A design and development of a final test station for a multiprocessor programmable logic controller

One step in ensuring that a programmable controller will work properly when delivered to the customer is to adequately test it before it is packed for shipping. At the Industrial Systems Division of Texas Instruments in Johnson City, Tennessee this is accomplished by testing each controller on a Final Test Station before it is sent to the pack area. The TI Model 560/565 is a multiprocessor programmable controller for which such a test station was developed.

This station was based on hardware and software designs developed for previous stations. For this reason much of the 560/565 station is similar to these stations. However, several features of the 560/565 required that some new methods be incorporated into the station to ensure adequate testing. Among these features are the ability to deal with equipment of the size and complexity of the 560/565 controller. Other changes had to be made to the basic design so that all 560/565's could be tested with a minimum of station operator action. Once the station was installed, it was used to test 560/565 units at intermediate points in the manufacturing process as well as immediately before packing and shipping.