Introduction

The UbidotsEdge is a recipe in the IntelligentEdge, designed to upload CDP Logger's data into the Ubidots IoT cloud at https://ubidots.com/ using MQTT.

UbidotsEdge serves as a data communication pipeline between CDP control systems, such as edge devices, and central telemetry and dashboard service in the Ubidots cloud platform. It leverages MQTT for data transmission, ensuring efficient data handling.

Configuration

The UbidotsEdge block requires a CDP Logger to also be present in the system. Optionally an MQTTBroker from MQTTIO can be added to the system for testing as a fallback when there is no Ubidots cloud connection set up.

API Key and Fallback Broker

The API Key is the primary credential for interfacing with Ubidots. If the API Key is not set or is invalid, UbidotsEdge defaults to a fallback MQTT broker at the local address 127.0.0.1:1883.

Architecture

ParametersUpdater

Responsible for updating parameters and ensuring that the EdgeName, RootTopic, and Ubidots Token received from Ubidots using the APIKey are consistently routed within the system.

ExternalControlBroker

Manages the REST mechanism for Ubidots Token retrieval.

ValueUploader

A sub-component that handles the upload process. It uses a ValueLogReader with RangeScanner to read logger data and a JSON encoder to format the data before publishing it to Ubidots via MQTT.

MQTTClient

This component manages the MQTT connection, subscribing and publishing to the Ubidots MQTT broker with the configured client parameters.

Operation Flow

• ParametersUpdater initializes with the set EdgeName, RootTopic, and APIKey.
• ParametersUpdater.ExternalControlBroker retrieves the Ubidots Token from Ubidots and configures the MQTT client parameters.
• ValueUploader reads logged values, encodes them in JSON format, and prepares them for upload.
• MQTTClient connects to the Ubidots MQTT broker and publishes the encoded data.

Integration with CDPLogger

The UbidotsEdge block works in conjunction with CDP Logger to send logged data to Ubidots. It automatically reads values logged by the default CDPLogger at <application IP>:17000 and publishes them to Ubidots in the "multi variable single value" JSON format:

{
  "temperature": 10,
  "humidity": 90,
  "pressure": 78,
  "timestamp": 1634311791000
}

Example CDPLogger Configuration

configure:
  - uri: .
    add:
      - name: CDPLogger
        model: CDPLogger.CDPLogger
        values:
          PeriodicLogFrequency: 0.1
        add:
          - name: SineA
            model: CDPLogger.LoggedValue
            values:
              Routing: ..Sine.Output
          - name: SineB
            model: CDPLogger.LoggedValue
            values:
              Routing: ..Sine1.Output

In this setup, the CDP Logger logs values from the Sine and Sine1 outputs, which are then automatically picked up by UbidotsEdge for transmission to Ubidots. The measurement names in Ubidots cloud will be the LoggedValue names SineA and SineB in the CDP Logger configuration.

Advantages

The IntelligentEdge block UbidotsEdge offers a streamlined, code-free approach to interfacing CDP applications with cloud-based IoT platforms. Its configuration-driven architecture reduces complexity and enables quick setup, making it an ideal solution for simple data transmission in IoT and edge computing applications.