JP3526232B2 - Online edit function processing method for step-executable programmable controller - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an online edit function processing method for a step-executable programmable controller for executing a sequence program for controlling a manufacturing facility. 2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, there has been an increasing demand for downsizing and high-performance control systems for manufacturing equipment. For miniaturization, an integrated device having a display with a touch panel switch, a programmable controller function and a production time point information management function as an operation panel has been used (Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 9-6412). As shown in FIG. 5, there are two types of programmable controllers for controlling manufacturing equipment: a cyclic type in which a control instruction is executed when a certain condition is satisfied, and a sequence of control instructions as shown in FIG. A step execution type executed sequentially is known. In the cyclic type shown in FIG. 5, for example, if condition 1 is satisfied, instruction 1 is executed, and
When the condition 3 is satisfied, the instruction 2 is executed, but the execution order of the instructions 1 and 2 is undefined. In the step execution type shown in FIG. 6, instructions 1, 2, 3,... Are executed in this order. When a sequence program for operating a manufacturing facility is developed, a sequence program is created by a personal computer 11 or the like as shown in FIG. 1, and setting information is transferred to a programmable controller 13 via a communication line 12. Is a general development procedure. [0005] By the way, in the case of a cyclic type programmable controller, when the size of a program is increased in order to improve the functions and operability of a manufacturing facility, the entire program and the current execution position are increased. Is difficult to grasp, and it is difficult to find the following program errors. Furthermore, as the program size increases, maintainability and execution speed tend to decrease. [0006] Immediately after creating a sequence program,
Since there are many program mistakes, etc., debug work to remove them. In general, debugging is a method in which program correction and testing are repeated many times so that normal operation is performed while actually operating a manufacturing facility. In order to perform the program correction and the test, the correction is performed by the personal computer or the like as described above, and the transfer by communication is repeated. Normally, it takes time to transfer a program after correcting it, since all programs are transferred. Further, it is necessary to stop the operation of the manufacturing equipment, operate the programmable controller so as to be in the receiving state, and perform an operation for operating the programmable controller after the transfer is completed. The problem is that the procedure for performing a series of debugging operations is complicated, and communication takes time. In view of the above, the present invention employs a step-execution type in which a programmable controller is executed in the order in which control instructions are arranged, thereby facilitating debugging, and including a program including a portion edited and modified by a user. It is an object of the present invention to provide a method of processing an online edit function of a step-executable programmable controller which can transfer data in blocks to greatly reduce communication time in a debugging operation. [0008] Other objects and novel features of the present invention will be clarified in embodiments described later. [0009] To achieve the above object, according to the Invention The in-line editing function processing method stepping type programmable controller of the present invention, control
A step-executable programmable controller that executes instructions in a sequence includes a first storage area for storing a program including a plurality of program blocks before update and a second storage area for storing a program block after update. Comprising a device, a personal computer is connected to the programmable controller via a communication line, and the program blocks updated on the personal computer side are transferred to the programmable controller in program block units and stored in the second storage area, In the programmable controller, the updated program block transferred to the second storage area is replaced with a corresponding program block in the first storage area, and occurs when the program block is replaced.
Execution position management performed on the personal computer side.
Cormorant is characterized in that. An embodiment of a method for processing an online edit function of a step-executable programmable controller according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. An embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. In this embodiment, a personal computer 11 is connected to a programmable controller 13 via a communication line 12. The programmable controller 13 is configured as a step-execution type that executes control instructions in a line-up order, and facilitates debugging work.
The step execution type programmable controller 13 includes:
A storage having a first storage area in FIG. 2 for storing a sequence program composed of a plurality of program blocks before updating and a second storage area (replacement storage area) in FIG. 3 for storing an updated program block. Equipment. The personal computer 11 is provided for a user to edit and modify (edit) a sequence program online. Then, the program is transferred to the programmable controller 13 via the communication line 12 in units of program blocks including portions edited and modified (edited) by the user. here,
A program block divides a sequence program into tasks (units representing one independent job),
Or it is divided for each subroutine (a series of programs that can be called from anywhere in the program),
In particular, the dividing method does not matter. In the present embodiment, the online edit function process is executed in the following procedure. First, the entire sequence program created on the personal computer 11 is transferred to the first storage area of the storage device inside the programmable controller 13 via the communication line 12 as shown in FIG. In FIG. 2, it is assumed that the sequence program includes program blocks 1 to N. A required program block is edited and corrected by the personal computer 11 along with the debugging work.
