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BACnet: A Data
Communication Protocol
for Building Automation
and
Control
Networks
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CS495 Computer Networking
Research Project

Submitted By:

Eric Durant

Submitted To:

Dr. Henry Welch

Date:

Wednesday 4 November 1997

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BACnet: A Data
Communication Protocol
for Building Automation
and Control Networks
Executive Summary
An overview of BACnet (ANSI1/ASHRAE2 Standard 1995-1353) is presented. The protocol,
network topology and data object types are examined with a focus on applications. Finally,
more detailed applications, including tag management and embedded control system data
structures are examined.

Introduction
BACnet is a four-layer protocol optimized for building automation and control networks. By
eliminating the three OSI layers that do not provide significant benefits to typical building
applications, the protocol is simplified and overhead greatly reduced. BACnet is compatible
with many existing physical standards, such as Ethernet, ARCNET and EIA-232. Low
standard data rates (9600 b/s) emphasize that BACnet is a reliable and robust protocol
optimized for small messages. BACnet also defines several standard data object types, using
the member-class relationship as the basis of its extensible conceptual data model.

American National Standards Institute

American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air-conditioning Engineers, Inc.
3
Approved 19 December 1995, ISSN 1041-2336.
2

Protocol Architecture
Due to the importance of modularity and division of function, BACnet is based on the sevenlayer OSI model. Emphasizing efficient, lightweight communication and optimized for small
networks, small internetworks and short messages (such as an analog input from a field
device), though, BACnet eliminates the transport, session and presentation layers (layers four
through six) of the OSI model.

Since BACnet is a connectionless protocol, the need for message segmentation and end-toend error checking is much less than in a connection-based protocol. Thus, the overhead of a
discrete transport layer is not justified and the functions normally in a transport layer are
delegated to the application layer. Likewise, since BACnet is connectionless, a session layer
is not needed. Further, since BACnet uses a fixed encoding scheme and offloads security to
the application layer, a separate
presentation layer is not needed.
This leaves four of the seven OSI
layers in the BACnet architecture:
physical, data link, network and

BACnet Layers

Equivalent
OSI Layers

BACnet Application Layer

Application

BACnet Network Layer

Network

ISO 8802-2 (IEEE 802.2)

Type 1
ISO 8802-3
(IEEE
802.3)

MS/TP

PTP

Data Link
LonTalk

ARCNET

EIA - 485

EIA - 232

application (see Figure 1). These

[adapted from Fig 4-2, p10 of ASHRAE Standard 135-1995.]

are discussed below.

Figure 1: BACnet Collapsed Architecture

Physical

Physical and Data Link Layers

BACnet provides five options encompassing the physical layer and data link layers. The
physical layer defines the electrical and signal carrying capabilities of the medium, while the
data link layer regulates medium access and packetizes data for the underlying physical
medium. The five options supported by BACnet follow are illustrated in Figure 1.

Network Layer
BACnet greatly simplifies the routing problem by declaring that there is exactly one path
between any two active nodes in the network. BACnet supports internetworking, and so
2

provides for local to global address translation, network translation, packet slicing and
sequencing.

Application Layer
The application layer provides applications access to BACnet data types, which are discussed
in greater detail below in Object Types (Defined and Extensible).

Network Topology
To support the widest variety of existing networks, BACnet supports four LAN architectures,
and both serial and dial-up asynchronous serial communications. In BACnet, repeaters
connect physical segments on the same physical layer to form logical BACnet segments.
Logical segments are connected by bridges to form networks. Networks are connected by
routers (or two half routers for point to point communications) to form a BACnet
internetwork.

Object Types (Defined and Extensible)

BACnet uses an object metaphor to access data in field devices connected to network nodes.
Several object types are defined (binary and analog values as inputs, outputs and software
values, devices, control loops, schedules, commands, files, etc.) with rich, strongly-typed
attributes. Being object-oriented, the majority of these types represent domain objects,
encapsulating their behavior (PID control, reliability range of sensors, engineering units, etc.).
Further, containership is implemented in the model, allowing constructs such as devices and
schedules. It is the responsibility of the field device interface to translate between the field
device data format and the BACnet data format. Additionally, BACnet supports an event
model, whereby devices can indicate that they have gone out of range, for example, triggering
error-handling logic. A variety of the BACnet object types are discussed below.

