Raffstore venetian blinds — aluminium slatted blinds that simultaneously shade and preserve daylight — are standard in Central European new construction. Getting their KNX automation right requires coordinating four independent control inputs (sun, wind, rain, manual) through a priority hierarchy, correctly parameterising the actuator, and integrating a weather sensor whose data stream is more complex than a simple on/off signal. Here is the complete setup guide.

Elsner P04-KNX-GPS sensor channels

The Elsner P04-KNX-GPS is the most capable single-sensor option on the market for Raffstore automation. It delivers all weather inputs required in one device with one KNX address and one outdoor cable run. Its communication objects and corresponding DPT types: **Sun East intensity** — DPT 9.004 (lux, 0–99,999), KO for eastern facade sun load. **Sun South intensity** — DPT 9.004 (lux), primary value for south-facing Raffstore groups. **Sun West intensity** — DPT 9.004 (lux), for western facades. **Wind speed** — DPT 9.005 (m/s), continuously updated ultrasonic measurement; no moving parts to ice up. **Wind alarm** — DPT 1.005 (alarm bit), pre-processed by the sensor at the configured threshold — both the raw speed and this processed alarm bit are useful. **Rain** — DPT 1.005 (alarm bit), optical detection; output goes TRUE within 2 seconds of the first drop. **Ambient temperature** — DPT 9.001 (°C), useful for HVAC setpoint feed. **Twilight** — DPT 1.001 (1-bit), low-light flag for scene fallback. The GPS module inside the P04-KNX-GPS calculates sun azimuth and elevation autonomously — the sensor suppresses sun alarm telegrams when the sun is behind the facade (azimuth outside the configured facade window), avoiding blind activation from reflected light or low-angle winter sun that does not actually load the facade.

MDT JAL-04UP parameter pages

The MDT JAL-04UP.02 is a 4-channel Raffstore actuator with integrated logic for all weather inputs. Its ETS6 parameter structure determines how the actuator responds to incoming telegrams. The critical parameter pages:

Channel configuration: Select mode "Venetian blind (Raffstore)" for each channel. This enables the slat angle object alongside the position object. Set slat travel time (measure with stopwatch during test run — typically 1.5–2.5 seconds for a full 90° slat rotation). Set total travel time for position calibration.

Sun automation parameters: Lux threshold (e.g. 40,000 lux for south facade — adjust per orientation and client preference). Sun automation activates when the sun object exceeds this value continuously for the hold time configured (typically 60 seconds to avoid activation from a momentary cloud break). Target position when sun active: 100% (fully lowered). Target slat angle when sun active: 50% (half-open — blocks direct sun, maintains diffuse daylight). Sun inactivation delay: 300 seconds (5 minutes of sun dropping below threshold before blinds retract — prevents cycling on passing clouds).

Azimuth and elevation table: The P04-KNX-GPS suppresses the sun alarm autonomously via its internal GPS calculation, so the actuator does not need to re-calculate sun position. However, if using an Elsner P04 without GPS, the MDT actuator can filter by azimuth range (min/max degrees) using an external sun position source — configure the facade orientation offset in the actuator parameters.

Wind alarm group address: Connect the Elsner P04 wind alarm KO (1-bit) to the actuator's wind alarm input GA. Wind alarm response: go immediately to position 0% (fully raised), block all other position commands, hold for the configured wind release delay (typically 600 seconds / 10 minutes). This hold time is critical — see common mistakes below.

Rain alarm group address: Connect the Elsner P04 rain alarm KO (1-bit) to the actuator's rain alarm input GA. Rain response: raise to 0%, hold 1800 seconds (30 minutes) after rain clears. Rain alarm affects textile-covered Raffstore frames (fabric headboxes) — for fully aluminium Raffstore without textile, rain alarm can be configured with a shorter hold or no raise action, depending on manufacturer spec.

