Delta AH500 - 9.1.3 Communication Setting in NWCONFIG

AH500 Hardware and Operation Manual
9-4
DHCP is a protocol for assigning dynamic IP addresses to ports in a network. If a server using DHCP assigns
an IP address to a port, it assigns a dynamic IP address to the port. In NWCONFIG, the ports which are
assigned dynamic IP addresses can not connect to any network.
 Subnet mask
A subnet mask is a mask used to determine what subnet an IP address belongs to. The ports in a network
are assigned the same subnet mask. Besides, if the devices in a network want to perform data exchange,
they must be in the same domain.
 PLC Link
A PLC Link is a network mechanism for data exchange performed through an RS-485 cable. If there are
several nodes in an RS-485 network, users can create a mechanism for data exchange in the network. If
the parameters which are set are downloaded to the PLC which functions as a master station, the system
of the PLC will perform data exchange through special relays and special registers when the PLC runs.
A PLC Link is a master/slave model. There is only one master station in an RS-485 network, and the
other stations which are slave stations passively receive reading/writing commands from the master
station. The slave stations can not exchange data. They have to exchange data through the master
station.
 Ether Link
An Ether Link is a network mechanism for data exchange performed through an Ethernet connection. If
there are several nodes in an Ethernet network, users can create a mechanism for data exchange in the
network, and select a start mode. If the parameters which are set are downloaded to the PLCs in the
network, the systems of the PLCs perform data exchange according to the start mode selected when the
PLCs run. Besides, only AH500 series CPU modules support Ether Links.
An Ether Link is not a master/slave model. It allows a node to send reading commands which ask for data
to other nodes. The nodes will send the data to the node after they receive the reading commands. Owing
to the fact that a node can not send writing commands to other nodes, the use of an Ether Link is safer
than the use of a PLC Link. Besides, the system automatically manages the transmission of packets
through TCP/IP. Compared with a PLC Link, an Ether Link is more efficient.
*. Please refer to related books or technical documents for more information about RS-485 and Ethernet.
9.1.3 Communication Setting in NWCONFIG
NWCONFIG is used to configure a network. When users configure a network, they have to download
parameters to the nodes in the network, upload parameters from the nodes in the network, or monitor nodes in
the network. The nodes in the networks created in NWCONFIG may include a device which is not the device
for which the ISPSoft project is created, and therefore users have to set the communication parameters in the
device. In order to help people select appropriate parameters, the communication mechanism in NWCONFIG
is introduced before communication setting is described.