System 800xA Training

Chapter 15 Signal Tracing from 800xA Workplace

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 15 Signal Tracing from 800xA Workplace ........................................................ 1

15.1 General Information ................................................................................. 2
15.1.1 Objectives ......................................................................................... 2
15.1.2 Legend ............................................................................................. 2
15.1.3 Reference Documentation ...................................................................... 2
15.2 Signal Tracing ......................................................................................... 3
15.2.1 From Alarm List to Control Logic .............................................................. 3
15.2.2 From Graphic Display to Control Logic ....................................................... 7
15.2.3 Through an Application ......................................................................... 8
15.2.4 In the Offline Application Documentation .................................................. 10
15.2.5 In the Online Application Documentation .................................................. 13
15.3 Searching in the Workplace ........................................................................ 15
15.3.1 Find the Object .................................................................................. 15
15.3.2 Find Object References ........................................................................ 16
15.4 OPC Communication ................................................................................ 17
15.4.1 OPC Standard .................................................................................... 17
15.4.2 Structured and Data Flow ..................................................................... 18
15.4.3 OPC Server Status ............................................................................... 19
15.4.4 Subscribe for Live Data ........................................................................ 20
15.4.5 Check the System Services .................................................................... 21

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15.1 General Information

15.1.1 Objectives

On completion of this chapter you will be able to:

 Trace an alarm from alarm list to control logic.

 Trace a signal from graphic display to control logic.

 Search a Plant Explorer

 Check the OPC communication

15.1.2 Legend

> Indicates when you go from one menu to a sub-menu

Italic Indicates object and file names

“ “ Indicates dialog box buttons, tabs, menus etc.

Bold Indicates important topics

Indicates start/explanation of student activity

15.1.3 Reference Documentation

3BDS011222 Industrial IT 800Xa - System

Configuration

3BSE036904 Industrial IT 800Xa - System

Extended Operation

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15.2 Signal Tracing

15.2.1 From Alarm List to Control Logic

The most common reason for tracing a variable is the fact that there is an
alarm in the alarm list. Of course, you want to find out where the code
generating that alarm is located. This is done on a system that is running
Control Builder and where Control Builder is on-line.

Data transfer between applications uses a protocol called MMS. MMS stands

Right click the alarm and go to the “MainFaceplate”. Go to the “IO Status” tab.
In this case, we will get information of an alarm at Valve Sxx_V2.

Go to the Operator Workplace and look at the Alarm Line. In this case, we will
trace the cause of an alarm at Valve Sxx_V2 to the code which generated it

Right click the alarm and choose “Project Explorer”.

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This will take you to the generated the error in the Control Builder Project
Explorer. It might be that Control Builder is not shown directly but that it is
flashing in the taskbar, if this happens click it twice (no double click) in the
taskbar and it will show.

This means that you do not have to know in which application or controller the
code is located. The system will take you there. By double clicking the POU it
opens, and you can find alarm.

You can also choose “Function Block Editor” (or if applicable “Control Module
Editor”) after right clicking the alarm, then the POU will open automatically.
But then it is not shown where it is located in the project.

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You can check if you found the right alarm by inspecting the alarm text and
instance name of the function block or control module you found, both could
be present in the alarm list.

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Suppose we want to find out what I/O is responsible for this alarm.

You can see that there is no Feedback1 and by calling up the interaction
window of the valve you can check that it should be closed.

Find the parameter or variable in the declaration pane and right click it, then
choose “I/O editor”.

That will take you straight to the “Hardware” window that belongs to the I/O
module. The focus is on the variable that we are tracing so now we have found
the I/O we were looking for.

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15.2.2 From Graphic Display to Control Logic

Since version SV5.1 of System 800xA there are two methods by which data is
exchanged between applications:

Tracing an alarm form a graphic display it is actually almost the same. In most
cases the operator will have found the graphic display already where he/she
discovered something is wrong. Now instead of right clicking the alarm: right
click the graphic element.

