Weichuang Electric's IoT Remote Monitoring and Management System is an independently developed IoT monitoring system that adopts a multi-layered architecture design. Based on real-time data, reliability, security, and scalability, it features a rationally layered design for remote monitoring, management, maintenance, and analysis. With a user-friendly interface, simple operation, and comprehensive functions, it is compatible with all of the company's products and also accommodates the access of specific devices. It solves problems in various industries where complex equipment environments lead to inconvenient management, maintenance, and monitoring, making work more intelligent and efficient.
1. System Architecture
The basic architecture of Weichuang Electric's IoT system is shown in Figure 1. It mainly consists of a device layer (devices, wireless data transmission modules), a data processing layer (gateway server, application server, database), and a platform presentation layer (WEB + mobile APP). Using the wireless data transmission module as the transmission medium, it bridges the data interaction between the device end and the backend server. Leveraging the geographically unrestricted nature of wide area networks, it ultimately achieves the goal of remote intelligent monitoring. Weichuang Electric's IoT system has broad applicability and scalability, and can be applied to the company's general-purpose frequency converters, special-purpose frequency converters (such as air compressors, photovoltaic water pump inverters, elevators, and tower cranes), servo drives , PLCs, and other products, helping customers move towards digitalization and intelligence in production and services.
Figure 1 Basic architecture diagram of IoT system
1.1 Equipment Layer
The device layer of this system includes devices and wireless transmission modules.
equipment
Weichuang Electric's products, including general-purpose frequency converters, special-purpose frequency converters (such as air compressors, photovoltaic water pump inverters, elevators, and tower cranes), servo drives, PLCs , and touch screens, all support the integration of wireless transmission modules. Below is an introduction to some of these products:
General-purpose frequency converters: Used for frequency conversion to regulate motor speed, widely used in various industries such as construction, textiles, packaging, machine tools, chemicals, and cables. Currently available are AC10, AC70, AC200, and AC300 series products. Product features: fast start/stop, smooth and stable operation, capable of driving various loads (synchronous, asynchronous, electric spindle, AC servo), covering multiple control modes including V/F control, voltage-frequency separation, open-loop and closed-loop vector control, and free selection of speed and torque. Utilizing internationally leading self-learning algorithms, ensuring precise and consistent dynamic and static control, supporting various types of expansion cards, and suitable for diverse applications.
Air compressors: Primarily used in pneumatic and pneumatic control applications, currently offering AC100 and AP100 series air compressors. Product features: Integrates the main unit, blower, and oil temperature fan into one unit, employing a high-performance TI DSP chip for enhanced reliability and lower noise; minimizes operating current and maximizes output while meeting supply pressure requirements, resulting in optimal energy savings; features GPRS wireless transmission technology for real-time remote monitoring of the air compressor's on-site application, intelligent fault detection, and SMS notifications; directly monitors the motor's magnetic field during operation, providing timely warnings and reducing the probability of motor demagnetization; includes motor temperature monitoring to prevent irreversible demagnetization of the PMSM due to overheating; high protection level protects against high temperatures caused by oil, metal dust, and lint, making it suitable for harsh environments such as machine tools and textile mills.
Photovoltaic water pump inverters: Primarily used in farmland irrigation, residential water supply, landscape fountains, swimming pool water supply, desertification control, and other applications. Currently available are the SI20, SI22, SI23, and SI30 series. Product features: High cost-effectiveness, high performance, automatic MPPT technology, full voltage range tracking, capable of driving various types of water pumps (permanent magnet synchronous, asynchronous, single-phase motors , etc.), and equipped with multiple protection functions (sleep mode, low frequency protection, dry-out protection, overcurrent protection, minimum power protection, etc.). They also feature wireless transmission technology (GPRS, Bluetooth, WIFI) and support smart IoT.
Wireless transmission module
A wireless transmission module is a module that uses wireless technology to achieve wireless transmission and is widely used in various industries.
