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Hello,

I and some of my colleagues are desiring to build an integrated control system similar to DCS, combining some of our PLCs from various brands such as OMRON CJ1 series and Siemens S5 in order to train some of our friends about DCS or Integrated Control Systems. I have been told when I was in school that DCS combines system of PLCs and also some say that DCS is the microprocessor based plant controller. Yes, I have the OPC server software, I just don't know how to integrate those PLCs with the OPC or if we need other communication hardware such as TCP/IP modem or router. Is there any guide for how to build a PLC based DCS system and where I can find those?

Thank you, and my best regards.

Here's my best definition of a DCS.

"A DCS is a system comprised of proprietary field controllers running sophisticated and proprietary software and control algorithms communicating over an open network (usually Ethernet) to a COTS (commercial-off-the-shelf) PC running a proprietary integrated suite of software. The software suite includes but is not limited to, control, advanced control, HMI, and data historian."

With a PLC you have the field controllers, but you may not have the control software necessary to do continuous or batch or hybrid control in the field. Many PLC vendors, such as Rockwell or Siemens, have those abilities. ALL DCS vendors do.

It is the suite of integrated software in the host PC that really makes the DCS.

Walt Boyes
Editor in Chief
Control and Controlglobal.com
www.controlglobal.com
Mailto:wboyes@putman.net
Read my blog SoundOFF!! At www.controlglobal.com/soundoff

Thank you for your reply, yes I have the appropriate software for that task. Eventually we have the Wonderware and Prosoft OPC server. Can that help us build the system or do we need something else?

I think first you need communication with those PLCs.

Hello,

Thank you for your replies. Yes we have try to communicate the PLCs by using the TCP/IP, but how we configure the PLCs so it can act as master and slave for each other? Is there's a software that can become the base operation system to integrate those two?