This FAQ is concerning the case when you are using the SFT2841 software in Network (or "Remote") mode to connect to a Sepam relay equipped with an RS-485 communication module such as the ACE949-2 or the ACE969TP-2. If you are using the PowerLogic EGX300 gateway, in some cases you may have trouble connecting. This FAQ describes one possible issue that you may encounter.
If you find that the communication is slow, or if SFT2841 starts opening the device for configuration but fails during the process, "Timeout" errors on the serial RS-485 bus may be the cause. As shown in the image below, you can look for "Timeout" errors for the Serial Port on the EGX300 Diagnostics page.
If you click on the "Details" link in the Serial Port section of this page, you can see the list of devices that the EGX300 has in memory. This is shown in the image below.
As shown, there may be devices such as the ones with Device ID's 2, 3, 11, and 12 that are left over from a previous configuration. If these devices are no longer present or connected to the EGX300, the gateway may still send requests to these Modbus ID's, and this will slow down the communications. Specifically as it pertains to SFT2841, the software cannot tolerate long periods when the communications link is tied up. So, if the EGX300 is busy polling addresses of devices that are not present, the SFT2841 software (in Network / Remote mode) will determine that the communications link is faulty and it will close the connection.
To resolve the issue, you must delete the devices from the EGX300 configuration. It is important to look for the "Timeout" errors as described here, because these "leftover" devices will not show up in the "Device List" page. This is depicted in the image below.
Depending on whether or not Device Logging had previously been enabled on your EGX300, you may have trouble deleting the old devices from the EGX300 configuration. Please contact PowerLogic Support for assistance on the EGX300 configuration.
AEDL3
Released for:Schneider Electric India
