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IntroDuCtIon
logic and programming to control local functions that may not need
to communicate with the centralized SCADA service, or be executed
from the DCS. Connected to sensors and actuators, PLCs are catego-
rized by the number and type of I/O ports they provide and by their
I/O scan rate.
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PLCs will often be designed with the necessary logic to protect
the assets under management in the event contact is lost with the
main SCADA or DCS computer. Historically, PLCs were viewed
as simple devices with very limited processing capability. Emerging
trends among most suppliers today is to drop the term PLC in favor of
the more general term of controller, with an emphasis on the deployed
architecture of the system. is architecture may include ...