From here on, the procedure is the same as before. You open up the POU and
find the code that generated the alarm.

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15.2.3 Through an Application

There is no automatic way of doing this; essentially you need to track it down
manually as described in the following diagram.

Because the diagram is rather theoretical we will try it out on an example. The
signal we want to track is the ‘Ilock1Out’ from the SxxCM_V2.

First, we go the object in the Project Explorer, and open the editor.

As you can see IO.BlockValve.Ilock1 is connected to it.

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We check whether this is a variable or a parameter. It is a parameter and so we

move up the path to a higher POU. The parameter is a structured variable
called IO, and it’s connected to gCM_OutletValveGroup.

The question again is: variable or parameter in the higher POU? Because we are
at the top level the answer is easy, it is a variable, a global variable.

Now we have to find where it is used as a connection other than the one we
already found before. The path will lead down from here. Paths up have no

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forks there is only one way up. Paths down can split numerous times thought.
You will have to check them all to be sure you missed nothing.

So where on the top level gCM_OutletValveGroup being used? The easiest way
to find out is to use “Search”. But since we are looking for a particular
component of this structured variable, we will perform the search with the
same of that component.

Here we can see that it is used twice. The second one is the path we came up,
so this is not what we are looking for. Double click the blue path to investigate
the first path down.

Now we have tracked our “Ilock1” parameter of SxxCM_V2 to where it is used,

and we know that the signal gCM_FilterReady is the one that interlocks the
valve.

15.2.4 In the Offline Application Documentation

This is another alternative to search for interconnections between variables,

parameters and objects.

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NOTE! All documentation is produced as Microsoft Word documents; hence

Microsoft Office must be installed.

To create a written document describing any project, application, library,

diagram or controller, simply select the item in the Project Explorer (Control
Builder M).

1. Go to the “File” menu and select “Documentation”…

2. Specify a document path and a template file (*.dot) for the output. Click
“More…” to set the filter options.

3. The filter helps you specify parts of the control project and keeping the
document size to a minimum.

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4. After adjusting the filter settings for types and objects, another filtering
can be done per item. You can now specify which items to include/exclude
for the previous selected types and objects.

5. Press “OK” to start Microsoft Word to produce the document.

6. Use the standard Word function “Find” to search for any names.

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7. Type a name.

8. Select “Find Next” and you can get a name and IO address.

15.2.5 In the Online Application Documentation

In Online Mode it is possible to produce documents that describe the status of

the process (variable values, parameter connections, etc.). The procedure is
similar to that described in the previous section.

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1. Select an item in the Project Explorer and go to “Documentation Online…”.

2. Specify a file name, a template and a layout for the document.

Decide which instances to include in the document. If, for example, you
only want to include PID controllers, just type ‘PID*’ in the lower input field
in the Filter Options. Or Search for a dedicated Tag name like shown in the
picture.

3. If you want to specify which variables and parameters to include in the

document, click on the “More…” button.

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The “Variables” and “Parameters” tabs allow you to filter the variables and
parameters displayed in the document. You could for example choose to
include only parameters and variables that are connected to IOs.

4. Press “OK” to produce the document. You can see now which variable is
used as an analog input by “Sxx_FT1” and the corresponding IO chanel.

15.3 Searching in the Workplace

In the workplace there also is a Find Tool, which has been introduced in
chapter “Plant Explorer Workplace”. This tool is not intended for finding
variables or parameters but for finding object and aspects.

15.3.1 Find the Object

Assume we have a process stop and we did not get an alarm. We suspect it
might be a certain object, SxxCM_V6, in the field but we do not know where it
is in Control Builder or Workplace. Now click the “find” button to search
through Workplace.

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Type in the name of the object and press “Search”. Right click on the object on
the right side and call the Project Explorer from the context menu.

15.3.2 Find Object References

Choose “References” in the context menu and find the graphic displays that
contain the object. Or maybe you just want the Faceplate; it is all in the
context menu.

