THE DESIGN OF A PORTABLE PROGRAMMABLE LOGIC CONTROLLER (PLC) TRAINING SYSTEM FOR USE OUTSIDE OF THE AUTOMATION LABORATORY

Abstract

Programmable Controllers are predominately laboratory based subjects as they require “hands on” electrical wiring, interface to industrial electrical components, to Human Machine Interfaces (HMI) and may be networked. As PLC courses evolve to incorporate the IEC 6-1131 defined programming languages with the resultant extra software theory learning requirement and an increasing demand for in-company courses a requirement arises for a PLC system which is portable and can be accommodated in a training or class room. This paper seeks to address this issue.