Act Net

User Guide

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Contents
What is Act Net? .......................................................................................................................................................... 1
Act Net Terminology .............................................................................................................................................1
Wiring devices to the Act Net port.............................................................................................................................. 2
Devices compatible with Act Net ............................................................................................................................... 4
Controlling and Monitoring of Current Position using Act Net ................................................................................. 5
To monitor and control actuators.......................................................................................................................5
To configure Act Net .............................................................................................................................................5
To control and monitor the actuator using Primary microblocks (AI, BI, AO, BO) ......................................6
To control and monitor ID1, ID2, ID3 actuators in Airflow microblock ........................................................7
Act Net Bus driver page............................................................................................................................................... 8
Act Net Bus status ................................................................................................................................................8
Act Net Bus Manual Configuration .....................................................................................................................9
Act Net Bus Auto Configuration ....................................................................................................................... 10
OnEvent Manual Addressing .............................................................................................................. 11
OnEvent Auto Addressing ................................................................................................................... 12
Troubleshooting ......................................................................................................................................................... 13
Document revision history ........................................................................................................................................ 15
 What is Act Net?
The Actuator Network or Act Net is a communication protocol between a controller and a network of smart
actuators. Act Net allows for information such as address, position, and speed to be transmitted to and from a
controller. The Act Net bus is limited to 8 smart actuators.

Act Net Terminology

Term Definition
Adaptation • Adaptation is the process of learning the physical end positions of
actuators or valves, measuring the force required to move them, and
identifying any resistance encountered.
• This allows the actuator to optimize its performance for energy efficiency
and precise control.
• Treat as Self Calibration and compensation for Wear and Tear.
• Over time, the components of an HVAC system can experience wear and
tear, which may alter their operating characteristics.

• Adaptation helps the actuator to continuously adjust and recalibrate itself

to maintain optimal performance despite these changes.
Sync Sync is the process of aligning the actuator's position with the control signal,
ensuring that the actuator's actual position matches the position commanded
by the control system. This is crucial for precise control of the HVAC system.
Power on adaptation When the actuator or valve is powered on, it performs an automatic calibration
(adaptation) to determine the physical end positions, measure the force
required to move, and identify any resistance encountered.
Delayed power on adaptation in Delayed power on adaptation in a VAV system under an AHU is a feature that
VAV system under AHU postpones the automatic calibration process until after a specified delay
period following power restoration. This allows the system to stabilize and
ensures that all VAVs do not close simultaneously, which helps avoid a static
pressure increase in the duct. The delay is calculated based on the last octet
of the controller's IP address in BACnet IP-based controllers.
Target position and current • The target position is the desired or commanded position to which the
position in actuator or valve actuator or valve should move. This position is set by the control system
based on the operational requirements of the HVAC system.
• The current position is the actual, real-time position of the actuator or
valve at any given moment. This is where the actuator or valve is
physically located within its range of motion.
• The control system continuously adjusts the actuator to minimize the
difference between these two positions for precise and efficient operation.

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 Wiring devices to the Act Net port
Supports a combination of up to 8 Act Net addresses, as follows:
• Smart Valve - one address
• Actuator - one address
• ZASF-A - occupies Act Net address 2 and 3

Act Net devices

• Require a class 2 power source (24 Vac +/- 20% or 24 Vdc +/- 10%)
• Cannot be powered by a 24 Vac transformer

CAUTIONS
• If the power source for the Act Net devices require a connection to earth ground, you must place it in the same
control panel as the controller, so that it shares a common earth ground reference, thereby reducing the
potential for ground loops.
• A remote Act Net power source, installed near the Act Net devices, should be floating (no local connection to
earth ground).

The controller provides an orange, three-pin removable screw terminal connector for the Act Net port. See example
below:

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 The Act Net port's NC (not connected) terminal does not connect to any internal circuitry. It is strictly for terminating
wires in a daisy chain bus configuration.
NOTE Be careful to wire the Act Net port terminals on the controller to the matching terminal on the supported
device. They may not be in the same order. See example below.

