MQTT Sparkplug: Bridging IT and OT in Industry 4.0!

The core of Industry 4.0 is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), which enables factories to connect machines, sensors, robots, and other devices to the internet and to each other.

When implementing IIoT, selecting the right communication standard that meets the needs of Industry 4.0 is a key challenge. MQTT Sparkplug is a communication protocol specifically designed for IIoT. We will delve into MQTT Sparkplug and see what it brings to Industry 4.0!

What is Sparkplug?

Sparkplug is an open-source software specification designed to enhance the interoperability of MQTT, particularly in the fields of smart manufacturing and the Industrial Internet of Things. The specification provides context for Operational Technology (OT) data to enable seamless bidirectional integration with Information Technology (IT). In simple terms, Sparkplug allows edge data to be standardized to the cloud or enterprise data hubs for creating a unified namespace, which can be used for machine learning or other IIoT applications. Regarding the unified namespace (UNS), a detailed introduction was provided in the previous issue: Why is MQTT always associated with the Unified Namespace (UNS)?

One important application area of UNS in Sparkplug is that Sparkplug utilizes the concept of a unified namespace to provide a standardized method for transferring data between industrial devices and applications. By creating a unified namespace for devices, sensors, and controllers, Sparkplug facilitates smoother integration and interoperability within the complex IIoT ecosystem. This not only simplifies the development and implementation of IIoT solutions but also enhances the efficiency and reliability of industrial processes.

Sparkplug is a specification developed by the Eclipse Foundation for the industry, primarily managed by theEclipse Sparkplug Working Group, which consists of a group of like-minded companies and organizations that are driving the creation and maintenance of the Sparkplug specification and enhancing awareness and adoption through open branding and compatibility programs.

The purpose of the Sparkplug protocol is to ensure that Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) deployments are open and interoperable. Eclipse Sparkplug simplifies complexity by making the MQTT broker a pillar of the solution architecture, thus avoiding complicated architectures and custom connections.

Global players in the Industrial Internet of Things, such as Canary Labs, Cirrus Link, Chevron, Inductive Automation, HiveMQ, and ORing, choose the Sparkplug protocol and related technologies to streamline access to industrial data, enhance interoperability and scalability of solutions, and provide a comprehensive framework to support Industry 4.0.

MQTT Sparkplug’s IIoT Architecture

Traditional IIoT architectures connect components directly from PLCs, gateways, or servers using protocols like Modbus, Siemens S7, or OPC-UA in a polling/response manner. This approach works well when only a few systems need integration, but as the number of components increases, it leads to a massive “spaghetti” architecture that is very difficult to maintain.

Systems are connected point-to-point, so systems and data are tightly coupled. Modern architectures need to have flexibility and clear separation of responsibilities in IIoT systems. Many companies are looking for the adaptability, flexibility, and ease of implementation found in IT environments, while simultaneously requiring the reliability, security, and predictability needed in OT environments. This calls for a new architecture to achieve this paradigm shift.

Sparkplug is based on MQTT and adds features such as MQTT topic namespaces, data models and structures, scalable process variable payloads, and MQTT state management, which are crucial for IIoT and Industry 4.0 scenarios. In the architecture shown below, the MQTT broker collects data from Sparkplug-enabled devices, sensors, and systems and shares this data bidirectionally with IT systems (including MES, historical systems, analytics platforms, and other applications).

Sparkplug operates entirely on MQTT, as the publish/subscribe model of MQTT allows all components of the system to integrate in a bidirectional and decoupled manner. When MQTT was invented in 1999, it was initially designed for SCADA systems but did not include specific specifications regarding topic and payload structure and device behavior. This allowed MQTT to be used across different industries, such as connected cars, logistics, and even smart manufacturing. Today, Sparkplug fills this gap and provides a neutral specification for data formats, topic structures, state management, and how to build topologies in IIoT scenarios.

Thus, Sparkplug provides several key capabilities for industrial organizations:

• First, it standardizes and defines OT data, allowing all subscribers to know how to utilize this data without special programming or coding. This makes the “single source of truth” we mentioned earlier possible, eliminating confusion in the industrial internet architecture across the organization and allowing all cloud and enterprise systems to leverage this data.

