Speed up Business 4.0 Adoption utilizing Containerized Gateway Companies

As a part of the Manufacturing sector’s digitization course of, Business 4.0 automation drives real-time, knowledge acquisition from industrial tools on the plant ground. This knowledge and rapid suggestions have grow to be a mission-critical requirement. As well as, latest provide chain disruptions have elevated the lead time to obtain edge {hardware} leading to a number of months delays to modernization initiatives. A few of the most difficult elements of the modernization course of contain organising machine connectivity, establishing a number of communication protocols, and buying the correct {hardware} to deploy at scale and throughout industrial websites. This weblog put up explains how one can deploy a number of cases of edge software program on a single machine. On this answer, we deploy one occasion for every setting (improvement and high quality) to keep away from needing to obtain extra {hardware} for every setting. The sting software program that we talk about embody AWS IoT SiteWise Edge utilizing AWS IoT Greengrass because the runtime setting and runs in a Docker container. You deploy the software program utilizing the AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK) and the GNU Make utility.

Stipulations

1. AWS Accounts_ – Two AWS accounts with default Amazon Digital Personal Cloud (Amazon VPC) subnet configuration. The accounts have to have ample AWS Identity and Access Management (IAM) permissions to launch Amazon EC2 cases, provision IoT Greengrass devices, and arrange AWS IoT SiteWise fashions and property. Word that the Amazon Machine Picture (AMI) we use within the setup is offered solely within the Northern Virginia (us-east-1) Area. You have to to repeat the AMI for deployment to different Areas.
2. Set up Docker and Docker Compose in your edge gateway machine to construct and deploy containers.
3. In your native improvement machine,
   1. Set up and configure the AWS Command Line Interface (AWS CLI) following the steps offered at Set up the AWS CLI.
   2. Set up AWS Cloud Development Kit (AWS CDK) to provision cloud assets. Confer with the AWS CDK Workshop to achieve hands-on expertise utilizing the AWS CDK.
   3. Clone the run-multiple-sitewise-gateways-using-containers pattern repo from GitHub following the steps offered at Cloning a repository.

Answer Walkthrough

For demonstration functions, let’s take into account an automotive manufacturing plant with a stamping manufacturing line comprising of two stamping presses. You ingest real-time measurement knowledge from every stamping press into two AWS environments (named improvement and high quality) utilizing two cases of the sting software program working on the identical edge {hardware}.

First, you simulate temperature and stress measurement values each 1 second utilizing Ignition software program put in on an Amazon Elastic Compute Cloud (Amazon EC2) instance. Subsequent, you create a digital illustration of the 2 stamping presses in AWS IoT SiteWise in each the event and high quality environments.

Lastly, you put together the sting gateway machine and deploy two cases of AWS IoT SiteWise Edge. You check the end-to-end knowledge movement from the Stamping Presses to AWS IoT SiteWise in each the event and high quality environments. Beneath is the structure diagram of the answer that we simply described:

Steps

1. Put together your environments

Use two AWS accounts to signify the event and high quality environments. You may both use present accounts or create new ones.

Word: Write down the 12-digit AWS account ID for every account as you have to them within the following steps.

   2. Simulate real-time measurement knowledge for industrial tools

Use the Ignition software program to arrange an OPC Unified Structure (OPC UA) simulator server. Set up the software program on an Amazon EC2 occasion, and configure pattern tags to simulate temperature and stress knowledge for the stamping presses.

   2.1 Select your goal setting

Choose the setting the place you’ll deploy your cloud assets. First, you select the AWS account that represents your improvement setting.

While you return to this part for deploying the answer a second time on the standard setting, choose the AWS account that represents your high quality setting.

To decide on the goal setting, replace the account and area parameters within the iot-factory-cdk/cdk.json file.

Word: The Group Amazon Machine Picture (AMI) for Ignition is at the moment accessible solely within the us-east-1 Area. In the event you want to deploy the answer in one other Area, you may copy the AMI utilizing the steps offered at Copy an AMI.

2.2 Set up Ignition software program

Launch an Amazon EC2 occasion and set up the Ignition software program utilizing AWS CDK. (In a real-world state of affairs, as an alternative of an Amazon EC2 occasion, you could possibly use edge {hardware} inside your manufacturing facility.)

Change the listing to iot-factory-cdk and problem the next command to deploy a CDK stack, which incorporates all of the assets wanted to run Ignition.

cdk deploy OPCUAInstanceStack

Navigate to the AWS CloudFormation Console to confirm the deployment and search for a stack named OPCUAInstanceStack.

Word: Write down the EC2IP, EC2PublicIP, and EC2Port parameter values. You’ll use them within the following steps.

2.3 Configure the Ignition software program to simulate knowledge

Now that you’ve got put in Ignition software program, let’s configure it to simulate the info for the stamping presses. (In a real-world state of affairs, Ignition sometimes collects knowledge from industrial tools, akin to stamping presses, via Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs).

To configure Ignition, entry an internet browser. Permit inbound HTTP visitors to the underlying Amazon EC2 occasion internet hosting Ignition by following the directions at Authorize inbound traffic for your Linux instances. Alternatively, chances are you’ll take into account organising port forwarding as demonstrated in this blog post to keep away from entry to the occasion from the general public IP tackle by securely create tunnels between your cases.

Launch Ignition utilizing the URL http://<EC2PublicIP> and log in utilizing the default credentials (username: admin, password: password). Exchange EC2PublicIP with the worth famous in step 2.2.

You might need to change the default credentials following the directions at Gateway Security earlier than continuing.

Now, create a knowledge simulator machine to signify manufacturing line 1 and two stamping presses following the steps under:

• Navigate to Config > OPC UA > System Connections.
• Create a brand new machine utilizing Create new System > Programmable System Simulator > Subsequent and use Manufacturing Line 1 as its identify. Then, select Create New System.
• Load an present program to simulate knowledge for temperature and stress measurements.
  • Select Extra > edit program > Load Simulator Program > Load from CSV possibility.
  • Browse to iot-factory-cdk/iot_factory_cdk/stacks/opcua_datasource /simulator_program_instructions.csv and choose Load Simulator Program.
  • Select Save Program.

Your knowledge simulator machine is prepared. Ignition begins simulating knowledge for all 4 measurements each 1 second.

3.Create a digital illustration of commercial tools

Create asset models and assets to digitally signify your stamping line and two stamping presses.

Challenge the next command to deploy a CDK stack. This consists of all of the assets wanted from AWS IoT SiteWise.

cdk deploy SiteWiseAssetStack

Confirm the AWS IoT SiteWise assets by navigating to the AWS IoT SiteWise console → Property. You need to see the property arrange as proven within the following screenshot.

AWS IoT SiteWise console with property and asset hierarchy displayed