Industrial

Software Module for Connecting Modbus TCP Controllers to Industrial IoT Applications

Container Technology with Access to Data from Modbus TCP Controllers or Sensors via OPC UA and MQTT with Flexible Deployment Options for Higher-level Applications

As a flexible Docker container is dataFEED edgeConnector Modbus suitable for accessing Modbus TCP controllers, e.g. from Schneider Electric, Wago, Beckhoff or Phoenix Contact. In addition, many other manufacturers also support the open communication interface Modbus TCP. The product has an integrated OPC UA Server for simple and secure data connectivity to higher-level management systems, such as ERP, MES or SCADA systems. As part of an overall solution architecture the implemented OPC UA communication protocol can also be used for data exchange with other Docker containers such as Microsoft OPC Publisher or AWS IoT SiteWise.

In addition, an MQTT interface is available for direct integration of control data into private or public IoT cloud applications, supporting a variety of different cloud providers. Like OPC UA, MQTT also provides modern security mechanisms such as encryption, certificate management and user authentication, thus contributing to high data security.

dataFEED edgeConnector Modbus can be managed locally via a web interface or remotely via a REST API. The configuration is simple and flexible. Precisely tuned security settings for instance include role-based access rights for OPC UA Client applications.

Overview

Access to data in Modbus controllers by OPC UA clients

  • Read and write access to Modbus controls, e.g. from Schneider Electric, Wago, Beckhoff, Phoenix Contact, etc.
  • Integration of higher-level management systems such as ERP, MES or process visualization via integrated OPC UA server
  • Standardized OPC UA communication for data integration or for data exchange with other docker containers like Microsoft OPC Publisher or Amazon AWS IoT SiteWise
  • Suitable for retrofit upgrades of existing systems, thus protecting previous investments
  • Namespace configuration using a text file created by the user with standard Modbus syntax
  • Creation of up to 20 Modbus-TCP connections with a container runtime

Easy cloud-driven or local deployment

  • Images available in different online repositories like Docker Hub, Azure Container Registry (ACR)
  • Simple data transmission to an MQTT broker using the MQTT publisher functionality for local or cloud-based solutions
  • Recipe manager functionality for writing process data from the cloud to controllers (MQTT Subscriber)
  • Licensing via Softing Floating License Server

Lightweight Flexible Container Solution

  • Less resources plus increased scalability and flexibility
  • Support of security standards as SSL/TLS, X.509 certificates, authentication and data encryption
  • Highly flexible state-of-the-art application to be started or stopped immediately, if needed
  • Deployment and configuration also via management systems such as Kubernetes, Azure IoT Edge or AWS IoT Greengrass

Technical Data

edgeConnector Modbus    
Supported Controllers Modbus TCP-compatible controllers (Schneider Electric, Wago, Beckhoff, Phoenix Contact, etc.)
Supported Protocols
  • OPC UA, MQTT
  • Modbus TCP
Supported MQTT Specifications V3.1, V3.1.1 & V5
Supported MQTT Features
  • MQTT Publisher & Subscriber
  • TCP, TLS/SSL, WS, WSS, (including certificates)
  • QoS, Retain, Last Will & Testament
  • Store & Forward
Supported OPC Specifications OPC Unified Architecture V1.04
OPC UA Roles OPC UA Server
OPC UA Profiles Data Access
OPC UA Security Security methods Aes256Sha256-RsaPss
Aes128SHA256-RsaOaep
Basic256Sha256
Basic256
Basic128Rsa15
None
  Authentication Anonymous
Username and password
Certificate
OPC Compliance Test based on compliance test tools of OPC Foundation
Configuration Interface Authentication 
  • Username / Password
  • LDAP/LDAPS
Logging, Diagnostics
  • Built-in trace and audit logging facilities, configurable and accessible through the web interface Docker integrated trace logging
  • Prometheus Metrics Information
Supported Operating Systems Linux (Docker Engine), Windows 10 und Windows 11 (Docker Desktop), Windows Server 2019 und Windows Server 2022 (Docker Enterprise Edition)
Supported Architectures AMD64, ARM64, ARM32
Supported Container Orchestration Systems Kubernetes (K8s), Amazon ECS
Minimum Hardware Requirements 320 MB free disk space, 2 GB RAM
Licensing Licensed via Softing Floating License Server
Demo Version 20 PLC connections timed at 72 hours
REST-API Access using the edgeConfigurator, download via Docker Hub

Order Information

Scope of Delivery  
Software dataFEED edgeConnector Modbus, download via Docker Hub or Azure Marketplace
License Key E-mail delivery
Documentation Online help (German / English) and online: https://github.com/SoftingIndustrial
Order Numbers *  
LRA-XX-151001 edgeConnector – Basic License (1 Connection)
LRA-XX-151005 edgeConnector – Basic License (5 Connections)
LRL-XX-151010 edgeConnector – Basic License (10 Connections)
LRA-XX-151020 edgeConnector – Basic License (20 Connections)
LRA-XX-151055 edgeConnector – Basic License (ADD 5 Connections)
Order Numbers (Software Upgrades)   
LMA-XX-151001 edgeConnector – 1 Year Software Upgrades for Basic License (1 Connection)
LMA-XX-151005 edgeConnector – 1 Year Software Upgrades for Basic License (5 Connections)
LMA-XX-151010 edgeConnector – 1 Year Software Upgrades for Basic License (10 Connections)
LMA-XX-151020 edgeConnector – 1 Year Software Upgrades for Basic License (20 Connections)
LMA-XX-151055 edgeConnector – 1 Year Software Upgrades for Basic License (ADD 5 Connections)
Additional Products and Services
LRA-XX-155100 edgeAggregator – OPC UA Connection 100, license for hundred (100) OPC UA Server connections.

* edgeConnector Licenses already include their respective 1 Year Software Upgrade license (LMA-XX-)

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Softing Inc.

+1.865.251-5252

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