System remote control for a rubber dam

Filippo Vecchi
President of ISA student section Genova - Italy
[email protected]

Abstract To automate a process and to make it remotely

controllable is more and more required in industries. In recent
years, personal computers assumed an important role in
technology, infact PCs provide an ideal hardware platform for
controlling and displaying the process data when they are
connected to an operating system "Real time. Using modern and
flexible graphical programs (SoftPLC) it is possible to create an
automation system that largely surpasses the performance of the
most powerful PLC, utilizing flexibility and connectivity of PCs.
The application where has been applied this technology is the
inflatable rubber dam.
It was designed and assembled a scale model with automation
system and HMI accessible from a web page.

I.

INTRODUCTION

A. What is a Rubber Dam

Rubber dam is a remotely operated gate for water control. It is
comprised of a nylon reinforced rubber body secured to a
concrete foundation with a unique anchor mechanism. When
the body is filled with air from a blower, it rises to block water.
When the air is released through an exhaust value, the body
lays flat on its foundation to permit the free flow of water.
Rubber dam can be installed in span over 200 meter long
and can be produced in heights of up 6 meters, the rubber body
has a life of 30 years during which time its free from routine
maintenance.

Third step was consisted in the control logic and automation

system manufacturing and its installation in the rubber dam
model (phase three). Finally some tests were done on the
model (phase four).
II.

EXISTING INSTALLATION ANALYSIS

Analysis was done in a ENEL hydroelectric power plant

located in Narzole (CN) Italy; plants name is Isorella sul
Tanaro.
In this area two Kaplan turbines (35 MW each one) are
installed, rubber dam blocks water from Tanaro river to pipe
water to the turbines.
Tanaro installation has the following characteristics:
o Manual inflating and deflating. This configuration
needs the presence of man.
o None water level measurement.
o Emergency mechanical deflating activated in case of
river flood.
III. PLANTS AUTOMATION STUDY
A. Goal of automation
Installations variables are: pressure inside the dam and water
level of the river. Through an automation system we would
control pressure inside dam between two values (minimum and
maximum acceptable pressure), identify two water levels and
view installation state by a remotely accessible web page.
B. Architecture basis
Before seeing complete system architecture, its opportune to
consider a simplified architecture.
The core of the project is constituted by the SoftPLC,
software that transforms an industrial PC in a process
controller with all the functionality (process management, I/O
control) of a traditional PLC.
By using a SoftPLC there are the following advantages:

Fig. 1. Rubber dam axonometric section. This figure shows how rubber body
is secured to a concrete foundation by its anchor line.

B. Design and implementation steps

Rubber Dam model design and implementation can be divided
in four steps. First of all it was analyzed an existing installation
to identify project specifications (phase one), than it was
defined hardware and software architecture of our model
(phase two).

1) Realization of a very complex application

2) Possibility to take advantage of PC potentiality,
flexibility and connectivity
3) Control of a greater number of distributed I/O
4) Control of a greater amount of data
5) Hardware saving
SoftPLC has to be able to interface itself with both the field
(fieldbus and distributed I/O modules) and HMI, Internet. In
particular the SoftPLC used in this application communicates
through standard communication OPC [1], a standard based on
client-server model, that offers some important advantages as

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safety, reliability, speed of data access and low cost of

interface.

Fig. 3. Hardware and Software design

The core of the project is constituted by Infoteam OpenPCS

[3], the SoftPLC in accordance with IEC 61131-3 [2], where
the logic control of the system is placed. Logic control
cyclically elaborates a series of data coming from field an
shows installation state to user.
OpenPCS needs software, Infoteam SmartPLC/OPC [3]
in order to communicate with the field and with the user using
standard OPC [2]. SmartPLC/OPC, beyond executing code of
logic control, is as OPC server and as OPC client.
Fieldbus is the mean that allows to send and to receive
data from I/O distributed modules. In our application we have
used Profibus DP. For being able to use such fieldbus its
necessary to equip with appropriate board to install in
computer. This board can be manage with OPC server that
allow to collect all the information coming from the field.
This OPC server communicates directly with SoftPLCs OPC
client, realizing therefore the interface between logic control
and field.
The interface with the user is based on standard OPC too.
Controller plant user can connect, also through Internet,
to a web page (Human Machine Interface, HMI) in order to
look at the installation state.
Fig. 2. SoftPLC interaction

In order to obtain an agreement between control planners and

PLC and SoftPLC producers, it has been introduced the IEC
61131-3 norm [2] that defines standard programming of
control automation devices. This norm defines five
programming languages that allow to program logic control in
SoftPLC.
The five languages are:
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)

SFC: Sequential Function Chart

LD: Ladder Diagram
FBD: Function Block Diagram
IL: Instruction List
ST: Structured Text
IV.

HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE ARCHITECTURE

Following figure shows Hardware and Software design.

V.

CONTROL LOGIC AND AUTOMATION SYSTEM

MANUFACTURING

A. Introduction
Before describing how it is made the control logic, the
automation system manufacturing and its installation in
the rubber dam model , its necessary to introduce a
fundamental concept. In this application the process is on
scale and is reproduced by a model but the control logic
and automation system can be installed in a real process
like Isorella sul Tanaro hydroelectric power plant .
B. Variables definition
The system that we want to automate, could be studied
through the use of boolean variables because it can be
represented with inputs and outputs characterized by two
levels. One corresponds to a state of "true" (1), other identify
the opposite state "false" (0).
The inputs and the outputs in the model are:
Inputs:
1. minimum pressure inside the dam (I0.0) Pmin
2. maximum pressure inside the dam (I0.1) Pmax
3. minimum water level (I0.2) (also nominal water level)
Lmin
4. maximum water level (I0.3) (when water starts to
overtop rubber dam) Lmax
Outputs:
1. blower (Q0.0)
2. deflation valve (Q0.1)
Each I/O has a relay contact , so when that contact is open the
variable is false, when the contact is close the same variable
begins true.

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Fig. 4. This figure shows interaction between logic control and field

C. Logic control implementation

The logic control has been realized in OpenPCS [3] using
Function Block Diagrams , a programming language defined
in IEC 61131-2 [2].
Two functions were implemented; first one to run blower,
second one to open deflation valve.

Fig. 6. FDB diagram. This diagram shows logic control that command valve.

D. Logic operation (pressure control)

Blower gives pressure inside the rubber dam. Pressure must be
stay between Pmin and Pmax, if pressure is between these values
blower is stopped and deflation valve is closed.
When Pressure is less than Pmin blower runs until pressure
reaches Pmax value.
If pressure is more than Pmax for more than 30 seconds
deflation valve opens and, with the same logic it closes when
pressure is less than Pmax.
E. Logic operation (level control)
When water level reaches Lmax value, deflation valve opens and
closes when water level is less than Lmin.
To be more precise is necessary to underline that blower
cannot run when deflation valve is open.
F. Fieldbus node
Now we analyze the components constituting fieldbus node.
All the elements are parts of Wago I/O System 750 series.
Fig. 5. FDB diagram. This diagram shows logic control that command blower.

o
o
o
o
o

750-602: Supply Module

750-434: 8-channel digital input module
750-434: 8-channel digital input module
750-513: 2-channel relay output module
End module

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VI.

RUBBER DAM MODEL CONSTRUCTION

Rubber dam model structure is wood made and covered, to

waterproof it, by 1mm steel plate.
Actuators, instrumentation and the auxiliary field are
located on a galvanized iron plate which is placed inside the
structure. It was built also a small switchboard visible in the
following image.

Fig. 7. I/O modules

G. HMI
Human machine interface has been realized with the software
GraphWorX 32 (ICONICS product) which creates dazzling
animated graphics.
GraphWorX 32 is an OPC Data Access client application,
that means it can easily plug-n-play not only with ICONICS
servers and components, but other 3rd-Party hardware interface
drivers and software as well.
This interface is representative of P&ID. Instrumentation and
actuators are green or red colored, it depends on the variables
state. Green color means that variable associated to the
element is false; so red color means that the same variable is
true.
In the following figure is possible observe a page from
HMI.

VII. FUTURE DEVELOPMENTS

A. Field side
In this installation all I/O are digital (we have only 0 state and
1 state), a possible system development could be made using
analogical variables to look effective values of pressure and
level water.
B. Web side
In this architecture user can also look at the system state.
To command manually outputs in the field, from remote
web page, could be an interesting development.
Fig. 8. HMI page

This page is in HMTL format, uploading this one on a web

server, user can view it remotely through internet.

VIII.

REFERENCES

[1] http://www.opcfoundation.org
[2] Karl-Heinz John, Michael Tiegelkamp, IEC 61131-3:
Programming Industrial Automation Systems, Springer..
[3] http://www.infoteam.de

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