What is the purpose of this article?
This article outlines the steps to configure Ignition SCADA by Inductive Automation® so it can connect to an MQTT broker (HiveMQ in this guide) and visualize Rheonics sensor data remotely. Rheonics sensor data is published via MQTT to an MQTT broker, allowing Ignition to subscribe, enabling real-time visualization. This allows operators to access sensor data remotely.
TABLE OF CONTENTS
1. Configuring Ignition SCADA
Using the Ignition SCADA software, it is possible to connect to an MQTT broker and subscribe to the topics where Rheonics sensor data is published. Once the data is received, the Ignition Designer software can be used to build an application based on the Rheonics template, as shown in the figure.
Figure 1: Visualization of sensor parameter through Ignition Designer
To learn how to send Rheonics sensor data to an MQTT broker using Node-RED refer to Integrating Rheonics Sensors with Node-RED and MQTT for Remote Data Access1.1. Install MQTT Modules
1. Download and install the following MQTT modules from Inductive Automation (Strategic Partner Modules):
MQTT Engine
MQTT Transmission
MQTT Distributor
Figure 2: MQTT modules
2. In Ignition, go to Config>>Modules.
Figure 3: Modules section in Ignition
3. Go to the bottom and click on Install or Upgrade a Module.
Figure 4: Install or Upgrade Module option
4. Select the downloaded files and click on Install.
Figure 5: File selection to install
5. Back to the Modules section, three new MQTT modules should appear.
Figure 6: Installed MQTT Modules in Ignition
1.2. Configure MQTT Distributor with HiveMQ
1. Go to the MQTT Distributor Settings located in the Config menu.
Figure 7: MQTT Distributor Settings
2. In the General tab, put the following configuration:
Main
Enabled:✅
TLS Settings
Enable TLS: ✅
Secure MQTT Port: Port found in Hive MQ Connection Details
Figure 8: MQTT Distributor Configuration
3. In the Users Tab, click on Create new MQTT Users
Figure 9: MQTT User Creation
4. Next, put the same user and password as in the credentials created in HiveMQ, and click on Save Changes.
Username: username credentials in HiveMQ broker
Password: password credentials in HiveMQ broker
ACLs: RW# (for reading and writing permission)
Figure 10: MQTT User configuration
5. The created user will appear under the Users Tab.
Figure 11: User created successfully
1.3. Configure MQTT Engine with HiveMQ
1. Go to the MQTT Engine Settings located on the Config menu.
Figure 12: MQTT Engine Settings
2. Go to the Servers tab and click on Create new MQTT Server Setting.
Figure 13: MQTT Server Creation
3. In the Settings tab, add the Server information.
Name: HiveMQ (can be another name)
URL: Add ssl: followed by the TLS MQTT URL found in the HiveMQ Connection details.
Username: Same as configured in HiveMQ and the MQTT Distributor
Password: As configured in HiveMQ and the MQTT Distributor
Enable SSL/TLS: ✅ Required
Figure 14: MQTT Engine Server Configuration
4. If the HiveMQ server is created and is running correctly, the Status should appear as Connected.
Figure 15: MQTT Server created and connected successfully to broker
5. Next, go to the Namespaces tab and click on Create new Custom Namespace.
Figure 16: Namespace Creation in MQTT Engine
6. Configure as follows:
Main
Name: Name of the custom namespace (Example: SRV_reading)
Subscriptions: In this section, subscribe to the topics where your sensor data is published. If there is more than one topic, write it like topic1,topic2,.. separated by commas. In this case, if there are two different topics, one for viscosity and one for temperature, the names of the topics would be srv/temperature,srv/viscosity
Optional
Root Tag Folder: Name of the folder that will appear in Ignition with all the tags of the topics.
Figure 17: Namespace Configuration in MQTT Engine
7. After saving the changes, a custom Namespace is created.
Figure 18: Namespace created successfully
2. Ignition Designer
1. Open the Ignition Designar app, and click on New Project.
Figure 19: New Ignition Designer Project
2. Next, put the Project information.
Figure 20: Project Information
3. Go to the Ignition Exchange portal.
4. Input the Rheonics company name in the search bar.
Figure 21: Searching Rheonics Template in Ignition
5. Select the Rheonics Instrument interface, a new screen will open. Click the download button to get the Rheonics templates.
Figure 22: Rheonics Template Download
6. Next, go to the Ignition account and go to Configuration>>Ignition Exchange.
Figure 23: Ignition Exchange Section
7. Click on Import Package File.
Figure 24: Package import in Ignition Exchange
8. Drag the zip file downloaded before to the Import Resource Package section.
Figure 25: Import Resource Package
9. Click on next.
Figure 26: Readme Instructions
10. Select the project created previously on the Designer App and click on Import.
Figure 27: Project Selection
11. Finally, a message should appear confirming the correct import.
Figure 28: Import Message Confirmation
12. Back to the Designer, a new window and templates should be visible.
If the files don’t appear correctly, go to File>>Update Project.
Figure 29: Window and Templates on Ignition Designer
13. In the Tag Browser, change the default for MQTT Engine. The folder with the name put in the Root Name Folder appear. Inside it, the tags appear with their values received from the broker.
Figure 30: Tag Browser with Sensor Data
14. Next, go to Templates>>Rheonics_SRV.
Figure 31: Rheonics SRV Template
15. Click on the viscosity LED Display, and then in the Vision Property Editor, click on Value.
Figure 32: LED Display Element and Value Linking
16. A new window will appear. Go to the Tag tab and search inside All Providers>>MQTT Engine>>Root Tag Folder. Inside the folder, the sensor data appears. Click on the value parameter to obtain the number. Next, click OK.
Figure 33: Tag Linking to Sensor Data
17. Finally, the window will display the parameters sent by the SME. For the other LED displays, follow the same steps but select the values of the other desired parameters.
Figure 34: Final Visualization of Sensor Data
3. Resources
- Integrating Rheonics SME with Node-RED and MQTT for Remote Data Access
- Strategic Partner Modules
- Ignition Exchange portal