CodeSys based HMI design and sensor upgrades for a PLC and Atmega2560 controlled industrial conveyor

Abstract

Engineers nowadays must be able to solve the challenges set by industry 4.0, in order to make existing devices viable for this new trend. This requires a complex, system-based way of thinking. Nowadays, in most cases, we usually find company-specific hardware and software in industrial automated production. However, in different industries, it is not unheard of that a given manufacturing cell, robot, or manipulator became unserviceable, because a manufacturer is no longer on the market, making it impossible to find replacement controllers, software, or updated firmware for our industrial robot, or manipulator. The following project aims to provide a solution to the problem detailed above, where an unserviceable Flexlink conveyor's controller is replaced with both an Arduino and a PLC, and before realisation of the new control method, simulations are possible before connecting the actual controller.