Alarms, Audit and Notifications

Purpose and Key Concepts

The Alarms module is designed to provide real-time monitoring and notification of events or conditions that require immediate attention. The configuration of the Alarms module is performed on the sections: AlarmGroup, AlarmArea, AlarmItem, and AuditTrail.

AlarmGroup

An AlarmGroup is a collection of AlarmItems that share common properties and characteristics. Each AlarmGroup can have its own configuration properties, such as AckRequired, AutoAckTime, and Sound, that apply to all of its AlarmItems. The configuration of AlarmGroup is on the Project Explorer, at Alarms → AlarmGroup.

AlarmArea

An AlarmArea is a hierarchical grouping of AlarmGroup that allows for a more organized and structured approach to managing alarms. An AlarmArea can have child AlarmArea, allowing for a hierarchical structure of AlarmGroup and AlarmItems. The configuration of AlarmArea is on the Project Explorer, at Alarms → AlarmArea.

AlarmItem

An AlarmItem is a tag or expression that is monitored by the Alarms 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. The configuration of AlarmItems is on the Project Explorer, at Alarms → AlarmItems.

AuditTrail

he AuditTrail is a feature of the Alarms module that logs all changes made to the AlarmGroup 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. The configuration of the AuditTrail is on the Project Explorer, at Alarms → AuditTrail.

Understanding the Alarms module

This section expelling the execution and features of the Alarms module, organize in the the following topics:

• Alarms, Audit and Notifications
• Features Highlights
• Monitoring Tags and Evaluating Conditions

Overview

The Alarms 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 AlarmGroup 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 AlarmArea 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 Alarms module to save alarms and their state changes in a separate database, allowing for efficient storage and retrieval of alarms data. The Alarms 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 Alarms module can be integrated with other modules such as the Historian Module to allow for storing alarms data alongside process data. Overall, the Alarms module provides an efficient and comprehensive solution for monitoring and managing alarms in real-time.

Features Highlights

The Alarms module offers the following key features:

• Real-time alarm processing to quickly identify and respond to critical events

• Agnostic storage on any database provider, making it flexible and easy to use

• Hierarchy organization and management of alarms for greater flexibility and control

• Notification events via SMS or email to keep users informed of critical events

• Universal time and daylight saving considered for accurate timestamps

• Dynamic language localization of alarm messages for easy understanding

• High-precision timestamps up to 0.1ms for accurate and reliable data

With these features, the Alarms module enables users to efficiently manage real-time alarms and notifications, while providing a comprehensive record of all related activities for analysis and troubleshooting.Overall, the Alarms 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.

Monitoring Tags and Evaluating Conditions

The Alarms module allows users to monitor tags and evaluate conditions in real-time. This allows users to receive notifications or take actions based on specific conditions, such as when a value exceeds a certain limit.

When monitoring tags, users can set up one or more conditions to evaluate. For example, a user might set up a condition to trigger an alarm if the value of a tag exceeds a certain threshold. The Alarms module continuously monitors the tag and evaluates the condition, triggering an alarm if the condition is met.

Conditions can be based on a variety of factors, such as tag values, tag quality, or the state of other alarms. Users can also define complex conditions by combining multiple factors using logical operators.

In addition to monitoring tags, the Alarms module allows users to evaluate conditions based on the state of other alarms. This enables users to create more complex alarm scenarios, such as triggering an alarm only if two or more conditions are met simultaneously.

Overall, the Alarms module provides powerful tools for monitoring tags and evaluating conditions in real-time, enabling users to respond quickly and effectively to critical events.

The conditions options are described in the following table:

Configuring the Alarms module

The Alarms module can be customized to meet specific requirements. This section will cover the various configuration options available in the Alarms module.

Global Settings and Customization

The Alarms module has several global settings that can be customized to suit specific needs. These settings are available in the Alarm Configuration window.

The following are some of the settings that can be customized:

• Alarm Notification: This setting allows the user to specify how alarms are notified to users.

• Sound: This setting allows the user to specify the sound that should be played when an alarm is raised.

  For information on sound configuration, go to the AlarmGroup Sounds page.

• Display: This setting allows the user to specify the display options for the alarms.

• Audit-Trail: This setting allows the user to specify whether or not to log alarms and events.

• Database: This setting allows the user to specify the database where alarm information is stored.

• Security: This setting allows the user to specify the security settings for the Alarms module.

In addition to the global settings, the Alarms module can be customized further by creating AlarmGroup, AlarmArea, and AlarmItem. These can be used to group and organize alarms based on specific criteria.

