Book Image

Mastering PLC Programming

By : Mason White
Book Image

Mastering PLC Programming

By: Mason White

Overview of this book

Object-oriented programming (OOP) is a new feature of PLC programming that has taken the automation world by storm. This book provides you with the necessary skills to succeed in the modern automation programming environment. The book is designed in a way to take you through advanced topics such as OOP design, SOLID programming, the software development lifecycle (SDLC), library design, HMI development, general software engineering practices, and more. To hone your programming skills, each chapter has a simulated real-world project that’ll enable you to apply the skills you’ve learned. In all, this book not only covers complex PLC programming topics, but it also removes the financial barrier that comes with most books as all examples utilize free software. This means that to follow along, you DO NOT need to purchase any PLC hardware or software. By the end of this PLC book, you will have what it takes to create long-lasting codebases for any modern automation project.
Table of Contents (25 chapters)
1
Part 1 – An Introduction to Advanced PLC Programming
6
Part 2 – Modularity and Objects
10
Part 3 – Software Engineering for PLCs
14
Part 4 – HMIs and Alarms
19
Part 5 – Final Project and Thoughts

Summary

This chapter has explored some of the more complex features of the Structured Text language. Many of the features explored in this chapter can help improve the quality of your PLC code. In short, error handling can help catch unforeseen errors, proper code documentation can prolong the lifespan of your codebase, state machines are a vital part of any PLC program, and although pointers may not seem that important now, they will become more prevalent as the book progresses.

Of all the concepts explored, state machines, documentation, and error handling are going to be used the most in the day-to-day life of a PLC programmer.

Now that Structured Text has been explored, the next thing to explore is debugging.