What term describes a PLC memory location that stores a word of data?

What term describes a PLC memory location that stores a word of data?

• A. Register
• B. Flag
• C. Counter
• D. Location

Answer: (A)

In PLC terminology, a memory location that stores a word of data is called a register. A register is part of the processor’s fast, internal data area and is designed to hold a whole word during arithmetic, logic, and data movement operations. The size of a word varies by PLC model (commonly 16 bits, sometimes 32 bits), and registers hold numbers or intermediate results used by instructions. Flags, on the other hand, are single-bit indicators used to represent true/false or on/off states. Counters are specialized memory for counting events and have behavior tied to counting, not general word storage. A generic memory location could be any storage area, but the term that specifically means a memory location designed to hold a data word is a register.

In PLC terminology, a memory location that stores a word of data is called a register. A register is part of the processor’s fast, internal data area and is designed to hold a whole word during arithmetic, logic, and data movement operations. The size of a word varies by PLC model (commonly 16 bits, sometimes 32 bits), and registers hold numbers or intermediate results used by instructions.

Flags, on the other hand, are single-bit indicators used to represent true/false or on/off states. Counters are specialized memory for counting events and have behavior tied to counting, not general word storage. A generic memory location could be any storage area, but the term that specifically means a memory location designed to hold a data word is a register.