Act Net communication to the Act Net devices on a bus has a maximum length of 300 feet (91.44 meters). The bus
should be wired with copper conductors of an appropriate size (18 AWG or larger) to compensate for voltage drop
and ensure that bus voltage does not drop below 19.2 Vac or 21.6 Vdc.

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 Devices compatible with Act Net
The following devices are natively compatible on the Act Net Bus.
Safeties Type Damper Valve and Actuator
Fail Safe Spring Return AFB AFRB
LF LF
TFRB
Fail Safe Electronic GKRB -
GKB
Non Fail Safe Non Spring Return AMB LMB
GMB ARB
LMB GRB
LRB

Type Valves and Actuators

ZoneTight CQK24-MPL
CQ-04-A

Torque Ratings for Compatible Devices

Actuator Type Torque Rating Damper Valve

AFB 180 in-lb (20 Nm) X -

AFRB 180 in-lb (20 Nm) X

AMB 180 in-lb (20 Nm) X -

ARB 180 in-lb (20 Nm) X

GKB 360 in-lb (40 Nm) X -

GKRB 360 in-lb (40 Nm) - X

GMB 360 in-lb (40 Nm) X -

GRB 360 in-lb (40 Nm) - X

LF 35 in-lb (4 Nm) X X

LMB 45 in-lb (5 Nm) X -

LRB 45 in-lb (5 Nm) - X

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 Controlling and Monitoring of Current Position using Act Net

To monitor and control actuators

To monitor and control Act Net devices (actuators and valves) add BACnet Analog Input (AI), Binary Input (BI),
Binary Output (BO), and Analog Output (AO) microblocks to the control program as needed. This enables you to
view and control:
• Current Position
• Target Position
• Communication status
• Adaptation/Sync control/status

To configure Act Net

ActNet can be configured in the control program using either primary microblocks or airflow microblocks.
1 For controllers that have an onboard actuator and support ZASF, the Act Net device addresses 1, 2, and 3 are
reserved. These addresses represent the Onboard actuator, ZASF actuator, and ZASF flow sensor,
respectively. In these variants, Act Net device addresses 1, 2, and 3 can be configured using the Airflow
microblock. Act Net device addresses 4 through 8 can be configured using primary microblocks.
2 For the other variants that support Act Net (Integrated Controllers and Zone Controllers with no ZASF and
onboard actuator), Act Net device addresses 1 through 8 can be configured only using primary blocks.

NOTES
○ If the actuator is not configured in either airflow or primary microblocks, the status of the actuator in the
driver page shows “Not used in Control Program”.
○ In VAV and Zone Controllers with airflow, Act Net device addresses 1, 2, and 3 can be configured using
both Airflow and primary microblocks.
○ In Zone Controllers with no ZASF connected, Act Net device addresses 1, 2, and 3 are not reserved. 1 and
2 can be configured using primary microblocks. But 3 is blocked and can not be configured for
standalone actuator/valve. It is only reserved for ZASF flow sensor.

○ In Zone Controllers with no ZASF connected, Act Net device addresses 1, 2, and 3 are not reserved. 1 and
2 can be configured using primary microblocks, but 3 is blocked and can not be configured for
standalone actuator/valve. Its only reserved for ZASF flow sensor.

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 To control and monitor the actuator using Primary microblocks (AI, BI,
AO, BO)