Weichuang Electric's independently developed wireless transmission modules are primarily GPRS data transmission modules. Based on mobile cellular technology and designed according to industrial standards, these modules integrate positioning and data processing, are small in size, easy to install, and suitable for various industrial environments. The company has successively launched multiple GPRS modules to meet the needs of different industries and create maximum value for customers. Currently, the company offers built-in and external GPRS modules, including S200-GPRS(B), GPRS-D, GT89-V, and AC300-GPRS. The company's GPRS data transmission modules have the following main functions:
Automatic registration: After the module is powered on, it will automatically request registration from the server.
Heartbeat detection: Periodically sends module online status information to the server.
SMS function: Utilizes internal parameters of the SMS monitoring module.
Transparent transmission: Supports transparent data transmission, making it convenient for customers to customize non-standard protocols.
Remote locking: Remote locking can be implemented in specific industries (optional function).
Real-time positioning: The module supports real-time uploading of GPS and base station positioning data, allowing you to know the device's location at any time.
Remote upgrade: The module supports remote upgrades and can be upgraded with one click through the WEB platform.
Fault reporting: When a module or device malfunctions, the fault is reported to the platform in real time.
SIM card: Supports SIM cards from different countries. You can quickly switch to the local network by setting the internal APN.
The GPRS module communication process is as follows (Figure 2):
The GPRS module connects to the device via an RS485 serial port to collect device data.
After processing, the GPRS packet data is sent to the GSM base station and eventually reaches the destination gateway server.
Communication between the GPRS module and the gateway server uses the SOCKET UDP protocol;
The gateway server returns a response after receiving the instruction to ensure the instruction was successful.
Figure 2 GPRS module communication flowchart
1.2 Data Processing Layer
The data processing layer consists of three main parts: gateway server, database, and application server. It adopts key technologies such as distributed deployment and high-concurrency processing, which improves the system's performance and concurrency capabilities.
Key technologies:
1. Distributed Deployment: Considering that the processing capacity and performance bottleneck of a single physical server cannot meet the requirements, the system adopts a modular integrated design, and the distributed file service is deployed to multiple different physical servers, which improves the data processing and storage capabilities.
2. High Concurrency Processing: The system supports concurrent communication between batches of terminals and the server. Multi-threading technology is employed to improve data processing capabilities. Furthermore, caching technology is used to shield against I/O load caused by frequent database accesses, and some data is moved to memory. Internal data exchange speeds are significantly faster than disk read speeds, greatly improving system performance.
Server function:
1. Gateway Server: As a data transmission relay station, it transmits data collected by the GPRS module to the application server and stores the data. Simultaneously, it converts customer commands via web or mobile app into protocols and forwards them to the GPRS module. The gateway server is responsible for parsing data protocol packets, encryption/decryption, timeout handling, and other logical processing, while filtering out erroneous and illegal data packets. To enhance security, it isolates the internal network from the external network, preventing direct external access to the internal server and ensuring its security.
2. Database server: mainly used for storing and managing data, with advantages such as fast and accurate query, structured data, low data redundancy, good data sharing, and high data independence;
3. Application Server: Primarily used for data analysis and processing, and provides various data interfaces for the platform's presentation layer, such as managing devices, reading and writing parameters, viewing real-time data, and viewing faults. All interfaces support JSON format for easy integration and can also be extended to external interfaces for external systems to call.
1.3 Platform Presentation Layer
The platform presentation layer mainly consists of the company's self-developed WEB IoT system and mobile client APP (Figure 3).
1.3.1 Web Internet of Things System
The WEB IoT system adopts a B/S architecture, which users can access via a browser. It is suitable for computer use, with a user-friendly interface, full functionality, and simple operation.
Figure 3. Interface diagram of WEB Internet of Things system and mobile client APP
The core functions of the web application are shown in Figure 4.
