GE RX3i User Manual page 74

Adapter Name
The specific Ethernet Interface, identified by its rack and slot location within the
consuming PLC.
Consumed
Not used. (Always displayed as 200 milliseconds; not editable.)
Period
Update
A value in the range 0 to 3,600,000 milliseconds (1 hour). The Ethernet Interface will
Timeout
declare a refresh error if the first or subsequent packet of data does not arrive within this
time. The Update Timeout should be at least double the producer period, and should
allow for transient network delays. The default is 0 indicates no timeout. Resolution is in
2ms increments.
Run Mode
When set to True, allows you to modify or delete this exchange and store the changes
Store Enabled while in Run mode. You can add exchanges in Run mode regardless of the setting of this
parameter.
It is recommended that you keep this parameter at its default setting, False, unless your
application has a specific need to modify this exchange in Run mode.
Name Generation for Consumed Variables
Consumed variables are created automatically. They are based on the variable name in the producer. The
name consists of up to seven characters of the beginning of the target name of the producer followed by an
underscore character "_" followed by up to 21 characters of the beginning of the variable name of the variable
in the producer. Since the PLC programming software allows names of up to 32 characters, it is possible that
the generated name for a consumed variable will not be unique. This can occur when the target names of
producers have the same first seven characters and variable names have the same first 21 characters. When
the generated variable is not unique, the variable in the consumer has an underscore character and a two-digit
number appended to it to make it unique.
Synchronizing a Consumed Exchange with Changes in the Producer
If a produced exchange is changed, it is necessary to reflect these changes in the consumers. This can be done
very quickly with the EGD configuration server. Once the new definition of the produced exchange has been
published to the server, select the consumed exchange in each consumer, right-click and select synchronize to
server. The new definition of the produced exchange will be brought in from the server. Any variables that have
been added to the producer must have reference addresses assigned if they are to be used or they must be
selected as "ignore". No other action is necessary in the consumer.
Validating the EGD for a Device
One advantage of using the EGD configuration server is the ability to validate the EGD configuration before
downloading the configuration to the device. If you right-click on the Ethernet Global Data node in the
Navigator, you will see a selection for "Bind and Build". Selecting this menu item causes the EGD definitions for
the target to be cross-checked against the definitions in the server. Each consumed exchange is compared to
the produced exchange published by the producer and any discrepancies are noted (see above for how to
correct any errors detected in the consumer).
It is also possible, by selecting the menu item "Unconsumed Data Report", to generate a report listing any
variables in produced exchanges that are not being used by a consumer. Producing data that is not being
consumed is not necessarily an error; the consumer may not be able to publish its information to the EGD
configuration server or the application design may have chosen to publish data that is not needed
immediately. However, each unconsumed variable may be an indication of an error or oversight in one or more
consumers in the application.
Looking at the Entire EGD Network
The EGD Management Tool can be used to display information about the entire EGD network both offline and
online to that network. You can launch the EMT by right clicking on the Ethernet Global Data node in the
Navigator and selecting "Launch EGD Management Tool". The EGD Management Tool will come up in separate
GFK-2224Q January 2017
Chapter 4. Configuration
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