communications difficulty with V1210

[Lahry]

We have several V1210's we are incorporating into a project. I have put a program into the V1210 via the serial cable/com port. I have installed an Ethernet card in the back of the V1210. I hooked up Ethernet cable from my PC to a switcher, and then on to the PLC. My PC recognizes the network's presence, but there is no communication. I've checked the IP address both in the program, and also in the drop down communication box. They agree. But they won't talk.

My background is process control, not an IT, even though I've been using computers since the "dos" days. So feel free to speak to me in basic easy to understand terms. I've been working on this problem for days. I need help. Thanks.

Lahry

[s.pratt]

Hello Lahry,

 

Thank you for using our Unitronics Forum.

 

What is the IP Address in your PC and in your PLC?  Are you able to ping the controller from your PC via your command prompt? (type "ping [iP Address of controller]" then hit enter)

 

Also, when you are trying to connect to the PLC from VisiLogic, are you communicating over port 20256 and do you have a PLC name entered in the project settings of the TCP/IP Call?

 

Please let us know of your results.

[Flex727]

Here is a list of things you need for PC to PLC communications over Ethernet:

 

1) Both PC and PLC need to be on the same subnet (i.e. first 3 triads of the IP addresses should be the same).

 

2) You need to set a PLC Name in the PLC ladder. Be sure you power cycle the PLC after updating any communications settings on the PLC.

 

3) You need a crossover cable or a digital switch, hub, or Router.

 

4) In Visilogic, select "TCP/IP (Call)" in the Connection/Communication settings. From there, enter the correct IP Address, Protocol (TCP), Port Number (20256), and the correct PLC Name.

 

Occasionally, firewall software on the PC can interfere. You can usually overcome this by selecting 192.168.1.xxx as the subnet. Be sure the IP address you select for the PLC is not duplicated elsewhere on your network.

 

Also, be sure you are not assigning Socket 1 to another port. While you do need a TCP/IP CARD INIT block (use SB2 as a gate), you don't need a SOCKET INIT block since Socket 1 will default to port 20256 and will work by default.

 

If you don't know what to do with the "Subnet Mask" and "Default Gateway" sections of the Card Initialization block use the following:

 

Subnet Mask: 255.255.255.0

Default Gateway: 192.168.1.254 (assuming you used 192.168.1.xxx as your network subnet)