ge security system

hello everyone the "GE Security" concorde system i have in my home in europe, i can now buy a (Superbus 2000 Automation Module W/Rs232) which they say (Integrates Concord with energy management systems, lighting controls and audio/video systems) does any one know if this works with the cbus system. and any body have any experience with such. here is a document thaty i recived with the unit
http://www.cbusforums.com/forums/att...3&d=1227652191

 

Capt'n the automation module protocol document is pretty comprehensive. It looks like it outputs / represents many aspects of the security system status so there is a bit of complexity that goes with this. The check sum arrangement is a bit kooky but makes sense once you read it a couple of times. It doesn't look like you will have much control going into the security panel.

It sounds like you have already purchased this module ??? so I will go light on the options of aux outputs providing and easy and functional alternative. I have a GE Interlogix Challenger (previously Tecom) and have interfaced via 4 relays of an 8 way relay card.

The short answer to your question is you won't be able to simply connect this module to "C-Bus". You will need to connect this module to a PACA or CTouch MkII serial port and write logic code to deal with the serial packets / messages and the downstream results in your C-Bus install.

If you don't wish to muck around too much with the protocol, connect your automation module to a PC serial port, run hyperterminal and capture the messages from known events eg, arm panel - capture relevant packet, dis-arm panel - capture relevant packet etc.

 

Ashleigh - is it good enough to read the serial buffer into a string each process loop and if any packet in the string matches one you are interested in, then go from there ???

 

I assume that a ReadSerial function will remove all read chars from the buffer?

Code:

repeat 
  ReadSerial(2, s, #13#10); 
  if s <> '' then 
  begin      
    ... 
  end; 
until s = ''; 

This code snippet is from the help file and is similar to what I use with other control hardware.

The issue here would be that the ReadSerial command is only looking for a termination sequence. You would need some extra code to make sure that you dont have spurious data proceeding the info you are looking for and that you have managed to grab the whole package (not just the tail end).

 

thank you everyone

thank you for your help a bit of the terminoligy goes over my head however i havn't installed it yet i have been busy at work i will give it a go and keep you posted.