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Introduction to Alarm Module

The Alarm Module is a complete solution for managing real-time alarms, notification events, and Audit-Trail information. It is a powerful tool that enables users to monitor and control their processes in real-time, by providing alerts for critical events, and storing data for future analysis.The Alarm Module can be used in a wide range of industries, including manufacturing, energy, and transportation. It is an essential component of any modern control system, and is designed to help users achieve greater efficiency and productivity.The key features and functionalities of the Alarm Module include:Real-time Alarm States Processing: The Alarm Module is designed to process alarms in real-time, ensuring that critical events are identified and responded to as quickly as possible.Agnostic storage on any Database provider: The Alarm Module can store data on any database provider, making it flexible and easy to use.Store and Forward when archiving to remote databases: The Alarm Module is capable of storing and forwarding data to remote databases, ensuring that data is always available for analysis.Automated replication in hot-stand-by scenarios: The Alarm Module is designed to work in hot-stand-by scenarios, ensuring that data is always available and up-to-date.Organize and manage alarms hierarchically: The Alarm Module allows users to organize and manage alarms hierarchically, providing greater flexibility and control over their processes.Define System AuditTrail event and Track Operator actions: The Alarm Module allows users to define system audit-trail events and track operator actions, providing greater visibility and accountability.Send Notifications by SMS or e-mails: The Alarm Module is capable of sending notifications by SMS or e-mails, ensuring that users are always aware of critical events.Universal Time and Daylight Saving always considered for accurate time-stamp: The Alarm Module always considers universal time and daylight saving, ensuring that timestamps are accurate and reliable.Timestamps precision up to 0.1 ms: The Alarm Module provides high precision timestamps up to 0.1 ms, ensuring that data is always accurate and reliable.Dynamic Language localization of alarm messages: The Alarm Module allows users to localize alarm messages dynamically, ensuring that they are easy to understand and relevant to their audience.In summary, the Alarm Module is a powerful and versatile tool that enables users to monitor and control their processes in real-time, by providing alerts for critical events, and storing data for future analysis. It is an essential component of any modern control system, and can be used in a wide range of industries to improve efficiency and productivity.

Purpose and Key Concepts

AlarmGroup

Alarm Group Configuration:Alarm Groups are collections of alarms that share common settings. They are used to define the behavior of alarms and their processing rules. The Alarm Module comes with three pre-defined Alarm Groups:Warning: This group contains warning messages that do not require acknowledgment.Critical: This group contains critical messages that require acknowledgment.AuditTrail: This group is intended to track system events and operation actions, creating records for an auditing log.Users can customize the existing groups or create new ones according to their needs. To configure Alarm Groups, follow these steps:Go to Alarms → Groups.Add new rows or edit the existing table, setting the desired values to the fields.The configuration properties of Alarm Groups are as follows:Name: Enter a name for the Alarm Group. The system allows you to know if the name is not valid.AckRequired: If required, the alarm stays in the alarm list until someone acknowledges the alarm by double-clicking it in the application.ActiveTimeDeadband: Enter a time deadband that will create a delay after an alarm occurs. The alarm will trigger again only after the deadband.AckTimeout: Defines a timeout for acknowledging the alarm. If the alarm is not acknowledged after the specified time, the alarm becomes active again.AutoAckTime: If the alarm is not acknowledged after the specified time, the system acknowledges the alarm.Sound: Select the sound that will play when the alarm occurs.Show: Select the list for the alarm to display in the alarm window in the application.LogEvents: Select when you want the alarm to be logged to the alarm historian. You can choose from the following options:None: Alarms are not logged.Active: Log when the alarm is active.ActiveAck: Log when the alarm is active and acknowledged.ActiveNorm: Log when the alarm returns to normal.All: Log all of the above conditions.Colors: Select the colors you want to use for each state:Active: Configured alarm is in the alarm state.Normalized: Configured alarm was in the alarm state but is no longer in the alarm state and still needs to be acknowledged.Acknowledged: Configured alarm has been acknowledged but is still in the alarm state.NotificationMethod: Calls a Script → Class method that triggers a code when the alarm happens.Description: Enter a description of the Alarm Group.In summary, Alarm Groups are collections of alarms that share common settings. The Alarm Module provides three pre-defined Alarm Groups, which can be customized or new ones can be created. The configuration properties of Alarm Groups allow users to define the behavior of alarms and their processing rules, and include fields such as Name, AckRequired, ActiveTimeDeadband, AckTimeout, AutoAckTime, Sound, Show, LogEvents, Colors, NotificationMethod, and Description.

