Desert_AIP
Senior Member
Note on Links 243-250 - Macro Links
These are reserved for the UPB switches to communicate with the controller for macro type actions.
They have no effect in the lighting operations or HLC system.
They can be used for a number of functions, including lighting.
And they can be reused by different unit IDs and trigger completely different functions using the same link.
If they are not used as macro triggers they can be used freely as additional custom links for UPB scenes.
The Links 243-250 ostensibly correspond to "button 1-8" on an HLC 8 button house controller.
But they are really only logically related to their respective buttons, not hard coded.
When used for their intended purpose as Macro Execution they are programmed through the UPB Switch trigger in PCAccess.
The format will be "Unit X Switch Y"
In PCAccess you select a UPB Switch trigger.
In the popup you identify the UPB unit as a normal switch, or a 6 button room controller or an 8 button house controller (same selection for both).
Then you select the "button" pressed that you want to trigger the action.
(You can choose to identify a normal switch as a house controller in this area for macro purposes. i.e., you want a standard rocker switch to transmit the "Button 6" link. See more below.)
The resulting trigger will read something similar to this:
OR
I use the quoted term "button" intentionally.
The eight links correspond to logical "buttons" but they are not tied to actual physical button locations on the UPB/HLC unit.
Link 243 = "Button (or Switch) 1"
Link 244 = "Button (or Switch) 2"
Link 245 = "Button (or Switch) 3"
Link 246 = "Button (or Switch) 4"
Link 247 = "Button (or Switch) 5"
Link 248 = "Button (or Switch) 6"
Link 249 = "Button (or Switch) 7"
Link 250 = "Button (or Switch) 8"
The Omni controller is monitoring the UPB network for these links.
When it receives one of these 8 it checks which unit sent the link and takes appropriate action as programmed.
The controller does NOT check to see what actual physical button on the unit transmitted the link.
That data is available in the UPB messages sent, and can be viewed in UPStart, but the controller does not use it.
The controller only associates the Link number with the Unit ID.
So in the example above, it is waiting for Link 244 to be transmitted by Unit 2.
If it sees this combination, the program block will execute.
It doesn't matter if Unit 2 is a normal switch, a 6 or 8 button HLC controller, a SA US2-40 with a 4 button switch plate, or any other unit type.
AND, the link does NOT have to be physically programmed into "Button 2" of the UPB unit.
If your Unit 2 is a SA US2-40 with an 8 button faceplate, and you program button 8 (or any other button on the unit) to transmit Link 244, the macro will execute.
If the controller receives Link 244, and it was not sent by one of the identified units, it takes no action.
Since the controller only takes action when any of the 8 links are paired with a specific unit ID that transmits them, the links can be reused multiple times.
You could set up triggers for Unit 2 SW2, Unit 3, SW2, Unit 5 SW2, Unit 10 SW2, etc.
All would be unique combinations so each combination could trigger a different action.
So there are ostensibly 8 x 250 = 2000 unique combinations available for macro execution.
This is a great way to communicate/coordinate macros with the controller through the UPB network using the switches already installed.
It also can make use of the single/double tap action of something like a SA US11-40, where the single tap operates the local load (and transmits local status) and the double tap transmits the macro link.
You could also set up UPB units to receive and take some action when they receive one of these links.
In that case the lighting changes would occur, and then the Omni would take whatever macro action was associated with the link.
This is a good way to integrate macro actions that include lighting changes without adding UPB lighting operations in the programming lines of the Omni.
If this option is exercised, the lighting changes would occur with ALL transmissions of the link, regardless of source.
This could be used as a way to make a lighting change only with one transmitter, and couple the lighting change with some other macro actions when the link is transmitted by a different unit, while using the same link number.
For instance if the Omni itself transmits the link (the source would be seen as UPStart on the UPB network), only the lighting scene would execute.
But sending the link from an associated UPB unit would communicate to the controller to take additional macro actions while the lighting change was occurring.
Advanced:
Since the Omni controller and other PIM connected computers identify their source as "UPStart" on the UPB network, they can't trigger these macro actions.
If you have a computer program that can generate the actual serial commands that include the Unit ID in them, you could use it as a source for macro execution as well.
Alternatively, you could use something like the Western Mountain RUC to retransmit the link with the proper Unit ID tag based on any number of input criteria.
PCS has a utility to generate the serial commands that can then be copied into the RUC or a computer program so they appear to be transmitted from the correct UPB ID.
(sidebar - I also use this function of the RUC to enable the Omni to communicate to the individual channels of a two channel SA US22-40 switch.)