Binary Input
The binary input object type, representing a Boolean value input from a field device, is quite
robust in BACnet, having a total of 24 attributes. In addition to a unique identifier, type
identifier and assigned name, a binary input object holds the present input value, the physical
value, the physical to logical mapping, various status and reliability flags, time stamps for
change of state and counter reset and descriptions of both active and inactive states. Many of
these attributes are optional, but even if all the optional attributes are omitted, eight attributes
remain. All attributes are readable, per the specification. Certain elements may also be
writable, at the option of the designer.

Given the rich attributes of a binary input, several status flags are maintained. These allow
concise querying of the object for various conditions, including alarm state, fault state,
override state, and out of service state.
The descriptions of active and inactive states, stored as strings, allow documentation to be
kept with the device, achieving encapsulation in a physical system and supporting enhanced
diagnostics.

Analog Output
The analog output object type, representing a continuous value fed to a field device (such as
pressure to a pneumatic actuator), has 26 attributes, of which 16 are optional. Per the
specification, only the output value, which is stored as a real number, must be writable. Other
attributes may be writable depending on the implementation. The attributes are similar to
those of a binary input, but the analog output includes a reliability range, resolution, and
bipolar alarm limits.
Another useful attribute of the analog output is a reliability enumeration type. This attribute
may indicate no fault, open loop, shorted loop, no output, or other unreliable state. This
support for error conditions in the low level data structures encourages their use and provides
a standard way of registering errors, aiding error handling and documentation.
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Device
There is a one-to-one correspondence between a device object and a BACnet Device4. The
device object contains various domain attributes, such as vendor name, model name, firmware
revision, software version and physical location. It also encapsulates a day/date clock and
network interaction parameters (retry limit, timeout, etc.) for the device. The device also
contains an array of object identifiers, allowing the device to own more primitive objects,
such as its analog and digital I/O. Also provided is an introspection architecture, where the
device can tell a client which protocols and services it supports. The device object can support
56-bit DES encryption, preventing tampering on unsecured networks.

Loop
The loop object encapsulates a PID-type feedback control loop. It contains object identifiers
for its process variable (analog output or manipulated variable), controlled variable (analog
input) and setpoint (analog value). Detailed support is provided for engineering units for each
of the P, I and D constants. Additionally, bias settings and alarm events are specified in the
object type.

Command
A command object differs from most of the other data types specified by BACnet in that it
focuses on a process or method, not a state or attribute. A command object provides nonqueued primitive5 transaction support. A command is triggered by writing a command value
(perhaps an enumeration type) to its present value attribute. The command object contains
an array of actions and corresponding textual descriptions. In addition, a flag in the command
object indicates the completion and error status of the last operation. This is an ideal construct
for event handling and encapsulation of higher level behavior (analogous to stored
procedures in database terminology).

Applications
Although BACnets object model was designed with HVAC&R6 in mind, great efforts were
made to make the model general and extensible so as to promote use in other domains. While
other building systems (such as fire, security, lighting and access control) and industrial
control systems are perhaps the most obvious additional application areas for BACnet, any
SCADA7 system or embedded control system can benefit from elements of the BACnet
architecture and data model.

The Tag Problem

By tightly coupling attributes with their description and supporting hierarchical containership,
BACnet provides a tool to address the tag management problem, which often occurs, for
example, in PLC systems. For example, instead of only being able to associate short
descriptions and no behavior with physical addresses such as F22:3 and F31:7, the BACnet
model provides more robust primitives and the concept of device, allowing semantics to
flow naturally from syntax.

Parallels to Senior Design Object Architecture

In the authors senior design project8, data structures were used to represent external power
supplies and their capabilities. In this embedded control system, custom data structures were
also used to maintain system state and error status. Although the high digital control
bandwidth requirements of this project were not amenable to BACnets protocol architecture,
the BACnet data model would have provided insight to the data-modeling problem.
Especially helpful would have been the concepts of a device containing primitives, control
objects and primitives raising alarm events. Instead of developing these data models from

A BACnet device is defined as any device, real or virtual, that supports digital communication using
the BACnet protocol.
5
that is, roll-back is not supported in the reference object model
6
Heating, Ventilating, Air Conditioning and Refrigeration
7
Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition

scratch, the BACnet data model could have been scaled down and customized to meet the
needs of the embedded control application.

Summary
BACnet defines a protocol, network topology and object metamodel optimized for reliable
and brief object messaging on a LAN. Based on OSI and OOA principles, BACnet is readily
extended to many domains outside of the building automation and control networks for which
it was originally intended, such as other tag management applications and embedded control.
In many of these applications, a specific part of BACnet can be applied with great benefit,
while other needs are better served by different technologies.

Push-Button Power, a digitally controlled laboratory power supply with embedded measurement
see http://www.msoe.edu/~durante/seed/ for more information