Is there a high level language option for PLC programming

Question

I'm looking at refreshing in ladder logic to support some PLC programming. After years of programming on the PC ladder logic feels like a steep backwards. Are there any more high level options? I'm hoping that there might be a tool that compiles to ladder logic. I'm also suspecting that this is far too niche.

the_only_law · Accepted Answer

There&rsquo;s a Pascal like language called structured text[0], but that may not be exactly what you&rsquo;re working for. I hear it&rsquo;s not used much in production and the tooling for the cheaper hobbyist-tier PLCs don&rsquo;t tend to support it.[0]https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structured_text

airbreather · Answer

Structured Text, if you want to try it our download CoDeSys for free, it includes a simulator.In production environments it is most often encapsulated in FBD.

PaulWaldman · Answer

Is there a specific PLC vendor or model you're interested in targeting?

Is there a high level language option for PLC programming

There’s a Pascal like language called structured text[0], but that may not be exactly what you’re working for. I hear it’s not used much in production and the tooling for the cheaper hobbyist-tier PLCs don’t tend to support it.
[0]https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Structured_text

Structured Text, if you want to try it our download CoDeSys for free, it includes a simulator.
In production environments it is most often encapsulated in FBD.

Is there a specific PLC vendor or model you're interested in targeting?