ThingWorx ATrack AX-7 Setup Manual

ATrack AX-7 Setup Guide

Version 1.0

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ATrack AX-7 Protocol Adapter SDK Setup Guide

Introduction .................................................................................................................................................. 2

About the Protocol Adapter SDK .............................................................................................................. 2

About the ATrack AX7 ............................................................................................................................... 3

Prerequisites ................................................................................................................................................. 3

Configuration and Setup ............................................................................................................................... 3

Configuring the ATrack AX7 ...................................................................................................................... 3

Configuring the Protocol Adapter SDK ...................................................................................................... 5

Running the Protocol Adapter SDK ........................................................................................................... 6

Troubleshooting ............................................................................................................................................ 9

Compatibility ............................................................................................................................................... 10

Document Revision History ......................................................................................................................... 10

Copyright © 2015 PTC Inc. and/or Its Subsidiary Companies. All Rights Reserved. 1

ATrack AX-7 Protocol Adapter SDK Setup Guide

Normal Data-

Reporting

Device

Websocket

ThingWorx

Platform

Proprietary Data-

Reporting Device

Codec

(translator)

Websocket

ThingWorx

Platform

Introduction

About the Protocol Adapter SDK

The Internet of Things is a rapidly-growing and oftentimes fragmented network of devices. Typically
these devices do not unify under a standardized “language” that would enable easy connections
between them. There are many types of devices that could report their data in a specialized role, but
most of these devices would need to report their data in a proprietary format.

In order for the ThingWorx Platform to interpret data from one of these devices, the need for a
communications translator, or Codec, arises. A Codec operates by transforming incoming messages from
a device, and then passing the “ThingWorx-Ready” data to the Platform.

The Protocol Adapter SDK is a codec package provided by ThingWorx for the purposes of connecting
such a device, whose firmware and/or data format is unchangeable and incompatible with ThingWorx,
to the platform:

Often, these devices open a TCP or UDP networking socket and send data using a proprietary format. To
allow these devices to connect to the ThingWorx Platform, the Protocol Adapter SDK runs intermediary
between the device and the platform. It listens on a specified port for any incoming device messages,
and it parses the incoming messages from the device’s native format into properties that are then
transmitted to the ThingWorx Platform.

It should be noted that the Protocol Adapter SDK should ideally be set up to run on an intermediary
server, separate from the one on which the ThingWorx Platform is located (for scalability purposes).
However, the Protocol Adapter SDK may be run on the same server on which ThingWorx Platform is
located.

Copyright © 2015 PTC Inc. and/or Its Subsidiary Companies. All Rights Reserved. 2