Building Automation Knowledge Base

Issue SmartStruxure integration to StruxureWare Data Center Expert via EcoStruxure WebServices Environment StruxureWare Building Operation EcoStruxure Web Services StruxureWare Data Center Expert 7.2.0 Cause There is a need to have StruxureWare Building Operation pass data to StruxureWare Data Center Expert using EcoStruxure Web Services. StruxureWare Building Operation Web Services is capable of both 'Serve' and 'Consume' functionality. However, StruxureWare Data Center Expert (version 7.2.0) is only capable of Web Services 'Serve' function. Resolution Use Modbus TCP instead of EcoStruxure Web Services if StruxureWare Data Center Expert is required to read from StruxureWare Building Operation. 

Issue Longtext messages not correctly upgraded can cause the Sigma server to stop. Environment RAM Remote Alarm Manager Longtext Server shuts down Cause Upgrading of the Longtext messages was not carried out correctly. Resolution All new Longtext messages were added correctly, but messages that existed before the upgrade were copied in and not upgraded. The result of this was that the Sigma server would periodically stop. When upgrading Sigma from a release earlier than 4.05, ensure that the Longtext folder is present in the Data folder, then run the Sigma upgrade programme.

Issue Changing an I/NET DI to a DA does not show up in StruxureWare Building Operation Workstation Environment I/NET SmartStruxure Integration Cause After integrating I/NET to SmartStruxure the designed intent is to allow all point name changes and alarming to be done in SmartStruxure workstation.  If you delete a point and re-create it using the same point address, point name but a different point type, the change will not show up in SmartStruxure. Resolution To successfully change an I/NET point from DI to DA: Delete the Point using the I/NET Resident I/O Editor Re-create the Point using the I/NET Resident I/O Editor using the new point extension DA. YOU MUST change the point name in some way. Perform a Station Save Open Building Operation Workstation Right Click on the Controller and select Update.

Issue Sigma devices connected to an Ethernet Cat7 network? Environment Network Ethernet Cat5e Cat6 Cat7 Cause Connecting Sigma devices to a Cat7 network. Resolution Ethernet networks are categorised by numbers, 5e, 6 and 7 for instance. These numbers refer to the cable types used and the speed they are capable of communicating at. With this in mind, Sigma devices mostly communicate at 100M, so as long as the switches they are connected to will communicate at this speed, Cat5, 6 or 7 does not matter. Below is some general information on the Cat numbers. Cat5/5e. This is the older standard for Ethernet cabling, used by older equipment which was capable of either 10BaseT (10MBs) or 100BaseT (100MBs). These cables used 4-pair, twisted, unshielded cable. Cat6 Increases cable's frequency rate to 250MHz, instead of the Cat5 and Cat5e's 100MHz spec. It allows faster and more reliable transfer speeds, especially when combined with Cat6's improved insulating qualities. In fact, these two features combined make both Gigabit and even 10-Gigabit speeds possible, though the maximum cable length is halved to around 55m when using the latter. Cat7 Increases cable's frequency rate to 1000MHz, To achieve this, shielding has been added for individual wire pairs and the cable as a whole. Besides the foil shield, the twisting of the pairs and number of turns per unit length increases RF shielding and protects from crosstalk.

Issue If soldering or welding is required for connecting the valves, different kits are available. Environment Venta V241 V241 Cause Different applications requires different ways of connecting the valve to the pipe work. Resolution There are 3 different kits available: for welding, soldering and for internal threads. All details and part numbers are available in the data sheets. Please note that one (1) kit is required for each port.

Issue What TTS-SD-LED and TTS-SD-LCD Smart Sensors are available? Environment TTS-SD-LED Series • TTS-SD-LED-1 • TTS-SD-LED-B-1 TTS-SD-LCD-Series • TTS-SD-LCD-1 • TTS-SD-LCD-4-2 • TTS-SD-LCD-B-1 • TTS-SD-LCD-C-1-10P • TTS-SD-INFBUF Cause Some products in this range have become obsolete due to the discontinuation of some key components. Resolution Full details are on the attached Product Announcement PA-00171 TTS-SD-LED-1 Discontinued TTS-SD-LED-B-1 Discontinued TTS-SD-LCD-1 Modified TTS-SD-LCD-4-2 Modified TTS-SD-LCD-B-1 Replaced by TTS-SD-LCD-1 TTS-SD-LCD-C-1-10P Discontinued TTS-SD-INFBUF Discontinued

Issue Which actuator should be used as replacement to a M15 230V actuator that is mounted on a TRV Valve? Environment M15 TRV M9B Cause Currently used actuator is no longer available. Resolution Use M9B/230 (part no 8601020000) together with Linkage/mounting kit for Butterfly valve TRV, Item Number: 8600991000  

