The information contained herein is provided in good faith, but is subject to change without
notice. It is supplied with no warranty whatsoever, and does not represent a commitment on
the part of B&B Electronics. Companies, names and data used as examples herein are
fictitious unless otherwise stated. No part of this document may be reproduced or transmitted
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All trademarks are acknowledged as the property of their respective owners.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
TABLE OF CONTENTS
GETTING STARTED ..........................................................................................1
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS .................................................................................... 1
INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE ............................................................................... 1
CHECKING FOR UPDATES ................................................................................... 1
INSTALLING THE USBDRIVERS ........................................................................... 2
WEB SERVER .............................................................................................. 364
REVISION 1 PAGE XI
VLINX
FIELDBUS
GATEWAY
MANAGER
USER MANUAL
GETTING STARTEDSYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
GETTING STARTED
Fieldbus Gateway Manager is designed to provide quick and easy access to the features of the
Vlinx Fieldbus Gateway series, while still allowing the advanced user to take advantage of
high-end features, such as Fieldbus Gateway Manager’s unique programming support.
SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS
Fieldbus Gateway Manager is designed to run on PCs with the following specifications…
• A Pentium class processor as required by the chosen operating system.
• RAM and free disk space as required by the chosen operating system.
• An additional 50MB of disk space for software installation.
• A display of at least 1024 by 768, with 256 or more colors.
• An RS-232 or USB port for downloading to a Fieldbus Gateway.
Fieldbus Gateway Manager is designed to operate with all versions of Microsoft Windows
from Windows 95 upwards. If you want to take advantage of the USB port provided by the
Vlinx Fieldbus Gateways, you will need to use, as a minimum, Windows 98. If you intend to
use the USB port to remotely access the Gateway’s CompactFlash card, we recommend that
you use Windows 2000 or Windows XP. While Windows 98 is capable of accessing the card,
the later versions of the operating system provide more robust operation, and are much better
about when they choose to lock the card, thereby preventing the C2 runtime from writing
data.
INSTALLING THE SOFTWARE
If you downloaded the Fieldbus Gateway Manager software from B&B Electronics’ website,
simply execute the download file, and follow the instructions. If you received a copy of
Fieldbus Gateway Manager on CD, place the CD in your system’s CDROM drive, and follow
the instructions that will appear. If no instructions appear, you may have auto-run disabled. In
that case, select the Run option from the Start menu, and enter
letter of your CDROM drive. Again, follow the resulting instructions, and the software will
be installed.
x:\setup, where x is the drive
CHECKING FOR UPDATES
If you have an Internet connection, you can use the Check for Update command in the Help
menu to scan B&B Electronics’ web site for a new version of Fieldbus Gateway Manager. If
a later version than the one you are using is found, Fieldbus Gateway Manager will ask if it
should download the upgrade and update your software automatically. You may also
manually download the upgrade from B&B Electronics’ website by visiting the Downloads
page within the Support section. Either way, when the upgrade package executes, be sure to
select the Repair option to update your installation.
REVISION 1 PAGE 1
INSTALLING THE USBDRIVERSVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
INSTALLING THE USBDRIVERS
When you first connect a Vlinx Fieldbus Gateway to your PC using a USB cable, Windows
Hardware Wizard will appear. Before continuing, make sure that the CD containing Vlinx
Fieldbus Gateway Manager is in the CDROM drive of your PC.
If connected to the Internet, Windows will ask to connect to Windows Update. Select, No, not this time, and then select Install from a specific location (Advanced) on the subsequent dialog.
When the Hardware Wizard continues, choose the Browse option, and point the Wizard at
your CDROM drive. Click OK to finish the USB driver installation.
Windows XP users should note that Fieldbus Gateway Manager’s USB drivers have not been
digitally signed by Microsoft, and you will therefore see a dialog offering you the chance to
stop the installation. You should be sure to select the Continue option to indicate that you do
indeed wish to install the drivers.
