The PCD6 product family has been phased-out by the end of year 2006. The repair service is guaranteed until the end of 2011 (except of modules which have already been phased-out earlier).

Over 20 years after its introduction, the PCD6 product family has been discontinued by the end of the year 2006. As usual the repair service is guaranteed for additional 5 years. This means that the PCD6 modules (except older ones which have already been phased-out earlier) can be repired until 31.12.2011.

End of repair service of the different modules / CPUs

The PCD CPUs can be protected with a password. Once the CPU is password protected it is not possible reading its hardware or user program any more.

How can I protect my PCD with a password?
The protection is done by configuring a password in the hardware settins and downloading this configuration (make sure you have enabled the "Password" in the download window).

How can I remove the password?
There are two possibilities to remove the password from the PCD:

• You can re-download the hardware configuration (with the password protection in the Hardware Settings unchecked). Again, make sure you have enabled the "Password" in the download window. You will be prompted for the password when downloading the new configuration.
• You can clear the whole memory of the PCD or the PCS. Doing so will not only remove the password but will erase the whole configuration and user program of the PCD! The "Clear Memory..." function can be found in the menu "Online" of the PG5 "Online Configurator".

Restrictions

• The procedure "Clear Memory..." does not yet work for all CPU types (e.g. the PCD3 memory can not be cleared with this function). (An alternative way could be removing the battery and removing the power supply in case the user program is stored in RAM).
• The minimal PG5 version featuring the "Clear Memory..." function is PG5 1.4.120.

If a modem is installed on port 3 and the default standby mode "S-BUS PGU" is choosen in modem driver f-box the error: "Stanby mode OFF must be used with reduced handshake (port 3)."

"Fatal Error 20: f.fbd: Line 63: Caused by Modem Driver."

appears.

If you use the default standby mode S-BUS PGU you have to choose full handshake. Normally the handshake is on default. Only in this special case you have to change it to full.

There has been the possibility to equip a (now discontinued) PCD6 with an Ethernet module. However, as the PCD6 system has been discontinued, also the Ethernet module (PCD7.F651) for the PCD6 systems has been discontinued.

To have an Ethernet TCP/IP port on a PCD, a PCD6.M3F650 had to be ordered (not possible any more). This version of the PCD6.M3 contains a PCD7.F651 module and has an Ethernet connector on the front plate instead of a D-Sub connector. It takes a single slot like a standard M3.

Only one Ethernet TCP/IP port has been possible per PCD6 System.

For retrofitting Ethernet TCP/IP on an existing PCD6 system, the concerned CPU had to be replaced. When updating from a PCD6.M1/M2 CPU to a PCD6.M3, the memory module as well and the firmware versions of all CPU's had to match (for more details please refer to the attached document.). The update to PCD6M3.F65x has only been possible on CPU's with harware version >= C.

No. Changing modules under tension can result in damage to the modules and CPU.

Remark
Please note that not only the PCD Power supply but also the tension on the I/Os themself (and the power supply of the I/O modules) must be removed before the modules can be removed without risk.

There is an Error Led on nearly every PCD system that can indicate a problem on the system. Read this FAQ to learn more about the different reasons for a lit Error LED and how to find the problem causing the lit error LED.

What causes the Error LED to get lit?
There are different reasons for a lit error LED. The most common reasons are listed below:

• A problem while assigning a communication port (e.g. missing communication module or wrong parameters)
• A problem while sending an S-Bus telegram (e.g. missing port assignation or invalid data array or media)
• Invalid mathematical operation (e.g. division by zero or value overflow after a multiplication)
• Index register overflow

How to find the problem in the code/configuration?
One fast way to find the problem is reading the history entries of the PCD. This may be done by using either the Online Configurator or the Online Debugger (type "Display History"). In the History some of the problems are listed explicitely (e.g. IPM not present) for further information regarding the History entries, please refer to the PG5 Help. The chapter "Messages" contains "Halt and History messages".
If only an "Error Flag" is mentioned the next task is to find the program part where the Error status-flag is set. This is to be done by using the Online Debugger:

