Working with Bindings

What is the Binding panel?

With the Binding panel you can bind elements (shapes and symbols) to alias points and explicit points or locations. The Binding panel displays three tabs: Alias, Explicit, and Network. The Alias tab displays points from the selected equipment's Equipment Definition or the points from the selected Equipment Definition. The Explicit tab displays spaces and equipment (locations) and points from the equipment that serve the spaces or other equipment (equipment serving equipment). The Network tab displays the Building Network tree, which provides access to objects using an alternative navigation tree to the Spaces tree. The Building Network tree order is inherited from the SMP All Items tree with minor exceptions.

Note: The Network tab displays if the user has the User Can View The Item Navigation Tree (Default Tree) property selected in the User Details tab in the User Management feature in Metasys UI, or in their User Properties in SMP. For more information, refer to the Security Administrator System Technical Bulletin (LIT-1201528).

What is Alias binding? What is Explicit binding? What is Building Network binding?

Aliased bindings are bindings to the points associated with an Equipment Definition. When working in the Graphics Editor, an Aliased binding displays Alias on the Graphic Canvas, together with the short name of the point. When viewing the graphic in the Graphics widget, the Aliased binding displays the present value of the resolved point.

Explicit bindings are bindings to exact points or locations (space or equipment). When working in the Graphics Editor, an Explicit binding displays ???? on the Graphic Canvas, together with the short name of the point, and the applicable unit of measurement, if available. When viewing the graphic in the Graphics widget, the Explicit binding displays the present value of the point. When you tap or click the element that is explicitly bound to a location, you are redirected to the Space dashboard or the Equipment dashboard, respectively.

Building Network bindings are bindings to points in the Building Network tree. When working in the Graphics Editor, a Building Network binding displays ???? on the Graphic Canvas, together with the applicable unit of measurement, if available. When viewing the graphic in the Graphics widget, the Building Network binding displays the present value of the point. If you bind a navigation to the point (see How do I bind points using the Building Network tree?), you can tap or click on the point to be redirected to the respective point in the Building Network tree. A default tab with details about the navigated item opens.

See the following table that lists the types of bindings available for the types of Metasys UI graphics.

Table 1. Types of Bindings Available
Type of Metasys UI Graphic	Type of Bindings Available
Unassigned Graphic	Explicit Building Network
Space Graphic	Explicit Building Network
Equipment Graphic, including Exception Graphic	Explicit Building Network
Aliased Graphic	Alias, which allows you to bind to the points that are associated with the Equipment Definition Explicit Building Network
Master Layer Graphic	Explicit Building Network

How do I bind to an alias point?

To bind an alias point to a supported element in an Equipment graphic, Exception graphic, or Aliased graphic:

Select the element (shape or symbol) on the Graphic Canvas. The Edit toolbar appears below the element.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings appear in the Bindings list. The Bindings panel opens.
In the Alias tab, browse to and select the point you would like to bind to. Drag the point to the appropriate bindings field in the Bindings list.
Figure: Alias Binding in Bindings List

How do I bind to an explicit point or location?

To bind an explicit point to a supported element in any Metasys UI graphic:

Select the element (shape or symbol) on the Graphic Canvas. The Edit toolbar appears below the element.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings appear in the Bindings list. The Bindings panel opens.
In the Explicit tab, browse to and select the point or location you would like to bind to. Drag the point or location to the appropriate bindings field in the Bindings list.
Figure: Explicit Binding in Bindings List

How do I bind points using the Building Network tree?

To bind points with the Building Network tree:

Select the element (shape or symbol) on the Graphic Canvas. The Edit toolbar appears below the element.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings appear in the Bindings list. The Bindings panel opens.
In the Network tab, browse to and select the point or location you would like to bind to. Drag the point or location to the appropriate bindings field in the Bindings list.
Figure: Network Binding in Bindings List
You can also drag points, trend extensions and alarm extensions directly to the Graphic Canvas.

