Uploading Siemens MM440 Parameters via Drive Monitor and STARTER

Field engineers commissioning the Siemens MicroMaster 440 (MM440) drive family (catalog series 6SE6440) frequently need to lift a complete parameter set from the drive to a PC for backup, cloning, or migration to a replacement unit. This reference documents three proven upload paths: USS over RS485 using the legacy DriveMonitor tool and the 6SE6400-1PC00-0AA0 PC connection kit, PROFIBUS DP with Drive ES Basic tied to an S7-416, and the recommended modern path: STARTER with the PC Adapter USB A2 (6ES7972-0CB20-0XA0). Each path is mapped to its hardware kit, terminal assignment, parameter set, and verification procedure so the upload completes on the first attempt without dropping the bus.

1. Overview: MM440 Parameter Upload Methods

The MM440 supports three communication paths for parameter upload. Selecting the right one depends on the host controller in service and the diagnostic tools already deployed at the site.

2. Prerequisites and Hardware Identification

Before connecting any adapter to the drive, verify the following items are in place.

• Drive: MicroMaster 440 (any firmware; the V1.x through V3.x parameter layouts differ from each other). Read the firmware version from the drive nameplate, e.g. FW V2.1, and record the rated power, voltage, and order number (6SE6440-2Uxxx-xxxx).
• Drive documentation: MM440 Operating Instructions (6SE6400-5AW00-0AP0) and MM440 Parameter List (6SE6400-5BP00-0AP0) for the parameter reference.
• PC: RS-232 (DB9) or USB port. For modern laptops without RS-232, use the USB-to-serial adapter bundled in the PC connection kit.
• Drive address: The MM440 USS address (parameter P2011[0] for COM link 1) must be known. Factory default is 0. If the drive has been commissioned, read the address from the BOP (Basic Operator Panel) before connecting.
• Power state: The control electronics of the MM440 are powered from the main DC bus. The drive does not need to be enabled (RUN), but main power must be present, or the drive must be powered from a 24 V auxiliary supply on terminals 31 / 32.

3. Method 1 — USS on RS485 with Drive Monitor and Kit 6SE6400-1PC00-0AA0

This is the most direct method when the drive is on a bench, in a panel, or in a cabinet and the PROFIBUS network is not available.

3.1 Kit contents (6SE6400-1PC00-0AA0)

The MM4 PC connection kit bundles everything required to bring a MicroMaster 4 drive online to a PC running DriveMonitor or STARTER.

• Isolated RS-232 ↔ RS-485 converter with screw terminals on the drive side and a DB9 on the PC side
• 9-pin SUB-D serial cable (PC to converter)
• DriveMonitor V5.4 DVD with the original Siemens PC-Parameter-Loader driver
• Quick-start guide with the terminal diagram and protocol settings

If the kit is no longer available, an equivalent isolated RS-232 ↔ RS-485 converter (e.g. Phoenix Contact PSM-ME-RS232/RS485-P) can be substituted, but the pinout on the drive side must be observed. A non-isolated converter is not acceptable when the PC and the drive cabinet are referenced to different grounds.

3.2 Terminal 29 / 30 wiring

The MM440's COM link is the two-wire RS-485 interface exposed on the upper row of control terminals.

Connect the two conductors from the converter's screw terminals to 29 and 30, observing polarity. A common-mode ground is not required when the converter is isolated; if it is non-isolated, terminate the cable shield at one end only.

3.3 Drive Monitor V5.4 setup sequence

1. Insert the DriveMonitor V5.4 DVD (or run the installer from the kit). Accept the default installation path C:\DriveMon.
2. Start DriveMonitor.
3. Open Online → Set Online Connection → USS Online Connection.
4. Configure the COM port settings to match the drive's P2010 value:
   • Port: COM1 (or whichever the USB-serial adapter is mapped to; verify in Windows Device Manager → Ports (COM & LPT))
   • Baud: 9600 (default for an out-of-box MM440)
   • Data bits: 8
   • Parity: Even
   • Stop bits: 1
   • Handshake: None
5. Set the drive address (P2011[0]). Default is 0.
6. Click Test. The status line should read "Drive responding on USS address 0". If not, the issue is at the bus or protocol level; refer to Section 11 (Troubleshooting Matrix).
7. Click Online. DriveMonitor reads the parameter set from the drive (approximately 6–12 s for a default parameter set, longer if the full index is selected).
8. Choose File → Upload Parameter Set from Drive. Save the resulting *.dnl file to a known path. The same file format is readable by STARTER via File → Open with the legacy import option.