The next sections will cover how to create and manage AlarmGroup, AlarmArea, and AlarmItem.

Creating and Managing AlarmGroup

AlarmGroup are a way to group together alarms that share common characteristics, such as the same priority, area, or notification method. In FactoryStudio, AlarmGroup are created and managed using the Alarm Journal's "AlarmGroup" tab.

To create a new Alarm Group, follow these steps:

1. Open the Alarm in the Designer.

2. Click on the "AlarmGroup" tab.

3. Click the "New item..." button.

4. Give the group a name, description, and choose the desired settings for that group, such as the priority level, notification method, etc.

5. Click "Ok" to create the new group.

Once an Alarm Group has been created, it can be edited, disabled, or deleted. To edit an existing Alarm Group, follow these steps:

1. Open the Alarm in the Designer.

2. Click on the "AlarmGroup" tab.

3. Select the group you want to edit from the list of groups.

4. In the selected row, edit the desired properties.

5. Make the desired changes to the group settings.

6. Click "Save" to save the changes.

To disable an Alarm Group, follow these steps:

1. Open the Alarm in the Designer.

2. Click on the "AlarmGroup" tab.

3. Select the group you want to disable from the list of groups.

4. Click the "Disable" button.

5. Confirm that you want to disable the group.

To delete an Alarm Group, follow these steps:

1. Open the Alarm in the Designer.

2. Click on the "AlarmGroup" tab.

3. Select the group you want to delete from the list of groups.

4. Click the "Delete Selected Item" button.

5. Confirm that you want to delete the group.

Note that deleting an Alarm Group will also delete all of the alarms associated with that group.

Using Pre-Defined Groups

The Alarms module provides pre-defined AlarmGroup that you can use to quickly configure alarms for common applications. These pre-defined groups have pre-configured properties that make it easier to create and configure alarms for specific purposes.

To use a pre-defined Alarm Group, you simply need to select it from the list of available groups and configure any additional properties as needed. The available pre-defined groups may vary depending on the version of the Alarms module that you are using and the features that have been installed.

Some common AlarmGroup that may be available, include:

1. High Priority Alarms
   This group is used to track critical alarms that require immediate attention. The alarms in this group will typically have a high priority and may be configured to generate notifications or take other actions automatically.

2. Medium Priority Alarms
   This group is used to track alarms that are important, but not as critical as high priority alarms. The alarms in this group may have a lower priority than those in the high priority group, and may not require immediate attention.

3. Low Priority Alarms
   This group is used to track alarms that are less critical than medium priority alarms. The alarms in this group may have a lower priority than those in the medium priority group and may not require immediate attention.

4. Equipment Alarms
   This group is used to track alarms related to specific pieces of equipment or systems. The alarms in this group may be configured to generate notifications or take other actions specific to the equipment being monitored.

5. Production Alarms
   This group is used to track alarms related to production processes or activities. The alarms in this group may be configured to generate notifications or take other actions related to the production process being monitored.

Using pre-defined AlarmGroup can save time and effort in configuring the Alarms module, as the properties of the alarms in the group are already pre-configured. However, you can still customize these pre-defined groups or create new ones as needed to fit your specific requirements.

Defining and Organizing AlarmArea Hierarchy

The AlarmArea Hierarchy allows you to organize your alarms based on location, equipment, or process hierarchy. This enables you to easily identify and prioritize alarms and alerts based on their importance.

To define and organize alarms areas hierarchy, follow these steps:

1. In the Alarm Configuration window, select the AlarmArea tab.

2. Click the 'New Level...' button to create a new Alarm Area.

3. Enter a unique name and description for the Alarm Area.

4. Optionally, set the priority for the Alarm Area. The priority determines the order in which the AlarmArea appear in the Alarm Group tree.

5. Repeat steps 2-4 to add additional AlarmArea.

6. To create a hierarchy, drag and drop AlarmArea onto each other to create parent-child relationships.

7. To edit an Alarm Area, select it in the Alarm Group tree and click the Edit button.

8. To delete an Alarm Area, select it in the Alarm Group tree and click the Delete button.

Organizing your alarms into an AlarmArea Hierarchy can greatly simplify alarm management, allowing you to quickly identify the source of an alarm and take appropriate action. It also allows you to easily customize alarm priorities and notifications based on your specific needs.

Adding and Editing AlarmItem

The AlarmItem is the core object of the Alarms module, which represents a condition that triggers an alarm event when a certain criterion is met. Here we will discuss how to add new AlarmItem or modify the existing ones.