Notes:

You can use points, trend extensions, and alarm extensions as points and bind them to symbols. See How can I display the alarm extension and trend extension values of a point? for details about using trend extensions and alarm extensions as points.
You can use all items for navigation purposes and drag them to the navigation field in the Bindings list. You can go to the Graphics Widget viewer, where the tooltip for points bound using the Building Network tree displays the Fully Qualified Reference (FQR) with the text Navigate to, and navigate to the respective item in the Building Network tree. A default tab opens for the navigated item.
Once you save your changes, you can see the points and real-time values for the same resolved on the Graphics Widget viewer.

How do I view what an element is bound to?

To view what is currently bound to an element (shape or symbol):

Select the element (shape or symbol). The Edit toolbar appears.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings and already bound points or locations appear in the Bindings list.

Note: When you bind a point using the Building Network tree, the Fully Qualified Reference (FQR) displays as a tooltip when you hover over the short name of this point in the Bindings list.

How can I display the alarm extension and trend extension values of a point?

To display the alarm extension and trend extension values, you can either bind the extensions to the symbol or you can drag the desired extensions directly over the symbol.

Note: You can only bind or drag values over six Basic Symbols in this way, including Basic Value Box, Advance Value Box, Key Data Module, Linear Gauge, Semi-Circular Gauge, and Switch. See Basic Symbols for more details about the supported symbols.

To bind the extensions to the symbol:

Select the element (shape or symbol) on the Graphic Canvas. The Edit toolbar appears below the element.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings appear in the Bindings list. The Bindings panel opens.
In the Network tab, browse to and select the alarm or trend extension you would like to bind to. Drag the extension to the appropriate bindings field in the Bindings list.
Figure: Network Binding in Bindings List

To drag the extensions over the symbol:

Navigate to the Network tab in the Binding Panel.
Browse to and select the desired alarm or trend extension.
Drag the extension directly to the symbol on the Graphic Canvas.

Once you save your changes, you can see the real-time values resolved on the Graphics Widget viewer.

What additional options are available for bindings?

Several symbols show animations when you view the graphic in the Graphics widget in the Metasys UI. Note that animations do not display in Metasys UI Offline as real-time data values are not available. These animations provide a visual indication of the value for a bound point. You can set the custom animations when binding points to the symbol.

Note: Custom animation is not supported for Basic Symbols, with the exception of the Basic Fan. When you set the custom animations for the Basic Fan, you can set custom triggers to activate animation in the Graphics Widget viewer.

To set custom animations or view the default animation values of a bound point for a symbol:

Select the element (shape or symbol). The Edit toolbar appears.
In the Edit toolbar, click . The available bindings and already bound points or locations appear in the Bindings list.
From the Bindings list, click . The Custom Animation window appears.
Note: If appears dimmed and is not clickable, custom animations are not available or a point is not bound.

Set the custom animations as desired. The following table lists the custom animations settings that are available.

Table 2. Custom Animation Available by Data Type
Data Type	State	Description
State Data	0	Shows animation when a point is in State 0.
	1	Shows animation when a point is in State 1.
	2	Shows animation when a point is in State 2.
	3	Shows animation when a point is in State 3.
	>3	Shows animation when a point is in any other state.
Boolean Data	False	Shows animation when the value of a point is False.
Boolean Data	True	Shows animation when the value of a point is True.
Numeric Data	Maximum value for the Off state	For bindings that support only two animations (such as on/off and open/closed), defines the value at which one animation changes to the opposite animation. For example, if the maximum value for the Off state is 5, and the current value of the bound point is 10, the animation for the On condition appears. If the current value of the bound point is 3, then the animation for the Off condition appears.
	Minimum Value	Specifies the minimum value for an animation to display. This state is available for points with two or more animation options.
	Maximum Value	Specifies the maximum value for an animation to display. This state is available for points with two or more animation options.
	Compute Inverse	Flips the animation to reflect the opposite of its current state. For example, if the status input is normally Open, the animation reflects a normally Closed state.