PLCTrain Hands-on maintenance training

Ladder logic practice with conveyor inputs, XIC, and XIO conditions

Ladder logic practice.
Predict the rung. Watch the conveyor.

Actual Conveyor Rescue gameplay24-second preview
Watch without an account. Male AI coach narration with captions. Use full-screen to read the PLC tags. Open the video walkthrough.
Read what happens in the video
  1. The box won't move. Where would you look first?
  2. Compare the sensor signal with the ladder logic.
  3. Adjust the virtual sensor. Stopped does not mean safe.
  4. Should it run or stop?
  5. Now test your fix. Watch the conveyor and logic respond together. Finish every check in the free trial.

This is an excerpt from the real simulation, recorded with a local test account. It does not show a completed assessment. Full verification continues in the trial. Practice maintenance is not real LOTO.

Explain what the instruction is testing. PLCTrain offers ladder logic practice in a browser-based conveyor simulator. Connect input bits, program tags, and motor commands to a visible machine. Compare an XIC or XIO condition with the simulated photoeye value and test your reasoning.

  • Three conveyor fault investigations
  • Live PLC signals and moving sensors
  • Optional coaching and saved progress
Start the free Conveyor Rescue demoSee an example skills report

No card. No equipment. Confirm your email and sign in to play. Watching this recording does not open the trial.

3 connected conveyor zones

3 fault investigations

Your pace hints, replay, and saved progress

For maintenance managers and trainers

More useful than
a completion badge.

Could they follow the evidence? Did they need help? Did they prove the repair? Those are the questions that make a practice session useful for coaching.

ILLUSTRATIVE SAMPLE / NOT LIVE LEARNER DATA

Troubleshooting practice review

Example learner A Conveyor Rescue

Example data only.
Not a qualification or work authorization.

Example evidence and coaching decisions
SkillWhat the practice record showsCoaching decision
Gather evidenceCompared the receiving station, photoeye input, and motor command before adjusting the sensor.Demonstrated in practice
Trace the PLC signalNeeded a coaching prompt to distinguish the physical input from the tag used by the program.Practice next
Manage temporary forcesRemoved the temporary force and disabled forcing before attempting final verification.Demonstrated in practice
Verify the repairChecked clear and occupied receiving conditions and completed the box transfer.Demonstrated in practice

The next useful conversation

Can you trace the input without a hint?

Ask the learner to explain which physical sensor drives the PLC tag, then repeat an input-mapping exercise with a different fault. A correct repair with help is a starting point for coaching, not proof of independent skill.

Coaching prompts
1 example
Unnecessary component changes
1 example
What is available today? The trial includes individual practice records. This is a sample manager-report layout with made-up data, not an available live team dashboard or a result from the video above.

Try the investigation yourself. See which decisions you would want your team to explain.

Try it as a manager

Free guides / No account needed to read

Make the signals make sense.

The belt is clear. Why does the photoeye say blocked?Understand a blocked photoeye input on a clear conveyor. Compare the sensor, physical input, PLC tag, and ladder logic using PLCTrain simulation examples.XIC vs XIO. Read the bit, not the name.Learn when XIC and XIO instructions are true, why green does not mean a sensor is healthy, and how a blocked photoeye affects a conveyor rung.Run command: ON. Conveyor: STOPPED. Both can be true.Understand the difference between a PLC run command, output command, and actual conveyor motion. Learn to explain why a requested start may not move a belt.

Explore PLC training, PLC troubleshooting training, Virtual PLC training. Browse the free PLC troubleshooting guides

What is PLCTrain?

Which ladder logic skills can you practice?

Practice reading a rung as a set of conditions rather than a picture of physical wiring. An XIC instruction is true for a bit value of 1; an XIO instruction is true for 0. That does not establish whether the sensor is healthy or mapped correctly. In the demo, compare the named blocked-photoeye tag with the actual simulated space and input. Then explain whether the rung should allow a transfer. These exercises use authored conveyor logic, not a blank programming editor or a complete vendor instruction set.

Inside the free trial / Sign-in required

"The box will not feed."

