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FAQ00001: Does the Objectia Kienzle Server communicate with any devices other than the gbo Kienzle production data recorders ?
No. The Objectia Kienzle Server communicates specifically with the gbo Kienzle production data recorders. In fact, the only Kienzle production data recorders currently supported by the software are the 2430, 2450 and 2480 data recorders. However, Objectia have committed to the development of Objectia Enterprise (OE). OE will use OPC as it's communications architecture, and in doing so, will support any device for which an OPC server is available.
FAQ00002: Is it possible to have Objectia develop drivers to communicate with other gbo Kienzle production data recorder models ?
Yes. Objectia can be contracted to develop additional drivers that communicate with other models within the gbo Kienzle production recorder range. Please contact us to discuss the benefits of having Objectia develop additional drivers for you.
FAQ00003: What operating system do I need to have in order to run Objectia's Kienzle Server product ?
The Objectia Kienzle Server v3.0 product runs on all recent Windows 32-bit platforms which include: Windows 95, Windows 98, Windows NT 4.0 and Windows 2000. It is envisaged that Objectia Kienzle Server v5.0 and Objectia Enterprise(OE) will be targeted primarily for the Windows 2000 platform.
FAQ00004: Do I need to run Objectia's Kienzle Server software on a dedicated computer ?
No. The Objectia Kienzle Server software was designed to be unobtrusive and as such does not require a dedicated computer. The software can run as a background process simply by iconising the software. You can use any other application on this same computer concurrently with Objectia's Kienzle Server providing that these other applications to not use the same communications ports that the Objectia Kienzle Server does.
FAQ00005: My production data has somehow become corrupt. Is there a way to recover my corrupt production data ?
Yes. The Objectia Kienzle Server produces ASCII text files that back up your monthly production data. These text files contain identical information to that written into your ODBC data source. These text files are located in the Datafiles directory.
FAQ00006: I am currently assessing the Objectia Kienzle Server product by using an evaluation version of the software. WhenI start the software I receive a "security violation" error and then the application terminates. What is causing this problem and how can I fix it ?
Evaluation versions of Objectia's Kienzle Server product are time-limited. The security violation error may be caused by one of the following events. Firstly, your evaluation period has expired. Secondly, the computer clock on which the Objectia Kienzle Server is running, has been turned back. Thirdly, your license key has become corrupt.
All events require a new license key from Objectia. Please email us and we will regenerate a new license key for you.
FAQ00007: Some of our gbo Kienzle production data recorders appear to be sending bad data packets. Can I somehow disable the collection of production data from these recorders within the Objectia Kienzle Server software ?
Yes. You can manually software disconnect any terminal configured in the Objectia Kienzle Server software.
FAQ00008: We don't seem to be communicating with the gbo Kienzle production data recorders. We have installed the Objectia Kienzle Server software and specified COM1 as our communications port. What could be the problem ?
The first thing to check is to make sure that all your cables are connected correctly. Ascertain that you have connected the serial cable to the right COM port on the computer and that the other end of this serial cable connects to the interface adapter. Check to see that the interface adapter power is on. Make sure the current loop cable that connects to the Kienzle data recorders in the factory is also attached to the interface adapter. Check that you have software connected the terminals. All terminals are disconnected by default.
If your terminals have been connected within the software, make sure that the terminal addresses matche those in the actual gbo Kienzle production data recorders on the network. The instruction manual that comes with the data recorder shows you how to do this. If these two address match you are properly software and hardware configured to communicate with the data recorder.
If all of the above requirements have been satisfied, there is nothing more that needs to be done from the software level. You may have a hardware fault. Check and replace any faulty wiring. Make sure that the data recorders are actually connected to the network. Dummy plugs are often used to bypass actual data recorders on the network.
FAQ00009: Does Objectia's Kienzle Server product support user configurable down-time codes ? How many down-time codes does the product support ?
Yes. Objectia's Kienzle Server supports user configurable down-time codes. In fact, up to 20 down-time codes can be supported for each terminal. The actual number used is dependent upon the terminal model. The 2450 terminal only supports 10 down-time codes, whereas the 2430 and 2480 support 20 down-time codes.
FAQ00010: We notice every now and then that the Objectia Kienzle Server polling speed slows down and speeds up again. Is this normal operation of the software ?
Yes. The fluctuations in polling speed constitute normal operation of the software. The Communications Protocol Engine (CPE) continually monitors line conditions and increases or decreases the polling speed relative to the health of the link.
FAQ00011: Occasionally we experience a situation where an end of job message is lost. How can this happen and what can we do to prevent it ?
