PLC Project
FORM Swim
While I was an intern a FORM Swim, I was responsible for implementing serial communication between a programmable logic controller (PLC), and a Raspberry Pi. This allowed the manufacturing engineers to access specific data on each quality test performed, rather than just a binary pass/fail result.
PLC devices use a programming language called ladder logic, which I taught myself the basics of in order to understand the program on the PLC. I was able to modify the PLC program to configure it to send serial data. I then implemented the proper electrical configuration for the serial lines, including using an IC to convert between two different serial protocols. Finally, I used Python to write a library of functions on the Raspberry Pi to be able to receive and process the serial data from the PLC.
This project was made more difficult as it needed to be implemented in an Asian factory. Once I had a working setup in the Vancouver lab, I had to write clear documentation for the engineers in Asia to be able to implement and troubleshoot the system going forward.
