Setup guide

OSx Migration Cookbook August 30, 2006
12 – Batch/BCL
Creating an
OSx-style batch
feature on PCS 7
Standalone BCL
programs
OSx supports a form of batch processing that is
NOT compliant
with any standard. This feature uses a combination of Batch and
Unit tags, and BCL programs. No analogue of this feature exists in
PCS 7. PCS 7 does have a batch option called Simatic Batch, but it
is not integrated with PCS 7/505 OS and cannot be used with
SIMATIC TI505 PLCs. However, you can create your own custom
PCS 7 batch feature similar to the one in OSx if it is an integral part
of what you want to migrate from OSx. You use standard features
of PCS 7 to do so.
Follow these steps to create an OSx-style batch feature on PCS 7:
• Become familiar with the OSx batch logic in your
application so you understand what will be migrated to PCS
7. This means understanding exactly what BCL (Batch
Control Language) and C language statements in your BCL
programs do.
• Create PCS 7 tags that will fill the function of OSx batch
and unit tags. If any of these were networked on OSx, make
them external on PCS 7 and tie them to the appropriate PLC
memory locations. You can either create new tag structures
that are clones of OSx batch and unit tags or use existing
structures.
• Design and create PCS 7 actions that do what your BCL
programs on OSx do. Actions in PCS 7 use triggers similar
to those used by OSx BCL programs. Since BCL programs
are a combination of C and BCL, you can rewrite this logic
in C and PCS 7 APIs (Application Programming Interfaces
– library functions). PCS 7 actions can also be written using
Visual Basic. Some functionality may not transfer directly
and you may have to re-design the logic you are trying to
migrate.
Some OSx applications use BCL programs to execute non-batch
logic. As described above, these can be recreated in PCS 7 using
actions.
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