What Is PLC Simulation?

PLC simulation is a method of designing and verifying algorithms. Engineers use PLC simulation software to design control systems and control logic and evaluate system behavior through a model of the plant.

PLC simulation enables control design early in the development process, before the electrical and mechanical components are commissioned.  Engineers can build, test, and validate software simulations of controllers without any risk to a machine operator or to the machine.

Using plant modeling and PLC simulation, you can generate hardware-independent IEC 61131-3 code (Structured Text or Ladder Diagram) or C/C++ code for deployment on PLC IDEs.

Support for Third-Party IDEs

You can perform PLC simulation with MATLAB^®, Simulink^®, and Model-Based Design. Many PLC IDEs support automatic generation of PLC code (IEC 61131 or C/C++) directly from MATLAB and Simulink.

PLC simulation is part of the workflow for Model-Based Design. When applied to the design of industrial control systems, Model-Based Design enables you to:

• Model plants through physical modeling, system identification, and parameter estimation, or by importing CAD models
• Design, prototype, and tune control algorithms (such as PID control)
• Design and prototype control logic (such as finite state machines and PackML), or algorithms for predictive maintenance, image processing, machine learning, and other applications
• Automatically generate PLC code (IEC 61131-3, C or C++ code) from the design and simulation environment
• Verify control design through simulation, formal verification methods, real-time simulation and automated PLC testing, and virtual commissioning

Using Model-Based Design and PLC simulation, you can design controls for industrial systems with more flexibility and independence from the PLC hardware platform you use. You achieve greater reliability through testing and avoid programing errors by automatically generating code from models.