Configure a BACnet datapoint in Boss’nX: object, reading and command

A BACnet datapoint links an object of a BACnet device (input, output or value; analog, binary or multistate) to a Boss’nX component. It is used to read the object’s value through COV or polling, record it in history and command it with a write priority.

For administrators and installers, in the relevant supervision, on a computer. To create several datapoints in one go, use the BACnet multiple import instead.

Before you start

• Your account has Manage components. Manage BACnet, required to administer devices, is a separate permission.
• The device is declared in BACnet devices. Declaring it and discovering its objects do not automatically create a datapoint in a component.
• You know the device name, the object type and instance, as well as the functions and settings confirmed by the installer. The values in this guide are fictitious examples.

Open the datapoint and choose the device

1. Open Components in your bar or through Menu → Components, then the Edit component pencil on the card. To create one, use Add component; the common form details the general settings.
2. Click Add point, or find the datapoint to edit.
3. In its header, select BACnet and fill in a Label describing its use.
4. In BACnet device, choose the device. The list offers the supervision’s devices: check its identity, even if you have chosen a general Gateway for the component.
5. Fill in BACnet object using one of the two methods below.

The gateway choice specific to KNX datapoints does not apply here: the BACnet datapoint refers to the chosen device and its configuration.

Choose the BACnet object

With the list of discovered objects

1. Click in Search an object….
2. Type part of the name, or a reference such as AI:42, a fictitious example. The suggestions show the name, then the type, the instance and the unit when it is known.
3. Click the correct suggestion: typed text alone does not select the object.
4. Review the result. To remove the selection, use the small Clear cross to the right of the field; clearing only the search text leaves the link in place.

The bell that may appear in a suggestion relates to the object’s intrinsic reporting, not to an ongoing alarm. See interpreting the list of BACnet objects.

Without discovery: enter the type and instance

1. Under BACnet object, click the small button showing —, or the abbreviation of the type already chosen.
2. Select the confirmed type, for example AI — Analog input, AO — Analog output or BV — Binary value. Multistate types use MSI, MSO and MSV here.
3. In the numeric field immediately to the right, fill in the confirmed Object instance. Do not confuse it with the device instance declared in the BACnet registry.
4. Review the type and the instance together. The fictitious example AI, 42 designates analog input object number 42; it is not an address to copy onto your installation.

The hint Run a discovery on this device to enable autocomplete. points you back to the discovery path. Manual entry assumes you know the exact reference: do not invent an instance just to be able to save.

Set reading, command and options

1. After each object selection, check Feedback for reading and Cmd for commands. The selection checks Feedback, and also Cmd except for input objects, which are read-only. Uncheck Cmd if no command is intended for this object and this installation.
2. Click Show options if the settings are collapsed.
3. For reading, choose the intended Read mode: COV (push) receives changes, Poll queries the device periodically.
4. In COV on an analog object, fill in the intended COV increment; in polling, the Poll interval (s). The interface suggests 0.5 for the increment and 5 seconds for the interval: have the suitable values confirmed rather than reducing them to try to resolve a communication fault.
5. To record the reading in history, check Save to history. This option ensures neither that values are received nor that earlier measurements are recovered.
6. For a command, set the Write priority according to the installation. The slider goes from 1 to 16, with the markers 1 Manual, 8 Auto and 16 Default; the suggested value is 16. Do not change the priority just to force a command that does not respond.
7. Check Confirm command if the user must confirm before sending.
8. If needed, open Customize value kind, then choose Boolean, Numeric or Enum in Value kind, according to the confirmed object. This choice alone does not define the labels and values of a command list.

Alarm opens a separate configuration: do not check this box to get an ordinary reading or to work around a blocking issue. To configure an alarm, follow thresholds and values, then Alarm source and greyed-out fields.

Save the datapoint

1. Leave the last field and review the device name, the object, Cmd / Feedback and the options.
2. Click Create for a new component, or Save for an existing component.

Before saving, Back discards the changes to the current component. After saving, correct the settings in the editor and save again.

Change the device of an existing datapoint

If you change BACnet device, select again the object matching the new device: changing the device does not choose a new object. Also check the value kind and the datapoint’s functions.

The BACnet object selector is shared by reading and command. If you need separate references or have an existing configuration to preserve, contact support before replacing the selection.

Check the result

1. After returning to the original page, reopen the component and check the settings that were kept. The BACnet options may be collapsed: use Show options.
2. View the component’s card: check that the value read is current, then test each command on the hardware. The read mode, history and save describe the configuration, not the state of communication.

Troubleshooting

• Missing field, unsuccessful search or uncertain save: follow BACnet datapoint troubleshooting.
• Custom display or command whose settings are not established, thresholds or alarm handling with unknown settings: have the need clarified by support before configuring.

If the problem persists, contact support@can-nx.com with the supervision, the component, the device, the object and the checks already done.

French labels: Composants, Menu, Ajouter un composant / Modifier le composant, Ajouter un point, BACnet, Label, Équipement BACnet, Objet BACnet, Rechercher un objet…, Vider, Instance d’objet, Cmd / Re.Etat, Afficher les options / Masquer les options, Mode de lecture, COV (push) / Scrutation, Incrément COV, Intervalle de scrutation (s), Enregistrer dans l’historique, Priorité d’écriture, Confirmation envoi commande, Personnaliser le type de valeur, Type de valeur, Booléen / Numérique / Énumération, Créer / Enregistrer / Retour. The types are displayed, for example, as Entrée analogique, Sortie analogique, Valeur binaire and Entrée/Sortie/Valeur multi-état.