AlarmArea

AlarmItem

AuditTrail

The Audit-Trail is a pre-defined AlarmGroup intended to track system events and operational actions with the goal of creating records for an auditing log. The Alarm Module provides a complete solution to manage real-time alarms, notification events, and Audit-Trail information.

Configuring Audit-Trail in the Alarm Module allows you to track all system events and operator actions that can have an impact on system performance and operation. This section will guide you through the process of configuring the Audit-Trail in the Alarm Module.Pre-defined Audit-TrailThe Alarm Module includes a pre-defined AlarmGroup called Audit-Trail. This AlarmGroup is intended to track system events and operational actions automatically. You can customize this AlarmGroup by editing its properties on the Alarms → Groups page.Customizing Audit-TrailTo customize the Audit-Trail AlarmGroup, follow these steps:Go to the Alarms → Groups page.Select the Audit-Trail AlarmGroup from the list.Edit the properties of the Audit-Trail AlarmGroup, such as Name, AckRequired, ActiveTimeDeadband, AckTimeout, AutoAckTime, Sound, Show, LogEvents, Colors, NotificationMethod, and Description, to fit your needs.Save the changes.Configuring Audit-Trail PropertiesThe following are the properties that you can configure for the Audit-Trail AlarmGroup:Name: Enter a name for the AlarmGroup. The system allows you to know if the name is not valid.AckRequired: If required, the alarm stays in the alarm list until someone acknowledges the alarm by double-clicking it in the application.ActiveTimeDeadband: Enter a time deadband that will create a delay after an alarm occurs. The alarm will trigger again only after the deadband.AckTimeout: Defines a timeout for acknowledging the alarm. If the alarm is not acknowledged after the specified time, the alarm becomes active again.AutoAckTime: If the alarm is not acknowledged after the specified time, the system acknowledges the alarm.Sound: Select the sound that will play when the alarm occurs.Show: Select the list for the alarm to display in the alarm window in the application.LogEvents: Select when you want the alarm to be logged to the alarm historian:a. None - Alarms are not logged.b. Active - Log when alarm is active.c. ActiveAck - Log when the alarm is active and acknowledged.d. ActiveNorm - Log when the alarm returns to normal.e. All - Log all of the above conditions.Colors: Select the colors you want to use for each state:a. Active - Configured alarm is in the alarm state.b. Normalized - Configured alarm was in the alarm state but is no longer in the alarm state and still needs to be acknowledged.c. Acknowledged - Configured alarm has been acknowledged, but it is still in the alarm state.NotificationMethod: Calls a Script → Class method that triggers a code when the alarm happens.Description: Enter a description of the alarm group.ConclusionConfiguring the Audit-Trail AlarmGroup in the Alarm Module allows you to track all system events and operator actions that can have an impact on system performance and operation. By following the steps outlined in this section, you can customize the Audit-Trail properties to fit your needs and ensure that your system is operating optimally.

AlarmHistorian

The Alarm Module is designed to provide real-time monitoring and notification of events or conditions that require immediate attention. The key concepts in the Alarm Module include AlarmGroups, AlarmAreas, AlarmItems, and AuditTrail.

AlarmGroup

An AlarmGroup is a collection of AlarmItems that share common properties and characteristics. It is a way to group alarms together for easier management and organization. Each AlarmGroup can have its own configuration properties, such as AckRequired, AutoAckTime, and Sound, that apply to all of its AlarmItems.

AlarmArea

An AlarmArea is a hierarchical grouping of AlarmGroups that allows for a more organized and structured approach to managing alarms. An AlarmArea can have child AlarmAreas, allowing for a hierarchical structure of AlarmGroups and AlarmItems. This can be useful for large systems with many alarms, as it allows for a more intuitive and manageable way of organizing them.

AlarmItem

An AlarmItem is a tag or expression that is monitored by the Alarm Module. It contains information such as the tag name, the alarm condition (what triggers the alarm), and the associated AlarmGroup. Each AlarmItem can have its own configuration properties, such as Limit, Deadband, and Message, that define the alarm behavior and characteristics.

AuditTrail

The AuditTrail is a feature of the Alarm Module that logs all changes made to the AlarmGroups and AlarmItems, including creation, modification, and deletion events. It is a way to track and record the history of changes made to the alarm configuration, providing a clear audit trail of who made what changes and when. This is useful for troubleshooting, analysis, and compliance purposes.

