Operating Instructions

Chapter 4 – Configuring Groups, Shared Points, and Statistics
Siemens Building Technologies, Inc. 27
Chapter 4 – Configuring Groups, Shared Points, and
Statistics
Chapter 4 contains the following topics:
• Overview
• Variant Data Types
• Using OPC Data Manager Data Files
• Creating and Managing Groups
• Adding and Modifying Shared Points
• Adding and Removing Statistics
Overview
A valid OPC Data Manager configuration consists of groups and shared points. Groups organize shared
points into logical categories. Shared points are the central data structures that establish connections
between OPC items. Each shared point stores a value that can be written to from various sources and can
be read or written to various destinations.
Using the OPC Data Manager, you can collect statistics, such as the number of point reads and errors,
and write those values to shared points. After a statistic has been written to a shared point, its value can be
used like any other point value.
Variant Data Types
When you define groups, points, and statistics, you must select a variant data type. Table 4 describes the
available data types. The Value column shows the corresponding number that is written to the OPC Data
Manager data file.
Table 4. Data Types.
Data Type
Description Value
VT_EMPTY Default/Empty (Nothing) 0
VT_I2 2 byte signed integer 2
VT_I4 4 byte signed integer 3
VT_R4 4 byte real 4
VT_R8 8 byte real 5
VT_CY currency 6
VT_DATE date 7
VT_BSTR text 8
VT_ERROR error code 10