Operations Research, Systems Engineering and Industrial Engineering Commons^™

A Review Of Programmable Logic Controllers In Control Systems Education, Michael R. Foster, Chad Hammerquist, Robert Melendy

Faculty Publications - Biomedical, Mechanical, and Civil Engineering

A Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) is a standard industrial control device that provides a simple, yet robust, method of controlling manufacturing and dynamic processes. As a result of their low cost, adaptability, and reliability, PLCs are by far the most common control mechanism used by manufacturing businesses of all sizes for environment control, food processing, motion control, and automated test equipment. Yet even though PLCs are heavily used by industry, their use in teaching control theory concepts is uncommon for mechanical engineering programs. Traditional control systems engineering courses focus on the theory and mathematics of continuous-based control systems and rarely …