To add a new alarm item, follow these steps:

1. Open the AlarmItem configuration page by selecting Alarms > AlarmItem in the Project Browser.

2. Click the 'New Level...' button at the bottom of the AlarmItem list.

3. In 'Alarms > Items', enter the required fields, which include Tag Name, Condition, and Alarm Group.

4. You can also configure optional fields such as Limit, Deadband, Setpoint, Setpoint Deadband, Group, Area, Priority, Message, and Priority Order.

5. Click OK to save the new Alarm Item.

To modify an existing Alarm Item, follow these steps:

1. Open the 'Alarms > Items' configuration page by selecting Alarms > AlarmItem in the Project Browser.

2. Select the Alarm Item you want to modify from the list.

3. Modify the fields as required.

4. Click OK to save the changes.

It is important to note that any changes made to the AlarmItem will take effect immediately, and the new or modified AlarmItem will be evaluated against the tag values in real-time.

Working with the Alarms module

The Alarms module is a powerful tool for monitoring and alerting on process conditions. Once you have set up your AlarmGroup, AlarmArea, and AlarmItem, you can use the Alarms module to monitor your process and respond to any abnormal conditions.

Runtime Execution

Once the AlarmGroup and items have been configured, the Alarms module can be executed to start monitoring the specified tags and conditions. During runtime, the Alarms module continuously evaluates the conditions of the AlarmItem and generates alarms when the conditions are met. The alarms are then added to the alarm database and can be visualized and acknowledged by the operators. The runtime behavior of the Alarms module can be controlled through runtime attributes such as alarm logging level, acknowledge timeout, and alarm retention time.

Integration with Other Modules

The Alarms module can be integrated with other FactoryStudio modules to enhance its functionality. For example, the Display module can be used to display alarms on a graphical screen, and the Reporting module can be used to generate reports that include alarms and their details. Additionally, the Scripting module can be used to handle alarm notifications, as well as to create custom alarms and modify the runtime behavior of the Alarms module.

AlarmHistorian Database definition on Datasets

The AlarmHistorian database is where the Alarms module stores all alarm events and audit trail information. The AlarmHistorian database can be defined using datasets in FactoryStudio, which allows for easy configuration and modification of the database properties. The datasets can define the database connection settings, the schema of the database tables, and the properties of the alarm events and audit trail entries.

Visualizing Alarms on Dislays

The Displays module can be used to create displays that visualize alarms in real-time. The alarms can be displayed in tables, custom graphics, objects and others with the ability to sort and filter based on various alarm properties. The displays can also include interactive components, such as acknowledging alarms and displaying alarm details, to allow operators to quickly respond to alarms.

Handling Notifications with Scripts

The Scripting module can be used to create custom scripts that handle alarm notifications. These scripts can define the behavior of the Notification Method property of the AlarmGroup, allowing for more customized notifications based on the type and severity of the alarm. The scripts can also define notification methods beyond the built-in options, such as sending emails or SMS messages. For Email information, go to the Alarm Email Notifications page

Advanced Features and Options

The Alarms module also includes several advanced features and options to further customize its functionality. These include the ability to create custom alarm states, the ability to filter alarms based on specific conditions, the ability to configure alarms to only be active during certain time periods, and the ability to define custom properties for alarm events and audit trail entries. These advanced features provide additional flexibility and control over the Alarms module's behavior.

Troubleshooting and Best Practices

Common Issues and Solutions

The Alarms module may encounter some issues in its operation. Here are some common issues and their solutions:

#Alarm not firing

Check the tag name, condition, and alarm item configuration. Ensure the tag is valid and the condition is met.

#Alarm not acknowledged

Check the alarm acknowledgement configuration. Ensure that the alarm acknowledges property is set and the acknowledgement timeout is not expired.

#Database connection error

Check the database connection string and ensure that the database is reachable.

#Alarm flooding

Check the alarm configuration and ensure that the deadband settings are properly configured.

#Notification not received

Check the notification configuration and ensure that the notification method is properly set.

Best Practices and Recommendations

To ensure the smooth operation of the Alarms module, follow these best practices:

• Use clear and descriptive names for AlarmGroup, areas, and items.
• Configure alarms with proper priority and severity levels.
• Use deadbands and delays to prevent alarm flooding.
• Regularly check and maintain the alarm configuration.
• Configure notifications and acknowledge alarms in a timely manner.

Alarms Runtime Attributes

The T.Modules.Alarm 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 AlarmItem and their properties.The tag properties are connected with the Alarms module.

See the T.Modules.Alarm Namespace for the complete programming reference!

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