beethoven_ii said:
Others may know better than me but is it not just a case of having the correct version of the AOP for the AENT modules?
beethoven_ii,
Your understanding of what might be required here suggests to me that you don't fully understand either what the incompatibility issue is here, or you do not understand the role of the firmware within these modules, or perhaps within anything?
It is because I think there is a fundamental misunderstanding here that I feel compelled to point it out to you, or anyone else unsure. If I am incorrect in thinking this then I do apologise.
The firmware that is loaded into the AENT modules, or pretty much any other device, is to instruct the hardware as to how to operate within itself and with other devices. If support for interaction with a newer device or devices is required, and the existing hardware supports it, then a new firmware is written to update a device's instructions so that it may interact with the newer device(s).
This is, of course, an update at the software level in the device itself. In this case ControlFlash would be used to flash the AENT modules to the required firmware revision which supports the newer CompactLogix controllers.
The minimum reason I would imagine new firmware is required here is because of the revised communications path used with the newer CompactLogix controllers.
So the modules have a fixed hardware Series and an upgradable firmware revision. These are the prerequisites for compatability with other devices.
An Add On Profile (AOP) for a device is what is used in a project to identify the device in the I/O Configuration to the controller. For compatability with the controller the device's hardware Series and firmware revision must be of a compatible level.
The AOP can only be set to match the hardware device using Exact Match, Compatibility Keying or Ignore, but it cannot change or upgrade the prerequisite features to make a device compatible.
So simply "
having the correct version of the AOP for the AENT modules", while important to the controller in identifying the device(s) correctly, will not update an actual device if it does not currently meet the prerequisite hardware Series and firmware revision required.
With regard to end device compatability, think of AOPs as intermediate and read only for Series/Revision. You can set them to Compatible Keying or even Ignore, but this will not make the end devices compatible, if they are not.
This is not to be confused with situations where end devices are compatible, but a user just does not have the correct version AOP for the added device. This is where Compatible Keying or Ignore can be used.
For Point/IO, the adapters may be firmware upgradable, but the I/O modules themselves are not (with the exception of the 1734-232ASC). If a module is of an older Series/Revision and is not compatible with certain newer hardware, then the module itself must be exchanged with a compatible Series/Revision module before it will work with the newer hardware.
One example of this, in relation to this thread, is that all Point I/O modules must be hardware Series C minimum before they will work under a 1734-AENT(R). There is no upgrade available or using Compatible Keying, etc. You must use Series C hardware out-of-the-box.
Also, if you have an older Series A 1734-AENT with firmware revision 1.xx, you cannot flash it to revision 2.xx or 3.xx. You must exchange the adapter module. This is because there were hardware upgrades at revision 2.xx which rendered the revision 1.xx modules non-upgradable. However, a revision 2.xx module may be flashed to revision 3.xx as the hardware is still compatible.
There is of course also the Firmware Supervisor option for Logix controllers which allows you to configure the automatic upgrade of the firmware for modules present in the I/O Configuration. The compatible firmware packages are stored on a memory module within the controller, such as the SD Card in the newer Logix controllers. When a compatible hardware module is physically added or replaced, and powered up, the firmware revision is checked for compatability, and if there is a mismatch, the Firmware Supervisor feature will flash the module to the required revision. To use this feature, all module AOPs must be configured for Exact Match.
So, in short, these type compatibility issues are all about the hardware Series and/or firmware revision of the module and will usually require at least flashing the module or at most exchanging it.
If there was any uncertainty, I hope the above helps clear some of it up.
Regards,
George