Manual override parameters: Manual move duration before override activates: configure in the actuator (some MDT versions use 1 telegram = override on, next telegram = clear override). Override timeout: 7200 seconds (2 hours) — after 2 hours without manual input, automation resumes automatically. This prevents the occupant blocking automation all day by pressing a switch once in the morning.

Override priority hierarchy

The MDT JAL-04UP implements a priority chain where lower numbers win. Understanding this prevents integration errors: **Priority 1 — Alarm/safety:** Emergency contact input (not used in most residential projects, reserved for building management). **Priority 2 — Wind and rain:** Wind alarm and rain alarm both sit at this level. If either is active, the blind goes to position 0% and all lower-priority commands are blocked. Wind and rain cannot conflict — wind wins by occupying priority 2 first; rain holds it at the same level until its own delay expires. **Priority 3 — Sun automation:** Sun tracking logic. Active only when priority 2 is inactive. Calculates position and slat angle based on lux threshold and hold times. **Priority 4 — Manual operation:** Pushbutton or KNX scene from manual input. Overrides sun automation (priority 3) but is itself overridden by wind/rain (priority 2). Manual override timeout (2 hours) returns control to priority 3 automatically. **Priority 5 — Time/scene scheduler:** KNX weekly scheduler, morning/evening positions, scene recall. Lowest priority — overridden by any active higher-priority input. The most common configuration error is wiring the manual pushbutton to the same GA as the sun automation position object, which means manual presses compete with sun logic at the same priority level and produce unpredictable behaviour. Always use the actuator's dedicated manual override GA or set the pushbutton to a higher-priority position object.

ETS6 commissioning procedure

1. Download ETS application for MDT JAL-04UP.02 from MDT product page. Import into ETS6 project. Assign individual address. 2. Configure Elsner P04-KNX-GPS: set facade orientation (azimuth of facade normal in degrees from north — south facade = 180°), set azimuth tolerance (±60° typically), set elevation minimum (15°), set lux threshold for each axis, set wind alarm threshold (m/s), set wind release delay (seconds). Download to sensor. 3. In ETS6, create group addresses for each channel: wind alarm input (1-bit), rain alarm input (1-bit), sun lux south input (DPT 9.004), position command (DPT 5.001), slat command (DPT 5.001), position status feedback (DPT 5.001), slat status feedback (DPT 5.001). 4. Connect Elsner P04 communication objects to the actuator input GAs. 5. Download actuator parameters and filter table. Perform physical commissioning: run full travel cycle (ETS diagnostic mode → move to 100%, move to 0%) to calibrate end positions. Test slat angle through full range. Confirm position and slat feedback objects return correct values. 6. Test priority chain: trigger wind alarm manually (connect wind alarm GA to value 1 in ETS online mode). Confirm blind raises and stays raised. Remove wind alarm. Confirm 10-minute hold before lowering. Test sun automation with lux object set above threshold. Confirm position and slat angle. Trigger manual override. Confirm sun automation resumes after timeout.

Common mistakes

No sun inactivation hold time → blind cycles on every cloud: If the sun inactivation delay is set to 0 seconds, the blind raises as soon as lux drops below threshold (on every passing cloud) and lowers again when sun returns. This rapidly wears the drive motor and is extremely annoying for occupants. Always set a 3–5 minute inactivation delay. Wind alarm hold too short → retraction before gusts stop: Wind is gusty by nature. A 30-second wind release delay means the blind starts lowering again during a lull between gusts. Set wind release delay to at least 600 seconds (10 minutes). Slat angle at 100% (fully closed) during sun automation: This maximises heat blocking but eliminates all daylight — occupants switch to artificial lighting and the energy benefit of shading is partially lost. Use 40–60% slat angle (partially open) for comfort shading. Missing feedback GAs: Without position and slat feedback connected to KNX status group addresses, the room display shows "assumed" position that drifts after any manual operation or power failure. Always wire feedback objects. Forgetting to download the filter table after GA changes: If you add a new GA binding after the initial ETS download, the coupler/router filter table must be re-downloaded. Failing to do this is the most common cause of "telegram not arriving at actuator" on multi-line installations.