Bacnet Point Manager “Database” notes

The “Database” table contains existing Bacnet proxy points, where each appears as a row in the table. Each proxy point represents one data item from a specific BACnet object in that device (Figure 30).

Figure 30. Database shows Bacnet proxy points in the station


Database shows Bacnet proxy points in the station

You can resort points by clicking on any column header. Often, this is useful to sort by “Object ID” (BACnet object type), or perhaps by name.

Also, if you created BacnetPointFolders under a device’s Points container, you can see all proxy points in the device from the main (root) Points Manager using “All Descendants” tool. For details, see the section “Points New Folder and New” in the Drivers Guide.

The following sections provide more details about the Database pane in the Bacnet Point Manager:

Database proxy point table columns

By default, the following columns appear in the Database table, from left-to-right:

Name   Out   Object ID   Property ID   Index   Read   Write

NoteYou can also modify columns shown, see Modifying the Database table.

Name

The Niagara name for the Bacnet proxy point. If you added the point from a discover (selecting the default “presentValue” property), and did not edit Object Name, this will be identical to the BACnet object’s name. As needed, you can edit when adding, or at any later time.

Out

The current out value, including any point facets. For (presentValue) proxy points before AX-3.2, this includes both the BACnet “Present_Value” and the logical “OR” status merger of the BACnet object’s “Status_Flags” (in_alarm, fault, overridden, out_of_service) along with Niagara point status.

NoteBACnet status flags “in_alarm” and “out_of_service” OR with Niagara status “alarm” and “disabled,” respectively. Status flags “overridden” and “fault” map OR to identically named Niagara statuses. For more details, see Status merger for Bacnet proxy points.

Also, (before AX-3.2) if a writable proxy point for a “priority type” BACnet object (Binary_Output, Analog_Output, etc.), the out value facets always include the active BACnet priority array level (1—16), as the object’s “Priority_Array” is also automatically polled. By default, this is formatted as “bac=n”. For example, a (presentValue) BooleanWritable point for a Binary_Output object may have an out of:

On {ok} @ 16 bac=16

Where here, the active Niagara point priority level (@ 16) agrees with the current BACnet priority level.

NoteStarting in AX-3.2, out display of a proxy point defaults to only the single (configured) property value, along with Niagara status for the proxy point. However, you can edit point facets to poll for additional properties, such as the native “statusFlags” and/or “priorityArray” level. For details, see Facets usage to poll additional properties.

Object ID

Just as in the Discovered table, this is the “Object_Identifier” property of the proxied BACnet object, which is a combination of BACnet object type and instance number (unique within that type). In this column, these two field appear separated by a “:”, using Niagara descriptors for type. For example:

  • analogInput:3

  • multiStateValue:3

  • binaryOutput:3

Property ID

The BACnet property name proxied by the point. For example “Present Value” or “Event State,” depending on selection.

Index

Applies only if an “arrayed” property, like “Priority Array” (otherwise it is “-1” for no index). Provides a numeric index into the property array.

Read

The read-only “Read Status” of the ProxyExt, which is typically either “Polled,” “COV,” or “unsubscribed,” depending on a number of factors. If a read error occurs, other descriptive text may appear instead.

Write

The read-only “Write” status of the ProxyExt, which is typically “readonly” if the proxy point is not writable, or if a writable point type, either “writable” or “ok” (last Niagara write occurred within effective Tuning Policy period). Or, if a write operation fails, the write status provides some descriptive text.

For example, if you create a writable point for a readonly object (say, a NumericWritable for presentValue of an Analog_Input object), and attempt to write from Niagara, following this the write status may show: “Property:Write Access Denied”. If the error is actually a BACnet Error, then this colon-separated format will contain the Error Class and Error Code returned by the device.

Modifying the Database table

You can modify which data columns appear in the Bacnet Point Manager database table. For the options menu, simply click the small “table options” control in the upper right corner. See the section “Manager table features” in the Drivers Guide for general details.

Non-default selections for data columns in the Bacnet Point Manager Database table include various properties of both the parent proxy point and the Bacnet ProxyExt, and are the following:

  • Path — Station path to the proxy point.

  • Type — Type of Niagara point the proxy is based upon (BooleanWritable, NumericPoint, etc.).

  • Enabled — Whether the Niagara proxy point is currently enabled for communications.

  • Tuning Policy Name — Name of the network’s TuningPolicy component assigned to the point.

  • Data Type — The ASN data type for the property (ENUMERATED, REAL, and so on).

  • Device Facets — Learned facets from the source BACnet object.

  • Facets — Facets in use by the parent proxy point.

  • Conversion — Conversion used between device facets and point facets (typically “Default”).

  • Read Value — Last value read from device, expressed in device facets.

  • Write Value — (Applies to writable types only) Last value written, using device facets.