What B-OD Is
A BACnet device profile is a standardized capability level: a checklist of things a device must be able to do before it can wear the label. B-OD (BACnet Operator Display) is the simplest operator-interface profile, defined in Annex L of ANSI/ASHRAE 135-2024 (clause L.1.4) as a basic operator interface with limited capabilities. It presents data and lets an operator adjust setpoints, but it is not intended to perform direct digital control.
The checklist items are BACnet Interoperability Building Blocks (BIBBs), each a named unit of capability such as “can send a read request” (DS-RP-A). B-OD is an operator-side (client) profile: where a controller profile like B-BC mostly answers requests, a B-OD device mostly sends them, and it receives event notifications rather than generating them. A device documents its profile claim in its PICS (Protocol Implementation Conformance Statement); to verify a claim, ask for the PICS and check the profile line.
Where It’s Used
B-OD fits the small, fixed-function display rather than the full engineering workstation.
- Wall-mounted room displays. An LCD in a lobby or corridor showing zone temperatures and letting a user nudge a setpoint.
- Displays built into equipment. A screen affixed to a rooftop unit or plant skid that reads a handful of points off the local controllers.
- Handheld terminals. A simple service tool a technician carries to read values and adjust parameters, without the full capability of an operator workstation.
Required Services
The table below is the service set required by the B-OD BIBBs. Initiates means the device sends the request or notification; Executes means the device receives and acts on it (responding, for confirmed services). BIBB codes encode the same split: a -A BIBB is the initiating side, a -B BIBB the executing side. A - means the profile does not require that direction; a device may still support it.
| Capability area | Service | Required by BIBB | Initiates | Executes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Data sharing | ReadProperty | DS-RP-A, DS-RP-B, DS-V-A | Yes | Yes |
| Data sharing | WriteProperty | DS-WP-A, DS-M-A | Yes | - |
| Alarm and event management | ConfirmedEventNotification | AE-N-A, AE-VN-A | - | Yes |
| Alarm and event management | UnconfirmedEventNotification | AE-N-A, AE-VN-A | - | Yes |
| Device and network management | Who-Is | DM-DDB-A, DM-DDB-B | Yes | Yes |
| Device and network management | I-Am | DM-DDB-A, DM-DDB-B | Yes | Yes |
| Device and network management | Who-Has | DM-DOB-B | - | Yes |
| Device and network management | I-Have | DM-DOB-B | Yes | - |
The DS-V-A (View) and DS-M-A (Modify) BIBBs describe presenting values to a person and letting them change setpoints; both fold onto the ReadProperty and WriteProperty services already in the table, so the profile adds no new wire service beyond them.
Related Profiles
| Profile | How it differs from B-OD |
|---|---|
| B-OWS | Operator Workstation: a step up, adds scheduling and trend viewing and a wider data-sharing and alarm set |
| B-AWS | Advanced Workstation: the full operator interface, adds alarm acknowledgment, backup and restore coordination, and device management |
| B-BC | Building Controller: the device side. It answers the requests a B-OD sends and generates the notifications a B-OD displays |
What Chipkin Provides
B-OD is an operator-side profile: its initiating and notification-receiving behavior is implemented in Chipkin’s BACnet test tooling rather than the shipping device stack, which targets the server-side controller profiles. Talk to us about building or integrating a B-OD operator interface.