, this method was initially preferred by American PLC vendors.
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In large plants and when people without previous knowledge of relay logic are to develop the control program, Boolean instruction lists are often preferred. Most European PLC vendors have chosen this as the standard programming method in their systems.
A 001 A 012 ON 020 RP A 003 = 201 Fig. 8 Examples of PLC programs using a ladder diagram and instruction list.
Computer-based Programming Tools

Early PLCs were programmed with dedicated terminals, only usable for that purpose, together with specific systems from one vendor. Today, almost all programmable controllers are programmed with standard personal computers (PCs) running a dedicated development software tool. Control Builder Professional from ABB is an example of such a software tool intended for use with some of the programmable controllers supplied by ABB. A complete system with computer and development software is often referred to as an engineering station. Most development tools contain several different, but often integrated, software applications which simplify the work of program development for the associated control system. The editor is used to define variables and for writing the control program instructions. Most editors have syntax checking that helps the programmer avoid such errors. Program editing is normally done offline, which means that the engineering station is running locally, not in communication with the controller. The compiler translates the control application into machine code and downloads this code for execution in the programmable controller. Many development tools provide a useful function that compiles and simulates the control function in the computer without downloading it to the controller. The simulated status of inputs and outputs is displayed on the computer screen. Simulation makes it possible for the programmer to test the application by manually altering the input signals.
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Some development tools can be used online, for displaying the actual process signal status on the computer screen, when the control application is executing in the programmable controller. With ever-increasing performance in computer-based engineering stations, several vendors now offer developing packages, in which it is also possible to use programming methods like Structured text, Sequential Function Charts and Function Block Diagrams, apart from ladder diagrams and instruction lists. These methods are further described in Chapter 4.
Cyclic Execution
Industrial control systems are real-time systems, which means that changes in the input signal require immediate action on the corresponding output signals. An example is a machine in which some movement must be stopped when a particular limit is reached. If the controller does not react in time, the result may be damage to the machine or injury to the operator. The consequences of a delayed reaction therefore become unacceptable. In order to fulfil the demands on a real-time system, the application program must have constant access to current input data from the process. To achieve this the compiled program is executed cyclically at a specific frequency. Changes in the incoming signals can therefore only affect the output signals at the end of each completed program cycle. The required interval time of the program is determined by the maximum allowed delay time in the process.
Read inputs
Execute program
Interval time 1 - 50 ms
Update outputs
Fig. 9 A typical program scan in a programmable controller.
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Because different subprocesses may have different time demands, some programmable controllers provide a function for dividing the total program into different tasks, each with its own interval time.
Distributed Systems
In many large industrial plants there is a need for distribution of the entire control function to several different programmable controllers and process computers. This strategy will improve total performance and also reduce the risk of total breakdown in the manufacturing process. The cabling between transducers, actuators and the programmable controllers accounts for one of the major costs in a control system. If the plant is spread out over a large area, considerable cost savings may be achieved by using remote I/O subsystems situated close to the actual subprocess. Distributed control systems require a standardized communication protocol in order to exchange information. Several PLC vendors have developed their own proprietary protocols during the 1990s and some of these, like COMLI from ABB, 3964R from Siemens and the vendor-independent Profibus, have slowly emerged into de facto standards supported by more than one PLC vendor.
Soft PLC
One problem with PLCs is that all vendors use their own proprietary controller hardware with an associated programming language. In spite of the basic functions being practically identical, the instructions have different names and the rules governing the syntax of the programs may vary. This makes it difficult to communicate and exchange application programs between systems of different manufacture. Several software vendors have presented a new type of controller called the Soft PLC. The Soft PLC is real-time software executing a control application in a standard PC and communicating with the plant via a standardized modular I/O unit. The major advantage of a Soft PLC is that all the required hardware is vendor independent. Unfortunately, none of the software vendors has managed to establish their Soft PLC software as an industry standard. This means that control applications developed with one Soft PLC application cannot be transferred to Soft PLCs from other vendors.
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Chapter 2: Why Open Systems are Needed
2.1 Programming Dialects
Chapter 2
Why Open Systems are Needed

2.1 Programming Dialects
The programmable controller is one of the most critical components in todays industry. Since control systems are being used in so many plants and in applications concerned with safety, it is very important that programs can be understood by a wide range of industrial personnel. Besides the programmer, a control program should be easy to follow by technicians, plant managers and process engineers. For almost two decades, the market has been dominated by half a dozen vendors offering very similar solutions but, unfortunately, also brand-specific programming dialects. Many customers using programmable controllers have decided to standardize their equipment to at least two different vendors, in order to minimize risks. In real-world applications this often leads to costly double work and problems in communication between systems from different manufacturers.
2.2
Software Quality
As more and more jobs in manufacturing and process industries become automated, the software programs become larger and therefore more difficult to manage. In most cases, more than one programmer is needed to develop the application software for industrial automation. Experience shows that the risk of program errors grows exponentially with the number of programmers involved and, consequently, the size of the program itself. Experience also shows that new industrial plants often encounter problems a long time after commissioning. Some failures can interrupt production or, in the worst case, result in serious damage to the production equipment or the processed material.
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2.3 Software Cost
It is well-known that good software quality comes at a high cost. Most control software is developed either by a department in the customer organisation or by small software houses working in a close privileged relationship with the machine or plant manufacturer. In both cases, software production and thus cost is not governed by the free market. Consequently, software suppliers are not motivated to strive towards more efficient development methods and tools. The vast majority of all control code is written with the proprietary software packages delivered by the control system vendors. Many of these packages have very poor facilities for working with modules, for code reuse and for documentation. Software quality is therefore heavily dependent on the experience and intellectual capacity of the programmer. Before the IEC 61131-3 standard was established, good software engineering was an open goal in the control application environment.
2.3
Software Cost
During the last decade, standardized software packages for personal computers, like word processors and spreadsheets, have become very popular. This makes it possible for software vendors to lower prices dramatically. Distribution via the Internet has pushed the limits even further, and today many useful standard applications are available as shareware, almost free of cost. In contrast, most software for control applications is adapted to the specific needs of a single plant application. This means that the total development cost has to be charged to a single customer. Most customers find it difficult to control the total software development cost. A customer without experience in software development can only present a rough functional description to the developer. In many cases, this leads to a final product that only partly fulfills the customers requirements. Even small changes and additions tend to be very costly to implement, especially in later phases of program development. The hardware on which computer programs are run is developing at an amazing speed, while prices are constantly falling. Todays personal computers have equally good, or even better, performance than yesterdays mainframe computers. With the increasingly good relationship between hardware performance and price, the total cost of an installation is becoming more dependent on the time required for program development. In most projects, therefore, greater weight is attached to standardization and reuse of programs than with finding the optimal hardware.
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2.4 Portable Software Applications
Fig. 10 Cost of hardware versus software.
An automation plant or machinery can pose a danger to the operators or the material if the control software has fatal errors. Therefore, the software has to pass a particularly intense testing and validation procedure. In real-world applications, testing may be very time consuming, especially if the work has to be done with the process running. If the application program has been written by inexperienced programmers, the cost of testing even may exceed the cost of program coding.
2.4
Portable Software Applications
The personal computer together with the Windows operating system is today a well-established de facto standard for information handling in almost all offices in the world. The main reason for the PCs enormous penetration is software compatibility. Application programs developed for Windows can be used on almost all PCs around the world. More than 25 years after the introduction of the first programmable controllers, this market still lacks an international standard similar to that for the PC. Most control vendors use their own proprietary programming dialect, which can only be used with their hardware. This is surprising since almost all industries using programmable controllers have high demands on inter-system portability of control system software. Since the cost of developing well-tested software is much higher than the hardware cost, there is often a need to port existing applications from older outdated hardware to newer systems. To many, it is incomprehensible that it has taken more than 25 years for the programmable controller market to start establishing a common programming standard like the IEC 61131-3.
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2.5 Reusable Software
2.5
Reusable Software
Not so long ago, many real programmers measured their effectiveness by the amount of program code they produced per day. Real programmers dont like to waste their time on structuring and detailed specification. Instead, they move directly from a rough specification, often made by the customer, to coding in their favorite language, often ladder diagram or instruction list. Today, even real programmers realize that the first phase in a project when the overall function is analyzed, structured and designed, is the key to a successful and cost-effective application program. The traditional method of reducing software cost is to reuse common parts of the program code in several similar applications. Unfortunately, this is difficult in industrial automation since most processes are very different in behavior. Another obstacle to software reuse is that the program code is often strongly affected by the programmers own style. When the final application is the result of teamwork there are often visible seams between the parts coded by different programmers. The only way to reduce the risk of seams is to encourage (read force) all the members of the team to follow certain rules and formalism for producing code.
2.6
Communication with Other Systems
The first programmable controllers presented in the seventies were often placed in an electrical equipment cabinet close to the machine or process being controlled. These controllers normally had no means of interaction with the machine operator or communication with other controllers. In todays industrial plants, great emphasis is put on operator interaction with the system. The huge control centers in e.g. nuclear power stations are being replaced by PC-based Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition Systems (SCADA) using a large color screen to present process pictures showing plant status. Two of the most commonly used SCADA systems are SattGraph from ABB and FIX from Intellution. In large industrial plants, the control function is normally divided into a number of different programmable controllers communicating with each other via some kind of standardized communication protocol. SattLine from ABB is an example of such a Distributed Control System (DCS).
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2.6 Communication with Other Systems
Most control system vendors have developed their own proprietary communication protocols for information exchange in SCADA and DCS. Some vendors also provide software-based protocol converters enabling communication between systems from different manufacturers. All industrial plants have computer-based Management Information Systems (MIS) for handling of statistical and economic information. There is often a need to connect MIS with SCADA and DCS, resulting in a total control and management system. General Motors in the USA has developed a standard called Manufacturing Automation Protocol (MAP) for communication between different programmable controllers and MIS. Unfortunately, the MAP standard has so far not been particularly successful.
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2.6 Communication with Other Systems
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Chapter 3: IEC 61131-3 Standard
3.1 Main Objectives
Chapter 3
IEC 61131-3 Standard

3.1 Main Objectives
IEC 61131-3 is the first, and so far only, global standard for programmable controllers. Considering that programmable controllers have been used in automation systems for more than two decades, it is remarkable that a programming standard has taken so long to evolve. The IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) working group, with members from all the leading vendors, has, after years of discussions, finally come to a consensus and produced a working standard. The main objectives of the IEC 61131-3 standard are as follows. The standard encourages well-structured program development. All application programs should be broken down into functional elements, referred to as program organisation units or POUs. A POU may contain functions, function blocks or programs. It should be possible to execute different parts of the application program at different rates. This means that the system must support individual interval times for different POUs. Complex sequential behavior can easily be broken down into events using a concise graphical language. The system must support data structures so that associated data can be transferred between different parts of a program as if they were a single entity. The system should have parallel support for the five most used languages, Ladder Diagram (LD), Instruction List (IL), Function Block Diagram (FBD), Structured Text (ST) and Sequential Function Chart (SFC). The programming syntax should be vendor independent, resulting in more or less portable code that can easily be transferred between programmable controllers from different vendors.
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3.2 Benefits Offered by the Standard
3.2
Benefits Offered by the Standard
Well-structured Software
The main purpose of the IEC 61131-3 standard is to improve overall software quality in industrial automation systems. The standard encourages the development of well-structured software that can be designed either as top down or bottom up software. One of the most important tools in achieving this is function blocks. A function block is part of a control program that has been packaged and named so that it can be reused in other parts of the same program, or even in another program or project. Function blocks can provide any kind of software solution from simple logical conditions, timers or counters, to advanced control functions for a machine or part of a plant. Since the definition of input and output data has to be very precise, a function block can easily be used, even by other programmers than those who developed it. By packaging software into function blocks the internal structure may be hidden so that well-tested parts of an application can be reused without risk of data conflict or malfunction.
Five Languages for Different Needs

The IEC 61131-3 standard supports five of the most commonly used programming languages on the market. Depending on previous experience, programmers often have their personal preferences for a certain language. Since most older programmable controllers use Ladder Diagram or Instruction List programming, there are often many such programs available. These programs can relatively easily be reused in new systems supporting the standard. Todays programmable controllers can handle both logical conditions for digital signals and arithmetic operations on analogue signals. Arithmetic operations are much easier to program with Structured Text than with Ladder diagrams. The initial structuring of a control application is normally best done with the graphical language Sequential Function Chart. This method is ideal for describing processes that can be separated into a sequential flow of steps. An optimal software application often contains parts written in more than one of the five programming languages. The standard allows the defintion of function block types using all the languages.
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3.3 PLCopen Trade Association
Software Exchange between Different Systems

