Flexible IoT Gateway - Intelligent Tank Level Monitoring With Robust Siemens Solution

As part of a current project, Wayra was contracted to install a monitoring system for more than 15 oil tanks. The aim was to optimize inventory control and to digitalize the previous manual tank level monitoring. Wayra uses an open, freely programmable Siemens IoT hardware platform as the solution for this and many other projects. This allows the client to easily call up stock levels using a robust, open system which is CE and UL certified, has an extended temperature range, and is easy to install. In addition to this, the company benefits from a convenient industrial gateway.

In this customer project, and many previously, Wayra was facing multiple challenges. On the one hand, the customer needed a flexible IoT hardware solution with field and cloud connectivity, extendable interfaces, and data management. On the other, the solution had to be robust and cost-effective. In addition to this, support was required for quick, modular software development based on Linux. By using an intelligent industrial gateway, Siemens Simatic IOT2040,, Wayra was able to meet all these requirements with just one system

Reliable and simple monitoring
The Simatic IOT2040 Industrial Gateway picks up the readings from the tank level measuring devices installed in the oil tanks via HTTP (Hypertext Transfer Protocol) and expresses the raw level data as a percentage. The system then visualizes the tank level on the HMI panel (Human Machine Interface) and/or a mobile terminal device for stock level management. If it looks as if a tank is going to overflow, the Simatic IOT2040 system controls the pumps allowing the customer's purchasing function to have a constant overview of the tank level at the storage facility without having to check manually.

Cost-effective, open and robust
The intelligent Simatic IOT2040 provides Wayra and its customers with a beneficial solution which is approximately 20 percent better than conventional embedded PCs (compact industrial PCs with a modular design). The system can be easily expanded using, for example, Arduino (a physical computing platform comprising software and hardware), or data transfer technology in the form of Ethernet and mPCIe interfaces (mini PCI Express. The system is certified to CR and UL and is suitable for use over an extended temperature range. In addition to this, it is easy to install on the top hat rail and is pre-configured for the Yocto Linux operating system (Yocto is a collaborative open source project from Linux). The Siemens IOT2040 Community Forum provides accessible application support. "The IOT2000 was our first choice for various different projects as this open and complete platform allows us to step away from the hardware so that we can concentrate on developing the application," summarizes Fernando Luis, CEO of Wayra Networks.

CE marking
Safe, faultless, and high-quality goods in every European market: That is the aim of CE marking. The marking shows that the goods, whether toys or construction machinery, correspond to the European Union's Health and Safety Requirements.

UL certification
UL (Underwriters Laboratories Inc.) is one of the world's leading organizations for testing and certification in the field of product safety. This independent, not-for-profit US organization was founded in 1894 in order to investigate fire risks in electrical equipment and has its roots in American fire insurance practices.