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BACnet Protocols Supported by FieldServers
Edward Hague, CTO, FieldServer Technologies

There is growing confusion within the marketplace about BACnet protocol terminology. This Marketing Application Note defines the various protocol names and capabilities in order to eliminate the confusion.

1. Executive Summary

FieldServer Technologies Terminology	General Description	Applicable FieldServer Platforms
BACnet Ethernet	BACnet on Ethernet, does not use TCP/IP	-x20, -x40
BACnet IP	Trane sometimes uses the terminology "BACnet over Ethernet IP". (Also known as BACnet/ TCP, BACnet TCP/IP )	-x20, -x40
BACnet Arcnet	Not available on FS-x20, only FS-x40	-x40 only
BACnet PTP	Also known as BACnet Serial. (PTP stands for Point-to-Point) RS232	-x20, -x40
BACnet MSTP	Multi-Slave Twisted Pair, Multi-drop, RS485	-x20, -x40

2. Diagrams of the "Protocol Stack" for each Protocol Instance

 

3. More Detailed Review

3.1. BACnet IP

This is the recommended protocol for all new projects.
Trane sometimes uses the terminology "BACnet over Ethernet IP".
Others use BACnet/TCP, or BACnet TCP/IP
BACnet IP includes "BBMD".
FieldServer Technologies' BACnet IP driver does not yet include BBMD, but we are working on this. Check the factory for details.

3.2. BACnet Ethernet
Although it is not stated, BACnet IP is also over Ethernet – the complete description would be BACnet over TCP/ IP over Ethernet. Do not confuse this with BACnet Ethernet, which is just BACnet over Ethernet. i. e. BACnet Ethernet does not use TCP/ IP like BACnet IP does.
BACnet Dedicated

3.3. BACnet Arcnet
Since this requires a Fieldbus (Arcnet), this protocol is not available on FS-x20, only FS-x40. There are no plans to make this available on the FS-x20 as Arcnet is slowly becoming obsolete.

3.4. BACnet PTP
Also known as BACnet Serial. (PTP stands for Point-to-Point). Not used very often at all.

3.5. BACnet MSTP
BACnet over "Multi-slave twisted pair"
FST does not have this particular driver, and has no current plans to implement it.

To contact the author:

Edward Hague
CTO
FieldServer Technologies
ehague@FieldServer.com