Defining modules - References - SIMATIC AX - AX Hardware Engineering documentation - Hardware Engineering,

A device in the .hwl.json file consists of one or more modules.

• A module can be defined in one of the following 3 different ways:
  • as part of the device node.
  • at the document level and included in the device using a module reference.
  • By defining a module template and applying that template in a device's module list

These three approaches can be combined in the same .hwl.json file or within a single device.

You can specify a module's type using the TypeIdentifier setting. There are two kinds of type identifiers you can use:

• For supported Siemens modules, the type can be specified using the OrderNumber and Version of the module. All controllers are like this.
• For IO devices from any manufacturer for which a "General Station Description" (GSD) file was installed, the type can be specified using the FileName and GsdId properties. For details, see Usage of GSD Devices/Modules.

Note that you cannot combine modules based on a GSD file with modules identified by order number and version in the same device. Further, when using modules based on GSD files, all modules in a device must be based on the same GSD file.

The following example shows aforementioned 3 different ways of defining modules:

• The device "Device1" consists of three modules
  • The "PLC_1" module is defined inline in the device's modules list.
  • The "DI" module is defined in the document's modules list.
    • The "DI" module is added to "Device1" by including a reference specifying the module's name to the device's module list ({ "Ref" : "DI" }).
  • The "DQ" module is defined in the document's templates list.
    • The "DQ" module is added to "Device1" by applying the defined "DQ_Template" template in the device's module list ({ "Apply": { "TemplateName": "DQ_Template" } }).

{
  "Devices": [
    {
      "Name": "Device1",
      "Modules": [
        {
          "Name": "PLC_1",
          "TypeIdentifier": {
            "OrderNumber": "6ES7 516-3AN01-0AB0",
            "Version": "V2.9"
          },
          "AccessProtection": {
            "AccessLevel": "NoAccess"
          },
          "Parameters": {
            "IPv4ForwardingActive": true
          },
          "Interfaces": [
            {
              "Name": "Interface1",
              "Label": "X1",
              "Addresses": {
                "Configured": [
                  { "IPv4": "192.168.0.10/24" }
                ]
              }
            }
          ]
        },
        { "Ref": "DI" },
        {
          "Apply": {
            "TemplateName": "DQ_Template"
          }
        }
      ]
    }
  ],
  "Modules": [
    {
      "Name": "DI",
      "TypeIdentifier": {
        "OrderNumber": "6ES7 521-1BL00-0AB0",
        "Version": "V2.2"
      },
      "IoConfiguration": {
        "InputAddress": "9"
      }
    }
  ],
  "Templates": {
    "Modules": [
      {
        "Name": "DQ_Template",
        "Content": {
          "Name": "DQ",
          "TypeIdentifier": {
            "OrderNumber": "6ES7 522-1BL01-0AB0",
            "Version": "V1.1"
          },
          "IoConfiguration": {
            "OutputAddress": "32"
          }
        }
      }
    ]
  }
}