3.4 Why cycling the baud rate alone will not fix a no-online condition

Baud rate mismatches are only one of five possible failure modes in a DriveMonitor USS bring-up. The full set is:

• Drive address (P2011[0]) ≠ address configured in DriveMonitor
• Baud rate (P2010) ≠ baud rate configured in DriveMonitor
• RS-485 A/B polarity swapped (29 to B, 30 to A)
• Isolation / ground loop: a non-isolated converter connected between a grounded PC and a drive with PE on the bus shield can saturate the bus driver
• P2014 (telegram off time) shorter than the PC's response latency — the drive drops the link before the parameter request completes

Therefore, simply cycling the baud selector is unlikely to bring the link up if any of the first, third, fourth, or fifth items is wrong.

4. Method 2 — PROFIBUS DP with Drive ES and an S7-416

When the MM440 is wired to a SIMATIC S7-416 via PROFIBUS DP, parameter upload is handled inside the SIMATIC environment with Drive ES Basic (the predecessor of the SIMATIC Drive ES package integrated with STARTER). In this configuration the PC connection kit is not required; the PG/PC is already on the same DP network.

4.1 Hardware requirement

Base MM440 units do not have a native PROFIBUS port. The PROFIBUS module slots into the top of the drive and corresponds to GSD file SIEM811F.GSD (MicroMaster 4 DP V1.0). Order number for the basic PROFIBUS option is 6SE6400-1PB00-0AA0.

4.2 STEP 7 configuration sequence

1. Open the STEP 7 project containing the S7-416 hardware configuration.
2. Open HW Config and add the MM440 from the catalog (path: PROFIBUS DP → Drives → Siemens AG → SIMOVERT / MICROMASTER 4).
3. Set the PROFIBUS address to match the rotary switch on the PROFIBUS module (default is 3).
4. Insert a DP slave slot for the drive and select a PPO type. For Drive ES parameter access, use PPO 1 (4 PKW + 2 PZD) — the PKW channel is what exposes the parameter list to the engineering tool.
5. Open Drive ES Basic from SIMATIC Manager → Options → Drive ES or via the context menu on the drive icon in HW Config.
6. When the Drive ES commissioning window opens, click Online → Connect to Drive.
7. Choose Drive → Upload to PG. Drive ES reads the parameter set and stores it as a *.dps file tied to the STEP 7 project.

5. Method 3 — STARTER with PC Adapter USB A2 (Recommended Modern Path)

For new projects, especially those that will be migrated to TIA Portal, the cleanest workflow is STARTER with the PC Adapter USB A2 (6ES7972-0CB20-0XA0).

5.1 Why STARTER is preferred over Drive Monitor

• Native support for current MM4 firmware versions and parameter sets
• Integrated trace, control panel, and expert list
• Same *.dps archive is importable into TIA Portal via the "Migrate device" function
• Runs on Windows 10 / Windows 11 64-bit
• USB connectivity avoids a serial-port dependency

5.2 Hardware and software

• STARTER V5.5 SP1 or later (DVD, part of Drive ES Basic V5.5 or available standalone) — see STARTER Getting Started.
• PC Adapter USB A2 (6ES7972-0CB20-0XA0) — a USB-to-MPI/PROFIBUS adapter that exposes the MM440's RS-485 as an MPI bus master to STARTER.
• PROFIBUS connector on the drive side if the drive is on a DP network; for a direct PC-to-drive connection, wire the adapter's MPI cable to MM440 terminals 29 and 30.

5.3 Procedure

1. Install STARTER and the PC Adapter USB driver. The driver is included in the package; the cable's USB side presents as a virtual COM port to STARTER.
2. Launch STARTER. From the project tree, click Insert Single Drive Unit → MICROMASTER 440. Select the firmware version observed on the drive nameplate.
3. Select PG/PC Interface from the Options menu and choose PC Adapter (MPI) with the COM port assigned to the USB cable.
4. Click Connect to target system. STARTER will scan the bus; the MM440 appears with its current bus address (default 0).
5. Right-click the drive → Load to PG/PC → Load hardware configuration to PG. This is the equivalent of Drive Monitor's upload but stores the result in the STARTER project.
6. For an offline archive, choose Project → Archive and save the *.zip archive. The archive can be unzipped and the *.dps file extracted for handoff.

6. Communication Parameters on the MM440

Before any of the three methods is used, the following drive parameters must be in a known state. The values below are the factory defaults. If the drive has been previously commissioned, check the actual values from the BOP (Basic Operator Panel) or via Drive Monitor's online list.

7. USS Protocol Frame Reference

The MM440's COM link implements the Siemens USS (Universal Serial Interface) protocol. Each request from the master is a 14-byte frame; each response from the drive is either 14 bytes (read/write of a single parameter) or 30 bytes (array read). The frame structure is fixed across the MM4 family.

DriveMonitor and STARTER encapsulate this protocol transparently; the engineer only sees the parameter list. However, when troubleshooting a custom tool, the BCC field is the most common source of errors — a single XOR mismatch causes the drive to silently drop the request with no error reply.

