BACnet Tag Import

You can use Plant SCADA's Import Tags tool to automatically create variable tags that represent the object properties on a BACnet device.

To create variable tags based on BACnet object properties:

1. In Plant SCADA Studio go to Topology activity and select I/O Devices.

2. On the Command Bar, select Import Tags.

   The Import Variable Tags dialog box will display.

3. In the Destination panel, select the required I/O Device. The drop-down menu includes a list of all the I/O devices currently configured in your Plant SCADA project.

   The device you select needs to be configured to use the BACnet protocol, otherwise an error message will display when you attempt to configure the device connection.

4. In the Source panel, set the Database Type to "BACnet".

   At this point, the External Database field will display the address configured for the selected device on the I/O Devices Communication Settings. It will use the following format:

   <device ID> -i <device IP address>

   The "-i <device IP address>" component of the address is optional. However, if the device is on a different IP subnet, you will need to include the IP address.

   If an address has not been configured on the I/O Devices form, use the Browse button to discover the device ID.

   This button will display the BACnet Device Configuration dialog.

   1. To discover the Device ID for an I/O device, click the Browse button on the BACnet Device Configuration dialog.

      The BACnet Device Discovery dialog will appear and display:

      • A list of all the BACnet devices detected on the local network.

        Or:

      • A list of all devices detected in the EDE file selected in the Tag Import Options section of the dialog.

      To view additional information about a device, double-click on it.

      Note: If the BACnet device you are looking for is not included in the list of devices detected on the local network, you will need to return to the Import Variables Tags dialog and manually enter its device ID and IP address into the External Database field using the following syntax:
      <device ID> -i <device IP address>

      Select the required device from this list and click OK. The Device ID for the selected device will display on the BACnet Device Configuration dialog.

   2. In the Tag Import Options panel, select one of the following options:

      • Use device for tag import.

      • Use EDE file for tag import.

      If you select the first option, you can view information about the device by clicking the Device Info... button.

      If you select the EDE file option, you need to identify the required file in the EDE Path field. You can use the Browse button to locate the file.

   3. In the Filter Options panel, select the Use Filters check box to apply a filter to the tag import. The Set Filters button opens a dialog that lets you select the BACnet object properties you would like to include in the tag import process.

   4. In the Advanced Options panel, select any of the following options:

      • Use object name as Tag Name — creates variable tags that are named using the following format:

        <IODEVICE>\<OBJECT NAME>\OBJECT TYPE

        For example, "AIO\ventilation\PresentValue".

      • Import BACnet Units and Descriptions to the present value tag — imports the units and descriptions for the present value.

      • Import BACnet Schedule Instances as Equipment — generates equipment definitions based on the device's schedule instances. If you select this option, you need to specify the Parent Equipment.

        This option is useful if you want to integrate the BACnet schedules on a device into Plant SCADA's Scheduler for runtime interaction. See the topic Integrate BACnet Schedules into Scheduler in the main help for more information.

   5. Click OK to close the BACnet Device Configuration dialog.

5. On the Import Variable Tags dialog, click Import.

   Plant SCADA will connect to the device, read the Object_List property (which contains a list of the BACnet objects on the device), and create the variable tags for the BACnet object properties. Variable tags are only created for the BACnet properties supported by Plant SCADA's BACNET driver.

   If the Import BACnet Schedule Instances as Equipment option is selected, equipment definitions will be generated for each of the device's schedule instances.