If you do not have the CD that came with the Vlinx Fieldbus Gateway, but you have
previously installed Vlinx Fieldbus Gateway Manager, follow the same steps shown above,
but rather than pointing to the CDROM drive, browse and point to the following folder…
To run Fieldbus Gateway Manager, select the Fieldbus Gateway Manager icon from the B&B
Electronics folder on the Programs section of your Start Menu. The main Fieldbus Gateway
Manager screen will appear, showing the icons that are used to configure the various aspects
of the gateway’s behavior…
The software is designed such that the first three icons are the only ones required for the
majority of simple applications. The remainder of the icons provide access to the Gateway’s
more advanced features, such as programming, data logging and the Gateway’s web server.
MAIN SCREEN ICONS
The sections below provide an overview of each icon in turn…
C
OMMUNICATIONS
This icon is used to specify which protocols are to be used on the Gateway’s
serial ports and on the Ethernet port. Where master protocols are used (ie.
protocols by which the Gateway initiates data transfer to and from a remote
device) you can also use this icon to specify one or more devices to be
accessed. Where slave protocols are used (ie. protocols by which the
Gateway receives and responds to requests from remote devices or computer systems) you
can specify which data items are to be exposed for read or write access. You can also use this
icon to move data between one remote device and another via Fieldbus Gateway Manager’s
protocol converter.
ATA TAGS
D
This icon is used to define the data items to be accessed within the remote
devices, or to define internal data items to store information within the
terminal itself. Each tag has a variety of properties associated with it. The
most basic property is formatting data, which is used to specify how the data
held within a tag is to be shown on the terminal’s display, and on such
things as web pages. By specifying this information within the tag, Fieldbus Gateway
Manager removes the need for you to re-enter formatting data each time a tag is displayed.
REVISION 1 PAGE 3
MAIN SCREEN ICONSVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
More advanced tag properties include alarms that may activate when various conditions
relating to the tag occur, or triggers, which perform programmable actions on similar
conditions.
SER INTERFACE
U
This icon is used to create and edit display pages, and to specify what
actions should be taken when the Gateway’s keys are pressed, released or
held down. The page editor allows you to display various graphical items
known as primitives. These vary from simple items, such as rectangles and
lines, to more complex items that can be tied to the value of a particular tag
or expression. By default, such primitives use the formatting information defined when the
tag was created, but this information can be overridden if required.
ROGRAMMING
P
This icon is used to create and edit programs using the software’s unique Clike programming language. These programs can perform complex decision
making or data manipulation operations based upon any data items within
the system. They serve to extend the functionality of Fieldbus Gateway
Manager beyond that of the standard functions included in the software,
thereby ensuring that even the most complex applications can be tackled with ease.
ATA LOGGER
D
This icon is used to create and manage data logs, each of which can record
any number of variables to the Gateway’s CompactFlash card. Data may be
recorded as quickly as once per second. The recorded values will be stored
in CSV (comma separated variable) files that can easily be imported into
applications such as Microsoft Excel. The files can be accessed by
swapping-out the CompactFlash card, by mounting the card as a drive on a PC connected on
the Gateway’s USB port, or by accessing them via Fieldbus Gateway Manager’s web server
via the Ethernet port.
EB SERVER
W
This icon is used to configure Fieldbus Gateway Manager’s web server and
to create and edit web pages. The web server is capable of providing remote
access to the Gateway via a number of mechanisms. First, you can use
Fieldbus Gateway Manager to create automatic web pages which contain
lists of tags, each formatted according to the tag’s properties. Second, you
can create a custom site using a third party HTML editor such as Microsoft FrontPage, and
then include special text to instruct Fieldbus Gateway Manager to insert live tag values.
Finally, you can enable the software’s unique remote access and control feature, which allows
a web browser to view the Gateway’s display and control its keyboard. The web server can
also be used to access CSV files from the Data Logger.
PAGE 4
FIELDBUS GATEWAY MAN AGER BASICSSELECTING A MODEL
SECURITY MANAGER
This icon is used to create and manage the various users of the Gateway, as
well as the access rights granted to them. Real names may also be given,
which allows the security logger to record not only what data was changed
and when, but also by whom the data was changed. The rights required to
modify a particular tag, or to access a page, are set via the security
properties of the individual item.
