netFIELD Application - Packing and shipping connectivity logic in app containers
The netFIELD Application encompasses Hilscher's software domain, designed to package and deliver applications within containers. Its primary aim is to provide software gateways that enable standardized data connectivity. These gateways typically communicate with OT networks on one side, converting the data into structured JSON objects, and then exchange it with IT applications on the other side. The containers complement customer software whenever data connectivity is a challenge.
netFIELD App … | Status | Description | Product name | Part number | Hardware prerequisites | License model | Web presence |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
MQTT Broker |
| The “netFIELD App MQTT Broker” is the open-source MQTT Message Broker Mosquitto packed in a container and runs on netFIELD Edge devices. | NFA-MQT-SUB | 1917.013 | - | Free (App available on netfield.io , requiring a subscription) |
|
Platform Connector |
| The “netFIELD App Platform Connector” allows the user-definable data exchange between netFIELD Edge devices and the netFIELD Cloud. | NFA-PFC-SUB | 1917.000 | LAN port | Free (App available on netfield.io, requiring a subscription) | |
Edge Monitor |
| The “netFIELD App Edge Monitor” monitors the utilization (resource consumption, online status, and configuration information) of netFIELD Edge devices and transmits this information to netFIELD Cloud | NFA-EDM-SUB | 1917.005 | LAN port | Free (App available on netfield.io , requiring a subscription) | |
License Server |
| The "netFIELD App License Server" is a network license server for embedded devices and platforms. It stores and hosts software licenses a user has installed into it over its web ui and is then providing the licenses information to requesting apps on demand. | NFA-LIC-SRV | 1917.099 | - | Free (App available in public on hub.docker.com) | |
PROFINET Tap |
| The “netFIELD App PROFINET Tap” analyzes PROFINET network traffic in real time, filters the process data exchanged between the devices and the controller and tranforms it into the IIoT protocol MQTT as a client. | NFA-PNT-OTP | 1917.057 | LAN port or netX100 network controller ports | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com) | |
EtherCAT Tap |
| The “netFIELD App EtherCAT” analyzes EtherCAT network traffic in real time, filters the process data exchanged between the devices and the controller and tranforms it into the IIoT protocol MQTT as a client. | NFA-ECT-OTP | 1917.058 | netX100 network controller ports | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com ) | |
IO-Link Adapter |
| The "netFIELD App OPC UA IO-Link Adapter" serves as a software gateway that is periodically extracting process data of IO-Link devices from multiple IO-Link masters the same time that do support services in accordance with the OPC UA for IO-Link Companion Specification and converting it into MQTT topics. | NFA-OPA-OTP | 1917.061 | LAN port | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com) | |
IO-Link Configurator |
| The "netFIELD App IO-Link Configurator" enables configuring IO-Link devices over those IO-Link masters that do support services in accordance with the OPC UA for IO-Link Companion Specification. | NFA-IOC-OTP | 1917.062 | LAN port | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com) | |
MQTT to OPC UA Converter |
| The “netFIELD App MQTT to OPC UA Converter” subscribes to configurable topics from an MQTT broker and converts the data to an secondary-side operated OPC UA server | NFA-OPS-OTP | 1917.065 | LAN port | License purchase (App available on netfield.io, requiring a subscription) |
|
OPC UA to MQTT Converter |
| The "netFIELD App OPC UA to MQTT Converter" functions as an OPC UA client, aggregating configurable data objects from one or more OPC UA servers and publishing them as topics to an external MQTT broker | NFA-OPC-OTP | 1917.059 | LAN port | License purchase (App available on netfield.io, requiring a subscription) | |
PROFINET Device | (Available end of december 2024) | The "netFIELD App PROFINET Device" container acts as a software gateway, exchanging input and output process data as a PROFINET IO device with a PROFINET controller on one side, while on the other, it exchanges the same data as JSON-encoded payloads with an external MQTT broker as an MQTT client. | NFA-PND-OTP | 1917.054 | netX100 network controller ports | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com ) | |
Modbus Adapter | (Available January 2025) | The container “netFIELD App Modbus to MQTT Adapter” enables host devices, such as edge gateways, to exchange data between Modbus RTU or TCP server devices and user applications via an MQTT message bus. | NFA-MBU-OTP | 1917.066 | Serial port or LAN port | License purchase (App available in public on hub.docker.com ) | <about to be created> |
The input protocols supported by various containers are those commonly found in typical industrial environments, such as PROFINET, EtherCAT, EtherNet/IP, or even IoT protocols like OPC UA. All containers use the MQTT protocol as a common protocol for outbound communication. This, in turn, means that in every case, a complementary MQTT broker is required to serve as a central data hub through which every informative data message is passed and shared among other applications.
Message transmission via the MQTT message bus occurs in two ways: there are applications that want to send data (referred to as publishers) and those that want to receive data (referred to as subscribers), both commonly known as MQTT clients. The clients establish a connection to the MQTT broker and are data-coupled using unified and known to each other labels called topics. opics name the subject of a data message and are encoded as unique and distinguishable UTF-8 encoded strings, typically hierarchically divided and separated by a forward slash "/" between the levels.
All Hilscher containers handle MQTT topic names and their JSON-encoded payload according to the reference architecture and guidelines of the Open Industry 4.0 Alliance (OI4). This makes them compatible with all sorts of other applications conforming to this information model and service. OI4 compatibility ensures seamless information exchange between apps and expedites the creation of a value-oriented Industry 4.0 solution such as data visualization, analysis, anomaly detection, and machine learning.