Before the IEC 61131-3 standard was established it was not possible to port control programs from one vendors programmable controller to a competing system. This has been a major obstacle to a free market, where the customer selects a system based on the suitability of the hardware and price, rather than by the type of programming languages supported by the controller. With programmable controllers that are IEC compliant the potential for porting software is much better. Software developed for one manufacturers system should, at least theoretically, be possible to execute on any other IECcompliant system. This would open up the market dramatically resulting in better standardization, lower prices and also improved software quality. Unfortunately such a high level of software portability may be difficult to achieve in practice. The IEC 61131-3 standard defines many features and only requires that vendors of programmable controllers specify a list of which features their system supports. This means that a system can be compliant with the standard without supporting all features. In practice, portability will therefore be limited, since systems from two different vendors often have different feature lists.
3.3
PLCopen Trade Association
Since the IEC standard has relatively weak compliance requirements, a number of the larger control system companies concerned with software portability have formed the PLCopen Trade Association. PLCopen is a vendor- and product- independent worldwide association supporting the IEC 61131-3 standard. Being founded in 1992 in The Netherlands, PLCopen today also has supporting offices in Canada and Japan. The organisation informs users/programmers about the standard via a website (www.plcopen.org), a free quarterly newsletter, participation at trade fairs and by arranging their own conferences. PLCopen has defined three different compliance classes concerning the portability of control system software. The lowest class is Base Level, defining a core kernel of the standard. Although rather restricted, it is feasible to develop applications based on it. Base Level provides an entrance for control system vendors, demonstrating their commitment to the standard.
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3.3 PLCopen Trade Association
Portability Level contains a large set of features including user-defined functions and function blocks. This level also demands that the system has an export/import tool for easy exchange of program code between systems from different manufacturers. The highest level, Full Compliance, provides exchange of complete applications, including configuration information, between different control systems.
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Chapter 4: Programming Languages
4.1 Overview
Chapter 4
Programming Languages
4.1 Overview
The IEC 61131-3 standard specifies five programming languages: Ladder Diagrams, LD Instruction List, IL Structured Text, ST Function Block Diagram, FBD Sequential Function Charts, SFC IL and ST are textual languages while LD, FBD and SFC are based on graphical metaphors. Since all of these languages have both advantages and disadvantages, it is important to have basic knowledge of the most suitable applications for each language. Although most control systems may be implemented with any one of the five languages the resulting program will be more or less effective, depending on the requirements of the control application.
A1 A3 M1
A2
LDN AND( OR ) ST
A3 A1 A2 M1
LD
A1 M1 := ( A1 OR A2 ) AND NOT A3; A2 A3
IL
1
FBD
&
M1
ST
Fig. 11 A simple Boolean condition programmed with four of the five IEC 61131-3 programming languages. SFC is normally only used for sequences.
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4.1 Overview
Historically, the five languages have evolved in parallel with the evolution of automation systems. Relay systems documented via LD were dominant in the 1950s. Logical circuits described by FBD were used mostly in the 1960s. PLCs debuted in the 1970s with programming in IL. Computers for process automation were introduced in the 1980s with ST programming in languages like Pascal and C. Improved CPU power in the 1990s finally made it possible to work with graphical languages like SFC. Before the IEC 61131-3 standard was established, most vendors of programmable controllers supported only one or two of the programming languages. By tradition, most American vendors have preferred LD languages while European vendors have chosen FBD or IL languages. The choice between different programming languages is governed by several economical, technical, and cultural factors. Depending on background, programmers often have a preference for a certain language. Programming with IL, LD or FBD is more popular among engineers with experience in automation systems using those programming languages, while ST is the natural choice for engineers with experience using computer systems with programming languages such as Pascal. In small applications with relatively few logical conditions, the demands for good structure and reuse of code are less important than in larger systems. Many older control systems use LD as a direct analogy to systems based on relays and switches. In large plants involving many subprocesses the control function must be divided into an number of program modules with a high level of encapsulation in order to prevent the modules from interfering with each other. Program languages are often characterized by their level of abstraction. A low-level language like IL is very closely coupled to the actual binary codes running the processor in the control systems. Low-level languages normally have a limited number of instructions producing very effective software code but, unfortunately, also totally tailored for a certain brand or model of system. High-level languages, like ST and SFC, do not produce the most effective machine language but, on the other hand, the program may be compiled for many different programmable controllers. When programmable controllers were first introduced in the 1970s, most of the applications were for purely Boolean logical conditions. Today, a control system must handle both digital and analog control, together with timers, counters and sequences.
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4.2 Common Elements
The cost of software development has a tendency to increase exponentially with the size of the application. Since many control functions are used in the same way over and over again it is possible to simplify the application program by using generalized standard modules. Reuse of standard modules is by far the most effective method to reduce costs. When industrial plants are redesigned with new control systems, large parts of the old program code, which have been tested and debugged over several years of intensive use, are often reused. Even the most up-to-date systems, therefore, have to support older and generally less effective languages.
Structure level High
SFC FBD ST IL
Low 1950
LD
Year 1960 1970 1980 1990 2000
Fig. 12 The evolution of the five IEC 61131-3 programming languages. Today, SFC, ST and FBD are the most commonly used techniques for developing new control systems.
4.2
Common Elements
The IEC standard defines a number of common elements which are used in all of the programming languages. This section explains the rules for using identifiers, data types, constants and variables.
Identifiers
Identifiers are used for naming different elements within the IEC language, for example, variables, data types, function blocks and programs. An identifier is a string of letters, digits or underscore symbols which begin with a letter or an underscore. Space characters are not allowed in identifiers. Two or more underscores may not be used together.
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4.2 Common Elements
Allowed identifiers
Motor_1 Elapsed_Time _prog2
Illegal identifiers
1Motor switch 1 Conveyor__3
Keywords are special identifiers that are used within the IEC language as individual syntactic elements. You are not allowed to use keywords as identifiers, for example: Type, True, False, Program, Task, Return, Step, Function, Timer, Counter Some compilers may be able to distinguish between keywords based on their position but others may produce confusing results. Programmers comments are delimited at the beginning and end by asterisks (*comment*). Comments can be placed anywhere except in IL language, which has some restrictions.
Data Types
The first PLCs could only handle Boolean data but todays systems are being used in an ever-widening range of industrial applications. For this reason, the IEC standard provides a comprehensive range of elementary data types. The most often used data types are described below. Data type
Boolean Integer Double integer Real numbers Duration of time Calender time Character string
Keyword
bool int dint real time date_and_time string
Bits
1 16 32 32
In addition to elementary data types, programmers can define their own Structured data types containing several components of data types. Such a data type has no physical correspondence in the plant, but it can be likened to a cable containing a number of leads of different types, e.g. for the transfer of electrical power or telephone and TV signals.
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4.2 Common Elements
All leads are given descriptive names so that the programmer can connect to them without having a detailed knowledge of their function.
PumpType On (boolean) Off (boolean) Level (real) Name (string)
Fig. 13 Example of a structured data type containing several elementary data types.
A new structured data type is declared by delimiting the definition with TYPE and END_TYPE. TYPE PumpType On: boolean Off: boolean Level: real Name: string END_TYPE Each component in a structured data type is identified via the variable name and the component name separated by a point, for example Pump3.On.
Constant Literals
By giving a variable the attribute constant, you prevent it from being changed after it is given its initial value. The initial value is normally specified in the variable declaration. There are two classes of numerical literals: integer and real, where the latter are distinguished from the former by the presence of a decimal point. Real literals may end with an exponent, indicating the integer power of ten by which the preceding number is to be multiplied. Decimal numbers are represented in conventional decimal notation. Numbers to bases other than 10 are represented in base 2, 8 or 16 (prefix 2#, 8# or 16#). Boolean data are represented by the values 0 and 1 or the keywords FALSE and TRUE. Time literals are used either for Duration data or for Time of day. Duration data are prefixed by the keywords TIME# or T# followed by the actual duration in terms of days, hours, minutes, seconds and milliseconds. Time of day literals are prefixed by the keywords TIME_OF_DAY# or TOD#.
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4.2 Common Elements
Variables
Variables is the name given to data elements whose content may change during execution of the application program. A variable may be associated with a real-world input and output, but can also be an internal memory storage. All variables are declared with a unique name and a corresponding data type. This is normally done before the program code is written. A variable must also have an attribute, either retain, constant or a blank field. Retain means that the variable will retain its value when the system restarts. A constant variable will not be changed by the system. Variables with a blank attribute will always be calculated at system restart. If a variable has to start at a specific value, that value has to be specified as Initial value, otherwise it will start at a predefined value depending on its data type (normally 0). The table below shows examples of names and attributes of variables of frequently used data types. Name Pump_1 PhotoCell_4 Duration_Open Event_Notation NumberOfRev Temperature_5 Data type bool bool time constant date_and_time constant dint real constant retain Attributes retain Initial value False False T#3m10s DT#1999-02-0112:30:00.000 10
The IEC standard defines three types of variables: local, global and access variables. Local variables can only be accessed in the same function block or program in which they are declared. Global variables are accessible from any program or function block in the open project. A global variable must be declared as an external variable in the program organisation unit (POU) accessing it. Access variables can be used by other controllers.
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4.3 Ladder Diagrams
4.3
Ladder Diagrams
Ladder Diagrams (LD) have evolved from the electrical wiring diagrams that were used, for example, in the car industry, to describe relay-based control systems. LD is a graphic representation of Boolean equations, using contacts as a representation for inputs from the process and coils for outputs. An LD diagram is limited on both sides by vertical lines, called power rails. The power rails serve as a symbolic electrical power supply for all the contacts and coils that are spread out along horizontal rungs. Each contact represents the state of a Boolean variable, normally a transducer, but sometimes also an internal variable in the control system. When all contacts in a horizontal rung are made, i.e. in the true state, power can flow along the rail and operate the coil on the right of the rung. The coil normally represents physical objects like a motor or a lamp, but may also be an internal variable in the control system. There are two types of contacts, normally open and normally closed. Contacts which are normally open present a true state (Boolean variable is 1) when they are closed. Normally closed contacts present a false state (Boolean variable is 0) when they are open. In analogy with electrical circuits, contacts connected horizontally in series represent logical AND operations. Parallel contacts represent logical OR operations.
switch1 alarm motor
switch2
Normally closed contact Normally open contacts Power rails Fig. 14 Example of a simple ladder diagram with three contacts and a coil. Coil
It is possible to create LD programs that contain feedback loops, where the variable from an output coil is used as an input contact, either in the same or in other logical conditions. In a real-world relay circuit this is equivalent to
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4.3 Ladder Diagrams
using one of the relays physical switches as an input contact. A person with experience in computing would probably call this a memory bit.
start stop fan
fan
Fig. 15 Feedback loop in an LD program. The fan starts with an impulse on contact start and continues to run until the contact stop is opened.
Easy to Understand
Programming with LD can be learnt relatively quickly and the graphical presentation is easy to follow. The method is particularly easy to understand by people who are familiar with simple electrical or electronic circuits.
Fig. 16 Status indication of an executing LD program.
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4.3 Ladder Diagrams
LD programs are very popular among maintenance engineers since faults can easily be traced. Most programming stations generally provide an animated display showing the live state of transducers while the programmable controller is running. This provides a very powerful online diagnostics facility for locating incorrect logic paths or faulty equipment.
Weak Software Structure

Ladder programming is a very effective method for designing small control applications. With increasing processing power and memory size with todays programmable controllers, the method can also be used to construct large control systems. Unfortunately, large ladder programs have several serious drawbacks. Since most programmable controllers have limited support for program blocks, or subroutines, it is difficult to break down a complex program hierarchically. The lack of features for passing parameters between program blocks makes it difficult to break down a large program into smaller parts that have a clear interface with each other. Usually, it is possible for one part of a Ladder Diagram to read and set contacts and outputs in any other part of the program, which makes it almost impossible to have truly encapsulated data. This lack of data encapsulation is a serious problem when large programs are written by several different programmers. There is always a danger that internal data in one block can be modified by faulty code in other program blocks. Each programmer, therefore, has to be very careful when accessing data from other program blocks. There are also problems in using structured data with ladder programs since data are normally stored and addressed in single memory bits. Many control applications often have a need to group data together as a structure. Some sensors provide more than one variable that has to be recorded by the control system. Apart from the physical value measured by the sensor, the application sometimes needs to disable the sensor, place it in test mode, record the time when the sensor is active and also raise an alarm if the sensor is activated longer than a certain prescribed period. All of this information from the sensor should ideally be handled as a single structure that can be addressed using a common name. In most ladder programs such data is often spread out among different ladder rungs. Without a data structure the programmable controller has no provision for warning the programmer when incorrect data are accessed.
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4.3 Ladder Diagrams
Limited Support for Sequences

Most control applications have a need to divide the function into a sequence of states. Each state represents a unique condition in the plant being controlled. Normally, only one state is active at a time. When sequences are constructed with ladder programming the normal method is to assign one internal memory bit to each state and to use contact conditions from the transducers to trigger transitions between the states. Each state consists of a feedback loop using the memory bit as an alternative condition for remaining in the state. The feedback loop of a state is normally broken by the memory bit of a succeeding state. To get real-world actions the memory bits are used as conditions in separate rungs to control the outputs.
state_3 transducer_a state_1
state_1
state_2
state_1
transducer_b
state_2
state_2
state_3
state_2
transducer_c
state_3
state_3 state_1 state_2 state_3
state_1 output_a
output_b
Fig. 17 Sequence program with three states controlling two outputs.
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4.3 Ladder Diagrams
From the above example it is obvious that ladder programs with sequences can become very large and difficult to maintain. The most obvious problem is that control of the memory-based sequence model is mixed with the application logic so the behavior of the complete program is difficult to understand and follow.
Difficult to Reuse Code

