How to use the Modbus-Flex-Connector?

General
1

I am trying to understand what the Modbus-Flex-Connector Node is doing - whether it will connect to Modbus and Read values or whether it should be use in conjunction with another ModBus node.

Sending data in like this:

msg.payload = {
    'fc': 4,
    'unitid': 1,
    'address': 0x100C,
    'quantity': 29,
    'connectorType': 'TCP',
    'tcpHost': global.get("MODBUS_IP"),
    'tcpPort': 503,
    'tcpType': "DEFAULT"
}

Is not resulting in any error, but nothing is being returned from Modbus - so I think this need to used in conjunction with another node, but I am not sure what role the Modbus-Flex-Connector Node is playing. Any help and insight in to understand how to use the Modbus-Flex-Connector Node will be appreciated. As it sound it is what I want to use to provide dynamux Modbus config information.

2

I assume you have something (a debug node) attached to the output?

Are you certain there is nothing coming out of it?

3

Exactly this .. its used to change the Modbus config dynamically
In the Help tab of the node it shows some examples of how that msg should be

msg.payload = { 'connectorType': 'TCP', 'tcpHost': '192.168.0.100', 'tcpPort': '502', 'unitId': 1 } 
return msg

The thing is the Modbus Flex Connector will not trigger a modbus Read / Write itself .. it will just change the config. You still need to use a Modbus-Flex-Getter node to do that.

image
image897Ă—444 25.5 KB

Note that both the Connector and Getter are using the same config.

Sample Flow :

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1 Like
4

I do have a debug node - this is what coming out of it.

Screenshot 2024-01-08 203042

I see that inside the Modbus-Flex-Connector Node one has to select a Server config from a drop down. Is that the server config instance that is being changed by the Modbus-Flex-Connector Node and which can then be used with the new dynamically updated config in a Modbus-Flex-Getter Node that is referencing the same server config? Is my understanding correct?

5

And what do you see if you expand the payload?

7

This makes a lot of sense.

8

The problem with the Modbus-Flex-Connector node is that, when you send a msg to it for a new (dynamic) configuration .. it immediately produces a msg on its output (the one you shared) without actually waiting for the new connection to be applied .. this new configuration may take a second to actually be established, which makes it little difficult to use the Connector output msg to trigger a Read (because the connection is not ready.)

image
image1263Ă—262 25.5 KB

So keeping that in mind, you may need to introduce a small Delay between the Connector and the Getter

1 Like
9

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