What is a PLC and what does it have to do with control systems and A.I./machine learning?
In: Engineering
You can think of it as a hardware implementation of an expert system or logical expression from old school ai, if you want to connect it to robotics and ai. If a factory is one big robot, PLCs are the neurons in the artificial nervous system
Programmable Logic Controller.
Mostly used for industrial robotics, no really part of the AI space. Machine learning is an approach to AI.
Programable Logic Controllers (PLC) are simply put, basic computers. They are designed to take input from sensors and then send a signal in response. And very simple example would be your garage door ‘eyes’ that stop a door from closing when blocked. The PLC in the opener says, ‘Something is in the way, don’t operate.’ Remove the block and it sends the ‘all clear’ and begins to operate.
Other examples are just more complex, with more inputs, more decisions, and more controlled outputs.
AI / ML is inherently separate from the PLC concept _but_ you could theoretically use them to ‘watch’ what the sensors, the PLC, and other output monitors are reporting to further optimize towards the end goal. Example: If your PLC is opening / closing a valve to control flow rates, AI _could_ find a more efficient way to open / close that value to minimize effort and maximize output and adapt based on conditions. If your input isn’t always consistent, AI could ‘learn’ to make adaptations on the fly by monitoring the input and save a programmer a bunch of work because they don’t have to code every single possibility.
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