AB Flex Serial (Gen1.3)

7 min

Review the following information for setting up and configuring the AB Flex Serial (Gen1.3) driver.

Belden Horizon Data Operations Compatible Series

Compatibility parameter	Compatible items
Driver type	Serial
Validated devices/series	FlexLogix When configuring tags for this driver, you must enter the case-sensitive register name exactly as it is defined in the PLC. See the Free Tags section below to learn more.

To set up and configure this device in Belden Horizon Data Operations, you will need to do the following:

Step 1: Set up and Configure the PLC Device
Step 2: Set up the PLC Device in Belden Horizon Data Operations DeviceHub
Step 3: Configure the List of Registers

Step 1: Set up and Configure the PLC Device

Record the serial communication parameters for the device. Otherwise, use PLC software on your computer to look up these parameters. These parameters will be used for setting up the driver in the next step.

Refer to the following parameters.

Communication mode: DF1 No Handshake protocol 19200, None, 8, 1 (default). Error Check: BCC, Station Address: 1

Step 2: Set up the PLC Device in Belden Horizon Data Operations DeviceHub

Configure the following parameters when you Connect a Device with this driver. Update default values to the specific setup of your device.

Parameter	Value
Type	Allen Bradley
Driver	AB Flex Serial (Gen1.3)
Communication Port	Local Serial connection file path
Data Bits	8
Baud Rate	19200
Parity	Even, Odd, None
Stop Bits	1

Step 3: Configure the List of Registers

When you Add Tags to the connected device, refer to the following tag parameters and available value types.

Refer to the following additional resources:

Free Tags

This driver doesn't have a list of available register names in the DeviceHub Add Tag form.

To add tags, you must enter the case-sensitive register name exactly as it is defined in the PLC.

A Connected status for the device won't display until a tag with a correct register name is created.

Available Value Types

bool

sint

dint

real

lint

Tag Parameters

Name: Enter the case-sensitive register name exactly as it is defined in the PLC.
Value Type: Select a data type from the drop-down list.
Polling Interval: Enter a value in seconds. This determines how often the tag should poll the register for data.
Tag Name: Enter a name for the tag.
Description (Optional): Enter a description for the tag.
Tag Formula: Enter a formula for the tag to process the generated data. Two variables are permitted: value (current tag value) and timestamp (current tag UNIX time in milliseconds). The following math functions are available:
- sin
- cos
- sqrt
- tan
- power
- log
- exp
Only Publish on Change of Value: Select the checkbox to customize NATS messages to be published only when the value parameter changes from a previous value to a new one. Change of Value only applies to boolean, numeric (such as int or float), and simple string data types. It does not apply to complex types, such as JSON or array. Poll-once topics will not be affected by Change of Value settings. These topics will still only see a single message.
Meta Data: Metadata summarizes basic information about data. This feature allows you to define key-value pair data for the device output payload later on. It can then be used to find, use, and reuse particular instances of data.