• Go online with your Fupla- or IL program.
• Open the Online Debugger and type "Restart Cold All CPUs".
• Still in the Online Debugger, type "Run Until Status-flag Error". As soon the Staus-flag "Error" is set, the PCD will be stopped. Therefore the Fupla Editor will jump to the page which actually is processed (only this page is part of the current Fupla file! If the Error isn't caused by this Fupla file, it will jump to any other page which doesn't cause the problem. Have a look at this page and the FBox with the "stop"-box on it and decide whether the problem could have been caused by this FBox!
  If there isn't any FBox that could cause any problems mentioned above, repeat the procedure while beeing online with the next Fupla file of the CPU).
• If you can't find the problem directly in a Fupla file, switch to the Online Debugger again. After having stopped, a line similar to the line written below will be shown:
  *001234  STH       I/O       48                                  A1   Z0     N0     P1    E1     IX      COB2
  This first number of this line indicates on which line of the code the problem happened: the last instruction BEFORE the line shown caused the problem (the error LED is lit after the problem).
• Type "Display Program <line indicated -10> Count 15". Now you can see the instruction that caused the problem: Refer to the IL instruction Set (Online Help of IL Editor SEDIT) in order to figure out what this instruction exactly does.

If a SASI instruction causes the problem, check out the following possible reasons:

• The port is already assigned (have a look at the HW configuration and search for further SASI instructions by typing "Locate Instruction SASI" in the Online Debugger!).
  Hint: Also have an eye on the SASI FBoxes you used as well as on the HMI Settings tab.
• The port doesn't exist
• The SASI text isn't valid
• S-Bus support isn't enabled in the Hardware Settings but an S-Bus assignation was executed. This won't work because in this case the PCD doesn't have an S-Bus address (which is required for S-Bus communication).

If it seems as a mathematical operation caused the error, use the online debugger to run shortly before the problem-causing part of the code by typing "Run Until Instruction-Pointer Equals <instruction line shortly before problem-line>" (note that the instruction line must contain an instruction!). Once reached this line, type "sTep". In the Step-mode, you will see the contents of the PCD medias [brackets].

Remark:
The Error LED is lit in case the Status Flag E (Error status flag is set high) and no XOB 13 is programmed. In case the XOB 13 is programmed, the Error Led won't get lit but this XOB is processed immediately.

We have made good experiences with the GALEP 4, for PCD1 FW together with the adaptor 210841. The local dealer for Switzerland is www.redacom.ch.

Order numbers for empty firmware chips:

PCD1.M1x0: 1x ASN 4 502 7178 (OTP27C4002), one time programmable
PCD1.M137: 1x ASN 4 502 7178 (OTP27C4002), one time programmable
PCD2.M110/M120: 2x ASN 4 502 7126 0 (27C1001-10, EPROM)
PCD2.M127: can be downloaded, refer to the product page on www.sbc-support.ch
PCD2.M150: 2x ASN 4 502 7341 0 (49F040 ,Flash-EPROM)
PCD2.M157: can be downloaded, refer to the product page on www.sbc-support.ch 
PCD2.M170: chip soldered on the main board, the FW can be downloaded with PG5 *
PCD2.M177: can be downloaded, refer to the product page on www.sbc-support.ch
PCD2.M480: chip soldered on the main board, the FW can be downloaded with PG5 *
PCD2.M487: can be downloaded, refer to the product page on www.sbc-support.ch
PCD3.Mxxxx: chip soldered on the main board, the FW can be downloaded with PG5 *

* Procedure to downlaod a firmware:
1) get the appropriate file from product page on the supportsite www.sbc-support.ch
2) open PG5 and go to the online-configurator; go offline
3) open the menu tools, download firmware
4) browse for the firmware file and start the download
5) load the HW configuration and the user program

Basically on PCD systems introduced before 2003 there are some restrictions to be considered about the maximum baud rate of serial communications.