Your callout
Operator report
"There is a box waiting on belt 1. The section ahead looks empty, but it will not move on. Can you take a look?"

Where would you look first?

The space ahead. The photoeye. The PLC input and rung. The motor output.

Choose your own starting point. Compare the machine with the signals, try a likely cause, and test what changed. A wrong lead is recoverable.

Moving once is not enough. Prove that the line feeds when clear and stops when the receiving station is full.

One complete investigation. Coach off until you ask.Training simulation only
01 / 03

Read the bit, explain the tag, test the behavior.

  1. State what the tag means.

    Find the input that the ladder condition reads. For a tag representing a blocked photoeye, explain what 0 and 1 mean in this simulation before deciding whether the instruction should be true.

  2. Predict the condition and output.

    Use the XIC or XIO bit test, then consider the rest of the rung. A true contact does not guarantee that the whole path permits a motor command.

  3. Compare both operating states.

    Observe a clear and an occupied receiving zone. Explain why the conveyor should feed or wait in each case, and verify that the repaired logic produces both intended responses.

Inside Conveyor Rescue

The rung changes.
Can you explain why?

Conveyor Rescue places ladder logic beside the three-zone conveyor it controls. Use the live simulated values to compare your prediction with the machine. The free XIC vs XIO guide explains the bit test before you try it in an investigation.

01

The box will not feed: call 1

Same initial complaint. Ask what changed, inspect the evidence, and explain the repair.

You practiceObserve. Diagnose. Prove.

02

The box will not feed: call 2

Same initial complaint. Ask what changed, inspect the evidence, and explain the repair.

You practiceObserve. Diagnose. Prove.

03

The box will not feed: call 3

Same initial complaint. Ask what changed, inspect the evidence, and explain the repair.

You practiceObserve. Diagnose. Prove.

You control the pace. Jump to a tool, ask the coach, or pause and step through the test.

Your demo progress is saved to your account.

Who is it for?

New to maintenance?
Already on the tools?
Start here.

Future technicians & students

See what troubleshooting involves. Connect unfamiliar PLC terms to a machine you can watch and control.

Working maintenance technicians

Practice checking the evidence before changing parts or code. Repeat a fault and see how your decisions affect the line.

Maintenance managers & trainers

Try the demo yourself and decide whether this approach fits your team. Use a scenario to talk through what a technician would check and why.

A clear starting point

Try the demo.
Tell us what comes next.

Available in the free demo: conveyor troubleshooting, photoeye alignment, input mapping, and basic ladder logic.

Our focus: realistic decisions, visible signals, proof of repair and repeat practice. The next lessons will be tested with technicians before we expand the library.

After trying a repair, you can optionally share your experience and interests to help shape the next lessons.

Your first callout is waiting

Try fixing it yourself.

Start with your email and a password. Confirm your email, then try a repair with optional step-by-step guidance. Background questions come later and are optional.

Start the free Conveyor Rescue demo

Create an account, confirm your email in the same browser, and start the demo. No approval needed.

Already have an account? Sign in
Can beginners use these ladder logic exercises?

Yes. Start by identifying the tag value and asking what it represents. Optional coaching explains the relationship between a photoeye, its input, the condition on the rung, and the conveyor response.

What is the difference between XIC and XIO?

XIC is true when the bit it examines is 1. XIO is true when that bit is 0. The tag meaning and other conditions on the rung determine how that test relates to the machine.

Does a green ladder contact mean the sensor is healthy?

No. It shows that the instruction is true for the value it reads. A wrong input mapping or a temporary force can still make that value disagree with the physical situation modeled by the conveyor.

Can I write and upload my own ladder program?

No. These exercises use the authored Conveyor Rescue program and modeled corrections. PLCTrain is not a vendor programming IDE or a tool for validating a production PLC project.

How do I check whether a ladder correction is right?

Compare the expected behavior with both a clear and an occupied receiving zone. Remove temporary forces, disable forcing, and complete the verification checks instead of accepting the first movement as success.

Is ladder logic practice free to try?

The Conveyor Rescue demo is free with email confirmation and sign-in. The XIC vs XIO guide is available without an account. No PLC hardware or vendor programming license is needed.