These are reserved for the UPB switches to communicate with the controller for macro type actions.
They have no effect in the lighting operations or HLC system.
They can be used for a number of functions, including lighting.
And they can be reused by different unit IDs and trigger completely different functions using the same link.
If they are not used as macro triggers they can be used freely as additional custom links for UPB scenes.
The Links 243-250 ostensibly correspond to "button 1-8" on an HLC 8 button house controller.
But they are really only logically related to their respective buttons, not hard coded.
When used for their intended purpose as Macro Execution they are programmed through the UPB Switch trigger in PCAccess.
The format will be "Unit X Switch Y"
In PCAccess you select a UPB Switch trigger.
In the popup you identify the UPB unit as a normal switch, or a 6 button room controller or an 8 button house controller (same selection for both).
Then you select the "button" pressed that you want to trigger the action.
(You can choose to identify a normal switch as a house controller in this area for macro purposes. i.e., you want a standard rocker switch to transmit the "Button 6" link. See more below.)
The resulting trigger will read something similar to this:
Code:
WHEN Kitchen Lights SW 2 PRESSED"
Code:
WHEN Unit 2 SW 2 PRESSED"
The eight links correspond to logical "buttons" but they are not tied to actual physical button locations on the UPB/HLC unit.
Link 243 = "Button (or Switch) 1"
Link 244 = "Button (or Switch) 2"
Link 245 = "Button (or Switch) 3"
Link 246 = "Button (or Switch) 4"
Link 247 = "Button (or Switch) 5"
Link 248 = "Button (or Switch) 6"
Link 249 = "Button (or Switch) 7"
Link 250 = "Button (or Switch) 8"
The Omni controller is monitoring the UPB network for these links.
When it receives one of these 8 it checks which unit sent the link and takes appropriate action as programmed.
The controller does NOT check to see what actual physical button on the unit transmitted the link.
That data is available in the UPB messages sent, and can be viewed in UPStart, but the controller does not use it.
The controller only associates the Link number with the Unit ID.
So in the example above, it is waiting for Link 244 to be transmitted by Unit 2.
If it sees this combination, the program block will execute.
It doesn't matter if Unit 2 is a normal switch, a 6 or 8 button HLC controller, a SA US2-40 with a 4 button switch plate, or any other unit type.
AND, the link does NOT have to be physically programmed into "Button 2" of the UPB unit.
If your Unit 2 is a SA US2-40 with an 8 button faceplate, and you program button 8 (or any other button on the unit) to transmit Link 244, the macro will execute.
If the controller receives Link 244, and it was not sent by one of the identified units, it takes no action.
Since the controller only takes action when any of the 8 links are paired with a specific unit ID that transmits them, the links can be reused multiple times.
You could set up triggers for Unit 2 SW2, Unit 3, SW2, Unit 5 SW2, Unit 10 SW2, etc.
All would be unique combinations so each combination could trigger a different action.
So there are ostensibly 8 x 250 = 2000 unique combinations available for macro execution.
This is a great way to communicate/coordinate macros with the controller through the UPB network using the switches already installed.
It also can make use of the single/double tap action of something like a SA US11-40, where the single tap operates the local load (and transmits local status) and the double tap transmits the macro link.
You could also set up UPB units to receive and take some action when they receive one of these links.
In that case the lighting changes would occur, and then the Omni would take whatever macro action was associated with the link.
This is a good way to integrate macro actions that include lighting changes without adding UPB lighting operations in the programming lines of the Omni.
If this option is exercised, the lighting changes would occur with ALL transmissions of the link, regardless of source.
This could be used as a way to make a lighting change only with one transmitter, and couple the lighting change with some other macro actions when the link is transmitted by a different unit, while using the same link number.
For instance if the Omni itself transmits the link (the source would be seen as UPStart on the UPB network), only the lighting scene would execute.
But sending the link from an associated UPB unit would communicate to the controller to take additional macro actions while the lighting change was occurring.
Advanced:
Since the Omni controller and other PIM connected computers identify their source as "UPStart" on the UPB network, they can't trigger these macro actions.
If you have a computer program that can generate the actual serial commands that include the Unit ID in them, you could use it as a source for macro execution as well.
Alternatively, you could use something like the Western Mountain RUC to retransmit the link with the proper Unit ID tag based on any number of input criteria.
PCS has a utility to generate the serial commands that can then be copied into the RUC or a computer program so they appear to be transmitted from the correct UPB ID.
(sidebar - I also use this function of the RUC to enable the Omni to communicate to the individual channels of a two channel SA US22-40 switch.)