Ignition Maker Edition allows you to integrate with a ton of different hardware solutions. A lot of these tools are IoT Devices, and can easily integrate with NodeRed. Using MQTT it is easy to get data from NodeRed into Ignition. If you have spent any time working with MQTT in the past couple of years, you have likely heard of Sparkplug B. If MQTT is like pressing an easy button with Industrial Communication Protocols, Sparkplug B is like hitting the easy button with MQTT.

Sparkplug B allows you to define the data you are sending over at the device level, and the MQTT Broker will take this and automatically do whatever you need it to with the data. In our case using Ignition, we will automatically create tags in Ignition from our Sparkplug B enabled device.

This means you can program a device, add it to the network, enable communications, and automatically have all of your data show up in Ignition. If you need to add tags you simply define them at the device level, and your data will now populate in all of your MQTT Brokers, simplifying the overall integration process immensely.

Cirrus Link has one of the most straightforward tutorials in existence on getting this set up with NodeRed here. You can literally get data from NodeRed into Ignition, including installing Ignition Maker Edition from scratch, in about 5 minutes.

Yes it will take longer than 5 minutes if you want to setup a bunch of sensors, or pull data in via a serial connection or web service in NodeRed. Even then it is going to be a pretty painless process.

This opens up some exciting possibilities we will be digging into in future posts. Using a Raspberry PI at the edge to send data to Ignition. If you are lucky enough to be using Opto22 hardware, you can set up NodeRed in their Epic Groov processor, and their Groov RIO device to get data into Ignition via Sparkplug B.

We did a video a while back on Sparkplug B integration with a low cost PLC from EZAutomation. We’re going to go full throttle with Opto22 in August, and will have more exciting content on their platform during OptoAugust, for now here is the EZAutomation Sparkplug B video:

Updated - 6/13/2022