Status / Attribute Microblock Expander number I/O type Range Description

type type : Channel number
Current position AI ACT ID (1 to8) : 1 ActNet 0 to 100% The current position of the
actuator
Communication BI ACT ID (1 to8) : 2 ActNet True or TRUE : Communication is
status False active
FALSE : No communication
with device
Adaptation / Sync BI ACT ID (1 to8) : 3 ActNet True or TRUE : Adaptation/Sync is in
status False progress
FALSE: Adaptation/Sync is
not in progress
Transit Time AI ACT ID (1 to8) : 4 ActNet Based on The run time of the actuator
device type to move from one physical
end to another
MPL based actuators : 30s
(high speed) - 150s (Normal
speed)
MFT based actuators: 90s
(high speed) -
Pre-Programmed value at
Factory
Target Position AO ACT ID (1 to8) : 1 ActNet 0 to 100% The target position of the
actuator
Speed BO ACT ID (1 to8) : 2 ActNet True or TRUE : Force the actuator to
False move in High speed
FALSE: Normal speed
Adaptation control BO ACT ID (1 to8): 3 ActNet True or TRUE : Issue Adaptation
False Command
The input goes inactive/OFF
once Adaptation status is
TRUE
Sync control BO ACT ID (1 to8) : 4 ActNet True or TRUE : Issue Sync Command
False
The input goes inactive/OFF
once Sync status is TRUE
NOTE The AO microblock with Device ID and Act Net is required so the device ID is configured in the bus, the
driver page shows “Normal Operation”, and Communication status as TRUE.

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 To control and monitor ID1, ID2, ID3 actuators in Airflow microblock

Flow Sensor Damper Actuator Description

Integral-onboard Integral-onboard configured as ID1 and reserved for
onboard actuator
Integral-remote Integral -remote configured as ID2 and ID3 and
reserved for ZASF device

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 Act Net Bus driver page
Act Net Bus Status: Provides current details of Act Net devices addresses 1 to 8 connected to Act net port
Act Net Bus Manual Configuration: Provides an option to change address of the actuator manually by entering the
serial number and description using the Edit option
Act Net Bus Auto Configuration: Provides the option to obtain details of the actuator, such as the serial number
and current address, by triggering an event on the actuator or valves. This allows you to manually set the desired
address of the actuator. It also provides the option to automatically configure addresses via the module firmware.

Act Net Bus status

An Act Net device that is physically connected to the controller is automatically identified and the serial number
and current status are displayed on the Act Net Bus page.
NOTE You can edit the address and description on this page. Applying changes can take up to 20 seconds to
complete.

Act Net Bus Status This table shows devices connected to the Act Net port. All fields are read-only.
Device Address Act Net device address (1 to 8). The same address is used as exp# in the
microblock configuration with the input/output number for all Act Net devices set
to 1.
Device Description This text is editable in the Act Net Bus Manual Configuration table below.
Serial Number The serial number of the Act Net device. This number is printed on a label on the
device.
Device Status Displays the current status of the device
Possible statuses Description
Normal Operation Successful communication

No Communication with Controller has lost communication with the Act Net
the device device
Duplicate Address on More than one device has the same Device Address.
the network
Unsupported Device Device is not recognized or unsupported Act Net device
Type
Act Net Wiring Error Loopback error on Act Net bus, possibly caused by wiring
problem or hardware failure.
Not Yet Discovered Not detected by module or not in bus, but is configured
in the control program
Not used in Control Not configured in control program
Program Serial number is blank if the device is not connected to
the bus
Serial number present if the device is connected to bus
and detected by module firmware

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 Act Net Bus Manual Configuration

Act Net Bus Manual This page shows devices connected to the Act Net port, and allows you to edit the
Configuration description and addressing of the device using the serial number. It can be
auto-populated if the device is connected to the bus, or entered manually in the
editable serial number field.
Current Address Bus address of the Act Net device
Device Description Edit the name if needed. Applying changes can take up to 20 seconds to appear.
Serial Number Serial Number of the device corresponds to Current Address in the same row. This
field is read-only if the corresponding device is in communication, otherwise
becomes editable so that user can enter the serial number manually (can be found
as a label on the actuator).
New Device Address Select a new bus address from the drop-down list.
Configuration Status Once all changes are accepted, after applying changes this fields shows success or
fail statuses.
Possible statuses Description

Success Address selection successful. It may take a few seconds

to update in the status table. Refresh the page to see
the updated status table.
In Progress This string appears after accepting the changes and
before success or fail messages appear. This message
may not always appear due to data refresh rate.
Invalid serial number A serial number that was entered manually has an
format invalid format. Correct format example:
01647-20212-250-160.
Device not found Serial number format is valid, but the device with the
number cannot be located
Select unused address If the New Device Address is a duplicate, select an
unused address from the drop-down list. To update the
table, click Accept after every change.
Unknown Error Firmware or bus error.

