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A Beginner's PLC Overview, Part 1 of 4: Introduction to PLCs

By Stephen Gates, P.E., MyPLCtraining.com (Republished, with permission, | November 28, | Feature
from myplctraining.com) 2017

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 Summary

A Beginner's PLC Overview, Part 1 of 4: Introduction to PLCs

If you are interested in learning about PLCs and/or PACs, but you are not sure
where to start, then this Beginner’s PLC Overview blog series has been written for
you! After you’ve read this 4-part series you should be able to identify the primary
you! After you ve read this 4 part series you should be able to identify the primary
components of a PLC system and have a basic understanding of the purpose and
function of PLCs (and PACs). When you complete this series, you should be ready
to begin learning about PLC programming should you choose to pursue that. If
you have any questions about this content, please feel free to comment on the

post or email me directly at stephen@myplctraining.com. So, without further

delay, let’s jump right into our introduction to PLCs!

Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) are small industrial computers with

modular components designed to automate customized control processes. PLCs
are often used in factories and industrial plants to control motors, pumps, lights,
fans, circuit breakers and other machinery. To understand the purpose of PLCs
better, let’s look at a brief history of PLCs.

History

Industrial automation began long before PLCs. In the early to mid 1900s,
automation was usually done using complicated electromechanical relay circuits.
However, the amount of relays, wires and space needed to create even simple
automation was problematic. Thousands of relays could be necessary to
automate a simple factory process! And if something in the logical circuit needed
to be changed? Oh boy!

NOTE: On a basic level, electromechanical relays function by magnetically opening

or closing their electrical contacts when the coil of the relay is energized. The are
very useful devices and still play a major role in industrial automation (for a more in-
depth lesson on electromechanical relays check out this post).

In 1968 the first programmable logic controller came along to replace

complicated relay circuitry in industrial plants. The PLC was designed to be easily
programmable by plant engineers and technicians that were already familiar with
relay logic and control schematics. Since the beginning PLCs have been
programmable using ladder logic which was designed to mimic control circuit
schematics. The ladder diagrams look like control circuits where power is flowing
from left to right through closed contacts to energize a relay coil.

Ladder Logic Example

As you can see, ladder logic looks like simple control circuit schematics where
input sources like switches, push-buttons, proximity sensors, etc are shown on the
left and output sources are shown on the right. The ability to program
complicated automated processes with an intuitive interface like ladder logic
made the transition from relay logic to PLCs much simpler for many in the
industry.

Although, the first PLCs were very limited in their memory and speed capabilities,
they quickly improved over the years. The presence of PLCs helped simplify the
design and implementation of industrial automation. For more on the history of
PLCs, see this great little article from AutomationDirect here.

How Do PLCs Work?

PLCs can be described as small industrial computers with modular components

designed to automate control processes. PLCs are the controllers behind almost
all modern industrial automation. There are many components to a PLC, but most
of them can be put in the following three categories:

Processor (CPU)

Inputs

Outputs

PLCs are complex and powerful computers. But, we can describe the function of a
PLC in simple terms. The PLC takes inputs, performs logic on the inputs in the
 p p ,p g p
CPU and then turns on or off outputs based on that logic. We will get into more
detail later but for now, think of it like this:

1. The CPU monitors the status of the inputs (ex. switch on, proximity sensor
off, valve 40% open, etc.)

2. The CPU takes the information that it gets from the inputs, performs logic on
the inputs

3. The CPU operates the outputs logic (ex. turn off motor, open valve, etc.)

See the flowchart below for a visual representation of the steps above.

PLC Function Flowchart

Let’s use a familiar example to illustrate how PLCs work. Your dishwasher. Many
dishwashers have microprocessors that function similarly to PLCs. The
dishwasher has inputs, outputs and, of course, a CPU. Some of the inputs into the
dishwasher controller would be the buttons on the front, the water sensors and
the door switch. Some of the dishwasher outputs would be the water valves, the
heat elements and the pumps. Now let’s think about how the dishwasher uses
those different components.

NOTE: Remember, the CPU is the processor in the dishwasher that is programmed
to make all the decisions we will see below. This is just like a PLC processor
(CPU) which makes logical decisions based on input status.

