In the era of Industry 4.0, automation has taken a boom by making use of PLCs. Hence, studying PLC programming using PLC exercises and solutions has become an essential parameter these days. The best approach to learning PLC programming is to learn with real-life examples.
This article covers all types of PLC exercises and solutions that are useful for people from beginner level to advanced level. Each and every problem includes its problem statement, solutions with an explanation.
There are many different PLCs available in the market and each one of them have their own PLC programming software like Siemens has their own TIA Portal for programming.
Table of Contents
PLC Exercises and Solutions
PLC exercises and solutions range from various categories such as digital logic exercises, home automation exercises, and industrial automation exercises. We will see them one by one.
Digital Logic PLC Programs
Digital Logic PLC programs cover the topics of plc exercises and solutions related to digital logic such as logic gates, multiplexer (MUX), demultiplexer (DEMUX), flip flops, BCD to binary converter, and all other examples.
Lamp Control using Timers
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram to control the lamps in a warehouse using timers and push buttons.
Find the solution for the problem in the article, Automatic Lamp Control in Warehouse using Timers.
PLC Ladder Logic Example 1
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram to control the output as per the given logic. Make use of start and stop pushbuttons, 6 switches to turn on and off the 9 lamps.
The PLC program is discussed in details in the article, Ladder Logic Example 1.
PLC Ladder Logic Example 2
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram to control the motor output as per the given logic. Make use of start and stop pushbuttons, 4 switches to turn on and off 2 motors (M), and a buzzer (B).
The PLC program is discussed in details in the article, Ladder Logic Example 2.
Home Automation PLC Programs
Home automation PLC programs cover the topics of plc exercises and solutions that are related to home and buildings like home light control, car parking system, etc.
House/Office Lamp Control System
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram to turn ON and OFF the lights of an office with the use of switches.
Find the solution in the article, Home Lighting Control System.
Single Push Button On/OFF Ladder Logic Diagram
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram for single push button ON/OFF system.
A single push button in ladder logic is a simple switch mechanism used to control some aspects of a machine. When a push button is pressed and released, the process turns ON with the help of latching and again the same push button is pressed and released, the process turns OFF.
The PLC program is discussed in details in the article, Single Push Button ON/OFF Ladder Logic Diagram.
Industrial Automation PLC Programs
Industrial automation PLC programs cover the topics of plc exercises and solutions that are related to industrial applications such as MMS automatic sorting machine, traffic light control, washing machine PLC program, conveyor station programming, automatic car washing system, light control systems, and many more.
These programs are the most used plc exercises and solutions in the industry and the programs can vary according to the inputs and problem statement. These are for practice purpose only.
Automated Sorting System
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic program that detects incoming objects from the previous station and sorts them according to their material type (wood, plastic, and metal).
The system makes use of a photoelectric sensor, inductive sensor, and color sensor to detect the type of material.
The complete PLC program for an automated sorting system is discussed in the Automated Sorting System PLC Program.
Warehouse Lamp Control System
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram for an automatic lamp control system in a warehouse with the help of an interlock system.
In a warehouse having 3 sections in it, if a person enters the warehouse, the lamp of the respective section will turn on and other lamps will stay turned off at the same moment.
The complete PLC program is discussed in the article, Warehouse lamp control system.
First In Priority System
Problem Statement: There are 3 groups participating in the quiz game
- Pupil group
- High School students group
- Professor group
If they want to get the chance of answering the question from the host, they must press the answer button on their table first. Other groups’ pressing will be invalid if any group gets the chance successfully.
There are 2 answer buttons for the pupil group and professor group and 1 answer button for the high school student group. In order to give preferential treatment to the pupil group, Y0 will be ON if any of X0 or X1 is pressed. However, in order to limit the professor group, Y2 will be ON when X2 is pressed. If the host presses X5 (Reset button), Y0, Y1, and Y2 will be OFF.
The complete PLC program is discussed in the article, First In Priority System.
Sequential Motor Control System
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram for sequential motor control
Three motors are run in a sequence with some time delay in order to protect the circuit in case of low electric power supply. The complete PLC program is discussed in the article, Sequential Motor Control PLC Program.
Automatic Door Open and Close System
Problem Statement: Write a ladder logic diagram to open and close the doors of an elevator automomatically.
The main working principle of automatic door open and close is to sense an object next to the door with the help of sensors and give this input to the PLC for the opening and closing operation of the door.
The complete PLC program is discussed in the article, Automatic Door Open and Close System.
Sequential Process Control
Problem Statement: Draw a ladder logic diagram for sequential process control of process lines in an automated plant using PLC.
This is also an example of plc exercises and solutions. In an automated plant there are several process lines running at a time. One need to control these process lines in order to operate them as per requirements. In this example, we have taken 3 process lines, each line containing 2 motors and a lamp. These motors and lamps are controlled with the help of plc ladder logic program.
The complete PLC program is discussed in the article, Sequential Process Control.