In many large control systems similar logic strategies and algorithms are used over and over again. A common application is to detect fire by using two or more transducers with a comparison algorithm to eliminate false alarms. Such systems consist of a large number of similar ladder rungs with only minor modifications to read different contacts and to set different outputs. This can result in very large, unstructured programs. Unfortunately, very few programmable controllers have an option for defining standardized ladder blocks that can easily be called upon many times with different inputs and outputs.
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4.4 Instruction List
4.4
Instruction List
Instruction List (IL) is a low-level language with a structure very similar to assembly language, often used for programming microprocessors. IL has been chosen as the preferred language by a number of PLC manufacturers for their small to medium-sized systems. The lack of structured variables and weak debugging tools make the language less suitable for larger systems.
IL Language Structure
IL is a language with a series of instructions, each on a new line. An instruction consists of an operator followed by an operand. The operator tells the system what to do, while the operand identifies which variable is to be processed. Some operators can process more than one operand, in which case, the operators should be separated by commas. IL programs are often written on a spreadsheet-like form with one column for operators and another for operands. Labels, used to identifying entry points for jump instructions, are placed in their own column to the left of the instruction. All labels should end with a colon. The instructions only need to have labels if the program contain jumps. Comments are placed in a fourth column to the right of the operand. Comments are enclosed by asterisks (*comment*). It is strongly advisable to add comments to all instructions during programming. Large IL programs without comments are very difficult to follow.
Label
Operator LD GT JMPCN LD ADD JMP
Operand temp1 temp2 Greater speed1 200 End speed2
Comment (*Load temp1 and*) (*Test if temp1 > temp2*) (*Jump if not true to Greater*) (*Load speed1*) (*Add constant 200*) (*Jump unconditional to End*) (*Load speed2*)
Greater:
LD
Fig. 18 Example of an IL program for controlling the speed of a motor.
To improve readability, IL instructions are normally structured so that labels, operators, operands and comments are put in fixed tabulated positions.
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A characteristic of IL programs is that instructions always relate to an internal register, called the result register, RR, IL register or accumulator. Most operations consist of calculation between the result register and the operand. The result of an instruction is always stored in the result register. Most programs start with the instruction LD, which loads the accumulator with a variable. The result register changes its data type automatically during program execution in order to fit the value that needs to be stored. Programmable controllers normally only have one result register. This must naturally be taken into consideration by the programmer when writing code. The program example in Fig. 18 on page 46 first loads the RR with a real variable. The second instruction compares RR with another variable which results in a Boolean TRUE or FALSE result in RR. The conditional jump instruction JMPCN uses the Boolean value in RR as a condition for either continuing with the next instruction (RR false) or jumping to the label Greater. In both cases, the next instruction loads RR with a new real value. The final instruction stores the RR in a real variable called motor controlling the speed of the motor.
IL Instruction Set
The IEC has developed a standardized instruction repertoire by examining the many low-level languages offered by different vendors. The IL language, as defined in IEC 61131-3, is a selection of the most commonly used instructions in current programmable controllers. Each instruction is written as an abbreviation of the corresponding operation, sometimes referred to as a mnemonic. Some IL operations can take operator modifiers after the mnemonic that change the behavior of the corresponding operation. The modifier character must complete the operator name with no blank characters in between. The following three modifiers can be used: N, Boolean negation of the operand C, Conditional operation (, delayed operation Operator Operand
LDN AND( OR ) switch1 switch2 switch3 (*RR := NOT switch1 AND (switch2 OR switch3)*)
Comment
(*Load inverse of switch1*) (*Boolean AND with the following two operations*)
Fig. 19 Example of operator modifiers in an IL program.
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The C modifier indicates that the corresponding instruction may only be executed if the RR contains the Boolean value TRUE. Parentheses are used to delay the operation of some parts in the program. This is needed to change the execution order of the corresponding instructions, since there is only one result register. The left-hand parenthesis indicates that the evaluation of the following instructions must be delayed until the righthand parenthesis is encountered. Operator LD ST S R AND OR XOR ADD SUB MUL DIV GT GE EQ LE LT NE ) CAL JMP RET C, N C, N C, N N, ( N, ( N, ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( ( Modifier N N Description Loads operand in RR Stores current result from RR Sets the operand Resets the operand Boolean AND Boolean OR Exclusive OR Arithmetic addition Arithmetic subtraction Arithmetic multiplication Arithmetic division Comparison greater than Comparison greater than or equal to Comparison equal Comparison less than Comparison less than or equal to Comparison not equal Executes delayed operation Calls a function block Jumps to label Returns from called function
Fig. 20 The IL instruction set.
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Best System Performance

IL is ideal for solving small straightforward problems. In the hands of an experienced programmer it produces very effective code resulting in applications that are optimized for fast execution. There is also another reason for using IL in order to optimize system performance. During a period of several years a huge amount of software has been written and thoroughly tested. Such software can be modularized into libraries and reused even by programmers with no detailed knowledge of the internal behavior.
Weak Software Structure

Since IL is a low-level language, great care should be taken in structuring the code so that it is easy to understand and maintain. It is very important that IL programs are well documented since conditional jumps will otherwise be very difficult to follow. The behavior of the result register, with only one value available at a time, makes it difficult to work with structured data variables. Most compilers have no automatic function for checking whether the RR contains correct data for the actual instruction code. Therefore, it is up to the programmer to ensure that each instruction is given correct variable data.
Machine-dependent Behavior
Of all the five IEC languages, IL has been found to be the most controversial. Unfortunately, the semantics, i.e. the way in which the instructions operate, are not fully defined in the standard. For example, it is unclear how the result register stores values of different data types. Normally, the RR is not intended for storing structured data, which means that it is very difficult to obtain consistent behavior when working with arrays or strings. Another problem is that the control system behavior for error conditions is not defined. This means that different system types may respond differently if the programmer uses inappropriate data types. Errors can normally only be detected when the system is running the application.
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4.5 Structured Text
4.5
Structured Text
Structured Text (ST) is a high-level language, similar to Pascal and C, that has been specifically designed for use in programmable controllers. When developing large control applications there is a need for structured programming tools. ST has proven to be such an effective programming tool, especially in complex applications with many conditional statements and calculations.
Statements
All ST programs contain a list of statements, each ending with a semicolon separator. Statements contain expressions which, when evaluated, result in a value of a variable having any kind of data type. Expressions are composed of operators and operands. The ST language supports five different types of statements: assignment statement, variable := expression; selection statements, IF, THEN, ELSE, CASE iteration statements, FOR, WHILE, REPEAT function and function block control statements control statements, RETURN, EXIT The language statements can be written in a fairly free style with spaces, tabs, line feeds and comments inserted anywhere between operators and operands, i.e. where a space is needed for separation. An expression can be short, for example a literal constant, or very complex involving many other nested operations. The assigned variable can be either simple or structured containing any number of elementary data types. motor := (start or motor) and not stop; speed3 := temp1*temp2 - 5*value7; IF speed3 < 0 THEN tank_level := 25.8; ELSE tank_level := 30.6; END_IF;
Fig. 21 Example of a simple ST program.
Statement text should be written in a structured way. The computer will accept any number of spaces in a statement but it is good practice to place statements at a fixed position according to their role in the hierarchy.
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4.5 Structured Text
Operators in Expressions
The table below summarizes the arithmetic and Boolean operators in the IEC standard. The operators are listed in execution order with the highest precedence first: Operator
Parenthesis Function evaluation Negation Boolean complement Exponentiation Multiplication Division Modulus Addition Subtraction Comparison operators Equality Inequality Boolean AND Boolean XOR Boolean OR
Symbol
() Function (argument list) - (before other operator) NOT ** * / Mod + <, >, <=, >= = <> AND, & XOR OR
Precedence
Highest priority
Lowest priority
Conditional Statements
Often there is a need to execute certain statements repeatedly, a specified number of times, or only when a certain condition is fulfilled. The IEC standard provides a collection of conditional statements for this purpose.
FOR Statement
The statement FOR is used when the number of executions is known. count := 0; FOR i:=1 TO 10 DO count := count + i; END_FOR; The variable count starts with the value 0 and increases by 1 for each time the addition is repeated until the final value 10 is reached.
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4.5 Structured Text
WHILE Statement
The statement WHILE is used when other statements are to be repeated an unknown number of times until the condition no longer is fulfilled. WHILE switch1 OR switch3 DO pump := FALSE; alarm := TRUE; END_WHILE;
REPEAT Statement
The REPEAT statement is very similar to WHILE but the difference is that the statement will always be executed once since the condition is written after the statement. REPEAT B := B + 1; UNTIL B>10 END_REPEAT;
IF Statement
An IF statement is used when one or more other statements are to be executed conditionally. IF A>B THEN B := A; ELSEIF A<B THEN A := B; ELSE A := 0; B := 0; END_IF; If A and B have different values the highest value will be given to both, else both of the variables will be set to zero. When using conditional statements it is very important to avoid infinite loops. All statements must therefore include a condition that can be fulfilled.
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4.5 Structured Text
Calling Function Blocks

ST programs often need to access function blocks such as timers and counters. Function blocks are invoked by a statement consisting of the instance name followed by a list of named input and output parameter value assignments, all of them written within parentheses. Timer1( IN := switch3, PT := delay1, Q => lamp); When switch3 is activated the lamp is turned on after the specified delay1.
Suitable for Complex Calculations and Looping

The ST language has an extensive range of constructs for assigning values to variables, calling function blocks and creating conditional expressions. This is very useful for evaluating complex mathematical algorithms, commonly used in analog control applications. No other IEC language can match the power of ST when iterations are needed, i.e. when certain parts of the program code are to be repeated a fixed or a conditional number of times.
High Threshold for Programmers

Of the five IEC languages, Structured Text is often the natural choice for people with former experience in computer programming. Control engineers without computer knowledge sometimes consider ST to be more complex with a higher learning threshold than the LD or IL languages. On the whole, ST is fairly easy to learn and a very effective tool for developing control applications. The language is a good general purpose tool for expressing different types of behavior with all kind of structured variables. Most programmable controllers supporting the SFC language use ST as the default programming language to describe the step actions in sequences.
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4.6 Function Block Diagram
4.6
Function Block Diagram
Function Block Diagram (FBD) is a graphic language in which the control function is divided into a number of function blocks or functions connected by flow signals. A function block may contain simple logical conditions, timers or counters, but can also provide a complex control function to a subprocess in a machine or even an industrial plant.
In1 In2 In3 Time1 PT ET Out2
&
IN
TON
Out1
Fig. 22 Example of an FBD program with two logical function blocks and a timer block.
Syntax for Function Block Diagrams

Each function block is drawn as a rectangle with inputs entering from the left and outputs exiting on the right. All function blocks have a built-in algorithm for calculating output values based on the status of the inputs. The function block type name is normally shown within the block. For some of the most common logical functions a standardized Boolean symbol may be used instead of type names. The formal names of input and output parameters are also shown within the block, close to the corresponding signal. In an FBD program the normal signal flow is from the left to the right. Input signals to function blocks may either come from transducer signals, from local variables or from other function block outputs. Signal names are normally shown at the corresponding connecting lines. When working with Boolean signals, negated inputs or outputs can be shown using a small circle placed at the corresponding line, close to the block symbol. Some systems use a NOT function block instead of the circle.
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Function block type
AND
IN
TON
Negation symbol
PT
ET
Input parameters
Output parameters
Fig. 23 Some fundamental rules for drawing function block diagrams.
Standard Function Block Types