Figure 4 Core Functions of the Web Platform
Real-time monitoring: Monitors equipment operating status and parameters in real time, such as frequency, voltage, and power. Customized data tailored to industry needs can also be provided to make work more convenient and efficient.
Remote control: Remotely view and modify device parameters, such as run, stop, and fault reset. Supports remote locking and unlocking functions, making work smarter and more efficient.
GPS positioning: Real-time location tracking and intelligent location display.
Data Reports: Data reports can be viewed and exported at any time, providing statistics on device uptime, and also supporting graphical display.
Fault Analysis: Real-time fault reporting allows users to view fault causes and solutions. Fault records are readily available and provide fault statistics, displayed in charts and lists.
Equipment Management: Manage equipment types, configure equipment parameters, and provide functions for querying and modifying equipment expiration dates, making equipment management easy.
Customer Management: A hierarchical management system is adopted, with clear and concise customer hierarchies, making management convenient.
Access control: Users can assign and manage permissions for various roles as needed, such as reading and writing parameters, managing devices, and viewing location information.
Quick integration of new products: New products can be quickly integrated into the platform by simply configuring device parameters.
Data security: Multi-layered verification and encrypted data storage ensure security and reliability.
1.3.2 Mobile Client APP
The mobile client APP adopts a C/S architecture. The WEB IoT remote monitoring and management system is powerful, enabling customers to perform a series of complex management operations related to devices, customers, and accounts. Weichuang's latest IoT APP not only inherits the advantages of the original WEB version but also boasts portability and ease of operation, greatly enhancing the user experience and allowing customers to easily manage and monitor equipment anytime, anywhere. In short: the WEB provides more powerful management functions, while the mobile terminal offers better portability; the two screens combined allow customers to seamlessly manage their devices. The functional flow of the Weichuang Electric IoT APP system is shown in Figure 6.
Figure 5 Mobile Client App
Figure 6. Functional flowchart of IoT APP system
2. Industry Solutions
Currently, Weichuang Electric's IoT remote monitoring and management system has been successfully applied to products such as air compressors, photovoltaic water pump inverters, and general-purpose frequency converters, covering multiple industries including construction, textiles, packaging, water pumps, machine tools, chemicals, and cables, achieving intelligent and professional control and management.
Air compressors: Before adopting the IoT system, equipment maintenance and monitoring relied on manual inspections. Due to the harsh operating environment of air compressors, this increased the difficulty for customers and led to problems such as untimely maintenance. After adopting the IoT system, all parameters can be remotely optimized through real-time monitoring and management. The early warning system pushes fault information to maintenance personnel in the first instance, enabling timely repair and replacement, which greatly improves the real-time nature of equipment maintenance, saves labor and maintenance costs, and supports historical data and fault statistics, providing big data applications and data support for customer product upgrades.
Figure 7. Air compressor IoT remote monitoring and management system
Photovoltaic water pump inverters: Before adopting the Internet of Things (IoT) system, data collection relied on manual methods, consuming significant manpower and time. The frequent occurrence of worn-out components being used beyond their lifespan and neglecting timely maintenance posed safety hazards to the equipment. With the IoT system, data is automatically collected and uploaded 24/7, allowing for real-time monitoring of the water pump controller's status. Remote expert consultation based on the on-site environment enhances the ability to handle unexpected incidents. Cloud computing automatically calculates the remaining usage time based on the spare parts' lifespan provided by the manufacturer, reminding users to replace them.
Figure 8. Photovoltaic water pump IoT remote monitoring and management system
General-purpose frequency converters: The textile and chemical fiber and food packaging industries use Internet of Things (IoT) systems to monitor equipment in real time, collect equipment parameters periodically, provide intelligent early warnings, and send fault information to maintenance personnel via SMS in real time.
Figure 7 General-purpose frequency converter IoT remote monitoring and management system
The Android version of Weichuang Electric IoT APP has been officially released and will continue to be optimized and updated to improve the user experience.
