VSA speeds up building automation system designs

Renesas and CS-Lab are BACnet International members.

BACnet communication stack, conforming to ISO16484-5 standard, is the building automation protocol used in countless installations around the world for HVAC (Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning), lighting and access control applications. The new BACnet VSA offers easy access to a certified and standards-compliant implementation via IP, Ethernet and MS/TP data layers. The functional range of the stack is suitable for the development of BACnet servers according to the following profile B-SS, B-SA, B-ASC and B-AAC. CS Lab’s 'BACeye' tool allows easy access to BACnet devices and their objects and properties during development.

Renesas Synergy is a qualified platform with integrated software, a scalable family of MCUs and unified development tools to speed embedded system developers’ time to market as they innovate new products. At the heart of the Synergy Platform is the Synergy Software Package (SSP), which is qualified, supported, warranted and maintained by Renesas. The SSP consists of a Real-Time Operating System (RTOS), stacks for USB and Ethernet, file systems, a Graphic Users Interface (GUI), and more – all accessible through a robust Application Programming Interface (API) to free customers from struggling with lower-level details. Developers can add specialised functions to their SSP projects with confidence using VSA software components that are continuously verified by Renesas to be SSP-compatible.

As with all VSA’s, the new BACnet VSA can be downloaded as an evaluation library from the Synergy Gallery at no cost, and can then be used under control of the Synergy Platform tool chain using simple drag-and-drop functionality with projects utilising the SSP. The BACnet VSA was designed using the recently released e2 studio ISDE v5.0. It makes use of the SSP and has been tested on the Renesas Synergy SK-S7G2 Starter Kit.

“The BACnet VSA offers users of the Synergy Platform an all-round carefree experience to develop BACnet-compatible applications for the Synergy Platform," said Christian Klinger, CEO of the CS Lab GmbH. "BACnet VSA supports developers in the development of BACnet-compatible applications. Actual low-level operation of the BACnet protocol is abstracted and handled by the SSP and the BACnet VSA enabling programmers to instead concentrate on their end-application. The time saved in the development process may be in this case several months. With the BACnet stack, CS Lab is continuing the proven functionality and reliability of the MBS software.”

“We created the Synergy VSA program as a way to make sure our customers have access to specialised software from leading partners in our industry. This gives our customers the power to leverage the Synergy Platform any direction their requirements take them. We take the guesswork away because all VSA software is verified by Renesas to be compatible with the SSP”, said Mark Rootz, Marketing Director, Synergy IoT Platform Business Division, Renesas Electronics America. “This BACnet VSA from CS-Lab is a perfect example because of CS-Lab’s presence in the market and its reputation for serving embedded system developers using the BACnet communication protocol with reliable and high-quality software products and service.”