The IEC 61131-3 standard defines a small repertoire of rudimentary standard function block types. These are predefined in most of todays programmable controllers. Standard function blocks are often used to construct user-defined function blocks. The most commonly used blocks are: Boolean conditions like AND, OR, XOR and NOT Bistables Edge detectors Timers Counters
Bistables
Two types of bistables are available, SR and RS. Both of them have two Boolean inputs and one output. The output is set (SR) or reset (RS) as a memory when the triggering input (S1 or R1) momentarily becomes true. When the other input becomes true the output returns to its initial state. If both inputs are true the SR will be set while the RS will be reset.
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SR bistable SR S1 R Q1
RS bistable RS S R1 Q1
S1 Q1 R
R1 Q1 S
Fig. 24 SR and RS bistable symbols with their corresponding functions below.
Edge Detectors
There are two edge-detecting function blocks, Rising edge trigger (R_TRIG) and Falling edge trigger (F_TRIG), which are used to detect the changing state of a Boolean input. The output of the blocks produces a single pulse when a transition edge is detected. When the input changes state, according to the type of edge detector, the output is true during one function block execution. After that the output remains false until a new edge is detected.
Rising edge detector R_TRIG CLK Q1 Falling edge detector F_TRIG CLK Q1
CLK Q
CLK Q
Fig. 25 Edge detectors create a single pulse with the same duration as the execution time of the function block.
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Timers
Timers are among the most used function blocks in a control application. Whenever there is a need for a time delay between a change of state and the corresponding action a timer can be used. In most programmable control systems the timing is based on the CPU system clock, which means that the specified time intervals are very precise. There are three different types of timer function blocks, pulse timers (TP), on-delay timers (TON) and off-delay timers (TOF). All of them have a Boolean input called IN, a Boolean output called Q, an input of type time called PT and an output of type time called ET. The required delay (or pulse width) is specified on input PT (Preset Time) while the actual elapsed time is shown on output ET (Elapsed Time). A pulse timer is normally used to generate output pulses of a specified duration. When input IN changes to the true state the output Q follows and remains true for a duration specified by input PT. The elapsed time ET is increased linearly as long as the pulse output is true. When the pulse terminates, the elapsed time is held until the input changes to false. Note that the output Q will remain true until the pulse time has elapsed, even if the input changes to false. Both delay timers are used to delay an output action by the specified time PT when a certain condition becomes true. The on-delay timer delays the activation of an output. When the input IN becomes true the elapsed time at output ET starts to increase. If the elapsed time reaches the value specified in PT, the output Q becomes true and the elapsed time is held. The output Q remains true until input IN becomes false. If input IN is not true longer than the specified delay in PT, the output remains false. The off-delay timer delays the deactivation of an output. When the input IN becomes false, the elapsed time starts to increase and continues until it reaches the specified delay given by PT. The output Q is then set to false and the elapsed time is frozen. When input IN becomes true the output Q follows and the elapsed time is reset to zero.
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Pulse timer IN PT TP Q ET
On-delay timer IN PT TON Q ET
Off-delay timer IN PT TOF Q ET
IN
PT PT
IN
PT PT
IN
PT PT
Q ET
Q ET
Q ET
Fig. 26 Timing diagrams for the three different types of timer function blocks.
Counters
Counters are another commonly used type of function block. These are designed to be used in a wide range of applications, for example counting pulses, revolutions, completed production batches, etc. There are three types of counter blocks, up-counters (CTUs), down-counters (CTDs) and up-down counters (CTUDs). CTUs are used to indicate when the counter has reached a specified maximum value. CTDs indicate when the counter reaches zero, on counting down from a specified value. CTUDs can be used to both count up and count down and have two outputs indicating both maximum value and zero. A CTU has three inputs and two outputs. A CTU block counts the number of pulses (rising edges) detected at the Boolean input CU. The input PV (Preset Value) of data type integer defines the maximum value of the counter. Each time a new rising edge occurs on CU the output CV (Counter Value) of type integer is incremented by one. When the counter reaches the value specified in PV, the Boolean output Q becomes true and counting stops. If necessary, the Boolean input R (reset) can be used to set the output Q to false and to clear CV to zero.
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Up counter CTU bool bool int CU R PV CV int CV

CV=0
CU Q bool Q R
CV=PV
Fig. 27 Example of a CTU counter block with preset value PV=5.
The CTD is very similar to CTU with three inputs and two outputs. A CTD counts down the number of pulses detected at the Boolean input CD. The input PV is used to specify the starting (integer) value of the counter. Each time a new rising edge occurs on CD the output CV is incremented by one. When the counter reaches zero, the output Q becomes true and counting stops. If necessary, the Boolean input LD (load) can be used to clear the output Q to false and to load the output CV with the value specified in PV.
Down counter CTD bool bool int CD LD PV CV int CV Fig. 28 Example of a CTD counter block with preset value PV=5. Q bool CD Q LD
CV=PV CV=0
The CTUD is a combination of the other two counter blocks. It has two Boolean inputs, CU and CD, used for counting up and counting down the value in output CV. Similarly to the two other counters, the integer input PV defines the counters maximum value. When the counter reaches the value specified in PV the output QU is set to true and counting stops. In a similar way, the output QD is set to true and counting stops when the counter reaches zero. If necessary, the input LD can be used to load the value from PV to the output CV while the input R can be used to clear the output CV to zero.
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Up-down counter bool bool bool bool int CTUD CU QU CD QD R LD CV PV CU bool bool int LD R
CV=PV CV=PV CV=0
CD QU QD
CV
Fig. 29 Example of a CTUD counter block with preset value PV=3.
The CTUD is often used in applications where there is a need to monitor the actual number of items in a process. It could, for example, be used to count the number of products placed on and taken off a store shelf.
Similar to Electrical Diagrams

In many ways, a function block can be compared to an integrated circuit (IC), the building block of todays computers and other electronic devices. Like ICs, function blocks can provide standard solutions to common control functions. The connection lines between blocks symbolize signal flow in the system. Electrical engineers who have experience in designing and analyzing circuit diagrams often have a preference for programming with FBD.
Boolean Functions and Feedback are Easy to Implement

FBD is very suitable for describing Boolean logic with associated timers, counters and bistables. Most programmable controllers have such function blocks predefined in standard libraries for direct use by the programmer. There is no other programming language where timers and counters are so easy to implement as in FBD. Many analog control systems, for example PID controllers, use closed-loop control where some output signals are fed back and used as inputs in the control algorithm. The FBD program gives a good overview of signal flow in systems with feedback.
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Not Suitable for Conditional Statements

FBD programs have very weak support for conditional statements when one or more actions are to be repeated for a specified number of times, or only as long as a certain condition is fulfilled. This kind of construct is much easier to accomplish in the ST language with one of the statements FOR, WHILE, REPEAT or IF.
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4.7 Sequential Function Chart
4.7
Sequential Function Chart
Sequential Function Chart (SFC) is a very powerful language for describing the structure of a control system. Since SFC is not a full programming language it requires instructions taken from the other languages to construct a complete application program. Many experienced programmers consider SFC combined with ST statements to be the ultimate method for developing structured control applications. The SFC standard has evolved from Grafcet, a graphical method of describing sequential behavior. Most European vendors have offered support for Grafcet in their most advanced programmable controllers since the beginning of the 1990s. One of the most important aspects of SFC is that it gives an overview of all the main states of a control application, all the possible changes of states and also the reasons why these changes may occur. The SFC language can be used to divide the entire control application into parts that are executed only when needed, providing a method of optimizing the performance of the programmable controller. Sequences can also be hierarchical with a main sequence containing several subsequences. The result is an application program with a good overview providing detailed information about the controlled process objects.
Chart Structure
SFC is a method of dividing the control function into a series of steps represented by rectangular boxes and connected by vertical lines. Each step represents a physical state of the system being controlled. On each connecting line there is a horizontal bar representing a transition. The transition is associated with a transition condition which, when true, deactivates the step before the transition and activates the step after the transition. The execution flow is normally down the page, but SFC can also branch backwards in the chart. Each step is normally associated with one or more actions. These actions describe the actual physical behavior in the plant, e.g. open valve, start motor, and so on. An action can, in some editors, be described directly in the associated step rectangle. However, in most editors the actions are described as separate program statements (normally in ST language) in other code blocks or in an separate editor window associated with the step. An important consideration in SFC programs is that only the code in active steps is executed.
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All SFC sequences must have an initial step identifying where program execution starts after system initialization. This step is drawn as a rectangular box with double border lines. The initial step remains active until the following transition enables flow to the next step. Some editors allow the programmer to describe short transition conditions directly on the SFC, close to the corresponding bar. However with more complex conditions it is better to put the code in a separate window. The program is often written in ST language but many editors also allow the use of LD, IL, or FBD languages. When the sequence has finished, the flow can be terminated by a step with no associated action. If necessary, the sequence can also repeat the same behavior cyclically. Cyclic execution is enabled by a conditional branch backwards to the first step in the flow. To avoid cluttering the SFC with crossing lines, branches are drawn with a starting arrow where the branch begins and a concluding arrow at the step where the branch ends up. In order to clarify the flow the transition name is written at both places.
Initial step Start Tr1 Pusch Tr2 Drill Tr3 Wait Tr4 Label Tr5 Stop Tr6 Fig. 30 Example of an SFC program for an automatic drilling machine. Note the cyclic execution being enabled by the Tr6 transition condition. Steps with code in other windows Transition Transition conditions with code in other windows
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Steps and Transitions

All steps within an SFC must have unique names and may only appear once in each flow. Every step has an automatically defined Boolean Step active flag variable that is true while the corresponding step is active. The Step active flag is given the same name as the step plus the suffix X, e.g. Drill.X. It can be used within the current SFC to control the logical flow. Two adjacent steps must always be separated by a transition condition which produces a Boolean result. A transition that always occurs can be expressed by the Boolean literal TRUE. The transition conditions may contain any kind or complexity of statements, variables and parameters, as long as the result can be expressed as a Boolean variable.
Action Descriptions
Steps in an SFC are used to describe the states of a controlled plant or machine. When the programmable controller executes an SFC program the state model only works as an internal memory representation of the control function. In order to get real-world actions each state has one or more action descriptions containing program code controlling the physical objects. Any of the four IEC languages can be used to describe the behavior of an action. Action descriptions are normally placed in rectangular boxes that are attached to the step with a connection line. To avoid overloading the SFC with too much detailed information the boxes can be folded in or out. Most editors use a separate window or another code block for specifying the actions.
Drill
P1 N P0
Drill_P1 Drill_N Drill_P0
Drill_Motor := Drill.T;
Fig. 31 Example of a step with the associated actions folded out and one of them described in a separate editor window.
Each action can have one or more action qualifiers that determine when and how the action is executed. Most editors support the following three action qualifiers. The N action qualifier (Non-stored) causes the action code to be executed continuously as long as the step is active.
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The P1 (Pulse rising edge) action qualifier causes the action code to be executed once when the step becomes active. The P0 (Pulse falling edge) action qualifier causes the action code to be executed once when the step becomes inactive. To use one or more of the action qualifiers the programmer writes the code statements in the associated editor window. It is not necessary to use all three action qualifiers. Most sequences use the N action qualifier, but it is possible to leave all three qualifiers empty resulting in a step without any actions.
Sequence Selection and Simultaneous Sequences

In its simplest form, an SFC program consists of a series of steps in a closedloop executed continuously. This type of system (e.g. Fig. 30 on page 63) has only one main flow path. In many systems there is a need for two or more branches in the sequence flow, often referred to as sequence selection. This is required in many batch process applications. In the example below with divergent paths, each branch starts and ends with a transition. When either of the transition conditions Tr2 or Tr3 becomes true, the corresponding branch is selected and execution continues along that path. Note that only one branch can be executed at a time. If more than one transition condition is true the leftmost branch has the highest execution priority. When the last transition in the selected branch becomes true the flow converges back to the main flow.
S1 Tr1 S2 Tr2 S3 Tr4 S5 Tr6 Fig. 32 Example of a sequence selection with two branches. S4 Tr5 Tr3
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We have earlier seen how divergent paths can be used to execute alternative paths in sequences. An important characteristic of such parallel branches is however, that only one step in one of the branches may be active at any time. However, in many batch process applications there is a need for simultaneous sequence structure with several branches. The main sequence is used for primary process control, while secondary parallel sequences are used to monitor that the process is running normally. Such parallel sequences can e.g. check that plant temperatures and pressures are within required limits, otherwise the control system may shut down the process. In the example below, all three divergent branches start with a common transition condition. Execution then continues in parallel and independently along all three paths until convergence is reached. Both the divergent and the convergent flow in simultaneous sequences are drawn with a pair of lines to distinguish the construct from a sequence selection. The transition condition that succeeds the simultaneous sequence structure will not be tested until all the branches have finished execution, i.e. when the last step of each branch is active.
Start Tr1 Acid Tr2 Water Tr3 Heat Tr5 Wait Tr6 Fig. 33 Example of a simultaneous sequence with three continuous branches. Temp Press Tr4 Monitor
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Subsequences
One of the main uses of SFC is as a tool for developing the top down design of the control function in a complex plant. Most processes can be described by a relatively small number of main states, each representing a subprocess with a number of minor states. Some editors provide a method for dividing large SFC programs into a number of subsequences, each represented by a general symbol. A subsequence may in turn contain other subsequences which provides a powerful tool for structuring the overall control function into any number of hierarchical levels. This allows attention to be focused on either the overall behavior of the entire plant or on the detailed operation of the controlled process objects. A subsequence usually contains sequence parts that perform a set of logically related actions. Steps and actions from different hierarchical levels are never visible at the same time. To study the inside of a subsequence the programmer has to step into the subsequence which changes the SFC view, so that only the contents of the selected subsequence are displayed.
Advice on Good Programming Style

