We've seen multiple areas where improvements can be made in existing N2 buses. From an electrical point of view the N2 bus follows the RS-485 standard with a N2+, N2-, and reference line. In many cases we will point you back to JCI documentation for details. We're not going to try to re-engineer the N2 bus technology. It is what it is.
We have seen many cases where either improper installations or just normal wear and tear over the years has taken its toll. It's also a fact that once you integrate to a legacy N2 bus with either the OPC-N2 Router or the BACnet-N2 Router it will be driven harder than it has ever been driven before. If anything is marginal, it will be exposed by the additional load put onto the system.
We always advise our integration partners to validate the N2 bus as part of determining the scope of an integration project. In fact, we advise them to specify in their contract that the customer deliver to them an in-spec and working N2 bus with working N2 devices attached to it. This controls your risk and possibly opens up the opportunity for change orders if repairs are needed.
What follows in this thread are some practical things that you can do to improve N2 Bus performance. Please add your own experiences in the Forum section.