Product Announcement: New groov RIO EMU (energy monitoring unit) Introducing the latest offering in the groov RIO product line: groov RIO EMU (energy monitoring unit), GRV-R7-I1VAPM-3. Edge I/O for Power The groov RIO series brings you a new kind of I/O product—edge I/O. It doesn’t require a PLC, PAC, or IPC to communicate data to other systems. Instead, this intelligent, distributed…
Introduction to JSON for Node-RED
New Opto 22 Developer Broadcast video makes the JSON data format easy to understand. OptoBlog followers are most likely familiar with Terry Orchard’s Node-RED video series, and he’s recently added a new video to that playlist. This time, Terry’s goal is to introduce you to the JSON data format, so it’s easy to understand and simple…
How to use context storage in Node-RED
Follow along in this new developer series video as Terry Orchard guides you through storing and passing data in a Node-RED flow. What if you need to snapshot a message from a very specific part of a Node-RED flow? For those of you who’ve been using the Node-RED programming tool or are just getting started,…
Flexible, low-cost water monitoring with edge I/O
Remote I/O over MQTT helps Rust Automation deploy affordable remote monitoring in a challenging environment. Did you watch the Fall CODESYS Tech Talk virtual event last October? It demonstrated how the CODESYS runtime engine works and why it’s included on Opto 22’s groov EPIC. Jared Bates, from OptoPartner Rust Automation & Controls, joined Opto 22 for that presentation. He…
Case Study: Using Edge I/O to Automate Quality Control
Intrinsics Imaging’s AI-powered vision system uses groov RIO to connect the cloud to the edge. Machine vision systems can recognize superficial aberrations in manufactured goods—like lines, spots, holes, color discrepancies, and more—that would typically require time-consuming manual inspection. California-based Intrinsics Imaging solves this problem with its Heijunka Vision analytics-as-a-service software. But when Intrinsics was approached by a…
Ready to write a CODESYS project?
Use your PLC programming experience to program groov EPIC. Ready to write a control program for your groov EPIC, but not sure how to get started? With three options to write your control program–PAC Control, the easy-to-learn flowchart language, the Linux-based Secure Shell (SSH) to run your custom program, and CODESYS, an IEC-61131-3 compliant language–which do you choose? If you…
New REST API Node-RED Video
New video just added to the Node-RED developer playlist covers a simple API flow using daily weather data as an example. Node-RED is an extremely powerful tool that we’ve featured many times on this blog and our YouTube channel, and one very common use of Node-RED is to use application programming interfaces or “APIs” to move…
Measure live power and energy consumption
Take a closer look at the new EPIC I/O module (GRV-IVAPM-3) and get up to speed on how to install and configure it for your power monitoring applications. This module will allow you to measure live power and energy consumption of any three, twin or single phase load in Delta or Wye configuration up to…
Bridge your OPC UA systems to MQTT
Learn what’s possible with MQTT and how you can use it to unlock all the value your OPC systems offer. Why MQTT? By now, you’ve probably heard about MQTT. Since its creation in the late ’90s, it’s become the most popular protocol for IoT applications, repeatedly touted by organizations like the Eclipse Foundation, big players…
Modern Wastewater: Perceptive Controls
ICC 2021 Discover Gallery finalist, Perceptive Controls, talks about their continued success with the Waterford, MI Department of Public Works In February of this year, we looked at a pioneering MQTT Sparkplug project at the Department of Public Works in Waterford Township, Michigan. Thanks to the work of system integrator Perceptive Controls, Waterford’s project went on to…
Two new groov EPIC I/O modules for power monitoring and universal I/O
Learn about two new I/O modules just announced for the groov EPIC controller. Two highly anticipated groov EPIC modules are here: the 3-phase power monitoring module with 64 channels of data (!), and the highly flexible, software-configurable multifunction, multi-signal module. These new modules can take your system to another level of efficiency and another step closer to…
SNAP PAC to groov EPIC – is it time?
