Skip to content

Connecting the hardware

How Protequ reaches it

Protequ does not talk to the APS mini modules directly. A site has one RS485 bus with up to 32 modules on it. That bus reaches the network through an RS485-to-TCP converter (the gateway). Protequ opens a plain TCP connection to the converter, and the converter passes the traffic to the modules over RS485. So Protequ needs the converter's network address and TCP port. It finds the individual modules by their bus address once it is connected.

Before you start

  • The RS485-to-TCP converter is mounted, powered, and on a network Protequ can reach.
  • You know the converter's IP address (or hostname) and the TCP port it listens on.
  • Every APS mini module is wired to the RS485 bus and powered.
  • Each module has a unique bus address in the range 1-32. Two modules must never share an address.
  • No password or key is needed for this connection.

On the equipment

  1. Wire each APS mini module onto the shared RS485 bus (data pair and common ground).
  2. Set each module to a unique bus address between 1 and 32 using its address jumpers.
  3. Connect the RS485 bus to the converter's serial side.
  4. Set the converter to forward its serial port to the network over TCP, and note the TCP port it uses.
  5. Give the converter a fixed IP address on the site network, and note it down.
  6. Power everything and confirm the converter answers on the network.

In Protequ

Open the configuration page and fill in the connection fields on the APS mini Controller.

What you enter Protequ field Value
Converter IP address or hostname IP address the converter's address on the site network
Converter TCP port Port the port the converter listens on (default 10001)

Each module's bus address (1-32) is set on the module itself and is filled in automatically by discovery. You do not type it here.

Confirm it works

After saving, run discovery on the APS mini Controller. Protequ scans bus addresses 1 through 32 and adds one module for every address that answers. A full, empty bus can take up to about 35 seconds to scan; addresses with no module simply time out and are skipped.

Each module that answers appears with its reader, door, output, and inputs. Then present a card at a reader. The swipe should show up as a live event in Protequ.

If it does not connect

  • Discovery finds no modules: check the converter is powered and reachable at the IP address and port you entered, and that the RS485 bus is connected to the converter.
  • Some modules are missing: confirm each missing module is powered, wired to the bus, and set to a unique address in 1-32. Two modules on the same address clash and drop off the bus.
  • Modules appear but no card events: confirm cards are being presented at the reader and that the reader is wired to its module.
  • Nothing responds or the link keeps dropping: confirm no other software is already connected to the same converter port. The bus serves only one master at a time.