Reserved Device This string appears after accepting changes when

address change not attempting to chage addresses 1, 2, or 3 to other
allowed addresses on VAV models. This is not applicable to
OF1628 and equivalent variants.

To manually de-address
1 Select ‘0’ from New Device Address.
2 Click Accept.
3 That address is not free to use.

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 Act Net Bus Auto Configuration

Act Net Bus Auto This table allows you to enable OnEvent mode communication. OnEvent allows you
Configuration to obtain details of the actuator by triggering an event on the actuator or valves.
You can then manually set the address of the actuator. It also provides an option to
automatically configure addresses via the module firmware.
Once the event is triggered on the ACTnet device, specific device information (serial
number and current address) is populated in the table. The ACTnet device's
movement can also be observed when the event is detected by the module
firmware. You can then change the address using New Device Address in that row.
On success, the current address is updated to reflect the changed address.
Current Address Bus address of the Act Net device
Serial Number Serial number of the Act Net device where the event is.
New Device Address Select a new bus address from the drop-down list.
Configuration Status Once all changes are accepted, after applying changes this fields shows success or
fail statuses.
Possible statuses Description

Success Address selection successful. It may take a few seconds

to update in the status table. Refresh the page to see
the updated status table.
In Progress This string appears after accepting the changes and
before success or fail messages appear. This message
may not always appear due to data refresh rate.
Invalid serial number A serial number that was entered manually has an
format invalid format. Correct format example:
01647-20212-250-160.
Device not found Serial number format is valid, but the device with the
number cannot be located
Select unused address If the New Device Address is a duplicate, select an
unused address from the drop-down list. To update the
table, click Accept after every change.
Unknown Error Firmware or bus error.

Reserved Device This string appears after accepting changes when

address change not attempting to chage addresses 1, 2, or 3 to other
allowed addresses on VAV models. This is not applicable to
OF1628 and equivalent variants.

There are two options for addressing with OnEvent:

• OnEvent Manual Addressing
• OnEvent Auto Addressing

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 OnEvent Manual Addressing
This mode retrieves the serial number and address information by triggering an event on the actuator. The
information received is then populated in the table. Using this data, you can manually assign an address by
selecting from New Device Address. Additionally, the movement of the ACTnet device can be observed when the
event is detected.
NOTE OnEvent is automatically disabled after 5 minutes, but you can also disable it manually by clicking the
checkbox. Once disabled, only the status updates are reflected in the Act Net Bus Status table.

1 Check Enable OnEvent and ensure that Auto Addressing is unchecked in the Act Net Bus Auto Configuration
table.
2 Click Accept.
3 Trigger OnEvent.
4 The serial number appears with the current address.
5 Select a New Device Address.
6 Click Accept.
7 Verify the updates appear in Configuration Status.
Model/Type Failsafe Technology Front OnEvent Support OnEvent Trigger
Buttons/Lights
AFB24-MFT Spring MFT - yes Direction Control
(toggle)
AFRB24-MFT Spring MFT yes Direction Control
(toggle)
AMB24-MPL - MFT - yes TBD
ARB24-MPL - MFT - yes TBD

GKB24-MFT Supercap MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button

GKRB24-MFT Supercap MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
GMB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
GRB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button

LF24-MFT Spring MFT - yes Direction Control

(toggle)
LRB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
LMB24-MPL - MFT - yes Gear Release

TFRB24-MFT Spring MFT - Reversing Switch

CKQ24-MPL Supercap MPL Adapt:Address yes Address Button

CQ-04-A - MPL Adapt:ActNetStat yes ActNetStatus
us

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 OnEvent Auto Addressing
This mode retrieves serial number and address information by triggering an event on the actuator and then
automatically assigns an available address from the bus. You can check the configuration status to verify success.
If successful, the new address appears in the current address field. The Act Net device’s movement can be
observed when the event is detected by the module firmware.
NOTE Both checkboxes automatically disable after 5 minutes, you can disable them manually by clicking them.
Once disabled, only the status updates in the Act Net Bus Status table.

