Would there be any possibility of getting a BASIC language interpreter?

[Alacrity]

I would give my first born child for a BASIC interpreter for the Automation direct DL06 PLC's.

Are there any plans for such a thing? Would anyone else like to see something like that?

This ladder Logic is killing me slowly.

[franji1]

Why wish?  There's a BASIC coprocessor!  I don't know the part number, but it would occupy one of the I/O slots.

[Alacrity]

I called Automation direct about that. They told me that it was just for processing ascii communications with a keypad or barcode scanner and won't work to control the PLC I/O

That and I'd have to buy one for every PLC we have in the field.

If automation direct customer service was wrong, then I'll have some strong words for them.

[franji1]

Well, it's slow (interpretive) and you gotta go through the main CPU.  Even VB.NET is interpreted by the .NET framework, so that's no surprise.

You can move in/out blocks at a time (maybe?).  Move in a bunch of V memory in and out of the main PLC, and have ladder logic that all it does is move THAT V memory into and out of real Xs and Ys???

How fast do you need it to be?

[Alacrity]

Speed isn't an issue.. The devices are only polled once every ten minutes.
There's nothing that requires lightning fast calculations.

The Problem is those cards cost 95% of the price of the PLC itself.

An IDE that goes from basic to the machine code, instead of from Ladder Logic would be nicer. :-)

Ah well.. I guess I'm in the minority.. I just find Ladder Logic to be very klunky.

DEATH TO BCD!

Regards,

[AZRoger]

Alacrity,

I have a system that uses the BASIC co-processor from FACTS Engineering (not to be confused with Host Engineering). I got it to do complex calculations like computing the time of civil twilight for today. I don't think you'd like the co-processor. It's klunkier than ladder logic. It's like the old service bureau BASIC invented by GE in the 50s or early 60's.

Things I don't like: line numbers, maximum 255 strings all called $, maximum array size 255, variable name rules that make Bakeit and Burnit the same variable, a "glass teletype" user interface that needs a serial cable (can't use the ECOM connection), Line Numbers, odd handling of PLC addresses that are octal (it will accept the value 9 but treat it as 1), odd conversions between binary, hex, octal, bcd, real, ... when communicating with PLC memory, next to worthless error messages, did I mention LINE NUMBERS.

Things I do like: it's always on when the PLC is on, it can access 128 words (which you address in BASIC as 256 bytes) of PLC memory on every scan.

If I had it to do over, I would have thrown away my D2-250-1 and upgraded to a 260. The 260 can do trig.

Roger

[8bits]

It looks like the Intel 8051 BASIC which is now in public domain. As previously stated, kinda clunky