Programmable Controller (PLC) course is a professional course with wide application in Higher Vocational education. Taking Siemens PLC S7 series training as an opportunity, this paper explores three enlightenments in the teaching of programmable controller course in Higher Vocational colleges: one is to optimize teaching courseware, the other is to pay attention to guiding teaching, the third is to enhance the timeliness of teaching, with a view to encouraging everyone. Programmable controller is an automatic control device which integrates communication technology, automation technology and computer technology on the platform of microprocessor. Programmable controllers can use different control programs to achieve different control processes, so they have gradually been widely used in the field of modern automation control. With the development of computer technology and microelectronics technology, the application of programmable controller has been involved in various fields of modern industrial production, such as automobile, chemical industry, transportation, petroleum and so on. The wide application of programmable controller has also caused a serious shortage of senior PLC application-oriented talents. At present, many vocational colleges have set up PLC teaching projects to transport application-oriented talents to modern industrial production as an important task. This paper takes the opportunity of expanding the learning of PLC knowledge to study and discuss the teaching methods of PLC. The main content of this study is the design of Siemens PLC S7-300/400 and WinCC Flexible configuration user interface. PLC S7-300/400 is developed by Siemens for large and medium-sized automation products, with outstanding flexibility and reliability. At the same time, Siemens touch screen with WINCC system has a leading position in the industry, not only simple operation, easy to master, but also has leading technical support. Specific learning contents are as follows: first, application programming and maintenance technology of PLC, including advanced application and case analysis of PLC, hardware structure of S7-300/400 PLC, application of S7-300/400 PLC in closed-loop control of analog quantity, second, advanced programming of PLC, including introduction of STL advanced programming technology of S7-300/400 PLC, third, fault analysis of STEP7, including benefits; Monitor and analyze with “find/replace” function, state monitoring function of program, etc. Fourth, diagnose faults with STEP 7 software, including using accessible nodes and online functions to diagnose technology; Fifth, SIMATIC WinCC configuration programming technology, including communication between WinCC and S7 PLC, WinCC configuration (establishment of project, configuration variables, creation). As teachers, only by constantly enriching ourselves and making rational use of existing network and Book resources, can we grasp the knowledge of this subject more deeply and realize the exploration and research of programmable control technology. Firstly, thermostatic element the programmable controller is a subject which requires students to master not only difficult theoretical knowledge, but also strong practical ability. In the current teaching process, it often pays too much attention to the status of theoretical teaching, and ignores the practical ability of students. The basic purpose of vocational education is to cultivate students’professional ability. The teaching of programmable controller applied technology course should be based on this, and improve students’ professional ability through the study of this course. Secondly, in the practical part of the current teaching, the experimental content is single and lack of due innovation. At present, the experimental equipment equipped by higher vocational colleges is developed by the unified verification of the merchants.
This is the customized experimental content, but seldom according to the direction of training students. Therefore, it also makes students lose interest in learning. Finally, the teaching method is too simple and unattractive.
In the process of teaching, teachers either use the traditional blackboard teaching method or use some electronic courseware matched with textbooks, which is stereotyped and monotonous without innovation and can not stimulate students’interest in learning, thus making the teaching results unsatisfactory. At present, there are some problems in Higher Vocational education, such as students’learning enthusiasm is low, their foundation is weak, and their interest in learning is not strong. This requires teachers in Higher Vocational Colleges to have better teaching methods and techniques. Especially when teachers teach new knowledge and new content, they should pay attention to the cultivation and improvement of students’interest in learning so as to lay a good foundation for teaching.
The teaching of programmable control technology should not be limited to the study of theoretical knowledge, but should pay more attention to the inspiration of students’way of thinking, and guide students to think and consider pertinently. At the same time, give students the direction of thinking, improve students’interest in learning, stimulate learning potential, make the teaching effect more remarkable, students really to master the knowledge of programmable controller, so as to achieve the teaching objectives. In this outward bound training, the lecturer showed a very high-quality teaching courseware, from physical maps to simplified maps, vividly and vividly showing the knowledge content imparted, so that learners can easily be attracted, and understand the teaching content before mastering it, which is a success of teaching.
When teaching students’knowledge, students are beginners. Teachers should pay attention to the improvement of teaching methods. They should consider how to improve everyone’s interest in learning in many ways, so that students can better absorb what they have learned, instead of blindly inculcating, so that students lose interest in learning, and finally give up learning a course. This is also a teacher’s responsibility. Ren. Therefore, in the teaching of programmable controller, multimedia teaching should be combined with traditional teaching methods. Multimedia is used as the basic teaching tool, so that the contents of PLC such as Siemens S7 series PLC physical pictures, structure and so on are displayed in the classroom in the form of static or animation. In order to solve the conflict between the limitation of class hours and the enrichment of teaching content, make the teaching content more substantial, vivid, simple and easy to understand, facilitate students to absorb and master, and increase the amount of information learned by students, teachers can choose simulation software S7-PLCSIM to describe more vividly the control principle of short application program and the function of ladder diagram. In order to help grasp the rhythm of teaching and give students sufficient thinking, we should take into account multimedia technology and traditional teaching mode, such as body language, blackboard writing and so on. At the same time, we should pay attention to the interaction and communication between teachers and students. We should seize the students’attention by asking questions, practicing, and letting students write on the blackboard to answer and exchange discussions, so as to stimulate students’ enthusiasm for thinking and improve the quality of teaching.
In this training class, I completed the whole learning task from a student’s point of view. Through this way of thinking and learning, I can constantly improve my teaching methods, and stop repeating demonstrations with teachers mechanically. I only know what it is, but I don’t know why it is. Therefore, in the practical teaching of programmable controller, in order to enable students to have a good learning state, good learning effect, and truly master a course, before giving a lecture, they should do a good job of guidance, so that students know what the content of learning is, and what occasions knowledge will be applied after learning, especially some common examples in life. On occasions, such as neon light control, elevator control, factory machine tools and other control are inseparable from the programmable controller. In this way, students will know that the knowledge they have learned has been applied to us, so as to enhance their interest. At the same time, we should start from the point of view of the most concerned problems of students, seize the mentality of students, attract students’interest from the perspective of employment and other aspects related to students’ interests, and let students understand the importance of the knowledge they have learned, instead of thinking it is heavenly book, unrealistic, and like to attach importance to the mastery and learning of knowledge in essence. In the outward bound training, the lecturer carries on the practice operation after the theory has finished a knowledge point, thus deepening the students’understanding of the knowledge, and the memory is also more profound. In the teaching of PLC, we should also enhance the effectiveness of learning, combine the basic instructions in the course of PLC with the application of circuit, and combine theoretical knowledge with skill training. For example, after learning and (AND) or (OR) instructions, the instructions learned can be immediately applied to the point and continuous control circuit of the motor to enhance students’understanding of the instructions learned and further clarify the practical use of and or instructions. Next to the laboratory operation verification, input the corresponding instructions, get the corresponding ladder diagram through the software, connect the peripheral motor, after running the program, press the start button to observe whether the motor is running as required.
Timely combination of theory and practice can greatly improve the efficiency of classroom teaching, but also can continuously improve students’interest in learning. This article takes the learning and training of PLC as an opportunity to elaborate the teaching after the training of PLC. The study of PLC knowledge and the improvement of teaching are an endless process.
The teaching level of PLC should be improved qualitatively in line with the principle of “research, improvement and practice at the same time”.
As teachers, we are the main force of teaching. Only by constantly enriching our knowledge and spurring our continuous progress, can we cultivate more comprehensive talents with solid theoretical foundation, rich practical ability and strong innovative consciousness.