FIRUS MINI
FIRUS Consoles
FIRUS Front ends
Motion Control
Wilson Hall Lighting
FIRUS NOTES
FIRUS Locations
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    FIRUS-88 provides alarm and monitoring services through a user friendly interface and field devices connected to multiple local area networks (LANS). The basic configuration consists of a front-end pair, 1 to 24 consoles, and field devices called "MINI"s. The system provides a high degree of system reliability through the implementation of an on-line redundant front-end. The front-end pair normally share the responsibility of monitoring MINIs until a processor has failed or is shutdown. Each front-end has a identical copy of the data base and is physically connected to each LAN. The ARCNET LANs have the capability of redundant cabling for automatic fail-over in case of single cable break.

    The console's user interface implements a windowing environment and provides the following functions: data base entry/modifications, alarm logging, prioritized alarms, chronological alarms, parameter readings via a list or pictures, plotting, and data logging. The console has numerous aids to tailor the console to an area's needs such as control of alarm annunciation and type of alarms received.

    The MINIs are intelligent processors connected to a LAN which provide unsolicited alarms and a query capability. The MINIs support up to 7 I/O STD cards for alarms and data acquisition. Software supports a 16 bit digital I/O card and a 16 channel A/D card. A contact point must be stable for 5 secs (50 readings) before the condition is reported. The analog channel is designed for utility devices with a relatively slow integration time (400 ms) and 15 bits plus sign accuracy. The A/D card has an 8 Kbyte RAM buffer to maintain a local data log for each of the 16 channels providing over 30 minutes of historical data.