UNIVERSITY OF NAIROBI

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRICAL AND INFORMATION

ENGINEERING

INTRODUCTION TO PROGRAMMABLE LOGIC

CONTROLLERS

4TH TERM LAB MANUAL

June, 2017

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 I. OBJECTIVES

1. To acquire an overview of PLCs and the Basic PLC architecture.

2. To appreciate the differences between PLC, relay and PC-based control.
3. To understand basic ladder logic symbols.
4. To design, implement and run PLC ladder logic programs for simple applications.
5. To learn how to read and interpret a manual for a PLC system.

The objectives are to be met through the actual lab work as well as through the pre-lab preparation
and reading of the recommended and other material.

II. PREPARATION
Read through the document PLC_1.pdf available on the eLearning portal.

III. EQUIPMENT
The main equipment to be used will include:
 PLC Trainer (model: PLC-8/EV). This trainer uses the S7-200 Siemens PLC. A description
has been included in PLC-8-EV.pdf available on the eLearning portal.
 Simulator of traffic light control at a road junction (model: SEMDI/EV)
 A desktop computer with STEP 7-micro/WIN installed.

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IV. PREAMBLE

1. The diagrams below show some logic functions that can be achieved using ladder diagrams.

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Implement the logic functions shown above using the switches of the PLC-8/EV as digital inputs
and relying on the display LEDs of the actual PLC to determine the digital outputs.

2. The diagram below shows the Control Unit of the TSM-700/EV.

Based on an understanding of the basic logic functions and in conjunction with the Control Unit
of the TSM-700/EV implement and test ladder logic to achieve the following:

 When S1 is pressed once, the lamp for S1 comes on and stays on until S2 is pressed once.
 When S1 and S3 are pressed simultaneously they both come on and stay on until S2 and
S4 are both pressed simultaneously i.e. for S1 and S3 to come on, they both have to be
pressed; similarly, for S1 and S3 to go off once turned on, both S2 and S4 have to be
pressed.
In both cases, pressing the emergency stop (S0) should turn of any lamp that is on.

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 V. TRAFFIC LIGHT CONTROL

Further preparation
See the Appendix for more material to read on.

Equipment Description
The equipment simulates the traffic signal operation in a 4-roads crossing. The different
components of the electrical circuit to be controlled by PLC are mounted on a Bakelite silk-screen-
printed panel, with the relative signaling and commands.

Fig. 1: Didactic Panel for Traffic Control

All the signaling lamps are connected in an independent way to a terminal box composed of safety
terminals with 4 mm diameter, so that the user can choose the type of connections between the
different components and the PLC, depending on the management operation mode.

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Work Schedule
1. Based on the Functional Description given below, draw a flowchart for the operation of the
lights at the road junction. Feel free to make reasonable assumptions, if necessary.
2. Complete the assignment list (pg. 7) by specifying appropriate memory addresses. NB: other
symbols in addition to the ones specified in the assignment list may be used if necessary.
3. Design the control task in LAD/FBD/STL.
4. Clearly arrange and connect the programming device, the programmable controller and the
required simulators at the training setup.
5. Implement the designed program.
6. Function-test the control with the simulators and correct any errors.
7. Save the function-tested control program on the programming device
8. Document the function-tested control program.

Functional description and problem definition

The control of the traffic light system for a pedestrian crossing is performed in two operating
modes: day operation and night operation.
A start-up button allows initialization of the system at ignition, and a switch allows activation of
the “Day” and “Night” operation modes. These modes operate as follows:
 Operation mode “Night”: The yellow lamps flash on and off continuously.
 Operation mode “Day”: The red, yellow and green lights of traffic lights 1 and 2 work in a pre-
specified sequence to control the traffic of the crossing.
When a change is made from one operating mode to the other (Night/Day) a confirmation has to
be made by pushing the start-up button.

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Assignment list

OPERAND
(MEMORY SYMBOL COMMENT
ADDRESS)
To initialize the system; to confirm a change
I_RESET_TRAFFIC_LIGHT
from day to night and vice versa
I_DAY_NIGHT day/night switch
Q_RED1 Output for red light of Traffic Light 1
Q_YELLOW1 Output for yellow light of Traffic Light 1
Q_GREEN1 Output for green light of Traffic Light 1
Q_RED2 Output of red light of Traffic Light 2
Q_YELLOW2 Output of yellow light of Traffic Light 2
Q_GREEN2 Output of green light of Traffic Light 2

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APPENDIX: MEMORY, USE OF TIMERS AND COMPARISON
To learn more about timers and compare instructions read the following material
 Accessing data in the memory areas: pg. 27 ff
 Timers (especially TON): pg. 196 – 200 of S7-200 Manual
 Compare Instructions: pg 96-97 of S7-200 Manual

These are the Instruction Sets for those commands. The manual can be found on the elearning
portal or easily be downloaded from the internet. If you google “S7-200 manual” the first result is
a pdf of the manual. Be sure to read through those pages, including the given examples and timing
diagrams of the timers.
Feel free to read other parts of the Instruction Set (chapter 6) or of the manual. It’s always a good
point of reference whenever in doubt.

NB: an important part of PLC training is learning how to read product documentation, read through
the following material: