Contents

Description

Milesight gateway supports connecting to Azure IoT Hub and forwarding sensor packets via MQTT. However, due to the special Downlink Topic of Azure IoT Hub, the gateway can't directly process the information received in this topic, and it needs to be converted by Node-red built in the gateway. This article describes the solution about how to remotely control devices by sending downlink commands through Azure IoT Hub and convert the downlink data via Node-red for now.

 

Requirement

  • Milesight Gateway: UG56/UG65/UG67

 

Configuration

Step 1: Add LoRaWAN Device to Gateway

Connect LoRaWAN node to Milesight gateway referring to article How to Connect LoRaWAN Nodes to Milesight Gateway.


Step 2: Launch Node-RED and Import Flow Example

1. Go to App > Node-RED page to enable Node-RED program and wait for a while to load the program, click Launch button to start Node-RED web GUI.

 

2. Log in the Node-RED web GUI. The account information is the same as gateway web GUI. 

 

 

3. Click Import to import the node-red flow example by pasting the content or import the json format file.

 

 

Step 3: Node-RED Configuration

Flow structure:


Content:

[{"id":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","type":"tab","label":"Flow 1","disabled":false,"info":"","env":[]},{"id":"ee018c507a8c84d7","type":"LoRa Input","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"","devEUI":"","extendedField":"","x":100,"y":180,"wires":[["1ef5040e1a00b2ad"]]},{"id":"258aa069238809d1","type":"mqtt out","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"","topic":"devices/ug65-166node/messages/events/","qos":"0","retain":"false","respTopic":"","contentType":"","userProps":"","correl":"","expiry":"","broker":"8d4082bc68f4aa2f","x":760,"y":100,"wires":[]},{"id":"71e9a1fd72987d30","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"debug 1","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":640,"y":220,"wires":[]},{"id":"2efae08c16c0ac47","type":"mqtt in","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"","topic":"devices/ug65-166node/messages/devicebound/+","qos":"0","datatype":"auto-detect","broker":"8d4082bc68f4aa2f","nl":false,"rap":true,"rh":0,"inputs":0,"x":220,"y":400,"wires":[["7fe7f777c1b5aa44","6fb019fa5379eb8c"]]},{"id":"1ef5040e1a00b2ad","type":"Device Filter","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"UC300","eui":"24E124445B431930","x":340,"y":160,"wires":[["258aa069238809d1","71e9a1fd72987d30"]]},{"id":"7fe7f777c1b5aa44","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"debug 3","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":true,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":510,"y":360,"wires":[]},{"id":"206698e70955f568","type":"http request","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"login > token","method":"POST","ret":"txt","paytoqs":"ignore","url":"","tls":"","persist":false,"proxy":"","insecureHTTPParser":false,"authType":"","senderr":false,"headers":[],"x":510,"y":720,"wires":[["dffb05c3d4a826be"]]},{"id":"4c5e153b013ae303","type":"inject","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"get token","props":[],"repeat":"","crontab":"","once":false,"onceDelay":0.1,"topic":"","x":120,"y":720,"wires":[["ff81c3081aa14fb3"]]},{"id":"ff81c3081aa14fb3","type":"function","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"prepare login > token","func":"msg.url=\"https://127.0.0.1:8080/api/internal/login\";\nmsg.payload = {\"password\":\"password\",\"username\":\"apiuser\"} ;//JSON\nmsg.headers = {};\nmsg.headers['content-type'] = 'application/json';\nmsg.rejectUnauthorized=false;\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"initialize":"","finalize":"","libs":[],"x":300,"y":720,"wires":[["206698e70955f568"]]},{"id":"dffb05c3d4a826be","type":"json","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"","property":"payload","action":"","pretty":false,"x":650,"y":660,"wires":[["38e0ef97fadffc90","d9c28a91b90ffc4d"]]},{"id":"e4fc8c7cc1177fc7","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":810,"y":840,"wires":[]},{"id":"da29fc1e541aa91a","type":"comment","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"Get a Token from the UG65 API","info":"","x":170,"y":660,"wires":[]},{"id":"6fb019fa5379eb8c","type":"function","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"function 2","func":"msg.deveui_t = msg.payload.deveui;\nmsg.data_t = hexStringToDecimalArray(msg.payload.data);\nmsg.token_t = global.get(\"tk\");\n\nfunction hexStringToDecimalArray(hexStr) {\n    const decimalArray = [];\n    for (let i = 0; i < hexStr.length; i += 2) {\n        const hexPair = hexStr.substr(i, 2);\n        const decimalValue = parseInt(hexPair, 16);\n        decimalArray.push(decimalValue);\n    }\n    return decimalArray;\n}\n\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"initialize":"","finalize":"","libs":[],"x":240,"y":520,"wires":[["4465a5daf2c21b43","d008a76481d185a7"]]},{"id":"4465a5daf2c21b43","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"debug 13","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":500,"y":480,"wires":[]},{"id":"d008a76481d185a7","type":"function","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"Prepare downlink","func":"msg.url=\"https://127.0.0.1:8080/api/devices/\"+msg.deveui_t+\"/queue\";\nmsg.payload = {\"confirmed\":false,\n               \"data\":Buffer.from(msg.data_t).toString('base64'), //data \"Buffer\" convert to base64\n               \"devEUI\":msg.deveui_t,\n               \"fPort\":85} ;\n//msg.headers = {};\nmsg.headers = {\"Authorization\":msg.token_t};\nmsg.headers['content-type'] = 'application/json';\nmsg.rejectUnauthorized=false;\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"initialize":"","finalize":"","libs":[],"x":450,"y":540,"wires":[["6270a822c5a450c5"]]},{"id":"38e0ef97fadffc90","type":"function","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"function 3","func":"global.set(\"tk\", msg.payload.jwt);\nreturn msg;","outputs":1,"noerr":0,"initialize":"","finalize":"","libs":[],"x":620,"y":820,"wires":[["e4fc8c7cc1177fc7"]]},{"id":"d9c28a91b90ffc4d","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"debug 14","active":false,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":860,"y":660,"wires":[]},{"id":"bd73814525524456","type":"debug","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"debug 15","active":true,"tosidebar":true,"console":false,"tostatus":false,"complete":"true","targetType":"full","statusVal":"","statusType":"auto","x":920,"y":540,"wires":[]},{"id":"6270a822c5a450c5","type":"http request","z":"b2a8e3bee88a01f6","name":"post downlink to UG65 API","method":"POST","ret":"txt","paytoqs":"ignore","url":"","tls":"","persist":false,"proxy":"","insecureHTTPParser":false,"authType":"","senderr":false,"headers":[],"x":700,"y":540,"wires":[["bd73814525524456"]]},{"id":"8d4082bc68f4aa2f","type":"mqtt-broker","name":"Azure","broker":"ug65test-m.azure-devices.net","port":"8883","tls":"712bcbbb5cee7038","clientid":"ug65-166node","autoConnect":true,"usetls":true,"protocolVersion":"4","keepalive":"60","cleansession":true,"birthTopic":"","birthQos":"0","birthPayload":"","birthMsg":{},"closeTopic":"","closeQos":"0","closePayload":"","closeMsg":{},"willTopic":"","willQos":"0","willPayload":"","willMsg":{},"userProps":"","sessionExpiry":""},{"id":"712bcbbb5cee7038","type":"tls-config","name":"","cert":"","key":"","ca":"","certname":"","keyname":"","caname":"","servername":"","verifyservercert":true,"alpnprotocol":""}]


