URGENT - Shop Floor Data Collection- Please Help

[Djbell]

In My factory we have 5 Automated lines, what I would like to do is put sensors at the end of the lines and connect them to a Siemens PLC so that they count the amount of components that are completed. What I would also like to do is connect the PLC to the network and have an access database collect this information in real time from the plc and use it as a remote monitoring tool.

I have no idea how to do the above, can anyone give me any suggestions, including the most cost effective Siemens PLC to use.

Regards

1druid1

 

[glister]

What are you using to control the line now? Will you add a new sensor to detect product at the end of the line or is there an existing sensor that you could monitor to obtain this info? Is this a continuouus process or is it piece work? Is the production based on a particular line speed? Is there an inspection process at the end of the line? Could pieces be rejected before the final count? Lots of questions.

How do you plan to detect the product? Photoeye? Inductive sensor?

A PLC would be expensive for just counting parts.

You should try and get the count info from existing machinery. less expense. no new sensors. Then figure out how to get the count from the existing process.

A+,N+,S+,L+,I+,HTI+,CET,CST,CNST,CNCT,CFOT,CCNT,ACSP,ISA CCST3

 

[JadakBCarinci]

1druid1,
I am the webmaster for a company called Jadak Technologies. We manufacture and sell auto-id (barcoding) products (scanners). Also we specialize in software & hardware engineering, and oem development (scan engines).

Kind Regards,

William Carinci
Webmaster
Jadak Technologies

 

[ghijkl]

Just a thought prompted from a distant past experience.
It may also be an appropriate time to stamp your product with a unique serial number to allow tracking in other parts of the system. (Like backflushing)

Regards,
Peter

 

[vanoorta]

These guys are good at data collection from sensors and such.

http://www.datanab.com

They provided my company with a very easy to use and inexpensive data collection and archiving system.

 

[pequeajim]

DJ:

SOme good suggestions here. You have already looked at what you would like to do, but you need to ask yourself a few other questions, (some of which have ben asked here):

1. Am I buying new sensors or using existing ones?
2. What model PLC am I using, not brand, but model?
3. What is my throughput, (this matters a lot)?
4. How am I connecting to my PLCs, OPC, DDE, other?
5. What is grabing the data from the PLC and logging it to Access, VB, SCADA, Access script?
6. What are my future needs?
7. What kind of budget do I have for this?

There are lot so products on both the HW and SW side that can do this for you. You need to decide on a scope of what you want to do now without forgetting what you may want to do in the future.

You could end up with something like Archestra A2 or InTouch, RSLinx and VB, or a generic hw solution and Access can see through OPC.

I know this does not directly answer your question, but I think you might want to ask yourself some of the questions that I pointed out above, then try and find a solution.