The gbo Kienzle production data recorders use messages to report detected events. These messages are stored internally in the data recorder. Each data recorder can store a maximum of 8 messages in it's internal buffer. When this buffer is full, additional messages cannot be added to the buffer. The only exception to this rule is the end of job message. If the buffer is full and an end of job message arrives, the end of job message will overwrite the eighth message. If the eighth message happened to be an end of job message, it will be overwritten and lost forever.
There is nothing that can be done that will guarantee this from ever occurring. The Objectia Kienzle Server flushes every data recorder's buffer at start-up and polls the data recorders at the maximum supported speed. At maximum polling speed there is a 250ms delay between packet exchanges. If your network contains 'n' data recorders, where n = 1...16, then the best case scenario presents a minimum delay of (n x 250) ms between successive data recorder polls. For example, assume your network has 10 data recorders. The minimum delay between successive data recorder polls is calculated at (10 x 250) ms = 2500ms (2.5 seconds). Your operator would need to be generating messages (pressing data recorder down-time buttons) at a rate of one every 2.5 seconds to cause the buffer to start filling with messages faster than the software can remove them. This would be a most unusual situation.
If your network is experiencing difficulties or the data recorders are generating erroneous messages, the Communications Protocol Engine (CPE) will incrementally reduce the overall polling speed by increasing the packet exchange delay by 250ms up to a maximum delay of 3000ms (3 seconds). Additionally, each erroneous data packet received incurs a poll retry, up to a maximum of 3 retries per poll. Therefore, each data recorder poll could take up to (3 x 3000) ms. If your network contains 'n' data recorders, where n = 1...16, then the worst case scenario presents a maximum delay of (n x 3 x 3000) ms between successive data recorder polls. For example, assume your network has 10 data recorders. The maximum delay between successive data recorder polls is calculated at (10 x 3 x 3000) ms = 90000ms (90 seconds). Your operator would need to be generating messages (pressing data recorder down-time buttons) at a rate of one every 90 seconds to cause the buffer to start filling with messages faster than the software can remove them. This is still considered to be a very unusual situation.
It is possible to override the CPE's incremental packet exchange delay feature. In doing so, you will define a fixed packet exchange delay that will remain in force until the override is removed.
FAQ00012: How does the Objectia Kienzle Server product notify users of any unusual or abnormal events that occur during normal operation of the software ?
The Objectia Kienzle Server product generates an output file into which it logs messages that describe any unusual events that may occur during
the normal operation of the software. This file is called the "activity.log" file, and is located in the log files directory. The messages written into this file are user selectable thus enabling each terminal to have a unique logging register.
FAQ00013: We notice that when we have the Objectia Kienzle Server software running, and we change the time on the Kienzle production data recorder, it changes back again. It appears that the Kienzle data recorder clocks are being synchronised with the computer's clock. Is this supposed to happen ?
Yes. If you see the Kienzle data recorder time changing back to it's original value, then the software is functioning correctly. There are two main reasons for keeping the Kienzle data recorder clocks synchronised with the computer. Firstly, it prevents unscrupulous operators from deliberately shortening various stoppage periods. By turning the Kienzle clock back, operators can generate misleading, but deceptively favourable, downtime values. Secondly, for those Kienzle data recorder models that print data on a thermo-sensitive sheet, it makes good sense to have the data printed on the sheet, and the data collected by the software, identical.
FAQ00014: When I send a select message to any Kienzle data recorder, it appears that the data recorder never receives the message. What could be the cause of this, and does the Objectia Kienzle Server software queue my messages before they are sent ?
Yes. The Objecita Kienzle Server maintains an outbound message queue for each terminal. When you send a select message to a terminal, the message is first placed into the outbound queue for that terminal. The outbound queue is a First In First Out (FIFO) queue, which means that the first message placed into the queue will be the first message sent to the terminal. If, for example, you want to send a time synchronisation message to a terminal, but there are already two other messages waiting to be sent to that same terminal, your time synchronisation message will only be sent when the previous two messages have been successfully transmitted.
If your network or a particular Kienzle data recorder is experiencing communications problems, any messages sent to the outbound queue will start buffering and will remain in the outbound queue until communications are re-established. You can check to see if messages are being sent or buffered by examining each terminal's outbound queue. If you watch the outbound queue for a minute or so, you should see the front most messages being removed. Messages are only removed when they have been successfully sent to the terminal. If the messages are not being removed, then you have either disabled the terminal from within Objectia Kienzle Server or you have a communications problem.
