Does anyone know what the cause(s) of a Mapfault trouble on an Edwards EST3 could be?
It’s a trouble I’ve had happen several times on different systems. Is it something that can be fixed without having to call in a tech from Edwards with his laptop?
EST2 and EST3 panels have a function called “mapping” where the lengths of wire between each device are measured based on their electrical resistance. Somehow this means it is able to draw an exact map of the system’s wiring. EST uses a peculiar auto-addressing system based on the physical location of each device in relation to other devices, so the mapping function is important for it to work properly. It is also used by the system for testing wire integrity and for showing the exact location of ground faults and open circuit faults in the wiring.
It’s a really neat idea that I would like to see with other brands, but unfortunately it’s not as reliable as you may think…
When a “Map Fault” occurs on an EST system, it means the system has detected an unexpected reading when measuring the wire segments. Causes of this are sharp bends in wires causing higher electrical resistance, making the system think the cable got longer, missing devices (they can cause a map fault if the map test occurs while the device is missing), devices in the wrong location in the map, and other wiring faults.
If a map fault is the only thing on the panel, usually sitting in front of it and binge-watching a TV show on your laptop is really all you can do, because last I heard it can take 12 hours for a map fault to automatically clear. If you can bring in an EST technician with a laptop, they can plug it in and force a re-map on the panel which would cause it to clear. The cost of the service call from your competitor, combined with your own service call cost, would likely still cost less than a 12+ hour long service call just to babysit a faulting panel.
Thanks for the info. I knew these systems somehow “mapped” the devices, but I didn’t know exactly how it did this.
We’ve had cases where the map fault has cleared in a few hrs, and others where it’s stayed on the panel for days. Typically, if it won’t clear by the next day we call Edwards in W/ their laptop to fix it.
A couple things. Wouldn’t a missing devices cause an “open circuit” trouble? And I’ve been told that doing a panel Restart (not a reset, but a warm reboot) 3 times will force out the map fault. It takes anywhere from 15-60 mins to remap, but that’s cheaper than a service call from the manufacturer. Any truth to these?
I used to work on EST (and was certified) before I started my latest job. If I still have a copy of the software at home, I might be able to take a few screen shots to show you what it looks like. Chapter 9 in the link below shows you how maps look when they are first initialized. A white map is a happy map. When you change a device, it becomes red (or gray if it was there but is now missing). The panel should reconcile the replaced device, but sometimes it gets stuck.
That resistor that goes across the base is how the system determines where a device with a certain serial # should be using a current sense across the base. When the system maps, it looks for the highest serial # 1st, takes a resistance reading, them moves to the next highest serial # and repeats until it maps.
I you flip the in/out on a monitor module (3 & 4 is in, 1 & 2 is out if I recall) it will cause a map fault. Also the swipe terminals on smoke bases sometimes don’t make good contact. Try pulling them away from the base a little or cleaning them with a pencil eraser.
It can also happen on a ‘balanced’ map where you have for example a high rise building with a typical device layout per floor. So, the map will show a t-tap, smoke, pull, smoke, relay - t-tap, smoke, pull, smoke, relay - etc. With a balanced map, the loop controller has a hard time deciding which smoke is replaced between floors because electrically, they are similar. Also, replacing several devices at a time can cause a map fault because it is reconciling the serial #'s.
I found this online which explains pretty much everything you need to know (probably not a bad idea to save it for reference):
https://joeklein.cc/page/EST-Class/EST3_Series_Technician_3100041_Rev_5.pdf
I don’t recall if a reboot 3 times will do it, it’s been a while. Restarting the panel causes all loops to remap.
I’ve spent the past several days (my free time, anyway) reading through the book & processing your info. One thought comes to mind today:
Thank You!
This helps clarify a great deal about the inner workings of the EST3.
Sure thing.
That is a really inefficient design IMO. There are better ways of creating a map of the system.
To add, map faults can occur when a programmer reloads a new map on the panel. as Old Fire Alarm Guy was saying sometimes the mapping sees a device having a T-tap, when in reality it doesn’t, and the new map doesn’t match the same exact wiring style as the previous map. This is caused by the contacts on the smoke/heat base not having a solid connection. Loosening the screws that hold the device to the box or bending the tabs out will remedy this issue most of the time.
I see the most common issue of maps faults being when a device ( high or low loop) is removed and the “in” and “out” wiring is swapped it will cause a map fault. Which was previously stated.
I have never heard of a way to clear the map fault without remapping from inside the program, but that doesn’t mean its not possible.