1 Select both Enable OnEvent and Auto Addressing.

2 Click Accept.
3 Trigger on event on the Act Net device as described in OnEvent Manual Addressing (page 11).
4 The serial number appears on the screen with a current address (if it already has an address) and assigns
addresses automatically with available address in the bus.
5 The address is set automatically for the device. Verify the updates appear in Configuration Status.
NOTES
• If the device has on-board actuators the address 1, 2, and 3 are reserved. Addressing must start from 4.
• The addresses already used in the bus are not assigned.
• If reheat valves are in the bus then address 4 and 5 are also reserved. Addresses must start from 6 in this
instance.

To de-address an Act Net device

Option 1: Using Act Net Manual configuration
1 Identify the row of the device to be de-addressed.
2 Set New Address to "0" and click Accept.
3 Refresh the page.
4 Verify the configuration was successful. The serial number in that row is now editable.
or
Verify that the status table shows no communication with the device.

Option2: Unsing OnEvent Manual addressing

1 On the Act Net Bus Auto configuration table select enable OnEvent and uncheck Auto addressing.
2 Trigger an event on the Act Net device.
3 Locate the entry with the serial number, and set New Device Address to "0".
4 Click Accept.
5 Verify the configuration was successful. The current address should now be "0".

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 Troubleshooting

To resolve duplicate addresses on Act Net bus

When devices display the error Duplicate Address on the network, you can use either of the following methods to
resolve the problem.

• Method 1: Using the Act Net Bus Manual Configuration.

1. For each duplicate device, enter the Serial Number, which you can find on a sticker on the device.
2. Select a New Device Address.
3. Click Accept.
4. Verify that there are no longer any Duplicate Address on the network errors.

• Method 2: Reinstalling the devices

1. Remove all duplicate devices from the bus.
2. Connect one of the removed devices and wait for the Act Net Bus Status table to update.
3. Chose a unique address for the new device and click Accept. Wait until the operation is successful.
4. Repeat the steps 2 and 3 for the remainder of the removed devices.
5. Verify that there are no longer Duplicate Address on the network errors.

• Method 3: OnEvent Manual addressing

1. In the Act Net bus Auto configuration table select Enable OnEvent.
2. Trigger OnEvent on devices one by one.
3. Review the serial numbers of Act Net devices. Look for two rows with the same address.
4. Select New Address to change the appropriate address, and then click Accept.
5. Uncheck Enable OnEvent.
6. Verify the status page no longer contains duplicate address.

Physical connection
For physical connection to the actuators, use the ZTH tool.

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 OnEvent Mode
To trigger the OnEvent mode when addressing the actuators, use the below table for reference.
Model/Type Failsafe Technology Front OnEvent Support OnEvent Trigger
Buttons/Lights
AFB24-MFT Spring MFT - yes Direction Control
(toggle)
AFRB24-MFT Spring MFT yes Direction Control
(toggle)
AMB24-MPL - MFT - yes TBD
ARB24-MPL - MFT - yes TBD

GKB24-MFT Supercap MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button

GKRB24-MFT Supercap MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
GMB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
GRB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button

LF24-MFT Spring MFT - yes Direction Control

(toggle)
LRB24-MFT - MFT Adapt:Status yes Status button
LMB24-MPL - MFT - yes Gear Release

TFRB24-MFT Spring MFT - Reversing Switch

CKQ24-MPL Supercap MPL Adapt:Address yes Address Button

CQ-04-A - MPL Adapt:ActNetStat yes ActNetStatus
us

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 Document revision history

Important changes to this document are listed below. Minor changes such as typographical or formatting errors are not
listed.

Date Topic Change description Code*

No updates yet

* For internal use only

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Carrier ©2024 · Catalog No. 11-808-1148-01 · 9/25/2024