Names of steps, transitions and actions should be unique within each program organisation unit (e.g. function block). It as also wise to use meaningful names whenever possible. Try to keep all SFCs as small as possible and focused on the overall behavior. It is better to put detailed behavior in the action blocks or in other SFCs at a lower hierarchical level. It is good practice to reduce the interaction between simultaneous sequences to a minimum. Never allow step actions from different simultaneous sequences to change the same variables. Avoid using constructs in which a divergent path branches out of a simultaneous sequence since this may lead to a sequence that never completes or behaves unpredictably.
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Powerful Tool for Design and Structuring

SFC is a very suitable top-level design tool in the early phase of a project, but can also be used to describe the more detailed behavior of the plant objects being controlled. The SFCs graphical metaphor can be used from the beginning, to give an initial representation of the overall behavior of the system. Since the description is very easy to follow SFC is a very suitable means of communication between the customer and the programmer. In the early phases of a project, there are normally many aspects of the system behavior that have not been defined. By using an easy-to-follow tool for the preliminary specification the number of misunderstandings between customer, system designer and programmer can be reduced to a minimum. The SFC schemes produced in the first phase of a project can be further specified and refined as new information becomes available. Actions associated with overall steps can then be described via other nested SFC schemes. The good continuity of SFC from the initial phase to the refining design phases makes it very popular among system designers and programmers.
Other Programming Languages are Needed

Even though SFC has many advantages as a design and structuring tool it is not a complete programming language. Therefore, the transition conditions and action descriptions have to be programmed with one or more of the other four IEC programming languages. Most experienced programmers prefer the ST language as a complement to SFC. Therefore, the vast majority of programmable controllers use ST as the default language for detailed descriptions in SFC schemes. Some controllers also allow programming with FBD or IL. Although it is possible to implement simple Boolean conditions with the help of transitions in SFC schemes, this is not recommended since the resulting code will be much longer and therefore slower in executing than code in other programming languages.
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4.8 Function Blocks
4.8
Function Blocks
All IEC 61131-3 software applications can be broken down into functional elements called program organisation units (POUs). A POU may contain functions, function blocks or entire programs.
Application Program Function block Function Program Function block Function block Function Function block Function Function block
Fig. 34 The abbreviation POU is a common name for all these program parts.
Function blocks may be regarded as basic building blocks for control systems. The IEC standard ensures that function blocks can be realized using any of the five programming languages. Each function block is a well-packaged software module that can easily be reused in other parts of the control application. A function block can be compared to an integrated circuit (IC) which is used in almost all electronic equipment. The use of ICs has simplified the design of electronic hardware enormously. Function blocks can provide a similar offthe-shelf solution to common control problems.
IC with counter Up counter CTU CU R PV CV Q
Fig. 35 Comparison between an IC and a counter function block.
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The ability of a function block to store both data and algorithms means that it is possible to develop truly encapsulated control functions. A function block describes both the behavior of data and the data structure. The use of function blocks encourages well-structured design which in return will speed up program development considerably. This is especially true in large plants containing a lot of similar control functions which means that function blocks can be reused many times. It may also be interesting to compare function blocks with objects used in object-oriented programming. Function blocks contain truly encapsulated data and also have methods (the algorithm of the control function) for processing the data. However, other features from object-oriented languages, like inheritance, are not fully supported by function blocks. Do not mix up function blocks with the programming language FBD, which uses a number of predefined function blocks. A function block may be defined using any one of the five programming languages. Function blocks may also be called from all the five programming languages.
Type and Instances

One of the main reasons for programming with function blocks is the ability to reuse parts of the application software several times. This is accomplished by first establishing a function block type and then creating one or many function block instances of that type. The function block type contains two parts: a specification of the data structure for input parameters, internal variables and output parameters, and an algorithm that calculates output parameters using the input parameters and, if necessary, local variables for intermediate storage. The algorithm may be expressed in any one of the five IEC 61131-3 programming languages. A function block instance, also only called function block, is a unique set of data values considered together as a structure based on the common rules in the type algorithm. These data are required since the function block has to remember its values between each call in the application program. The function block instance only contains data that are unique to the particular set of function block type. This means that although a function block type may use a very complicated algorithm the memory required to store the data for
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each function block instance may be very modest. An application program based on several function blocks therefore requires less memory than programs containing duplicates of code. Each function block instance is given a unique function block name for identification purposes. The name is shown above the function block symbol.
Function block type Converter Variable declarations Converter1
Converter2 Function blocks Converter3 Algorithm Fig. 36 Function block type and function blocks. The same algorithm is used several times to calculate the unique sets of data in each function block.
User-defined Function Blocks

In order to fully utilize the potential of function blocks, programmers should develop their own function block types for all program parts that can be reused. Most of todays programmable controller editors allow the user to define the function block algorithm using any of the five programming languages. In many cases, the ST programming language is the most suitable for writing the algorithm. Many user-defined function blocks are also constructed by combining standard function blocks into more complex structures. A user-defined function block has a close resemblance to an entire application program. The function block is given a unique type name, has its own variables and parameters and a characteristic algorithm describing the tasks it performs. Local variables are only available inside the function block and are used for intermediate storage by the algorithm. Parameters are used to transfer data in to or out of the function block. When designing a new function block type, it is always worth considering as many current and future uses of the block as possible. There are many advantages of constructing well-proven function blocks that can be used to solve a wide range of control problems.
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On the other hand, care should be taken not to include so many features and variations into the function block that it becomes cumbersome to use.
Fig. 37 Example of a user-defined function block with two statistical calculations.
Differences between Functions and Function Blocks

Most programmable controllers have a number of predefined functions that can be used in expressions like variables or constants. Functions may be used in all the five programming languages. Among the most commonly used functions are mathematical ones such as cos, sin, tan, exp or log, and conversions like real_to_int or time_to_string. The IEC 61131-3 standard states that when a function is used it should result in one and only one value. This value is calculated from the functions input parameters. Any number of parameters of any type may be used in a function. A function always results in the same value for the same input values. When using a predefined or custom function block the type must always be created and given a unique function block name. Function blocks communicate via input and output parameters. Each function block results in a unique set of parameters.
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A function block cannot be used in expressions, it has to be called. When called, the programmer has to connect both input and output parameters to local variables in the POU. Contrary to functions, a function block can create different output parameters although the input parameters have the same values. For example, this is the case for a counter which counts up every time it is called and remembers its values until the next count up. Control Builder Professional from ABB has an increased functionality concerning functions as regards the standard IEC 61131-3. Here, a function can have both input and output parameters. If a function has output parameters it must be used like a function block.
How to Use Function Blocks in Control Programs

Before a function block type can be used, the programmer has to create a fuction block of it and give this a unique name. In the programming editor this is normally done via the window used to declare variables. To create a function block means almost the same as making a copy of the function block type data. The programmable controller then reserves individual memory space for the variables and parameters in the function block type. To call a function block with the ST language, you first write the name of the function block followed by a parenthesis. Within this parenthesis you have to fill in the local variables that connect to the parameters in the function block.
Fig. 38 A function block from Fig. 37 on page 72 connected to local variables in an ST program.
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With the IL programming language you have to call a function block by using the instruction CAL followed by the function block unique name. The local variables are specified in a similar way as with ST, as described above. When a function block type is used with the FBD language the editor presents the function block instance as a graphical symbol. The programmer only has to connect the input and output parameters to local variables.
Interaction between Languages

