This repository serves as an introduction to simple PLC programming concepts, the following basic ideas are shown:
- State machine
- Improved readability through use of enums
- Control through external booleans (optionally from an included HMI project)
- Timer
- Heartbeat variable to signal machine health
- Random numbers
- Direct button bindings
- Showing text in textblocks
- Using textblocks as labels
In addition, some more advanced concepts are shown:
- Separate functions for the MAIN program
- Reading enumerations as strings through some intermediate javascript.
- Dynamically changing the color of elements
When reading an enumeration directly as a data binding only the integer representation is passed through the binding. However, with knowledge of the datatype we can easily recover the desired <integer> => <string> binding.
The TcHmi namespace provides an EnumToString function, but that requires a list of enumeration values. So this function will not react automatically to PLC enum definition changes. There are ways around this, but encapsulating it in a single function as shown in this example is less error prone.
- Simply open the TwinCAT XAE shell or Visual Studio and choose
File->Open->Open Solution from Archive.... - Check if the PLC compiles and activate the configuration
- Either
- Open the HMI live view to control the machine simulation or,
- Trigger the booleans in the PLC live view.
- Have fun!
- Made with
- TwinCAT 3.1.4024.47
- TwinCAT HMI TE2000 1.12.760.44
This project is not intended to show correct programming practices, it is solely meant as an easy, readable, and mostly fun introduction to some concepts.