Speaker:
Mr. Devrsh Panchal ( Support Engineer )
Team Members - Mr. Krupal Patel ( Owner )- Mr. Swapnil Patil ( Manager )
Date:
8th March 2025
Time: 11.00 AM to
4.00 PM
Branch: All Branch Students
Location: 4111, First floor, Electrical building
Summary: Speaker Mr. Devrsh Panchal Explained about Process
automation and advanced system design is highly beneficial for a variety of
applications, and they rely on HMIs, PLCs, and SCADA. While each device or
system has its own unique role in overall process automation, all work together
to perform various overlapping functions. To help you better understand such
complex apparatuses and how they work together, we will provide a brief
overview of each.
SCADA Systems
SCADA is an acronym that stands for
Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition. SCADA systems comprise a mix of
hardware and software, and they can conduct various operations ranging from the
remote control of processes to the monitoring and processing of real-time data.
With their basic role, SCADA systems find use in countless modern organizations
as they promote efficiency, higher accuracy, smoother system communication, and
so much more. Across public and private sectors, SCADA Systems may be found in
applications simple or complex, regularly aided operations related to
manufacturing, energy, transportation, recycling, oil, gas, and more.
PLCs
Programmable logic controller (PLC)
components are crucial elements of industrial automation as a form of
industrial computer. PLCs often range in their size and capabilities, and
designs are often based on the particular needs and requirements of a given
application. When a PLC is in operation, it will monitor the state of input
devices, using garnered information to determine the best way to control the
state of output devices. PLCs can control anything from a chunk of a production
line to the entire line itself, meaning that it can greatly improve standard
operations and collect information.
To conduct their operations, PLCs
first conduct an Input Scan to determine the state of all attached input
devices. Then, the Program Scan is executed where the PLC will scan the created
program before carrying it out. Once that is done, the Output Scan is carried
out as all output devices are scanned before the device determines which to
energize. The final step of the PLC process is to conduct communications for
internal diagnostics, and once that is finalized, the PLC repeats the entire
process again in a repetitive fashion.
HMIs
The Human-Machine Interface (HMI) is
the device that communicates with Programmable Logic Controllers during
standard operations, and HMIs differ from SCADAs and other systems in the fact
that they are a local machine. Despite this, they still perform a very similar
role to the SCADA, collecting data and communicating. Furthermore, HMIs are
less of a system and more of an interactive screen that permits control over a
device. Generally, HMIs are used to manage processes and may range from a simple
computer monitor to a robust industrial system.
Alongside their similar role to SCADA
systems, HMIs also work together with PLCs to promote industrial automation. As
discussed before, their biggest difference comes down to the fact that SCADA
systems are for remote operations while the HMI is a local machine.
Nevertheless, both are advantageous options where the choice boils down to the
particular needs of the user and their operations.