All the five IEC programming languages have their advantages and disadvantages and no single one of them is suitable for all control tasks. Programmable controllers that are IEC compliant allow the programmer to choose the most suitable language for each task. One of the main objectives of the IEC standard is to encourage well-structured program development by breaking down the total function into a number of program organisation units (POUs). Such POUs may be programmed in any of the five languages and it is strongly advisable to combine the benefits of more than one language in a total plant application. SFC is by far the most suitable language for the early design and structuring of a control application. It works both as a communication tool between the customer and the programmer and as a structuring tool for the overall design of the control application. Since SFC is not a complete language, all logical conditions and calculations have to be written in the other languages. Experienced programmers often prefer the ST programming language since it gives a compact description and has several tools for conditional execution and powerful mathematical functions. FBD is another alternative giving a very good overview of logical conditions, but this language unfortunately only has limited power for conditional execution. Programmers with previous experience of LD or IL languages may, of course, use their favorite language, although they do not provide the same power as ST or FBD. Application programs from older control systems may be transformed relatively easily to IEC compliant programmable controllers by using these two languages.
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Chapter 5: Object-oriented Programs
5.1 New Life for an Old Method
Chapter 5
Object-oriented Programs
The IEC 61131-3 standard for programmable controllers is not the only effort towards better program quality, standardization and the reuse of existing programs in new projects. During the past decade, many program projects have been realized with a technique called object-oriented programming. In this chapter, that technique will be compared with the IEC standard for programmable controllers. Examples of object-oriented programming languages include Simula, Smalltalk and C++, the latter being a development of the language C. Other successful examples using object-oriented techniques are the operating systems for the Macintosh and Windows, both of which have an extensive degree of standardization of man/machine communication. Compared with programs that have been produced using more conventional tools, object-oriented programs require both more memory and better performance from the computer. The increased demands on the hardware, however, can be balanced by great savings in time and improvements in the quality of the software.
5.1
New Life for an Old Method
Thinking in an object-oriented manner is perhaps new to many system analysts and programmers, but the method is really just a return to an old and more natural way of describing problems. One thought-provoking consequence of this is that beginners often learn to program using object-orientation more quickly that experienced programmers, who are hindered by their own traditional way of thinking. In order to explain the principles of object orientation and some of the basic concepts, we shall look briefly at a cell, which is the basic building block for all life. Every cell has a very specialized task, which may be anything from converting energy to producing movement. The information on how the cell is to carry out its task is stored in the cell nucleus. The behavior of the cell may
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vary according to the particular chemical substances which it may contain at any instant. All cells are contained within a membrane which has two important tasks; the first is to protect the cell so that foreign material cannot enter it, and the second is to screen and separate the internal activity of the cell from surrounding cells. All communication between cells occurs by means of chemical substances which pass through the cell membranes.
Object Methods Variables Message
Fig. 39 A living cell is object-oriented in the way it works and interacts with other cells.
The living cell is an object with a function which is determined by methods in the cell nucleus and by the particular chemical substances which are available, i.e. the variables. Cells coordinate with other cells via chemical messages which pass through the membrane, thereby affecting the variables. A message consists of one or more parameters with data which affects specific variables in the cell. Note that the internal activity of the cell is completely separate from that of surrounding cells. In order to coordinate with other cells it is sufficient to send chemical messages. The receiving cells then react by carrying out the required action. In other words, it is sufficient to send orders as to what should be done but not how it should be done. There are many different types of cell, but all have the same class or definition of their internal structure and function. The class of cell, however, allows several subclasses with different variations. Examples of these are plant cells with hard membranes, blood cells which are mobile and specialized for the transport of gases, and muscle cells which can alter their shape and carry out work. Every subclass occurs in a large number of individual instances which have almost identical characteristics.
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5.2 Objects in the Plant
5.2
Objects in the Plant
A necessity for being able to work in an object-oriented manner is of course that the total function in the industrial plant can be divided up into subfunctions comprising a number of objects. Every object is then programmed with its own program object, which in the IEC 61131-3 standard, is called a program organisation unit (POU). The simplest implementation is when actual physical objects each have their own corresponding program object. Examples of such objects might be valves, PID controllers, robots, etc. In industries where raw materials are processed, it is by no means clear where the boundaries should be drawn between objects. The aim of drawing boundaries is partly to achieve a simple functional description, and partly to minimize the total requirement for communication between objects. The programs for the different objects can then be tested individually before the total function is commissioned, which reduces the risk of program errors.
Fig. 40 Object distribution on the right is more efficient as it needs less communication.
The vast majority of computer programs produced by traditional methods are designed to solve a specific problem. The program designer then has to take all the details into account, and to write unique programs for every application. Such programs are difficult to use in other, similar installations. In most cases, it is quicker to write completely new procedures than to adapt already existing programs to new tasks.
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5.3 Data Flow in Real-time Systems
If program objects (function blocks) which correspond to actual physical objects are used instead, then there is a greater likelihood that the programs can be reused. The main part of the programming time would then be taken up in combining and connecting together well-proven program objects to produce finished systems. The system designer then does not need to know in detail how the final objects work internally, but only how they interact with the environment. Programming a system then becomes a matter of selecting suitable objects which can be connected together and thereby simulate the real-life functioning of the installation. In order for it to be possible to use program objects efficiently, they must be well documented, particularly regarding their interface with the outside world. The situation can be compared with the industrial manufacturing of products where functional units are assembled (e.g. cars) with the help of a large number of well-proven standard components. Some of these components may have relatively complex functions, such as the electronic fuel injection system. Given that their interface with the outside world is carefully specified, complex components of this type can be used without having to have a knowledge of their internal functioning.
5.3
Data Flow in Real-time Systems
Industrial control systems are real-time systems, which means that changes in the input signal require immediate action on the corresponding output signal. An example may be a machine where some movement has to be stopped when a particular limit is reached. If the controller does not react in time, the machine may be damaged or the operator injured. The consequences of a delayed reaction therefore become unacceptable. For certain functions, on the other hand, such as printing out and reporting, a certain delay between cause and effect can be accepted. A delay in the operators work can naturally have an adverse effect on production, but as long as the delay is kept at a reasonable level the effect will be minimal. In summary, we can say that a real-time system is predictable. Regardless of the status of the input signals and the internal condition of the system, we have to be able to guarantee correct answers to all conceivable occurrences within a predetermined time. Another notable characteristic of process control is that the internal state of a POU can be altered without any external influence from the input signals from the process. This, for example, is the situation in a PID controller, where the
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5.4 Program Sorting
output signal is calculated as the sum of the control error, its integral and its derivative. The integral part is changed automatically with time, which means that the output signal has to be updated at regular intervals. Similarly, the output signal from a timer has to be updated when the set time delay expires.
Fig. 41 Example of data flow between program POUs in a real-time system.
In an object-oriented system the objects send messages to one another when changes occur. When the receiving object gets the message, the information is stored in the objects local variables. Under normal circumstances, several messages are required from other objects before the particular object sends new messages. This type of event-controlled activation of objects results in a complex system in which it is difficult to predict the behavior in all conceivable situations, and where one often finds a delay between cause and effect.
5.4
Program Sorting
In order to fulfil the demands made on a real-time system, the POU must have constant access to current input data from the process and from other objects. In many real-time systems the object-oriented model is complemented with a mechanism which determines the ordering of messages on the basis of the data flow between the objects. In a data flow-controlled model of this type, the object is active all the time. The objects program code is executed when all the input data are available. As
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soon as the output data have been calculated they immediately become available to other POUs. This leads to a new execution, etc., in cyclical succession. During compilation, an analysis is first carried out of the data flow between objects. The total function of the network of objects is then translated into a program list divided into blocks, which are then sorted into a suitable order. Sorting of the objects program blocks is a complex operation, the aim of which is to achieve the best ordering for their messages.
Fig. 42 During compilation the program code of the objects is sorted in order to give a suitable order for their data flows (compare previous diagram). The total program is executed cyclically with a predetermined interval time.
The compiled program is executed cyclically at a specific frequency. Changes in the incoming signals and local variables therefore affect the output signals at the end of each completed program cycle. The interval time (cycle time) of the program is determined by the demands on the maximal delay time in the process. Because different POUs may have very variable time demands, the total program can be divided up into a number of program parts, each with its own interval time.
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5.5 Reuse of Code
5.5
Reuse of Code
Many programmers strive to design program objects which exactly imitate real-life process objects and which contain the same control functions. Most installations contain a large number of more or less similar variations of process objects. Examples of these are valves with on/off, continuous or threeposition functions. It is therefore important to look for patterns and to design general function blocks which can be reused with minimal adaptation. In general object-oriented systems, program objects often are reused by a method known as inheritance. This means that we create abstract classes of objects which describe characteristics common to several different objects. Abstract classes in many cases lack a physical counterpart in reality. New, more specialized classes can be created from this type of father class, and these will automatically inherit all the fathers characteristics. In real-time systems there is less need to create or change program objects while the system is in operation. Concrete classes called POUs (functions, function blocks or programs) are therefore used instead of the method of inheritance. The programmer starts by defining the function block and then creates the required number of instances (copies of data sets).
5.6
Libraries
Nowadays, hardly any companies manufacture their own screws, nuts or similar components. The production of standard components is carried out by a few large companies who have long experience of the business and who can produce goods of high quality at a low price. When it comes to program development using traditional methods, on the other hand, there are still many who are rediscovering the wheel over and over again. One of the greatest advantages of object-oriented programming is that it is easy to reuse objects with standard functions. The software for commonly occurring objects is then produced by people with long experience which results in high quality. Examples of objects of this type are PID controllers, alarm functions, communication units, etc. It is important to document the interaction of the objects with their surroundings accurately, so that it is possible to use them without knowing anything about their internal function. Most IEC compliant programmable controllers today are delivered with a large number of ready-made functions and function blocks stored in standard libraries, for example, common functions such as timers, counters, pulse generators, PID controllers, limiters, etc.
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The standard modules are produced by people with many years experience of applications in the process industry. This guarantees high quality in terms of the modules function
.
Fig. 43 The standard function block library supplied with Control Builder Professional.
In the design of application programs it is important for the programmer to use the standard functions and function blocks as often as possible. Several standard function blocks can also be combined into user-defined function blocks. It should, however, be noted that there is a considerable knowledge threshold for the programmer to surmount before it becomes possible to make full use of the advantages of program libraries. In order to be able to use the standard function blocks to the full, one must have a general view of their capabilities and limitations, which can take a considerable time for complex systems.
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Chapter 6: Control Modules
6.1 Control Module Concept
Chapter 6
Control Modules
The IEC 61131-3 standard does not fully support all requirements for objectoriented programs. Some vendors of programmable controllers have therefore extended their systems with extra functionality. The engineering tool Control Builder Professional from ABB provides an extension called control modules.
6.1
Control Module Concept
A control module is a container for both application programs and graphical objects. Control modules may represent simple process objects, like valves and motors, or more complex subprocesses, like tanks and mixers. Control modules are created with a graphical editor providing basic shapes, interaction objects and composite objects. Control modules facilitate structuring of large controller applications. The use of control modules promotes object-oriented data flow programming and yields flexible and efficient automation solutions.
Application Material A Conveyor 1 Submodules Conveyor 2 Material B Code for internal behavior Mixed product Submodule handling the interface to neighbors Material A
Fig. 44 Mixer process controlled via object-oriented control modules.
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6.2 Graphical Programming
A control module may have an application program inside the module. Application programs can be written in any one of the five IEC programming languages described in Chapter 4. Control modules also provide basic supervision capabilities. Current process status may be presented graphically and the user can feed in parameters through command buttons and input fields. Control modules have a great deal in common with IEC function blocks, but they also expand the functionality with new features such as graphical programming and automatic code sorting.
6.2
Graphical Programming
Control modules are normally created in the Control Module Diagram Editor which is accessed from the Project Explorer window. This window is made up of two toolbars, a status bar and the drawing area. The graphics toolbar on the left contains basic autoshapes such as text, lines, squares, ellipses, segments and polygons. All graphical objects may be freely positioned and scaled and it is possible to change the object color. The drawing area normally has a visible grid which simplifies exact positioning of objects. Text objects may be either static or used for displaying actual parameter values in the application.
Fig. 45 The project explorer shows the hierarchy of all control modules which are edited in the Control Module Diagram Editor. Compare this program with Fig. 44.
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The graphical toolbar also has ready-to-use interaction objects, such as command buttons, option buttons, check boxes, input fields, windows buttons and non-graphical interaction objects. Such objects make it possible for the user to change process variables and open or close windows while the programmable controller is executing the control application. The non-graphical interaction button is invisible in online mode and is therefore normally placed on top of another graphical object. Finally, there are four composite objects: image selectors, string selectors, bargraphs and trend-graphs, which may be used for more advanced functions. The image selector is used for displaying one of several pictures or control modules in a specified position. The string selector is used in a similar way to display one of several text strings. The bar-graph tool is used to produce a graphical presentation of one or more real variables in bar form. The trend-graph is used for presenting trend curves, that is, several values of variables over a given time period. The visibility of objects may be controlled by Boolean variables which offer a powerful way of showing only the main functionality and temporarily hiding unnecessary details.
6.3
Automatic Code Sorting
As was explained earlier, in Chapter 5.3, real-time systems are sensitive to the order of execution in different parts of the control program. In application programs based on function blocks the programmer has to deal with the sorting manually which may be very difficult and time-consuming in large plants. A very important difference between function blocks and control modules is that the control module code blocks are executed in an order based on optimal data flow, as determined by the compiler. Control modules are only executed once per scan (cycle), whereas function blocks may be executed several times per scan (or not at all). The automatic program sorting of control modules eliminates program errors due to incorrect execution order. For control modules, the compiler analyzes each code block separately with respect to which variables are read and written by each block. Based on the result of that analysis, the compiler then determines the optimal execution order. A code block that assigns a value to a variable has to be executed before other blocks that need to read this value.
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The technique is called code sorting and means that the optimal execution order will be based on data flow instead of program flow (as is the case for function blocks).
V1 Control module 1 V1 := 10 + P1; V2 := 20 * P2; Control module 2 P1 := 2; P2 := 3 * P1; P1 P2 Control module 3 R1 := V1 - 10; R2 := P1 + P2;
P1 P2 Fig. 46 Automatic code sorting detects that the control module 2 must be executed first, followed by module 1 and finally module 3.
Since the execution order of the code blocks in the control modules is determined automatically, it is possible for one module to make a request to another module and to react to the answer within the same scan (cycle). However, when more than one control module uses the same variable for both reading and writing, the compiler gives a warning message that a program loop exists, meaning that the execution order cannot be resolved automatically. Such a problem can be solved by introducing a new intermediate code block with an extra variable storing the result from the previous scan.
6.4
Applications for Control Modules
Before you start to design a control application you should decide whether to use traditional sequence programs with function blocks, or an object-oriented solution based on control modules. The choice depends on both application size and the need for reusable program objects. As a general guideline, traditional programming is often suitable for small control applications, while control modules are recommended for large process applications. In large applications the performance of the programmable controller often has to be optimized. Control modules often generate a more effective code than function blocks. Control modules make it much easier to develop object-oriented programs than the standard IEC function blocks. Object-oriented programs are very suitable for controlling batch processes which are often used in the medical
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industry and in the food industry. Such program objects can easily be reused in similar subprocesses. If all the code for process objects is concentrated into modules, it will also be much easier to manage the maintenance of the plant. Compared with function blocks, the control module strategy entails a systematic and time-consuming design process. Many engineers find this frustrating since they are eager to produce code. However, the time spent on design is repaid during the later phases of implementation, i.e. reuse and testing of the control application.
Design Implement Reuse Test Control Module Function Block Fig. 47 Time spent in the different phases of a control program project.
Most application programs with control modules also contain function blocks. The reason for this is that object orientation is not normally cost-effective at the lowest complexity level in a plant. For simple Boolean logic, traditional programming with function blocks is a more cost-effective strategy.
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Chapter 7: Project Management
7.1 Stages of a Project
Chapter 7
Project Management
Developing large industrial control systems is a demanding task. The control system often has to deal with hundreds or even thousands of different inputs and outputs. An unstructured program for such a system will be very difficult to write, and even more difficult to follow for maintenance and fault finding. This chapter presents a number of methods resulting in a more structured control program with improved software quality.
7.1
Stages of a Project
Inexperienced engineers are often very eager to produce control code as fast as possible without wasting time on problem analysis, specification and design. However, experience shows that such a strategy, or perhaps lack of strategy, will result in a control application that takes a very long time to develop, and is very difficult to debug. More experienced programmers use a strategy in which the control application is developed in seven stages, as shown in Fig. 48. Sometimes, the first two stages are combined into one, which is then considered to be the design stage.
Analysis Design Coding Testing Documentation Commissioning Maintenance
Fig. 48 The recommended stages of a control system project.
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7.2
Analysis
The initial stage of analyzing the control problem is, without doubt, the most difficult stage in a project. This work has to be done by people with a good knowledge of both the plant that is to be controlled and of the actual control system being used. Often, the supplier/programmer of the control system meets with the other contractors and the operators in the plant to determine what controls are needed and how the control actions are to be carried out. At this stage, it is also important to establish what operator controls are needed. Another important consideration is to provide some form of manual maintenance control that can be used for testing or rescuing an automated plant which has failed to function as expected. Experience shows that inadequate analysis will be very difficult and costly to correct in the later stages of a project. Although programmable controllers are easy to reprogram such work will be very time consuming if it has to be carried out during the commissioning stage. The result of the analysis stage is a description of how the plant will work, what operator stations and control are needed and how these will be implemented, what maintenance aids are to be included and a complete list of the I/O signals, together with electrical specifications and physical location in the plant. At this stage, the final testing requirements should also be defined.
7.3
Design
In large control applications, the programmer should not write a single, long application program, but instead break it down into many small program parts, if possible in an object-oriented structure. Ideally, each program part should contain no more than about ten logical conditions, since this is the maximum most human minds can hold at any time. Over the years many methods have been developed which make the work simpler and also result in better software quality. By working from the top down, and breaking down the function of the installation into a hierarchical structure of programs, the whole problem can be divided up into manageable parts. In the IEC 61131-3 standard these parts are called POUs. A hierarchical structure is used with POUs at different levels, where every POU represents its own particular part of the plant. The highest level in the hierarchy gives an overview, while the subordinate levels contain more and more detailed information, the lower down one goes. In large industrial plants this method results in considerable improvements in software quality.
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POUs at the higher levels in the hierarchy are constructed of a number of other POUs which, in turn, can contain further POUs, and so on. The hierarchy can therefore also be written as a block diagram, in which every POU contains subordinate POUs.
Fig. 49 Comparison between block diagram and POU hierarchy for an installation.
Assuming that the collaboration between POUs has been accurately specified, it will be easy for several people to work together on building up the application program. It is normally not necessary to know exactly how a complete POU is constructed or how it works inside in order to be able to use it; we only need to know how it interacts with other POUs. One limitation of the top down method is that it can be difficult to draw boundaries between program POUs at the beginning of a project. Such problems are often not discovered until much later, and it can then take a very long time to correct finished program modules. The need for restructuring grows with the total size of the program project. An alternate method is to work from the bottom up, where complete POUs are produced at a lower level without having to take account of the structure above them. Each such POU can be tested and optimized individually, and can then be used in different plant application programs. The disadvantage of this method is that the POUs have to be very generalized, which produces less effective program code than with the top down method. The object-oriented approach is the newest method for structuring large control applications. Physical plant objects are programmed as self-contained modules communicating with other modules in a data flow-driven model. When working with object-oriented programming, the top down method is often used at the beginning of a project, while the bottom up method is best for handling the internal object behavior. Object-oriented programming is described in Chapter 5.
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7.4
Coding
Based on the structure laid down at the design stage, the coding can now be done with any of the five IEC programming languages. If the initial two stages of analysis and design have been carried out carefully the coding need not involve more than 10% of the total time spent on a project. An effective design with well-defined behavior and carefully defined interactions between different subprocesses makes it possible to divide the work of coding between several programmers. However, it should be noted that such project groups must be managed by an experienced project leader with a good overview of the entire control function. During the work on coding it will sometimes be necessary to further specify the control function in some of the plant subprocesses. There may also be a need to divide some subprocesses into further subprocesses.
7.5
Testing
All control systems must be tested carefully before they are allowed to interact with the real-world plant process. A very important advantage of softwarebased control systems is that testing can be carried out with the system running offline, without communicating with the process. Most computer-based engineering stations have a useful simulation feature providing graphical display of selected control functions. The programmer manually provides input signals via the engineering station, thereby simulating the real transducers. The resulting actions of actuators are calculated by software in the engineering station and presented graphically on the screen.
Fig. 50 Simulation of SFCs is a very powerful method for testing the control function in a subprocess.
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Since most programmable controllers use standardized I/O modules a control program can be developed using variable names for all the real-world inputs and outputs but without knowledge of the address configuration where the physical signals are connected to the controller. Before the simulated control program can be tested online it is necessary to configure the I/O unit with all the variables that are used in the application. At this stage, it is also advisable to test the electrical connections between transducers, actuators and the programmable controller. Most programmable controllers have LED indicators displaying the status of the I/O unit signals.
Fig. 51 Example of an I/O configuration for a programmable controller.
With all but the simplest systems, it can be very time consuming to check all the controls and actions that have been specified in the analysis. In many projects there is spoken or unspoken pressure to hand over the plant control as soon as all the basic operations have been tested, but with more rarely used options untried. Too often, such tests are omitted and faults are not discovered until years after the plant has commissioned. It is therefore very important to establish what testing must be carried out before the plant can be started and what can be tested later, online when the plant is in operation. However, safety-related testing must never be omitted. Finding out that an emergency stop sequence does not work when it is used for the first time in a real emergency will definitely create a disaster.
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7.6 Documentation
7.6
Documentation
At every stage in a project new documents are added describing the plant from several different aspects. After successful testing, all these documents have to be gathered together to provide total documentation of the plant control system. It is therefore very important that all documents are updated with changes made to the control function during the project. Since it is very easy to alter the control function in programmable controllers there always is a risk of losing grip on the plant after program changes. The purpose of the documentation is both to help the operators during normal use and to serve the maintenance personnel when something goes wrong. It is therefore very important that the documents are well structured and adapted to the needs of both these categories. When a new control system is introduced in a plant all personnel involved must be informed about the system. Well structured documentation is one of the best tools for this purpose.
7.7
Commissioning
If the application has been tested thoroughly offline, the online test together with the process should not result in any unpleasant surprises. In many plants, commissioning is an undramatic experience. However, if there are some process conditions that could not be simulated effectively offline, the online testing may be very difficult, time consuming and therefore also very expensive. The cost of online testing together with the process may sometimes be more than ten times higher than testing offline.
7.8
Maintenance
The final maintenance stage seems to be very far away during the earlier stages of a project. However, once a plant control system is handed over it must be maintained, which includes fault finding and minor changes in the specified control function. Such changes are often a response to market needs or to new technologies being developed. Experience shows that the maintenance stage accounts for almost 50% of the total time spent on a project during its life-time. Therefore, it is of vital importance that control programs be developed and documented so they can be easily changed, also by people who were not involved in the previous stages.
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Chapter 8: Industrial Application Example
8.1 Control Problem
Chapter 8
Industrial Application Example