Programmable controller 1 via communication line 12
The program block is transferred to 3 (online editing). The program blocks updated by online editing are stored in the programmable controller 13
The data is transferred and stored in the second storage area of the internal storage device as shown in FIG. Here, it is assumed that the program block 1 has been updated by online editing. At this time, in the programmable controller 13, the old program block to be updated in FIG. 2 (first storage area) is replaced with a new program block to be updated in FIG. 3 (second storage area). Perform processing. In the online editing function, there are cases where an existing control instruction is replaced, another control instruction is added, and an existing control instruction is deleted. When the program blocks are exchanged by the online edit function, where the execution position in the old program is in the new program, and what to do when the return destination changes when the execution position is in a subroutine is explained. I do. When a user changes a program block using the online editing function of the personal computer 11, the personal computer 11 manages where and how the program block was changed, and the execution position of the program block in the old program is changed to the new position. Programmable controller 13
As shown in FIG. The programmable controller 13 is provided with a stack mechanism for storing the return position from the subroutine on a first-in first-out basis (inputs are stored in chronological order, but outputs output the last one). If the execution position of the program block to be updated in the old program is in a subroutine, the return position from the subroutine also needs to be accurately corrected. It is common to manage using a personal computer 1
1, a stack read request is issued, and the contents of the stack (return position of the subroutine) are transferred from the programmable controller 13 to the personal computer 11 (stack information transfer). Since the personal computer manages the information in which the user has changed the program block, the contents of the stack can be accurately corrected. By transferring the corrected contents of the stack to the programmable controller again (stack writing), it is possible to maintain the consistency of the return position from the subroutine. Note that the completion of stack rewriting is sent from the programmable controller 13 to the personal computer 11. According to this embodiment, the following effects can be obtained. (1) By making the programmable controller a step-execution type, the current execution position can be grasped and executed one instruction at a time, making it easier to find a program error. That is, the debugging work becomes easy. (2) The online edit function transfers a program block unit including a part edited and modified (edited) by a user in a communicable state (online). By enabling the transfer in units of program blocks, the communication time can be significantly reduced as compared with the transfer of all programs. For example, in the case of a sequence program having 16 program blocks and each program block having the same program size, the time required for transfer for a single program correction in the debugging operation is from 160 seconds to about 1 second. / 16 to 10 seconds.
Further, by devising the internal processing after the transfer, it is possible to transfer the edited / modified program block at any time with only the operation of the personal computer. (3) When the program blocks are replaced, the operation of the manufacturing equipment can be continued without completely interrupting (resetting) the operation of the manufacturing equipment, so that it is not necessary to perform the initial operation such as the return to origin. Therefore, the number of steps of the debugging work can be reduced. Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that the present invention is not limited to the embodiments and various modifications and changes can be made within the scope of the claims. There will be. As described above, according to the present invention,
Step execution type that executes the programmable controller in the order in which the control instructions are arranged. This step facilitates debugging work, and can transfer data in program blocks including parts edited and modified by the user, greatly reducing communication time in debugging work. An online edit function processing method for an executable programmable controller can be realized.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram showing an embodiment of a method for processing an online edit function of a step-executable programmable controller according to the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an initial state of a sequence program stored in a first storage area in a storage device of the programmable controller in the embodiment. FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing program blocks to be updated stored in a second storage area in a storage device of the programmable controller. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing replacement of a program execution position according to the embodiment; FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a cyclic programmable controller. FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of a step execution type programmable controller. [Description of Signs] 11 Personal computer 12 Communication line 13 Programmable controller

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G05B 19/05 G06F 9/06

Claims (1)

(57) [Claim 1] A step-executable programmable controller that executes control instructions in a line-up order, comprising: a first storage area for storing a program including a plurality of program blocks before updating; A personal computer connected to the programmable controller via a communication line, and a program block updated on the personal computer side is stored in the programmable controller. Transfer in units
In the programmable controller, the updated program block transferred to the second storage area in the programmable controller is replaced with a corresponding program block in the first storage area, and
The execution position management that occurs when the
An online editing function processing method for a step-executable programmable controller, which is performed on a computer .