Issue What configuration is required for a Multical BACnet heat meter Environment Schneider Electric (Kamstrup) heat meter connected to a Continuum or SmartStruxure system on MS/TP. Multical 61/62/601/602/801 Cause Setup information required Resolution With the BACnet interface card fitted in the Multical meter it is a native BACnet MS/TP device. Connect it to the AS or bCX1 depending on your system and Learn/ find BACnet devices. It should appear online and allow the objects to be uploaded. A typical unit like the Multical 602 will contain 12 Analog Inputs for all of the information from the meter. The Meter will operate at 9600, 19200, 38400, 57600 and 76800 Baud rates and autobaud to the connected system. For the Datasheet  Click Here. For the BACnet PICs statement Click Here. For help with Heat meter selection see the online selection tool: Online Heat Meter Selection Tool - PA-00216

Issue NCII controller with Modbus TCP/IP xdriver running in server mode drops offline every day or so. Environment Modbus TCP xdriver Cause The customer was using a very old version of the modbus xdriver file. Resolution Installed the current Modbus TCP/IP xdriver release.

Issue An example on how to control a Door Request to Exit function with a Schedule. Environment Continuum Access Control Door Plain English Cause Customer wanted an example on how to disable Exit Requests for a Door after hours. Resolution There are probably a couple of ways to do this depending on how you are currently controlling door access. The easiest method would be to use to the "OpenOnExitReqst" attribute of the Door object. Using a PE program to set this to False based on a Schedule point should give you the functionality required. The PE code for the InfinityProgram in your Access Controller would be similar to below. =================== ' Door_SCH - InfinityNumeric that is being set by a Schedule object ' Door1 - Door object where the Exit Request button is to be controlled ' ' Fall Thru program triggered by Door_SCH ' Functionality: Door_SCH calls this program to run when its value changes. ' This then sets the state of the OpenOnExitReqst attribute in the Door to the ' current state of your Schedule. Reverse this if you want to opposite action. ' "Door1 OpenOnExitReqst = not Door_SCH" Door1 OpenOnExitReqst = Door_SCH ===================

Issue Too many characters in a signal or channel name in Menta. Environment TAC Menta Cause Wants to know how many characters the signal name can be in Menta Resolution A signal and channel name can be 20 characters (+ 12 for the module name).

Issue A variable that is a NV-based CP and named nisse123 (for example), won't work in Xbuilder A variable that is a NV-based NV (i.e. not a CP) and named nci123 won't work in Xbuilder   Environment TAC Xbuilder Cause TAC Vista and TAC XBuilder handles SNVTs differently Resolution The general workaround is to ensure nci are named nci, nvi are named nvi, and nvo are named nvo.

Issue SmartStruxure with BACnet interface, points from BACnet devices are displayed in a graphic, list view etc, initially everything works fine and the point's value updates normally but after sometime of operation (days or weeks) the value stops updating. Value maybe shown as 0.00 or ... or with a green circle or red X that indicates a bad variable. Environment Automation Server Enterprise Server BACnet interface B3 Third party BACnet devices Cause Software defect in version 1.3 (including SP1) and below. Resolution Please note that if 1.3 SP1 has not been applied it MUST be applied before installing the hot fix. Contact Technical Support to obtain hot fix 1.3.0.11403 Provide site details Apply the hotfix

Issue Contact info for Schneider Electric Buildings Business Order Entry in the UK Environment Purchasing UK Price and Delivery information Cause For all questions from end users, pricing and delivery information. Resolution UK CCC in Telford: Phone 0870 608 8608 Email OrderEntry.UK@Schneider-Electric.com