Opto 22’s updated technical note helps current SNAP PAC users decide if, when, and how to migrate to the newer groov EPIC system. Opto 22 customers have been relying on the SNAP PAC system for their controls and automation applications for almost 15 years. But now you keep hearing about the new technology of the groov EPIC…
Make the pitch for automation security with this updated tech note
Best practices for cybersecurity and more from the groov EPIC v3.2 update to help you get sign-off on critical security upgrades. Solarwinds, Oldsmar, Colonial, JBS—with all the cybersecurity news filling our inboxes, news feeds, and social channels, your customers may finally be ready to talk about a more rigorous security strategy. So we figured this was a…
Get hands-on experience with the groov RIO Learning Center
Learn more about edge I/O technology and the capabilities of the groov RIO module with the new learning center unit. If you’re up-to-date on your OptoBlog posts, you’ve heard about the revolutionary I/O that offers over 200,000 unique, software-configurable I/O combinations in a single, compact, PoE-powered industrial package called groov RIO. Ready to learn about and experiment with groov RIO? Now…
Getting the most out of groov View
New interactive demo illustrates many of the features and capabilities of the groov View HMI software. From pumps and processes to production data to the weather, your world is full of things you need to control, view, or monitor. With browser-based groov View, you can easily build a web-based, responsive operator interface to see and interact with exactly…
Get ready for groov RIO with Ignition 8
A new groov RIO module (MM2) has just been released that includes Ignition 8 software from Inductive Automation. As announced previously in the OptoBlog, Ignition 8 software is now part of the newest groov EPIC controller (GRV-EPIC-PR2). But, we didn’t stop there. The latest groov RIO MM2 model (GRV-R7-MM2001-10) also includes Ignition 8 and boasts increased memory and storage along with other important features.…
From Raspberry Pi to Factory Floor
Some developer tips for successfully moving your project from home to the plant floor. We know a lot of developers love to tinker and prototype projects on Raspberry Pi hardware. I do the same at my house with over 12 Raspberry Pi computers doing different things. It’s such an affordable and fun platform with a…
EPIC news: Ignition 8 plus more RAM, disk space
Announcing a second processor model for Opto 22’s groov EPIC system. We have a lot of exciting product news to share, and at the top of that list is the release of the GRV-EPIC-PR2. Yes, you now have two processor options when designing a groov EPIC system! Both GRV-EPIC-PR1 and GRV-EPIC-PR2 provide a powerful, open software and hardware ecosystem for…
Learn how to log I/O data to text file in Node-RED
New video released this week shows you how to turn groov RIO into a continuous datalogger Another week means another video to add to your collection of Node-RED tools and technical tips. Last week our developer video host, Terry Orchard, demonstrated how to create Node-RED flows that interact with groov EPIC’s embedded HMI server in “How to use the Node-RED…
Learn the power of SSH on groov EPIC
Terry Orchard is back in his studio to give you a video overview of the Secure Shell Access (SSH) feature on groov EPIC. Whether you’re already using Opto 22’s groov EPIC or have been researching its features, it’s important to note the extensive programming options it comes with. You can use the easy flow chart-based PAC Control, the familiar IEC…
How to use the Node-RED package for groov View
Follow this new video to create Node-RED flows that interact with groov EPIC’s embedded HMI server. Thanks to all your positive feedback, Terry Orchard is continuing with his video series for groov EPIC and RIO users in the developer community. Next up: How to use the Node-RED package for groov View. In this video, Terry demonstrates how to read and write different types of groov View gadgets…
Learning how to use groov EPIC
The groov EPIC edge programmable industrial controller can do so much—but where do you start? Do you want to learn about groov EPIC but aren’t sure where to start? Are you curious about how to securely share your sensor data with other applications, want to learn different ways to write a control program, read data from other PLCs, or…
[Case Study] Easy EaaS: Shumaker Industries/Martins Electrical Service
groov RIO enables affordable equipment-as-a-service designs that are easy to deploy [Case Study] Easy EaaS: Shumaker Industries/Martins Electrical Service groov RIO enables affordable equipment-as-a-service designs that are easy to deploy Equipment-as-a-service (EaaS) involves renting out or providing access to equipment and collecting payment periodically, rather than selling the equipment outright. This payment model enables end users…
How to build a basic UI in Node-RED
Next up in the Node-RED developer video series, this tutorial makes it easy to create your own HMI or dashboard. When we first introduced the Node-RED developer video series a few months ago, we started off with how to “Set up groov I/O nodes.” Once you’ve installed and configured them, it’s time to do something interesting with…
PID control made easy at OptoU
New OptoU online training series covers PID in PAC Control The instructors/engineers at OptoU are kicking off the new year with some exciting new PAC Control training lessons. Based on feedback and popular demand, we’ve released a new series in Opto 22’s online training that covers everything related to PID control. A proportional-integral-derivative (PID) control loop monitors an input,…