VFU1076

Gateway is still the same as far as I know. So PLC IP : 192.168.0.100 / 255.255.255.0 Subnet and Gateway 192.168.0.1 Servo gets: 192.168.0.101 Not sure if the SB 168 or/and 167 is being used in the code. I will have to check. One thing I noticed was, the failure only occurs when the machine is running so if the equipment is energized and in stop mode there is no communication issue (PLC & Servo are up and ready). I will double check the ground situation as it could be an interference issue as mentioned by Kratmel.. Cheers,

Thanks for the reply, Kratmel. There is only one power supply in the panel and the 24C(negative) is grounded so that is the same common going to the PLC. I checked all ground connections, voltage levels and everything is alright. I will double check to make sure though. In regard to the socket port # , do you think that could be an issue? Cheers!

Hi all, I am running into a communication issue that I am not over familiar with. My customer has a V700 communicating via Modbus TCP with an Exlar Servo motor. Once the run bit is high the equipment starts operating and then it sporadically stops due to a communication failure between the controller and servo drive. I have replaced cables, checked wires and everything seems to be normal. As mentioned, it does not happen frequently, the equipment runs for an hour or so and then it stops. At times, it seems to be happening more often so I'd say every 10 minutes or so. After speaking with my customer, they said they have been building the same equipment for a long time and the program has never changed. I was confused as I thought that there was probably something in the code causing the issue, but it seems like it could be hardware too. Anyhow, I uploaded the program and everything seems to be correct in it. I would personally do a few things in a different way, but as my customer said the program has never changed and they have been building the same equipment for years. I noticed that the programmer used socket # 3 (TCP/IP Sock init) for the TCP communication, however the local port linked to that socket is the port 20259 which is stored in a MI 215 operand. In the help menu says that port # 20257 is the default port for socket # 3. Would this be causing the communication issue my customer is experiencing? I have attached a pdf of the vlp project and hopefully that helps. The routine is called "COMMS MODBUS TCP" which is the routine that uses the socket for the TCP communication. Thanks in advance for your help. Cheers! COMMS MODBUS TCP.pdf

thanks for clarifying. I will check this out and play with a V700 i have here in stock.

Sounds good, Flex727. I've never done that before, but will check this out. I usually use the option "Upload All & Burn" so i can upload the application in the future in case there's no backup. Your saying that if the battery goes flat and the controller is powered off, i can restore my application from ladder through a button on screen? The controller shows the info mode screen when that happens and the application needs to be backed up first from the SD so is it possible to back this up through a button on the screen instead?

Hey @Flex727and @Simon, i really appreciate your reply. Yes, I am aware of the procedure regarding the replacement of the battery. I have created a help menu on my screen where i guide my customer on how the battery needs to replaced as well as its specs. Controller must be powered while the battery is being replaced and then a power cycle to reset SB8. @Flex727, you mentioned above that the project can be downloaded into flash memory, so i usually create a clone file and save it on a SD card so i always have a backup. However, my customers are forgetting to replace the battery and then when it goes totally flat they lose their application at power-off. I need to guide them to go in info mode and restore the application from the SD card. I do not know if there's any other way to do this.

Hi folks, I've been working on a project for an OEM where remote access is required. I have purchased a UCR8 for the application and after chatting with the owner of the company we decided not to use the cloud service. As far as I know, there's a three month trial period and then a subscription plan is required. I'm using V700 controllers and because the remote access will only occur sporadically, a monthly fee subscription would make the project impracticable. Im basically integrating this router to an existing network and am manually doing all the network configuration (port forwarding, ddns, traffic and firewall rules, dhcp reservation if static ip isnt available) in order to remote in. Everything is working so far and i can use VisiLogic to open and make changes on my ladder application (sometimes it does not work very well so im still working on it) as well as remote operator to operate my screen. Have you guys done this before? any advice to make it more reliable without using cloud services? Thanks in advance.

Hey folks, This question was probably answered, but i am going to ask one more time as i could not find the answer. I have been using V700 controllers in my projects and have gone through some issues in regard to the battery. It goes flat and as you must know I lose my data at power-off. I added some code on my program where I am using the SB8 bit to detect when the battery is weak so that way my customer knows the battery needs to be replaced to avoid losing the data at power-off. As far as I know, the controller uses a volatile (RAM) memory and non-volatile (Flash) memory which saves my data once the controller is powered off. My question is, Is the battery used while the controller is powered up? or is it only used when the controllers is turned off ? Thank you in advance.

Hi, After lot of digging and chatting with an Engineer at Unitronics, it turns out that PCO, the protocol that Unitronics software uses to connect to PLCs is different when communicating over Ethernet and Serial. Over Ethernet, PCOM adds 6 bytes of data to the beginning of the message. Because of this, connecting from VisiLogic(over Ethernet) to the router and then forwarding that to the PLC via serial, the PLC does not recognize the command. A Serial to Etherner gateway software is necessary to accomplish this or through the UniCloud. I am still running some tests here and will let you know how that goes. Let me know if anyone knows a FREE serial to ethernet gateway software as I only found paid ones so far.

Hi Simon, Thanks for the input. I am not using the Unicloud service that Unitronics offers. Instead, I am using a third party DDNS service in order to be able to track what IP my controllers is getting assigned to it. There is a setup under services>rs232/485 into the router that needs to be configured in order to use the Remote Operator. I just don't know the exact settings needed. My physical setup is : UCR>DB9-male to RJ11 male into Port 1 of the V570. In VisiLogic, I have a com port init in my power-up task to initialize the serial communication and same settings are being used into the router. In Remote Operator, the ethernet call is my connection type where the router's IP is the target as well as its port. PLC name and everything seems to be correct, but I cannot access my controller. Thank you.

We have lots of customers with V570 screens and it would be expensive to add an ethernet card on every single machine to then get the router running.

Hello everyone, I have a UCR 8 which is connected to a V570 via serial. I am basically setting up Modbus RTU into the router to create a gateway between my Ethernet communication and the serial PLC. I want to be able to remote access my controller via Remote Operator. It works fine with a V700 as it gets an Ethernet port, but It's been difficult to get it running on a V570. Have you guys done this before? Cheers.