Design and implementation of a program for the control of a flexible manufacturing cell

This article explains the factors taken into account in the choice of a programmable logic controller as the central coordinator of a flexible manufacturing cell. Some aspects of the program design and implementation are also discussed. The flexible manufacturing cell to be controlled can produce pieces that require machining, assembling, cutting and welding. For this processes the cell includes a lathe, a machining center, and three robots. The designed program has two main parts, one part controls the stations and the other continuously updates the piece production state. The latter also serves as a memory for the production stage of each piece. Execution of the production plan was achieved after simulation and implementation of the program. It is concluded that the implemented program is very flexible, since new machines can be easily incorporated into it.