In this final chapter we are going to apply the earlier described structuring methods and programming techniques to a real-world plant. To keep complexity at a reasonable level we will concentrate our efforts on one of many subprocesses in the manufacturing line of an automobile factory.
8.1
Control Problem
The subprocess in question is an industrial robot moving car parts from a conveyor to a manufacturing machine. The car plant contains a number of such robots with similar behavior. The system is to be controlled by a programmable controller of the type AC800M/C.
Conveyor ES LSL Forward/Back Open/Close
Left/Right
LSB
LSF
Machine LSR
Fig. 52 The industrial robot moves car parts between a conveyor and a machine.
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8.2
Analysis
The robot has three different electrical engines which move the manipulator. The entire arm can rotate left or right, the foremost part of the arm can also move forwards or backwards and the gripper, finally, can open or close. The reason for moving the arm forwards and backwards is that there is limited space when the arm rotates between the conveyor and the machine. All the movements are to be controlled by six digital output signals from the programmable controller. The robot system uses four limit switches to collect information about the current position of the arm. The gripper has a mechanical device that stops it from pressing too hard on closing and opening. This makes it possible to hold the output signal from the control system for a short while after the gripper has reached its final position, thereby eliminating the need for two limit switches. All the inputs and outputs are summarized in the table below. I/O signal Arm_Forward Arm_Backward Arm_Right Arm_Left Gripper_Closes Gripper_Opens Limit_Switch_Left Limit_Switch_Right Limit_Switch_Back Limit_Switch_Forward Emergency_Switch I/O AF AB AR AL GC GO LSL LSR LSB LSF ES In/Out Description Out Out Out Out Out Out In In In In In Robot arm moves forwards Robot arm moves backwards Robot arm turns right Robot arm turns left Gripper closes Gripper opens Robot arm at the conveyor Robot arm at the machine Robot arm in its backward position Robot arm in its forward position Emergency signal from operator
In its initial state the robot is placed at the conveyor with the arm in its backward position and with the gripper fully open. If the machine has completed the previous operation a command from the conveyor control program starts the robot arm moving forward. When the arm reaches its forward position (indicated by LSF) the gripper begins to close around the car part. The total time needed for the gripper to close completely is 2 s. With the gripper closed around the car part the arm is now moved backwards and when LSB is active the arm begins to rotate right towards the machine. When LSR at the machine
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indicates that the arm is in the correct position it begins to move forwards again, which continues until LSF is active. The gripper now opens and releases the car part to the machine. The total time needed for the gripper to open completely is 1 s. After this, the arm is moved backwards until LSB is active followed by a turn to the left until LSL indicates that the arm is back in its initial state. In order to minimize energy consumption and reduce the risk of damaging the equipment and the car parts, all robot movements should start and stop smoothly. This is accomplished through a ramp signal with a duration adapted to the needs of the different movements and for start and stop. The conveyor and the machine are both controlled by other control programs. The robot control program has to communicate with these via the following four Boolean parameters: Parameter name Conveyor_Request Machine_Ready Robot_Home Robot_Ready Short In/Out CR MR RH RR In In Out Out Information Conveyor needs transportation Machine has finished operation Robot is back in initial position Robot has finished transportation
If something goes wrong in the plant the operator stops the control system via an emergency switch. All motors must then stop immediately. After an emergency situation the operator puts the system into its initial state by controlling the motors manually in a normal sequence. All the transducer signals from the limit switches and the emergency switch are of digital type. Since the robot motors should be started and stopped smoothly, all the actuator signals have to be of analog type. This means that our programmable controller must have an I/O unit with five free digital inputs and six free analog outputs.
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8.3
Design
The analysis has shown that our robot is a self-contained system with relatively limited communication with the surrounding subprocesses in the plant. Since the plant contains several similar robots the control problem should preferably be solved via an object-oriented robot control module. Such a module may be reused several times in the plant, thereby standardizing the operator interface and reducing the programming work.
Conveyor_Request Conveyor Robot_Home Robot Robot_Ready Machine_Ready Machine
Fig. 53 Communication between the robot and its neighboring subprocesses.
The robot control module should have a graphical symbol with color shifts indicating its state. Gray may be used to signify inactive, green for active (moving car parts) and red for emergency state. According to the top down strategy the robot control module should contain an SFC sequence program, which together with a control program (interlocking with emergency switch), handles the movement of the robot arm. The control program uses the internal states of the SFC sequence interlocked with the emergency signal to control the motors. All motor controls will pass through a ramp function block generating a smoothly increasing or decreasing output signal.
Robot control module
SFC sequence program
Control program
Ramp
Fig. 54 The structure of our robot control module with SFC program, control program and ramp function block.
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Technicians who are not familiar with SFC often use flow charts to describe sequential behavior. Such flow charts are easy to follow, even for those with no engineering background. But unfortunately they often become very large and therefore will be difficult to manage in large plants. The sequential control function for our robot arm is shown in such a flow chart below. The sequence uses eight different working states plus the initial waiting state
.
Init
1
N
CR and MR Y AF
AF
LSF Y
LSF Y GC
GO
Delay 1s Y
Delay 2s Y AB
AB
LSB Y
LSB Y AR
AL
LSL Y
LSR Y
1 Fig. 55 Flow chart describing the control function for our robot sequence.
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The ramp function block type should generate a smooth increase or decrease in the analog output as soon as the digital input is turned on or off. It must be possible to change the ramp up and ramp down times depending on which movements are to be controlled. An example of such a ramp timing diagram is shown below.
Input Output
100%
0%
1s
0.5 s
Fig. 56 Timing diagram for a ramp function block.
The ramp function block should be programmed via cyclical addition and subtraction. In order to produce a smooth output, the function block must have a shorter interval time than the rest of the application, e.g. 100 ms compared with the normal 250 ms.
8.4
Coding
Our robot control project will now be implemented with the engineering tool Control Builder Professional from ABB. The control project will be developed for downloading to an AC 800M programmable controller, equipped with a digital input I/O module and an analog output I/O module.
Project Libraries
All project-specific control modules types, function blocks types, functions and data types that are to be used several times are normally placed in one or several project-specific libraries. Such control functions can easily be reused in a similar manner as the objects in SystemLib. In large projects with several programmers involved, it is advisable to appoint one programmer to be responsible for the project-specific libraries and to allow the others to use them as read-only files. In our example, we will create a library called MyLib for that purpose. Since the robot control module and the ramp function block will both be used several times in our application, they should both be placed in MyLib. All the
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underlying control modules used in the robot control module will automatically be available as control module types in MyLib. Following the rules of object-orientation we will use a structured variable for communication between the robot module and its surrounding modules. The data type of this variable, called Robot_Communication, should also be placed in MyLib.
Fig. 57 The Project Explorer window showing our robot projects configuration of MyLib and the AC 800M controller.
Variables and Parameters

Before the actual coding starts it is recommended that all the variables and parameters needed in the project are defined. However, it is often difficult to predict what local variables are needed inside control modules and function blocks. In most cases the work therefore starts with the real-world I/O signals. These can either be defined as global variables in the application or as local variables in the module where they are needed. The system accepts both kinds of variables when connection to the I/O modules is established.
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Global variables are available at all module levels in an application which simplifies the programming. Unfortunately, this also increases the risk of data corruption, since all modules may write to such variables. Using local variables gives better encapsulation of data but also has a small disadvantage in that modules cannot be moved in the hierarchy once the connection to the I/O unit is established. In our project we will choose this last method.
Fig. 58 Local variables used in our robot control module. RealIO and BoolIO are both composite data types containing the current value plus a number of components used for manual signal forcing.
The only parameter needed in the robot control module is the project declared Robot_Communication used for signal exchange with other modules.
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Ramp Function Block Type

The ramp function block type will be used as a buffer between the digital states in the SFC sequence program and the analog output signals to the motors creating robot arm movements. The purpose of this buffering is to achieve smooth acceleration and retardation when the motors start and stop. Since the different robot movements may have their own demands on the delay time, for both increasing and decreasing, the function block must have two parameters establishing these two values.
Fig. 59 The ramp function block type uses conditional cyclic addition or subtraction of a step value that is calculated from the time demands on the ramp signal.
The ramp will be used six times for the different robot motor outputs and the ramp function block type must therefore be created six times. In order to create almost linear output signal these function blocks should be executed with a shorter interval time than the SFC sequence and the control program. A shorter interval time is accomplished by connecting the six function blocks to the Task Fast and setting its interval time to 100 ms in the Tasks window.
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SFC Sequence Program

