Shielded Cat5e Cable
Installers should only use the GRIDSMART-approved shielded cable for the camera connection to protect against Electromagnetic Interference (EMI). Failure to use the shielded cable properly, as noted below, can result in image data transmission loss, resulting in intermittent or persistent offline cameras and recall scenarios. When using the shielded cable, you must use a drain wire properly connected to the Earth Potential Meter (EPM) earth ground lug to eliminate EMI.
You must connect the drain wire directly to the EPM ground lug. Do not use a shielded RJ45 connector as it will adversely affect the surge-protection properties of the EPM.
If you are curious about the difference between a drain wire and a ground wire:
- A drain wire is connected to a grounding terminal at one end of the cable only.
- A ground wire is connected at both ends of the cable.
A properly connected drain wire will drain EMI off the cable. A shielded Cat5e whose drain wire is grounded at both ends creates a ground loop and will likely create more EMI.
Due to GRIDSMART’s built-in fail-safes, intermittent loss of image data will often result in recall and unnecessary servicing of unoccupied phases or movements. If your GRIDSMART system is experiencing image loss, be sure to check the cable and verify the appropriate shielded cable is used and the drain wire is properly connected. Please contact [email protected] or your sales representative if you have additional concerns or questions.
GS2 I/O Module
The GS2 Processor is not intended to run without an I/O module. As of version 6.4, GS2 will not boot without a properly installed I/O module; instead it will only display a blinking red system status LED. If you have a Processor showing only a blinking red status LED, you should power it down and verify that an option card is properly installed. Note that you might be able to apply an update to a system without an option card running 6.3 or earlier, but when that update is complete, GS2 will not run until powered down and an option card is properly installed.
Allow Network Access
You should always be sure the GRIDSMART antenna is connected and functional. If you select the option to Allow Network Access with the Processor connected to the agency intranet, you must also verify that the Processor can communicate to api.gridsmart.com and via port 443.
This provides several important benefits, in particular:
- The Processor configuration will be backed up on GRIDSMART Cloud, meaning you'll always be able to recover the configuration in the event you need to recommission a new Processor at that site; download the configuration to the Client on a new computer; or share the configuration with colleagues via Teams on GRIDSMART Cloud.
- The Processor will self-correct its clock for time drift and daylight saving time.
- You can set up System Event alerts and receive emails on events including Publish, Startup, Camera Offline/Online and/or change of network address.
- All performance data is backed up to GRIDSMART Cloud, including turning movement counts and signal performance metrics. Even if you don't have the Performance Module now, all this historical data will be available should you ever decide to upgrade.
- If you do have the Performance Module, the GRIDSMART Client will enable you to create reports without having to connect to the Processor or visit the site with a USB drive by downloading the data directly from GRIDSMART Cloud. Additionally, you’ll have a rich set of historical data for upcoming web-only reports, including Purdue Coordination Diagrams.
- If you have the Performance Plus module, you can set up and receive other email alerts for the site such as Volume Exceeded, Loss of Visibility, and Flash (Loss of Greens).