SELECTING A MODEL
When Fieldbus Gateway Manager first starts, it will assume that you are continuing to work
with the same model as was used by the last loaded database. If Fieldbus Gateway Manager
has not been previously executed, it will assume you are working with a VFG1000. If you
want to select a new model, select the New command from the File menu. The following
dialog will appear…
The dialog lists the models supported by the current version of the software, providing a
description of each terminal and the dimensions of its display. Selecting a terminal will create
a blank database, and reconfigure Fieldbus Gateway Manager to work with that specific
model.
USING BALLOON HELP
Fieldbus Gateway Manager provides a useful feature called Balloon Help...
REVISION 1 PAGE 5
WORKING WITH DATABASESVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
This feature allows you to see help information for each icon in the main menu, or for each
field in a dialog box or window. It is controlled via the icon at the right-hand edge of the
toolbar, and can be configured to three modes, namely “Do Not Display”, in which case
balloon help is disabled; “When Mouse Over”, in which case help is displayed when the
mouse pointer is held over a particular field for a certain period of time; or “When Selected”,
in which case help is always displayed for the currently selected field.
WORKING WITH DATABASES
Fieldbus Gateway Manager stores all the information about a particular Gateway’s
configuration in what is called a database file. These files have the extension of
CD2, although
Windows Explorer will hide this extension if it is left in its default configuration. Fieldbus
Gateway Manager database files differ from those used by previous B&B Electronics
Fieldbus Gateways, in that they are text files which are thus far easier to recover in the case of
accidental corruption. Databases are manipulated via the commands found on the File menu.
These commands are standard for all Windows applications, and need no further explanation.
The exception is Save Image, which will be covered later.
DOWNLOADING TO A VLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY
Fieldbus Gateway Manager database files are downloaded to the Fieldbus Gateway by means
of the Link menu. The download process typically takes only a few seconds, but can take
somewhat longer on the first download if Fieldbus Gateway Manager has to update the
firmware in the Fieldbus Gateway, or if the Gateway does not contain an older version of the
current database. After this first download, however, Fieldbus Gateway Manager uses a
process known as incremental download to ensure that only changes to the database are
transferred. This means that changes can be made in seconds, thereby reducing your
development cycle time and simplifying the debugging process.
ONFIGURING THE LINK
C
The programming link between the PC and the Gateway is made using an RS-232 serial port,
a USB port or a TCP/IP connection. While TCP/IP connections are typically made via the
Gateway’s Ethernet port, they may also be established via a dial-in link. Before downloading,
you should use the Link-Options command to ensure that you have the method selected…
PAGE 6
FIELDBUS GATEWAY MAN AGER BASICSDOWNLOADING TO A VLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY
VERIFYING THE USBLINK
If you are using USB, you might also want to ensure that the Gateway’s USB drivers have
been correctly installed. To do this, connect the Fieldbus Gateway, and, if the drivers have not
previously been installed, follow the instructions at the start of this manual. Then, open the
Device Manager for your operating system, and expand the USB icon to show the icon for the
Vlinx device. Ensure that this icon does not display a warning symbol. If it does, remove the
device, unplug and reconnect the Fieldbus Gateway, and verify that you have correctly
followed the driver installation procedure. The illustrations below show typical Device
Manager views with the CompactFlash dismounted and mounted, respectively….
S
ETTING THE IPADDRESS
If you are using a TCP/IP connection, you should enter the IP address of the target device in
the appropriate field in the dialog box. If you leave the IP address as 0.0.0.0, Fieldbus
Gateway Manager will examine the currently loaded database to see if the Gateway’s address
can be determined from the configuration information. This feature removes the need to
change the IP addresses when switching between databases intended for different terminals.
ENDING THE DATABASE
S
Once the link is configured, the database can be downloaded using either the Link-Send or
Link-Update commands. The former will send the entire database, whether or not individual
objects within the file have changed. The latter will only send changes, and will typically take
a much shorter period of time to complete. The Update command is typically the only one
that you will need, as Fieldbus Gateway Manager will automatically fall-back to a complete
send if the incremental download fails for any reason. As a shortcut, note that you can access
Link Update via the lightning-bolt symbol on the toolbar, or via the
F9 key on the PC.