8. Wiring Reference: RS-485 Bus Topology

Figure 1 — RS-485 connection from a PC running Drive Monitor or STARTER to MM440 terminals 29 and 30 via the isolated converter supplied in kit 6SE6400-1PC00-0AA0.

9. Step-by-Step Upload Procedure (Recommended Path)

This consolidated procedure uses STARTER with the PC Adapter USB A2 and is the path recommended for any new field deployment.

1. Identify the drive: read the order number and firmware from the MM440 nameplate. Verify that STARTER V5.5 SP1 or later is installed on the PG/PC.
2. Connect the adapter: plug the PC Adapter USB A2 into the laptop's USB port. Connect the adapter's MPI cable to MM440 terminals 29 and 30, observing A/B polarity.
3. Power the drive: apply main power or auxiliary 24 V. The BOP should boot and display the drive state (e.g. ready).
4. Read address and baud: from the BOP, navigate to P2011[0] and P2010 and note the values.
5. Open STARTER: insert a new MM440 device in the project tree, matching the firmware version.
6. Configure the PG/PC interface: Options → Set PG/PC interface → PC Adapter (MPI) → Properties. Set the COM port to match the USB adapter, set baud to 187.5 kbps (default for PC Adapter MPI), and bus profile to MPI.
7. Connect online: click the Connect to target system button. The bus scan resolves the MM440 in 1–3 seconds.
8. Upload to PG: right-click the MM440 in the project tree and select Load to PG/PC → Load hardware configuration to PG. STARTER reads all visible parameters and stores them in the project.
9. Verify the upload: open the expert list and confirm that P0304 (motor voltage), P0305 (motor current), and P3900 (commissioning status) match the source drive. If any parameter shows a "??" or default value, the upload was truncated — re-try with P2014 raised to 8000 ms.
10. Archive the project: Project → Archive → Save as ZIP. Store the *.zip in the engineering repository.

10. Verification Checklist

After the upload completes, perform the following checks before considering the operation successful.

1. Checksum: in DriveMonitor, the upload dialog shows a checksum at the end of the upload; confirm it matches the source drive if a master file is available.
2. Parameter count: a factory-default MM440 has approximately 1100 parameters. If DriveMonitor returns fewer than 700, the upload was truncated; re-try with a longer telegram off time.
3. Online re-read: after saving, go offline, then go online again and read back a handful of representative parameters (e.g. P0304, P0305, P0307, P3900, P1082) to confirm the file matches the live drive.
4. File integrity: the saved *.dnl file should be > 50 KB for a full parameter set. Files under 10 KB usually indicate only the index was uploaded.
5. Restoration test: to prove the file is complete, download the saved set to a known-good MM440 of the same firmware, then go online and read back the parameters. They should match the original drive.
6. Fault buffer: read r0947 (fault code) and r0949 (fault value). A value of 0 in both confirms no faults were triggered by the upload itself.

11. Troubleshooting Matrix

12. File Format Migration: .dnl to .dps

DriveMonitor's *.dnl file is a legacy binary format used by Drive ES Classic. STARTER's *.dps is a structured XML archive inside a ZIP container. The migration path depends on the engineering environment.

• DriveMonitor → STEP 7 with Drive ES Basic: open the *.dnl directly in Drive ES via File → Open; Drive ES converts on load and saves as *.dps.
• DriveMonitor → STARTER (no Drive ES): launch STARTER offline, insert a new MM440 of matching firmware, go online, and load from the drive. The *.dnl cannot be imported directly; the upload must be repeated.
• STARTER → TIA Portal: open the TIA Portal project, add a new SINAMICS G120 or MICROMASTER 4 device in the device tree, and use Device → Migrate device → Import STARTER archive. The *.zip from STARTER is consumed directly.

13. Safety and Field Practices

• Parameter upload is a read-only operation with respect to the drive's controlling program, but it can briefly hold the bus. Do not perform an upload while a critical process is running through the drive; schedule it for a maintenance window.
• The MM440's COM link uses a single twisted pair. Do not run it in the same conduit as motor power cables; keep at least 200 mm of separation, or use a shielded cable grounded at the drive end only.
• When uploading to a drive that has been replaced under a warranty exchange, confirm the firmware version before writing parameters back. Siemens hardware exchange units sometimes ship with newer firmware than the original, and a parameter download with the wrong firmware metadata can brick the unit's startup sequence.
• If the drive is part of a safety chain (SIL-rated), the upload does not affect safety parameters stored in any safety module, but the resulting file is not a safety record and must not be used as evidence for safety acceptance tests.
• Document the parameter file's source: drive order number, serial number, firmware version, and date. The file name MM440_6SE6440-2UD21-1BA1_FWV2.1_2024-09-18.dnl is a recommended convention.

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