Below is a guide to help you to establish the cause of a fault.
It follows the PACE principle and looks in-turn at
It follows the PACE principle and looks in-turn at
- Product
- Application
- Configuration
- Environment
Environment |
Question |
Is the product working outside of its environmental specification? E.g. Temperature, humidity, mounting recommendations, etc. |
Is it wired to the circuit design? |
Have you checked the connections? E.g. terminals to correct torque, ferrules fitted correctly etc. |
Has any other part of the system failed? |
Has this application worked previously? |
Is the communication or network to other devices working correctly? |
Are the signals from other devices or systems healthy? |
Is the safety circuit healthy? |
Are the connected devices Schneider parts? E.g. cables, memory cards, software etc. |
Application |
Question |
Is it being used outside of it’s specified parameters? Eg number or frequency of operations, current limitations etc |
What was happening when it failed? |
Is the fault repeatable? |
Can you substitute a known working product, and does the fault remain? Note! only change one item at a time and retest in-between. |
Can you test the product with a simplified function or application? |
Have you found a workaround for the fault? |
Can you operate the product on its own? |
Could there be a problem with mechanical, hardwired or software interlocks? |
If you are not the system designer, have you consulted them about the issue? |
Configuration |
Question |
Are the parameters correct? |
Is the software configuration correct? |
Is the programmed function being used correctly? |
Is the communication configuration correct? |
Is there conflict between devices? Eg duplicated IP or network addresses |
Has the device error handling been implemented? |
Have you got the correct PC operating system, configuration and programming software, firmware revision and device drivers? |
Product |
Question |
Did the device work before and has stopped working? |
Is the product working in line with Schneider published documentation? |
Are there any physical signs of product damage? |
Have you any other failures of the same product? |
Is it an intermittent fault? Can you find a pattern to reproduce the fault? |
Are there any physical clues to fault such as noise, smell, heat, discolouration etc. |