Integrate IoT devices, mesh networks and IoT gateways with RoboMQ
Posted by user on Feb 18, 2016 1:17:00 PM
This article assumes that you have signed up a free trial or a subscription of RoboMQ. If you have not, please signup for a free trial. The free trial will allow you to connect up to 5 devices. It is a great way to get started and build your prototype and MVPs.
(Note: This article will be mainly focused on the integration between B+B Smartworx and RoboMQ. If you have questions specifically about B+B Smartworx not covered in this blog, you may refer to its documentation at http://bb-smartsensing.com/technical-documentation/ )
B+B Wzzard kit consists of an IoT gateway and several mesh network-connected edge nodes . Nodes and the Gateway communicate with each other over ZigBee mesh network. The gateway provides the last mile IP connectivity and it can connect to Internet or private networks using Ethernet or Cellular connectivity with provision of a backup/fail-over connectivity option. The nodes collect data from attached sensors and publish the data in JSON format using MQTT protocol through the IoT gateway. There are different types of edge nodes with built in support for different types of sensors.
Ok… So lets get to work and get started. The setup is as simple as 1-2-3…
- Wire your sensors to a B+B edge node
- Configure the gateway to connect to RoboMQ Integration Middleware
- Configure the nodes to connect to the IoT gateway and send the data of interest
Let’s further break down each step with more details:
1) Wire your sensors to a B+B edge node
- Network ID & Join Key: Remember them! Nodes will connect to the gateway using these as the credential. This is the credential and joining key for local mesh network.
- MQTT Broker Enable & MQTT Broker Port: Keep the “MQTT Broker Enable” to Off.
- MQTT Bridge Enable: On. (This is needed to have the device nodes and the gateway connect to RoboMQ)
- MQTT Bridge Port: 1883
- MQTT Bridge Address: The IP address or FQDN of broker. You must configure DNS server for the gateway if you choose FQDN.
- MQTT Bridge User: Your RoboMQ tenant ID + “:” + Your RoboMQ username
- MQTT Bridge Password: Your RoboMQ tenant password
- MQTT Bridge Client Identifier: Unique ID for each B+B Smartworx gateway.
- Click Save.
1. The APP will scan for B+B nodes over the bluetooth. Long press configuration button on the node to prepare it for configuration, then s elect the node in the APP .
2. Once on the Radio Setup screen, input the Network ID & Network Join Key that you configured and took note while configuring the IoT gateway. Also enter the Username and Password. If you have not already changed it, then the default username is “admin” and default password is “admin”. Click “Save” once done.
3. Now go back to “Select a category screen” as shown in Figure 5 and select “Sensor Setup”. It should present you with the screen as shown below.
Topic
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Payload
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":2,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:58Z","q":192,"c":5,"do2":false,"ai1":2.0,"ai2":2.03}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":2,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:58Z","q":192,"c":5,"tempint":71.9,"vbatt":3.29}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":1,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:48Z","q":192,"c":5,"ai2":2.03}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":1,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:48Z","q":192,"c":5,"do2":false,"ai1":2.02}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":1,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:48Z","q":192,"c":5,"tempint":73.0,"vbatt":3.29}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":0,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:38Z","q":192,"c":5,"ai2":2.03}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":0,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:38Z","q":192,"c":5,"do2":false,"ai1":2.02}
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BB.0013430F2535.data
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{"s":0,"t":"2015-11-24T20:14:38Z","q":192,"c":5,"tempint":72.6,"vbatt":3.29}
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With RoboMQ, you have endless options for the use of the sensor data. You could use the real-time analytics engine as mentioned above. You could alternatively integrate the sensor data with Salesforce, CRM, relational databases, MongoDB, CouchDB, analytics engines or operational system. RoboMQ provides ThingsConnect suite of adapters and connectors to connect all SaaS and enterprise systems with Internet of Things over any standard integration protocol. You may refer to our blog on how to connect your device data to Salesforce at http://robomq.blogspot.in/2015/04/hello-i-need-help-iot-devices-talking.html . This blog talks about the use case of a device creating a case in Salesforce upon observing an abnormal environmental condition.
As you might have experienced yourself by now, Any-to-Any integration is extremely easy with RoboMQ. Sign up for a free trial today and please feel free to reach out to us at info@robomq.io for further assistance. If you need more assistance, you may engage us for a proof of concept to give us an opportunity to show how we can help you realize your next IoT killer app!!
Topics: Advantech, B&B Smartworx, Device to Dashboard, Internet of Things, IoT analytics, IoT Gateway, IoT Visualization, M2M, Mesh Networks, MQTT