Create a new Device

To create a new device, select ‘Tools’ → ’I/O Devices’ or click the icon in the toolbar.

The following picture shows the first step in creating a new device:

I/O Device Name: Give a device name. This name will be used in the tag database, accompanied by the ‘Station Name’.

Select a device type

After selecting the 'OK' button in the previous step, the ‘Serial communication Configuration’ dialog box will appear as shown in the following picture:

In this window, set the 'Device Type' to ‘SIEMENS S7 PPI Direct’ and configure the remaining communication parameters. These parameters must match those chosen for the PLC.

The parameters should be set to the following values:

Baud Rate: 9600 or 19200 (must be matched with the PLC)

Parity: Even

Data Bits: 8 Bits

Stop Bits: 1 Bit

RTS/CTS: OFF

Comm. Type: RS485

See the Communication Configuration section for more information about the remaining parameters.

Create a station

Move to the ‘Station’ tab of the 'Serial Communication Configuration' dialog box. In this dialog box, connected PLC stations can be configured and registered to the Xpanel.

Each field can be configured with the following rules:

Station Name: Give a name to the PLC. This name will be used in the tag database, accompanied by the ‘Device Name’.

Station Type: Choose ‘S7’ (this is the only available option).

Network ID: N/A

Station No: Specify a decimal number between 0 and 126. This number must match the station chosen for the PLC.

16-Bit Data Swap: This option swaps bytes for all word- or double-word-sized data. The following diagram shows an example of byte swapping:

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Almost all data types will be influenced by this option except INT8 / UINT8 / BCD8 / UBCD8.

32-Bit Data Swap: This option swaps words of all double-word-sized data. The following diagram shows an example of word swapping:

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Tag values with data types INT32 / UINT32 / BCD32 / UBCD32 / FLOAT will be influenced by this option.

Using Checksum: N/A

Comm. Error Message Pop Up: When this item is checked, Xpanel displays a communication error message box for every Rx and Tx error. Otherwise (unchecked), Xpanel does not display a message for communication errors. This message box will close automatically after a few secondsSee the Communication Configuration section for more information about the remaining parameters.