• Second, Sparkplug allows organizations to connect devices to infrastructure rather than applications. By doing so, the specification provides pathways for other systems to ingest data based on their purpose.

• Third, Sparkplug lays the foundation for truly mission-critical IIoT applications with ultra-reliable and low-latency operations. Without these features, true IIoT would not be possible.

• Finally, Sparkplug enables true interoperability in a “plug-and-play” IIoT environment. Not only can messages be easily distributed, but there are also common definitions to explain the meaning of these messages, the devices they represent, and how to handle them.

Bridging IT and OT

The core of IIoT lies in leveraging the low cost, innovation, and flexibility of IT while retaining the high reliability of OT systems. This concept is not new, but many past attempts to bridge the gap have been confusing and faced technical barriers that negatively impacted industrial networks. Without the data context provided by Sparkplug, IIoT architectures often lack the “last few feet” needed for successful collaboration between OT and IT systems.

Sparkplug completely changes the game. By contextually defining industrial use and intent, it enables IT systems to easily “ingest” and “understand” OT data, something that industrial organizations could not achieve without cumbersome, time-consuming, and flawed coding practices prior to Sparkplug. This meant significantly increased costs, and whether organizations could find the right development talent to undertake this project was also a major issue.

Once Sparkplug lowers the barriers to connecting IT and OT systems and enables communication between them, IT systems can perform advanced analytics and modeling on OT data. By creating feedback loops and leveraging OT data, all the advantages of IT can be realized, leading to more efficient and cost-effective architectures. These new capabilities include:

• Real-time data analytics: Sparkplug-enabled architectures can perform fine-grained real-time analytics on the data generated by every system and device in the industrial environment.

• Digital twins: Smart sensor data can provide digital twin models for running simulations before actual devices are built and deployed.

• Applications of AI and machine learning: Sparkplug makes it relatively simple to leverage AI for real-time insights into operational efficiency.

• Remote monitoring and predictive analytics: Data transmitted from OT to IT via MQTT and Sparkplug can be used for advanced analytics, providing insights into machine operations and even enabling predictive maintenance.

• Health and safety: Sparkplug enables IIoT applications to promote a safe and healthy working environment.

• Advanced wireless technologies: With Sparkplug, various mobile technologies can now be utilized to enhance supply chain applications, such as 5G, LoRA, and Wi-Fi 7.

• Agile architecture: IIoT networks built on MQTT and Sparkplug provide organizations with remarkable flexibility in vendor selection and resource management.

Conclusion

The use of Sparkplug is becoming widespread across various industries. Many major automotive, manufacturing, industrial, oil and gas, and supply chain/logistics companies are leveraging its capabilities today. Hyperscale cloud providers are actively utilizing this specification to build new management services tailored to industry markets. This indicates that if your competitors are not yet using Sparkplug, they are likely actively evaluating it for integration into their environments in the near future. Recently, a survey by IIoT World asked companies building IIoT systems which data movement tools they deemed essential for their IIoT strategies. MQTT was the most popular answer, at 55%, and impressively, 25% responded with MQTT Sparkplug, solidifying this relatively new technology’s position as a key component of companies’ digital transformation and the launch of IIoT projects.With a strong and open ecosystem supporting the development of this technology and widespread market support for its deployment, Sparkplug should be an integral part of your future IIoT deployment plans. For further details, please refer to the links below.

Reference Links:

1. https://projects.eclipse.org/projects/iot.sparkplug

2. https://www.hivemq.com/blog/sparkplug-essentials-part-2-architecture/

3. https://www.iotforall.com/mqtt-sparkplug-bridging-it-and-ot-in-industry-4-0

4. https://www.emqx.com/en/blog/mqtt-sparkplug-bridging-it-and-ot-in-industry-4-0

5. https://www.hivemq.com/resources/hivemq-mqtt-sparkplug-open-specification-for-iiot-whitepaper/

6. https://www.opc-router.com/what-is-sparkplug/

7. https://sparkplug.eclipse.org/specification/

8. https://www.hivemq.com/blog/mqtt-sparkplug-essentials-part-1-introduction/

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