Binding Concepts

Understand what bindings do, how they link variables to data points, and how transforms work.

What is a binding

A binding links a variable instance on an asset to a specific data point in a connector. It answers the question: "Where does this variable get its value from?"

Variable: active_power (Float, kW)
    └── Binding ──► Connector: Plant SCADA OPC UA
                        └── Address: ns=2;s=ActivePower

Without a binding, a raw variable has no data source and will not receive values. Only raw variables take bindings — derived and KPI variables hold computed values and have no connector to read from.

Binding properties

Property	Description
Variable	The variable instance this binding reads data for
Connector	The connector (data source) to read from
Address	Protocol-specific data point identifier (e.g., OPC UA node ID)
Scale	Multiplier applied to the raw value
Offset	Value added after scaling
Deadband	Minimum change threshold to trigger an update
Sampling Interval	How often to read the value (in milliseconds)
Enabled	Whether this binding is actively collecting data

See Binding Parameters for details on the transform fields.

Address formats

The address field format depends on the connector's protocol:

Protocol	Address Format	Example
OPC UA	Node ID	`ns=2;s=ActivePower`
Modbus TCP	Register type + address + data format	Holding Register 40001, 32-bit float

Each protocol has a dedicated address form in the binding editor with protocol-specific fields and validation. For OPC UA connectors, you can reference the connector's data model to find the correct node ID. For Modbus TCP connectors, the address form includes register type, start address, data format, and byte/word order fields.

Binding lifecycle

Created — binding is configured with connector, address, and parameters
Enabled — binding is active and the edge gateway reads data from the address
Disabled — binding is paused; no data is collected but the configuration is preserved
Deleted — binding is soft-deleted; can be restored if needed

Enable and disable

Each binding can be individually toggled on or off. Disabling a binding stops data collection for that variable without removing the binding configuration. Historical data is retained.

This is useful when you want to temporarily stop polling a data point — for example, during maintenance or troubleshooting — without losing the binding setup.

Auto-publish

Creating, updating, or deleting bindings can trigger automatic configuration publishing to edge deployments, depending on the site's auto-publish setting. This ensures the edge gateway picks up binding changes without manual intervention.