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Siemens RUGGEDCOM RX1400

Siemens RUGGEDCOM portfolio is designed specifically for applications in the harshest environmental conditions. The RUGGEDCOM RX1400 is a multi-protocol intelligent node which combines Ethernet switching, routing and application hosting capabilities with various connectivity options (such as 3G, 4G and WiFi). It has multiple ways of accessing data within a network or with serial interfaces. Via its Application Communication Engine (ACE) it can serve as interface between the Blockbax Platform and protocols such as IEC 61850, Modbus and DNP3. On the Virtual Processing Engine (VPE) applications can be installed on to access this data and send it to Blockbax. For this example we are installing Node-RED with the Blockbax Nodes

Goal

The goal of this tutorial is to setup the serial connections, enable serial communications and send data to the Blockbax Platform.

Prerequisites

For this tutorial you will need:

  1. The VPE installed on the RX1400
  2. Access to the RX1400 WebUI
Steps
  1. Open the RX1400 webUI
  2. Go to: interface » serial » {port}, where {port} is the serial port you want to setup
  3. Configure the Baud-rate, Data-bits, Partity, Stop-bits and Port-type (RS-232 or RS-485) of your serial communication protocol
  4. Go to: interface » serial » {interface} » protocols where {interface} is the slot name and port number of the serial port
  5. Set the protocol to “vmserial”. Inside the VPE these serial ports will be presented as /dev/ttyAMA1 and /dev/ttyAMA2 for serial port 1 and 2 respectively. “vmserial” makes the ports accessible from within the VPE.
  6. Click Commit to save the changes

Now you should be able to communicate from the VPE with devices connected to this serial port.

  1. Now the “vmserial” is configured, make sure you
    1. Have access to the VPE via SSH
    2. Have internet connection from within the VPE to the outside
  2. We suggest to use Node-RED with our Blockbax nodes to send the data to our platform. Nevertheless, you can also install your own software on the VPE and use it to connect to the Blockbax Platform APIs.

Once your Siemens RUGGEDCOM RX1400 is connected you are able to use all the powerful Blockbax Platform features! Contact us if you need help.