The flow chart functional description of the sequence is easy to program as an SFC program block. Each state is represented by a named SFC step with code in separate windows and transition conditions in other windows.
Fig. 60 The robot sequence as an SFC code block with the selected transition condition Tr4 in a separate window.
Our sequence uses two timer function blocks to create delays in the states Close and Open. The required timer statements are placed in the code windows for continuous action at the two corresponding steps.
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Control Program
Normally, the binary status from an SFC step (Stepname.X) is not used directly for controlling the outputs in a process. The reason for this is that there is often a need to interlock the step status with other variables such as emergency signals. Additionally, many systems do not have a one to one relation between the steps and corresponding process actions. In our robot sequence either the step Forward1 or the step Forward2 should result in the same action. This is also the case for the steps Backward1 and Backward2. From the above mentioned it is evident that there is a need for an extra control program block containing the interlocking logic and the summing up of the different conditions for activation. This program block is also a suitable place in which to call the ramp function block that are to create smooth robot arm movements. Finally we must not forget to create the two Boolean signals that are used to tell other control modules that the robot has moved a car part to the machine and that it is back in its initial position at the conveyor.
Fig. 61 The robot control program is used to connect the Boolean step states with the analog motor outputs via six function blocks of the ramp function block type.
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Control Module Graphics

An important advantage of using control modules is that, apart from its control programs, the module may also contain interactive graphical objects. Such objects can be used for presenting actual process status to the operator. In our robot process we want to indicate the status of the robot arm with colors. This can be accomplished in several ways, but one of the simplest is to use three similar robot modules with different colors and to only show one at a time. The visibility of modules can easily be controlled by Boolean variables.
Fig. 62 The variables Any_Action and Emergency_Switch.Value can be used to control the visibility of three differently colored robot modules. Normally, the modules are placed exactly on top of each other, but in the screen above they have been moved to illustrate the method
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8.5 Testing
8.5
Testing
When large applications are to be tested it is of vital importance to reduce the complexity by first testing smaller program parts, like function blocks, and control modules, separately. Once the smaller parts have been debugged the entire application can be tested more effectively. All testing normally follows such a bottom-up procedure. Most engineering stations have a simulation feature where an entire program project can be tested without compiling and downloading it to the programmable controller. Real-world input signals are then fed in manually either by typing on the keyboard or by the pointing device. In our robot project the testing starts with the ramp function block. If a function block is connected to surrounding local variables it is possible to simulate and observe the function. The sequence function is very easy to test via simulation since the status is displayed directly on the screen.
Fig. 63 By providing simulated variable values, the programmer can test run the function without being in contact via the programmable controller.
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8.5 Testing
When function block types and control module types are to be tested it is normally best to work with a funbction block and control module and connect it to other modules providing the necessary parameter communication. It may sometimes be necessary to create variables or control modules that are used for testing only and deleted afterwards.
Fig. 64 When the robot control module type is to be tested it is best to create another temporary control module using a control module of the robot module. Parameter communication is accomplished through a temporary structured variable.
After successful simulation the control project should always be downloaded to the programmable controller and tested online. Most simulations are carried out with much less processing power than during real execution in the controller. The exact timing behavior of critical control functions may therefore be very different when simulated, compared with online execution.
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Chapter 9
Glossary
A
adaptive control Control system where the controller parameters are automatically adjusted to the properties of the process. algorithm A collection of rules which describe, step by step, how a problem is to be solved. analog signal A continuously variable signal which represents a physical quantity, e.g. temperature, flow or pressure. application The application contains a number of instructions that are compiled and downloaded for execution in the controller. ASCII An abbreviation for American Standard Code for Information Interchange. ASCII is the most commonly used code for character representation in data processing systems. assembler instructions A low-level programming language using letter codes to represent the machine code instructions.
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B
baud A unit used to specify the data transmission rate between two devices. One baud is equal to one bit per second. Boolean A variable that can only hold logical values such as True and False or 1 and 0. bottom up A method for structuring application programs where the individual program objects are developed without consideration of the program structure above them. bus A system of parallel circuit wires for connecting the different units in a computer system or a programmable controller.
C
compiler An application program that translates the control application to low-level machine language that can be executed in a computer or programmable controller. CPU The Central Processing Unit in a computer or programmable controller is the brain that coordinates all activities and carries out all operations specified in the application program. In PLCs the name Central Unit is often used instead of CPU. cycle time All application programs in programmable controllers are executed repeatedly at a specified time interval.
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D
digital signal A signal with only two possible states, called high and low, on and off or 1 and 0. distributed systems A control system with several computers or programmable controllers communicating with each other via a local network. download A common name for the transfer of a compiled application program from the engineering tool to the programmable controller.
E
editor Application program that is used for writing and editing text or instructions. execution When a computer is running the instructions are executed one at a time.
F
falling edge The change from 1 to 0 of a Boolean variable. feedback A signal from the controlled process may be fed back to the controller where it is used in the control algorithm. fieldbus A communication bus used for digital information interchange between sensors, actuators and programmable controllers. full duplex A transmission method where data can be both transmitted and received simultaneously.
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G
gateway A communication unit for connecting different types of networks. It translates between different communication protocols. global variable A variable that can be accessed by all programs.
H
half duplex A transmission method where data can only be transmitted in one direction at a time. hardware A common name for all the equipment in a computer system. hexadecimal A system of numbers to the base 16. The numbers 0 9 are not changed while 10 15 are represented by the letters A F. high-level language A programming language similar to ordinary written text where each instruction or statement results in several machine code instructions. Pascal, C and Java are common high-level languages.
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I
I/O module Many programmable controllers use expandable I/O units making it possible to add more input or output signals via extra modules. I/O signal The physical inputs or outputs of the I/O module. identifier A combination of letters, numbers and other characters used to give names to variables, parameters, modules and other language objects. initialization Establishing basic conditions when a system starts up. instruction A programming language element that specifies an operation and the values or location of its operands. integrated circuit Electronic functional unit containing a large number of semiconductors which have been compressed to a small silicon chip.
L
LAN Abbreviation for Local Area Network. A LAN is used to enable high-speed communication between several computers and programmable controllers in a plant. local variable A variable that can only be accessed in the program where it is defined. low-level language A programming language with letter codes where each instruction results in one machine code instruction. Assembler is a typical low-level language. LSB An abbreviation for Least Significant Bit, i.e. the bit in a binary number with the lowest value.
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M
machine code When a computer executes a program it must be available in machine code language which is a low-level language with binary or hexadecimal codes. MMS An abbreviation for Manufacturing Message Specification, which specifies the messages used for industrial communication (manufacturing, process robotics etc.). This is the application layer used within MAP (Manufacturing Automation Protocol), a specification for open communication based on the OSI model. MSB An abbreviation for Most Significant Bit, i.e. the bit in a binary number with the highest value.
O
object code Common name for the resulting code produced when the compiler has translated an application program to executable machine language. octal A system of numbers to the base 8. The decimal digits 8 and 9 are not used in this system. offline A computer (with editor and compiler) that is not connected to the controller is considered to be offline. This is the normal situation for editing the source code. online A computer (with editor and compiler) is considered to be online when it is connected to the controller where the program is being executed. This is the normal situation with the plant application executing and the process status being displayed in the editor.
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P
PLC An abbreviation for Programmable Logic Controller which is the most common type of control system in todays industry. POU An abbreviation for Program Organisation Unit. The IEC standard describes programs, function blocks and functions as POUs. protocol A set of rules which determines the procedure for communication between different I/O units, computers or controllers.
R
RAS Abbreviation for Remote Access Service. With RAS a remote client can dial up a gateway machine resident on a LAN and establish a connection over the telephone network. real-time system A system where changes in the input signals will result in immediate actions on the corresponding output signals. Almost all control systems are of this type. rising edge The change from 0 to 1 of a Boolean variable. RS-232C International standard for serial data transmission with the signal levels -12V and +12V. Mainly used over relatively short distances.
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S
sampling Computer-based control systems cannot communicate continuously with the surrounding transducers and actuators. Instead, the control system samples the environment (collects and transmits values) periodically with a specified sample time. SattBus A fairly fast (62.5 kbit/s) fieldbus with token bus protocol. It is intended to be used for short messages to field devices such as transducers, actuators, etc. simulation Many computer-based engineering tools provide a function for simulating the control function in the computer without downloading it to the programmable controller. source code Programs written in high-level languages are often called source code before they are compiled to object code.
T
TCP/IP An abbreviation for Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol. TCP/IP is used both on the Internet and on many Local Area Networks.
top down A method of breaking down the entire control function into a hierarchical structure of subprocesses.
W
workstation A common name for a computer with associated software used for editing and compiling control programs.
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Index
Numerics
3964R 23 control modules 83 controller 9 cross-assembler 16
I
I/O unit 19, 20 IC 10, 69 identifier 37 IL register 47 inheritance 70, 81 initial step 63 initial value 40 instance 53, 70, 76, 81 instruction 16, 46 instruction list 21 integrated circuit 60 interaction object 85 internal state 78 interpreter 17 interval time 22, 31, 80, 103
A
abstract classes 81 access variable 40 accumulator 47 action 62 action description 64 action qualifier 64 actuator 10 analyze 90 assembler 16 assembly language 46
D
data flow 79 data structure 31 DCS 28 debugging program 16 definition/type 76 distributed system 23 divergent path 65 download 21 Duration 39
B
Basic 18 batch process 65, 86 Boolean data 39 bottom up 32, 91
E
edge 56 editor 16, 21 elementary data type 38 encapsulated data 43, 70 engineering station 19, 21 event 31 execute 16, 22 expression 50
L
label 46 ladder diagram 20 LED indicator 93 libraries 12 local area network 11 local variable 40, 101 loop 86 low-level language 17
C
C 18, 50 C++ 75 central unit 19 class 76 closed loop control 13 code sorting 86 COMLI 23 comment 38, 46 common elements 37 communication protocol 23 compatibility 27 compiler 17, 21 compliance class 33 composite object 85 conditional statement 51 constant 39 contact 41 Control Builder Professional 21, 83
F
feedback loop 41 flow chart 99 function 54, 72 function block 32, 54, 69, 72 function block name 72
M
machine code 16, 21 Macintosh 75 main state 67 MAP 29 memory 12, 19 memory bit 42 message 76 methods 70, 76 minor state 67 MIS 29 mnemonic 47 monitoring subsystem 12
G
global variable 40, 101 Grafcet 62
H
high-level language 17
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Index
O
object 76 object code 18 object-oriented programming 75 object-oriented systems 12 offline 21, 92 online 22, 93 operand 46, 50 operator 46, 50 operator modifier 47 optical isolator 20
state 44 statement 50 step 62 Step active flag 64 structured data type 38 subclass 76 subprocess 12 subroutine 43 subsequence 67 syntax 16 syntax checking 21 SystemLib 100
P
parameter 54, 70, 72, 76 Pascal 18, 50 PID controller 13, 78 PLCopen 33 plinth 14 POU 31, 40, 69, 77, 90 power rails 41 process computer 11 Process Value 13 Profibus 23 Programmable Controller 11, 19 Programmable Logic Controller 11, 19 protocol 28
T
task 23, 103 Time of day 39 timer 79 top down 32, 67, 90 transducer 9 transition 62 transition condition 62 type 70
V
variable 40, 76
W
Windows 75
R
real-time system 22, 78 relay coil 13, 41 relay logic 13 remote I/O 23 result register 47 retain 40
S
SCADA 11, 28 semantics 49 sensor 43 sequence 12, 44 sequence selection 65 Set Point 13 shareware 26 Simula 75 simulation 21, 92 simultaneous sequence 66 Smalltalk 75 Soft PLC 23 source code 18 standard libraries 60, 81
118
3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B
3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B

October 2001

IEC61131

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IEC61131

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ControlIT

IEC 61131 Control Languages

IEC 61131 Control Languages

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1.4 1.5 1.6

Why Open Systems are Needed

IEC 61131-3 Standard

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Industrial Application Example

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3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

Evolution of Control Systems

Fig. 1 Overview of the components in an industrial control system.

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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1.3 Control Applications

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.4 Relay Logic

Closed-loop Control Subsystems

Fig. 3 A closed-loop control system.

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1.4 Relay Logic

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

Fig. 4 Three often-used logical conditions implemented with relay logic.

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.5 Computers for Process Control

Computers for Process Control

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1.5 Computers for Process Control

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.5 Computers for Process Control

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1.5 Computers for Process Control

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.6 Programmable Controllers

I/O unit Input modules Output modules

Transducers Actuators Fig. 7 The components of a programmable controller system.

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1.6 Programmable Controllers

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.6 Programmable Controllers

Computer-based Programming Tools

1.6 Programmable Controllers

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

Fig. 9 A typical program scan in a programmable controller.

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Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

1.6 Programmable Controllers

3BSE 021 358 R201 Rev B

1.6 Programmable Controllers

Chapter 1: Evolution of Control Systems

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