Issue Does the ENC maximum number of LON bindings recommendation also apply to the JACE-6, JACE-6E, and JACE-7 platforms as well?  The recommendation is not to exceed a total of 1200 bindings on the FTT-10 bus. Environment I/A Series G3, ENC and JACE controllers Cause LonWorks FTT-10 bus operation Resolution The number of bindings on an FTT-10 bus does not change regardless of the platform (e.g. ENC vs. JACE-6/7). The number of LON devices and overall number of bindings is somewhat arbitrary as the actual number is related to bandwidth limitations of the 78K FTT-10 bus.  The 1200 binding number is a general rule of thumb. This is the statement from an R2 engineering note that summarizes the basic issue. --- A JACE controller provides a LonWorks FTT-10 port. Electrically, an FTT-10 segment supports up to 63 total nodes (addressable devices). Using repeater(s), a single LonWorks subnet can span multiple segments and have a total of 127 nodes.  However, in almost all cases, it is unrealistic to think that a JACE controller can “fully support” anywhere near 126 devices, because of bandwidth limitations.  The 78K baud FTT-10 bus can easily become “saturated” with too many messages (as a result of bindings). Generally, most LON installations reach network saturation at around 1200 bindings (with average messaging). This can easily occur with far fewer than 126 devices. If connections are set to “poll-only," then the network could be sized to agree with the resource count limit of the JACE.  However, this configuration puts the JACE in the same category as most other LON interfaces, which poll for values (making for slow updates). --- In summary, the actual number of bindings directly correlates to bandwidth, tuning, and acceptable data update rates.  An FTT-10 network can exhibit high bandwidth with less bindings or can be successfully operated at a higher number of bindings.  A good rule of thumb is that the average sustained bandwidth on the bus (as measured with a Lon Protocol Analyzer) should not exceed 25 to 28%.  This allows for message bursts to be successfully processed when needed.  In addition, care must be used when targeting a particular LON node with messages as the Neuron or host processor may not be able to process incoming messages causing lost and missed messages.  This includes the ENC or JACE which is why tuning of the individual LON devices is very important. One alternative is to install two FTT-10 LON cards in the JACE-6E or JACE-7 and run two trunks. The LON network interfaces are configured as LON1 and LON2.  Purchase two cards and one driver. Remember to not overload the JACE (e.g. maintain good CPU and memory usage) which is good practice regardless of the communication interface.

Issue A third party BACnet browser is trying to query Xdriver points. It sends ReadPropertyMultiple with a Property Identifier of "all (8)". The CX9680 responds with an error. Is this property supported by the BACnetIP Xdriver? Environment BACnet IP Xdriver Cause The ReadPropertyMultiple property identifier: all (8) is not supported by the Xdriver. Resolution The ReadPropertyMultiple property identifier: all (8) is not supported by the Xdriver. The Xdriver only supports the following properties: Value Access BACnet Property 85 R/W Present-Value 111 R Status-Flags 36 R Event State 81 R Out of Service In the Xdriver manual the Quick Reference table in Appendix A indicates "Property 1-25 Service Limit". This is only for the DeviceSelf object and determines the number of asynchronous BACnet messages the Xdriver can send at a time. It effects the speed of polling (1 = slowest, 25 = fastest).

Issue In a Niagara R2 / DMS integration, some points in the station are not updating.  Some points were deleted in the DMS panel. Environment Niagara R2 (all versions) DMS (all versions) Cause Controllers were deleted and DMS points were no longer required.  As a housekeeping step, they were deleted. Resolution Anytime DMS points are deleted, added, re-ordered or the DMS database is downloaded via OPRIF, 're-learn' the DMS panel from the R2 station. Right-click a DMS container, select Go > PointListManager. Click the GetPointListFromDevice button. The above steps will upload the current DMS database into the station.  The steps will NOT affect existing objects under the specific DMS container. For more information, read the I/A Series Niagara DMS Serial Driver Engineering Guide (F-27071).  Specifically, read the section titled 'Re-learning The DMS Panel'.

Issue A point in a MicroSmart controller is receiving its input value from the global broadcast table and it's fluctuating every few seconds by roughly 20 degrees. Environment DMS Niagara R2 Niagara G3 Cause Two MicroSmart points are broadcasting on the same global channel.  The two points can be from the same controller or from different controllers on the bus.  One is broadcasting a value around 50°F and the other around 70°F.  This is causing the 20 degree fluctuation every few seconds. Resolution The two points must be identified and then given unique broadcast channel numbers.  This will prevent the fluctuation. The global table will identify one point but not the other one.  The process of manually checking each controller's global table and points database may be required.  The point configuration screen will identify the broadcast channel assigned.  Once the duplicate is found, assign it an unused channel number.

Issue An owner customer has purchased a non-expiring copy of WorkPlace Tech.  It is installed on a 64-bit Windows 7 computer within the XP 'mode' virtual machine.  Can it be copied to other Windows 7 computers and work or does the WorkPlace Tech license prevent it from working? Environment Windows 7 WorkPlace Tech 5 Cause Loss of potential sales Resolution WorkPlace Tech licensing is not designed to identify a virtual 'hard drive' from an actual hard drive.  As a result, an installed copy of WorkPlace Tech will work in the virtual machine no matter how many Windows 7 computers into which it is installed.

Issue Some temperature sensors are now delivered with a USB interface. What is the purpose of this? Environment Temperature sensors offer Cause Revised version of sensor hardware Resolution The USB interface is for factory calibrations/settings only, and not intended for use by the customer.