1 User pushes the cycle mode button (input detected)

 1. User pushes the cycle mode button (input detected)

2. User pushes the start button (input detected)

3. CPU verifies that the door is closed (input detected)

4. Fill valve opens and the dishwasher begins filling with water (output
activated)

5. CPU waits until proper water level is reached (input detected)

. Fill valve closes, and water flow stops (output activated/de-activated)

7. Heating element is turned on (output activated)

. CPU waits until proper water temperature is reached (input detected)

9. Soap dispenser opens (output activated)

10. Water pump turns on to force water through sprayers (output activated)

11. CPU begins timing depending on cycle type (logic timer activated)

12. Water pump turns off (output deactivated)

13. Heating element is turned off (output deactivated)

14. Drain valve opens and the dishwasher begins draining the dirty water (output
activated)

15. CPU waits until it detects the water level to be low enough (input
activated/de-activated)

1 . Drain valve closes (output activated/deactivated)

17. Fill valve opens again to rinse dishes (output activated)

1 . Water pump turns on to force water through sprayers (output activated)

19. CPU begins timing (logic timer activated)

20. Water pump turns off (output deactivated)

21. Drain valve opens and the dishwasher begins draining rinse water (output
activated)

22. CPU waits until it detects the water level to be low enough (input
activated/de-activated)

23. Drain valve closes (output activated/deactivated)

24. Heating element turns on to heat the air inside the dishwasher and dry the
dishes (output activated)

25. CPU waits until proper interior temperature is reached (input activated)

2 . CPU begins timing (logic timer activated)

27. Heating element is turned off (output activated/deactivated)

Discrete and Analog I/O

Inputs and outputs are often abbreviated with the term “I/O”. In the the
dishwasher example above, we treated every input and output as a discrete or
digital signal. Discrete signals are signals that can only be on or off. These are the
simplest and most common type of I/O. In our example we did not use any analog
I/O. Although, there may be some use of analog I/O within a dishwasher control
system, I wanted to keep this example simple. With analog signals, instead of only
on/off or open/closed possibilities, you may have 0 – 100%, 4 – 20mA, 0 – 100
degrees Celsius, or whatever it is you measuring as an input or driving as an
output. We will cover this in more detail in part 3 of this series. PLC or PAC?
You may have heard of the Programmable Automation Controller (PAC). The term
was first coined by the market research firm ARC in 2001 to differentiate the
original PLCs from the newer, more powerful, more flexible controllers that were
entering the market. There is disagreement about the definition differences
between PAC and PLC, and often the terms are used interchangeably in the
industry. I often use the terms interchangeably myself. This article, here, from
Control Engineering may help you understand the differences between PLCs and
PACs. In my opinion PACs are always the better choice unless the system is very
simple and minimizing cost of the project is vital. The modern user interface,
extra power and memory of most PACs make them easily superior to most PLCs.

Allen-Bradley, one of the current leaders in industrial automation, is actually

phasing out their PLC lines such as the PLC-5 and instead focusing on their PAC
lines such as ControlLogix and CompactLogix. Personally, I think this is a great
move. Among the many other benefits of the PAC, the user-friendliness of
Rockwell’s RSLogix 5000/Studio 5000 Logix Designer (programming software for
ControlLogix/CompactLogix PACs) far surpasses the older RSLogix 5/500
software (programming software for the PLC-5 and SLC500). Having experience
with both PLCs and PACs is important for everyone interested in working with
industrial automation. However, PACs are the future and where you will spend
most of your time as industrial automation engineer/technician.

Conclusion

Now you should you have a better understanding of what PLCs are, their history,
and how they work. Next time, we will look at the PLC controller (CPU) in more
detail. So be sure to tune in for that!

Was this helpful? Do you understand what a PLC is now? Do you have any follow-
up questions? Let me know! You can always email me at
stephen@myplctraining.com. I’d love to hear from you.

Beginner’s PLC Overview Series Outline

1. Introduction to PLCs

2. PLC Processors (CPU)

3. PLC Inputs and Outputs (I/O)

4. PLC Ladder Logic

Learn More 
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