How the Alarm Module Works

The Alarm Module monitors and evaluates tags in real-time to generate alarms when the monitored value reaches a defined limit or condition. The module evaluates the conditions of AlarmItems and compares their current value with the set limit to determine whether an alarm should be triggered or not. The module can evaluate conditions such as exceeding a limit, falling below a limit, or entering/exiting a range.

The AlarmGroups can be used to group similar alarms together and define their behavior, such as whether they require acknowledgment, their sound and color settings, and their notification settings. The AlarmAreas allow organizing the alarms into a hierarchical structure to reflect the plant's physical layout. The AuditTrail feature logs all alarm and acknowledgment events and allows for tracking changes made to the alarm configuration.

The AlarmHistorian feature allows the Alarm Module to save alarms and their state changes in a separate database, allowing for efficient storage and retrieval of alarms data. The Alarm Module can be configured to store alarms data on a target database of your choice.

When an alarm is triggered, it can be acknowledged by operators and maintenance personnel through the Alarm Visualization object, Tag properties, or Alarm Group or Alarm Item's runtime properties. The alarm visualization object allows for displaying active alarms and their state changes on displays, while the Tag properties allow for viewing and acknowledging alarms on the HMI/SCADA system.

The Alarm Module can be integrated with other modules such as the Historian Module to allow for storing alarms data alongside process data. Overall, the Alarm Module provides an efficient and comprehensive solution for monitoring and managing alarms in real-time.

Features Highlights

The Alarm Module has several features and functionalities that can help users manage real-time alarms and notifications efficiently. Here are some of the highlights of the Alarm Module:

1. Configurable Alarm Groups: The Alarm Module allows the creation of custom Alarm Groups with specific properties and configurations, enabling users to group alarms in a logical and organized manner.

2. Alarm Areas: The Alarm Module supports the creation of Alarm Areas, which can further organize alarms and provide users with an intuitive and hierarchical way to navigate them.

3. Flexible AlarmItem Configuration: The Alarm Module offers multiple configuration properties for Alarm Items, such as Limit, Deadband, Setpoint, and PriorityOrder, allowing users to customize their alarms to fit specific requirements.

4. Audit-Trail Logging: The Alarm Module logs events in the Audit-Trail, providing users with a record of all alarm and notification-related activities, including acknowledgement and clearing of alarms.

5. Alarm Historian: The Alarm Module supports data logging of alarms and notifications into a separate database, providing users with a historical record of alarm events for analysis and troubleshooting.

6. Notification Events: The Alarm Module supports custom .NET scripts for notification events, enabling users to create custom actions for alarm notifications.

7. Alarm Acknowledgement: The Alarm Module offers various methods for acknowledging alarms, including acknowledging all alarms, acknowledging a single alarm, or acknowledging the highest priority alarm.

8. Alarm Visualization: The Alarm Module provides built-in objects for displaying alarms and notifications on displays or reports, enabling users to visualize alarms in real-time.

Overall, the Alarm Module is a powerful tool that can help users monitor their systems effectively, quickly identify and respond to issues, and keep their operations running smoothly

How the Alarm Module Works

Features Highlights

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Alarms Database

The Alarms Database stores the events from AlarmGroups and Audit-Trail. By default, it is mapped to a SQLite database with name <project name>.tAlarm, which is defined at Datasets → Dos → AlarmHistorian.

You can change the Alarms Database to use any other SQL connection by following these steps:

Go to Datasets → Dos.

Rename or delete the AlarmHistorian object.

Create a new DB connection with name AlarmHistorian connected to the desired Database.

When you archive the alarms to the Alarms Database, the Alarm Module automatically creates and populates the necessary tables to store alarm and audit trail information.

Note that the Alarms Database is critical for logging and tracking alarms and events. It is important to ensure that the database is reliable and accessible, and that it has sufficient storage capacity.

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Monitoring Tags and Evaluating Conditions

Configuring the Alarm Module

Global Settings and Customization

Creating and Managing Alarm Groups

Using Pre-defined Groups

Defining and Organizing Alarms Areas Hierarchy

Adding and Editing Alarm Items

Working with the Alarm Module

Runtime Execution

Integration with Other Modules

AlarmHistorian Database definition on Datasets

Visualizing Alarms on Dislays

Handling Notifications with Scripts

Advanced Features and Options

Troubleshooting and Best Practices

Common Issues and Solutions

Best Practices and Recommendations

Alarm Module Runtime Attributes

The Alarm Namespace

The Alarm namespace has the properties of the alarm server.

The Alarm.Group object has the list of all defined groups and their properties.

The Alarm.Item object has all alarm items and their properties.

The tag properties are connected with the alarm module.

In this section...