Click Deploy to save all node-red configurations.



Step 4: Connect Gateway to Azure via MQTT

(1) Please refer to Step1~Step4 in article How to integrate Milesight LoRaWAN Gateway to Microsoft Azure, and record the corresponding Device ID and the corresponding SAS token.

 

(2) Select the mqtt out node, double click it to edit the mqtt out node.

Topic:

devices/[device ID]/messages/events/

 

 

(3) Edit the server configuration.

 

  • Connection Page:

 Sever: HostName,example: [IOT Hub Name].azure-devices.net

Port: 8883

Connect automatically: Enabled

Use TLS: Enabled

Protocol: MQTT V3.1.1

Client ID: Device ID

 

  • Security Page:

Username: HostName/{Device ID}

Password: SAS Token(Generate in Step 4 of How to integrate Milesight LoRaWAN Gateway to Microsoft Azure)


(4) And try to send LoRa data to the Azure IoT Hub to check the connectivity.

  If you need to filter different devices, kindly enter a different DevEUI in the Filter node.

 

Note:

Don't mix the same Azure Device connection on both Gateway >Network Server >Applications and Node-Red. Otherwise this will result in constant disconnections and reconnections between Node-red and Azure IoT Hub.

Typically Azure has a limit on the number of devices that can be connected at the same time. Usually an ID will only run one device for use. So if you need to connect using both Node-red and the gateway's MQTT application, then you need to create two devices in Azure, one for the gateway MQTT application and one for Node-red to receive the downlink.

 

 

(1) Double click the mqtt in node for configure the downlink topic.

 

Topic:

devices/[device ID]/messages/devicebound/+

 

 

Server configuration: the same as mqtt out node

 

 

Step 6: Get the HTTP API token of the Gateway

(1) Click function node(prepare login>token) first.

 

The password and username should be filled with the password used by the HTTP API to get the token so that the token can be got correctly. Different gateway firmware versions use different usernames and passwords to obtain the HTTP API token.

 

 

Kindly refer to Method 2 in article How to Test Milesight Gateway HTTP API by Postman？ to get the password and username.

 

(2) Click inject node to get the token.

 After getting the token, the token value is automatically passed in to be set as a global variable.

 

Note: Only need to get the token once, not need to click to get token every time before sending the downlink command on Azure IoT Hub.


(1) Select the device you just created for downlink.

 

 

(2) Go Message to Device page

 

(3) Input the json format data in Message Body and Send Message

 

 

Data Format:

{"deveui": "24E124445B431930","data": "0701ff"}

deveui: The devEUI of the sensor to receive the downlink

data: actual downlink command for the sensor, need to be the hex format

 

(4) Check if the gateway receive the downlink from Azure IoT Hub

 

 

(5) After receiving the message from Azure IoT Hub, the message is converted into a formatted downlink through the function node and sent to the corresponding sensor through the HTTP API of the gateway.

 

 

And then check the Network Server > Packets page, you will see the downlink has been sent to the sensor.

 

 

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