Depending on firmware and hardware not all serial ports can be used at their theoretical maximum baud rate at the same time.

Systems introduced before 2003:

• All PCD1, PCD2 (except PCD2.M480), PCD4 and PCD6 as well as PCS1 classic contollers do have a baud rate limitation of 38.4 kB/s on each serial port.
  For older firmware (FW) versions there is a further restriction since there is one UART responsible for two serial ports and this UART cannot handle baud rates of 38.4 kB/s on both ports at the same time. The port allocation of the UARTs is the following: first UART: port 0 and 1; second UART: port 2 and 3 etc.
  This means that it isn't possible to set the concerned ports to
  - 38.4 kB/s each
  - one to 38.4 kB/s and one to 19.2 kB/s
  - but it is possible to set one port to 38.4 kB/s and one port to 9600 B/s.
  
• Due to more efficent port handling recent FW versions do have the following restriction (independent of production date of HW):
  Amount of ports available divided by 2 equal amount of ports that can communicate at 38.4 kB/s. All the residuary ports do have a maximal baud rate of 19.2 kB/s.
  In addition an UART of an PCD7.F5xx isn't able to handle 19.2 kB/s on one and 38.4 kB/s on the other port. But it is possible to assign both ports to 38.4 kB/s.

Systems introduced since 2003 (PCD2.M480 and PCD3.xxxx):

Due to faster hardware there are much higher baud rates possible on the serial ports (up to 115 kB/s)!
There is only one restriction regarding UART sharing left:
On a PCD7.F5xx it is not possible to communicate on one port at 19.2 kB/s and one the second port at 34.8 kB/s at the same time (but two times 38.4 kB/s is possible!).
This means that all ports may communicate at the maximum baud rate (which is specified in the technical information (TI) or in the manual) at the same time.

FW versions that support the new port handling mentioned above:
For the following and newer FW version the following rule is valid:
Amount of ports available divided by 2 equal amount of ports that can communicate at 38.4 kB/s.
All the residuary ports do have a maximal baud rate of 19.2 kB/s.

Or "What is the difference between 0-, $- and #-firmware versions?". PCD firmware for non-Saia PCD® COSinus Systems (PCD1, PCD2.M1x0, PCD4, PCD6 and PCS) are named with 3 letters (e.g. 010, B0W or #31). This FAQ explains the meaning of these version and how to figure out which one is more recent.

The firmware version naming of non-Saia PCD® COSinus systems
In general the 3 letters (abc) are used for the following indications:

• a
  Definition of the kind version this firmware is. The possible versions are the following
  - 0xx versions are "official production versions" (010 is the first official production version)
  - Bxx versions are Beta versions which contain new features compared to the previous production version
  - #xx versions are "customer bug fix versions" of an official production FW version.
  - $xx versions (Pilot version) include new functionalities which are not yet fully tested. Therefore a $-version should only be used in field if the developement gives their ok!
• b
  The second letter defines the main production version (starting with 01x wich stands for first official production version, followed by 02x (where the 02x has important new features compared to the 01x version
• c
  The last letter is incremented for each build of the firmware (best observed for the bug-fix versions; #21 is based on the 020 firmware and contains corrections for the 020 firmware version) 

To figure out which version the base version of a bug fix- or pilot version is, have a look at the second character of the corresponding version (e.g. the "1" of the 013). This character indicates the official production version on which the bug fix or pilot version is based on.

Examples
010    is the official production version
018    is the production bug fix version of 010; no new functions
#19    is a customer bug fix version based on 018 (and therefore also on 010); no new functions
$19    is a pilot version based on 010 with new functions. The bug fixes done for e.g. 019 probably aren't implemented in this version! (the new features will be added to the production firmware versions in 020 or later.

Remark
Early versions of the Saia PCD® COSinus systems (PCD2.M480, PCD3, PCD2.M5) up to 039 were named with this system as well. In order to reduce confusion concerning features of a firmware the new firmware naming a.bb.cc has been applied (see FAQ 100741).