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15.4 OPC Communication

15.4.1 OPC Standard

OPC stands for OLE for Process Control. OLE (Object Linking and Embedding) is
a Microsoft technology for objects to interact with each other. OLE is based on
COM or DCOM.

OLE allows placement of “embedded objects” and “linked objects” in a

document that retains the native data used to create them (or a “link” to that
data) as well as format information. In simpler terms, the ‘clipboard’ metaphor
of ‘cut’, ‘copy’, and ‘paste’.
A double-click allowed the object data to be automatically brought back into
the original editor.

The OPC Foundation is a non-profit corporation that has established a set of

standard OLE/COM interface protocols advancing interoperability between
automation/control applications, field system/devices and business/office
applications in the process control world.

While OLE was originally designed for office applications (e.g. Word, Excel).
OPC technology is an extension of that protocol for industrial applications.

NOTE! OPC is an open standard.

www.opcfoundation.org

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OPC provides a mechanism to provide data from a data source and

communicate the data to any client application in a standard way.

OPC is a group defined protocol for process control data communication. It has
three interfaces as follows:

 OPC Data Access for real time data

 OPC Alarm and Event for event data
 OPC Historical Data Access for historical data

15.4.2 Structured and Data Flow

The OPC Server for AC 800M is needed for reading run-time data or alarms and
events from controllers. The OPC Server for AC 800M consists of the following
parts:

OPC Data Access Server

The OPC Data Access Server provides data from controllers programmed with
Control Builder through an OPC Data Access 2.0 and 1.0A interface.

OPC Alarm and Event Server

The OPC Alarm and Event Server generate a stream of information, mostly
event notifications, and distribute them to the Alarm and Event clients. OPC
Alarm and Event 1.02 standard is supported.

Aspect
Server

Connectivity
Server

The OPC Server must be installed in the same physical node as the Connectivity
Server.

There are a number of basic rules that applies:

 One OPC Server is allowed to subscribe to data from a maximum of
24 PM861 controllers, or the equivalent number of variables from
other controller types.

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 A maximum of three OPC Servers are allowed to subscribe to Data

Access and/or Alarm and Event from one controller.
 Multiple OPC Clients can subscribe to data or event notifications
from the same OPC Server.
 A third-party OPC Client should, if possible, be installed on the same
PC as the OPC Server.

15.4.3 OPC Server Status

The OPC server configuration panel gives you possibilities to see the
configuration of the AC800M/C OPC Server.

Left click on the icon in the taskbar or from the Windows Start menu:
programs>ABB Industrial OT 800xA > Control and IO > OPC Server for AC 800M
5.0 > OPC Server for AC800M 5.0.

The panel has two controller specification tabs, one for Data Access and one
for Alarms and Events.

The OPC server is a service which is auto started and needs to be in status
“Running”. If the controller is successfully connected you will have a smiley
icon.

At the alarm and event tab you will see the same. In this picture one controller
is not connected:

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15.4.4 Subscribe for Live Data

To check the connectivity, you can open a control aspect for a control object
(hardware unit, function block etc.) in the Control Structure.

In the picture below we use the Control Module aspect of the object Sxx_TIC1
Temp Control Type to check if the OPC connection is working well.

1. Open the Config View for the control module (or function block) aspect
for an object in the Control Structure.

2. In the Config View select the tab card “Property View”. Enable the
caption “Subscribe for live data” to get the live data from the OPC-
Server.

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The data quality must be “Good”. If it is not, check the data in the on-
line editor Control Builder to make sure it is good at the source. If it is
not then the problem is in the controller.

15.4.5 Check the System Services

The System Status Viewer is an aspect in the Service Structure (located at the
Services object).

This aspect provides knowledge about the service of System 800xA. The OPC
connection is one of the services. The Event Collector service handles the OPC
Alarm and Event stream coming into the system.

The green color indicates that the services is running well. In case of problems
a red color indicates a failed service (displayed in the picture below).

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