Hello,
In a residential project there are some 50 apartments with home automation to make energy management possible. Each apartment has a W4K from Schneider, which controls lighting and equipment via KNX TP and energy meter and VAV system via Modbus RTU. All W4Ks are connected together by a LAN. KNX and W4K projects are identical in all apartments (the same project has been copied), but the IP addresses of the W4Ks are of course individually set.
Now there has emerged a need to read and write a few objects in each apartment from a central location. So we though to add one more W4K. But which is the best way to arrange communication over IP with this central W4K and the 50 W4Ks in the apartments? I can think of three alternatives:
KNX IP routing
-> Every apartments' KNX project would have to be modified so that there would be no overlapping routed group addresses
-> We are not yet sure does the LAN at the site support KNX IP multicast
KNX IP tunneling
-> Could the centrally located W4K send read/write telegrams via KNX IP tunneling to all individual W4Ks?
Modbus TCP
-> The W4Ks in the apartments have already been configured as Modbus RTU masters. Is it possible to also configure them as Modbus TCP servers?
All comments, experiences and recommendations are welcomed.
In a residential project there are some 50 apartments with home automation to make energy management possible. Each apartment has a W4K from Schneider, which controls lighting and equipment via KNX TP and energy meter and VAV system via Modbus RTU. All W4Ks are connected together by a LAN. KNX and W4K projects are identical in all apartments (the same project has been copied), but the IP addresses of the W4Ks are of course individually set.
Now there has emerged a need to read and write a few objects in each apartment from a central location. So we though to add one more W4K. But which is the best way to arrange communication over IP with this central W4K and the 50 W4Ks in the apartments? I can think of three alternatives:
KNX IP routing
-> Every apartments' KNX project would have to be modified so that there would be no overlapping routed group addresses
-> We are not yet sure does the LAN at the site support KNX IP multicast
KNX IP tunneling
-> Could the centrally located W4K send read/write telegrams via KNX IP tunneling to all individual W4Ks?
Modbus TCP
-> The W4Ks in the apartments have already been configured as Modbus RTU masters. Is it possible to also configure them as Modbus TCP servers?
All comments, experiences and recommendations are welcomed.