The Fischer Technik Factory 4.0 is a great lab experience when learning PLCs, but not when you have fifteen or more students in a lab section. Prior to purchasing, I planned modifications transform the standard single PLC configuration into a setup that is controlled by five separate, lower-cost PLCs. These changes allow for up to five groups of students to work with the Factory models at the same time, significantly increasing the time that students have to complete lab exercises. Due to an error in the Fischer Technik documentation for PLC specifications, the purchased PLCs had slower cycle times than the encoder pulses output from the factory motors. To fix this issue, I created a custom PCB based around a Teensy microcontroller which I programmed to combine encoder pulses and output fewer and longer pulses so that the PLCs could correctly read values (2023-24).

Software used: KiCad, OpenPLC
Languages used: Structured Text