Note that downloading via TCP/IP relies on a CompactFlash card being installed in the
Gateway if the device’s firmware is to be upgraded. Since you may want to perform such
REVISION 1 PAGE 7
DOWNLOADING TO A VLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAYVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
upgrades at some point in time, it is highly recommended that you install a CompactFlash
card in any device to which TCP/IP downloads are likely to be performed.
XTRACTING DATABASES
E
The Link-Support Upload command can be used to instruct Fieldbus Gateway Manager
whether or not it should include the information necessary to support database upload when
sending a database to a Fieldbus Gateway. Supporting upload will slow the download process
somewhat and may fail with extremely large databases containing many embedded images,
but it will ensure that should you lose your database file, you will be able to extract an
editable image from the terminal.
Note that if you lose your database file and you do not have upload support enabled, you will
not be able to reconstruct your file without starting from scratch. To extract a database from a
Gateway, use the Link-Extract command. This command will upload the database, and then
prompt you for a name under which to save the file. The file will then be opened for editing.
OUNTING THE COMPACTFLASH
M
If you are connected to a Fieldbus Gateway via the USB port, you can instruct Fieldbus
Gateway Manager to mount the Gateway’s CompactFlash card as a drive within Windows
Explorer. You can use this functionality to save files to the card or to read information from
the Data Logger. The drive is mounted and dismounted by sending commands using the
Mount Flash and Dismount Flash options on the Link menu. Once a command has been sent,
the Fieldbus Gateway will be reset, and Windows will refresh the appropriate Explorer
windows to show or hide the CompactFlash drive.
PAGE 8
FIELDBUS GATEWAY MAN AGER BASICSDOWNLOADING TO A VLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY
Note that some caution is required when mounting the CompactFlash card...
•When the card is mounted, the Gateway will periodically inform the PC if data
on the card has been modified. This means that both the PC and the Gateway
will suffer performance hits if the card is mounted during data logging
operations for longer than necessary.
•If you write to the CompactFlash card from your PC, the Gateway will not be
able to access the card until Windows releases its “lock” on the card’s contents.
This may take up to a minute, and will restrict data logging operations during
that time, and prevent access to custom web pages. Fieldbus Gateway Manager
will use the Gateway’s RAM to ensure that no data is lost, but if too many writes
are performed such that the card is kept locked for four minutes or more, data
may discarded. Note that Windows 98 is particularly bad at keeping the card
locked when there is no need for it. Windows 2000 or Windows XP is thus the
operating system of choice when using this feature.
•You should never
attempt to use Windows to format a CompactFlash card that
you have mounted via the Gateway, whether it be via Explorer or from the
command prompt. Windows does not correctly lock the card during format
operations, and the format may thus be unreliable and lead to subsequent data
loss. See below for details of how to format a card in a reliable manner.
ORMATTING THE COMPACTFLASH
F
The preferred method of formatting a card is via the Format Flash command on the Link
menu. Selecting this command will explain that the formatting process will destroy all the
data stored on the CompactFlash card and offer you a chance to cancel the operation. If you
elect to continue, the Fieldbus Gateway will be instructed to format the card. Note that this
process may take several minutes for a large card. Slow formats on Gateways that are
performing data logging may therefore result in gaps in the recorded data.
A less attractive method of formatting a card is via a dedicated CompactFlash drive connected
to your PC. If you use this method, be sure to instruct Windows to format the card using
FAT16. For very small or very large cards, Windows will most likely choose the wrong
format by default. Worse still, some versions of Windows Explorer will not allow you to
override the default format, forcing you to use the command line version
ENDING THE TIME AND DATE
S
FORMAT instead.
The Link-Send Time command can be used to set the Gateway’s clock to match that of the
PC on which Fieldbus Gateway Manager is executing. Obviously, make sure your clock is
right before you do this!
REVISION 1 PAGE 9
UPDATING VIA COMPACTFLASHVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
UPDATING VIA COMPACTFLASH
If you need to update the database within a unit that is already installed at a customer’s site,
Fieldbus Gateway Manager allows you to save a copy of the database to a CompactFlash
card, ship that card to your customer, and have the Gateway load the database from that card.
The process is performed via the Save Image command on the File menu.
