I am looking for some guidance for a Anybus X-Gateway replacement we have to work on. Currently, we have an AB7669-B in service, to facilitate communication between a Denso RC7 robot controller (EtherNet/IP) and a Modicon M340 PLC (Modbus) - and we are planning to install a newer AB7669-F.
I would really appreciate some direction for how we can communicate with both devices and migrate the configuration.
Sure. Can you provide the serial number for the older device (AB7669-B)?
Do you remember if you used the Anybus Configuration Manager or hyper terminal to configure it before?
Kyle
Good morning! I tried to ask a similar question, yesterday, but I’m not sure if I posted it properly - so I’m going to give it another shot!
We need to replace an X-Gateway that is currently fielded, with a newer model/version. We do not, unfortunately, have anyone on site that has much experience with configuring these devices anymore - so my maintenance team and I are looking for some guidance on how to migrate the configuration from the older model of the gateway to the newer.
We have a lot of questions - so many that it’s hard to know where to start. One question we have some confusion about, and would need to know quickly, would be: do we need RSNetworks for EtherNet/IP in order to configure the gateway?
Other than that - we’re trying to work through the installation and network guides, to figure out how to make the swap, but having some difficulty coming up with a clear process/picture for what needs to be done.
I appreciate any direction you may be able to provide! Thanks!
Hi, it appears you have two separate tickets open. I replied to one this morning, so I will combine them and then give you one response on that combined ticket…
Good morning, Kyle! Thanks for the reply! (I believe this is a response to my query attempt, yesterday - so please disregard the one I sent just a short while ago.)
Serial number: Yes, the SN is A011455E.
Config-software: None of the technical resources on site were here (or were not involved) in the original system integration (including myself - as a new resource). But, we do have some notes that mention HyperTerminal, RSNetWorx for EtherNet/IP, and Anybus Ipconfig tool.
Hi @Jawi82,
I would recommend connecting the old gateway to a PC using a serial port and trying to upload the config from the device using Anybus Configuration Manager for X-gateway first. Check the product page for the AB7669 for downloads, manuals, etc. You will basically download and install the Config Manager, open and go to “Online” menu, select Connection and find your serial port. Then hit “Connect” (3) and then “Upload” (4) and then save that file. If you are successful, please share the file so I can verify if it is compatible with the newer gateway. If you can’t connect with the software tool, you will probably have to manually copy the configuration by looking at the Hyper Terminal menu settings.
You may or may not need RSNetworx depending on exactly what you need to do, but you do not need it to configure the gateway. I’m not familiar with the Denso RC7. If you just need to create a scan list you can do that in the Anybus Web interface (see manual). If you have more questions about this part, please share some more info about the robot and it’s manuals.
Thank you,
Kyle
Good morning, Kyle! Thanks for the direction. We were able to save the configuration from the original gateway (AB7669-B). We modified the configuration a little for the new gateway (AB7669-F), which seemed to work (trying to use the original config failed).
The device does not pass data though, so it looks like there is some more configuration we may need to do. We haven’t been able to (for example) access the web interface, yet. So, we’re going to work on figuring that out this morning.
I think you may be missing the Scan List config -
Pull up the web address of the Scanner and check the Scan List settings:
Good morning, Kyle!
Do you have any direction for how to review the Scan List settings for the AB7669-B version of this gateway? When I go to the IP (after confirming the address in Anybus IPconfig), I don’t get much:
It looks like the Scan List was probably configured with a 3rd party software. Are you aware of any software they may have used?
I will check into that firmware version to see if there was a way to do this from the Anybus and if there is a way to extract it.
If you connect to the older gateway with FTP (user=ABX , password=FTPAccess) is there a file /cfg/scanner.cfg?
I did not see that file when I logged on to the older/original gateway via FTP.
Here is what I did pull from the original, though:
Original X-Gateway FTP files.zip (124.9 KB)
Also, I was just able to access the web interface on the old (AB7669-B) gateway. (I had to use a VM running XP.)
Here is what I snipped from the tabs on the EtherNet/IP side:
…
And from the Modbus-TCP side:
Also, yes - as I mentioned, we had a note about configuring with RSNetworx (which is software we do not have). This is all we have, regarding the RSNetworx configuration:
It appears that RSNetworx was used to configure the scan list before, so you will have to either:
Good morning, Kyle!
Our original gateway finally gave up last night. We’ve been having intermittent communication issues - causing significant downtime in some cases - which is why we’ve been trying to upgrade/replace the device. The device will no longer power up, so our ability to review the original scanlist is limited.
Can you tell me (perhaps based on the RSNetworx configuration note we have [screenshot in my last comment]) if that is enough to know how to configure the scanlist (manually or via RSNetworx)?
QUICK UPDATE:
The gateway powered back up - then died again about 10 minutes later. During that time, I was able to access the FTP files on the EtherNet/IP side - and it looks like they included that “scanner.cfg” file you mentioned. I am not sure how to read it - or how I could use it to set up the new gateway, though. Do you have any suggestions?
Master Side FTP Files.zip (752 Bytes)
I have never tried importing a scan list like this, so I can’t be sure it will work. I can test it for you later today if you want to wait, but…
The scanner.cfg file goes in the /cfg directory:
Looking at the screenshot or RSNetworx, it looks like a pretty simple scan list, only 16 bytes in and 16 bytes out, so it shouldn’t be hard to reproduce if you can see what registers are being read/written. I would recommend going with that method, but I am not a user of that application, so I can only refer you to the documentation on wehre you will find the necessary information.
Kyle
Good afternoon, Kyle!
We ordered the RSNetworx software. Hopefully that will close the loop for us.
OK great! Let me know if there is anything I can help with once you get the configuration uploaded.
Good morning, Kyle!
Once we purchased a copy of RSNetWorx, we were able to re-establish communication between the gateway and the Denso controller. We had a number of takeaways and follow-ups from this issue (mostly internal issues), but it is still unclear (to us) why the X-gateway web interface scanlist configuration differed so much from another software package’s configuration. In any case, the system is up and running now - so we are in good shape!
Thank you for your assistance, sir!
