Workbench engineering of Chopan client points

You engineer Chopan client points using the “Chopan Virtual gateway” device extension of a selected SedonaJen6lpDevice. Figure 12 below shows an example where a hibernating device (Dev_4) has Chopan points added to both read station data and write local app values to the station.

NoteAt the time of this document, Sedona Framework support for hibernating devices (typically battery powered devices) is not widely available. However, the SedonaJen6lpNetwork driver in the NiagaraAX station is “ready” for such support, as described in this example. For another use of Chopan client points that is fully supported now, see the example after this one, Peer-to-peer configuration example.

Figure 12. Access Chopan Virtual gateway using NiagaraAX Workbench to make Chopan (client) points


Access Chopan Virtual gateway using NiagaraAX Workbench to make Chopan (client) points

In the Figure 12 example, once the SedonaJen6lpDevice has been set to “Maintenance Mode”, its Chopan Virtual gateway is accessed in order to add a ChopanDevice representing the JACE server under its ChopanNetwork. Then, as shown on the left side, the Chopan Point Manager is used to add Chopan points under it—ideally, using target Niagara components already made in a “ChopanPts” folder.

This creates Chopan points in the device’s app (ChoFltWr, ChoBoolWr, ChoBoolPt, ChoFltPt), which are then typically linked into other components in the device’s app (in order to write local values or read/use station values). Chopan points persist only in the Jennic-based device; the Chopan Virtual gateway in the station (used to create them) dynamically reflects corresponding components in the app.

Because of the underlying JenNet tree structure of the wireless network of Jennic-based devices, the communications path of CHoPAN messaging between devices may not be directly between the client and server nodes. For example in the network in Figure 12, Dev_4 (as an end node) may be a child node of Dev_2 (acting as a router), such that JACE to Dev_4 messaging involves Dev_2. Note that JenNet uses a “self-healing” tree architecture, such that it automatically reconfigure if routing changes are warranted.