The Save Image command will create a Fieldbus Gateway Manager database image file with
CDI extension. It will also save a copy of the current Gateway firmware to a file with a BIN
a
extension. The image file must be given the name
must be placed in the root directory of a CompactFlash card. To update a Fieldbus Gateway,
power down the unit, insert the CompactFlash card bearing the two files, and reapply power
to the unit. The Gateway’s boot loader will first check whether it needs to upgrade the unit’s
firmware, and once this process has been completed, the Fieldbus Gateway Manager runtime
application will load the database stored on the card. The CompactFlash card can then be
removed or left in place as required.
DBASE.CDI, and both it and the BIN file
GURU MEDITATION CODES
If a problem with the Fieldbus Gateway Manager runtime application within the Gateway
results in it being reset, the condition that caused the fault will be logged. When the Gateway
restarts, this information will be displayed in the form of a Guru Meditation Code on the
virtual HMI. A typical code will have the format…
The message can be accepted by pressing the F1 key, at which point the Gateway will resume
normal operation. Note that communications, data logging and the web server are still active
when the GMC is displayed—only the user interface is interrupted. This means that system
disruption is minimized, and functions such as protocol conversion continue to operate.
Before accepting the message, you may wish to write down the code. You may then email it
to B&B Electronics technical support, so that one of our technical gurus can meditate on this
information in order to track-down the cause of the problem. You may also want to email a
copy of the Gateway’s database, and describe what you were doing when the terminal
crashed.
03-2004-1BE4-205
PAGE 10
FIELDBUS GATEWAY MAN AGER BASICSGURU MEDITATION CODES
REVISION 1 PAGE 11
CONFIGURING COMMUNICATIONSSERIAL PORT USAGE
CONFIGURING COMMUNICATIONS
The first stage of creating a Fieldbus Gateway Manager database is to configure the
communications ports of the Fieldbus Gateway to indicate which protocols you want to use,
and which remote devices you want to access. These operations are performed from the
Communications window, which is opened by selecting the first icon of the Fieldbus
Gateway Manager main screen.
As can be seen, the Communications window lists the unit’s available ports in the form of a
tree structure. Fieldbus Gateways have three primary serial ports, with the option to add a
further two ports in the form of an expansion card. They also provide a single Ethernet port
that is capable of running four communications protocols simultaneously.
SERIAL PORT USAGE
When deciding which of the Gateway’s serial ports to use for communications, note that…
•The unit’s programming port may be used as an additional communications port,
but it will obviously not be available for download if it is so employed. This is
not an issue if the USB port is used for such purposes, and it is highly
recommended that you use this method of download if you want to connect
serial devices via the programming port.
SELECTING A PROTOCOL
To select a protocol for a particular port, click on that port’s icon in the left-hand pane of the
Communications window, and press the Edit button next to the Driver field in the right-hand
pane. The following dialog box will appear…
REVISION 1 PAGE 13
PROTOCOL OPTIONSVLINX FIELDBUS GATEWAY MANAGER USER MANUAL
Select the appropriate manufacturer and driver, and press the OK button to close the dialog
box. The port will then be configured to use the appropriate protocol, and a single device icon
will be created in the left-hand pane. If you are configuring a serial port, the various Port
Settings fields (Baud Rate, Data Bits, Stop Bits and Parity) will be set to values appropriate to
the protocol in question. You should obviously check these settings to make sure that they
correspond to the settings for the device to be addressed.
PROTOCOL OPTIONS
Some protocols require additional configuration of parameters specific to that protocol. These
appear in the right-hand pane of the Communications window when the corresponding port
icon is selected. The example below shows the additional parameters for the Allen-Bradley
DH-485 driver, which appear under the Driver Settings section of the window.
WORKING WITH DEVICES
As mentioned above, when a communications protocol is selected, a single device is created
under the corresponding port icon. In the case of a master protocol, this represents the initial
remote device to be addressed via the protocol. If the protocol supports access to more than
one device, you can use the Add Additional Device button included with the port icon’s
properties to add further target devices. Each device is represented via an icon in the left-hand
pane of the Communications window, and, depending on the protocol in question, may have a
number of properties to be configured…
PAGE 14
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