B+B SmartWorx Introduces a new Product for the Industrial Internet of Things – the SmartSwarm351 Modbus Eavesdropper

Translate SCADA protocols to IT in real-time without disrupting, interrupting or reconfiguring your existing networks

Ottawa, IL – October 11, 2016 – B+B SmartWorx, powered by Advantech, today officially announced the worldwide release of SmartSwarm351, part of the company’s IIoT innovation initiative.  The SmartSwarm351 Modbus Eavesdropper recognizes and extracts data from existing Modbus SCADA systems, transforms it into actionable information, and presents it to IT systems without interfering with the Modbus Master.

SmartSwarm 351 discovers and maps the network, analyzes message exchanges between the existing OT master and slave devices, and uses this information to build a comprehensive picture of the status of the underlying plant.  In near real time, Modbus data is delivered to IT/OT systems that normally would not see SCADA information.  Unlike alternatives, this is accomplished without disrupting the Modbus Master and SCADA network communication.  Mission critical process control systems are completely undisturbed.  Connecting to enterprise applications by a local Ethernet connection or an internal cellular modem, the gateway can switch between these connections at any time, providing redundancy.

Rather than overwhelm the IT/OT system with meaningless data, SmartSwarm 351 collects, filters, enriches and aggregates raw data through simple user configuration, requiring no programming. Using the newest IoT protocols, MQTT topics and JSON; payload formats securely construct the data so it is easily consumable by upstream IT applications.

With SmartSwarm 351, all inbound WAN connections are protected by an internal firewall. A second Ethernet port provides the local LAN connection. OpenVPN tunneling is supported. Outbound connections to the SmartWorx Hub zero-touch remote configuration tool and the remote MQTT broker are authenticated and encrypted using TLS, with certificate authentication of the host and certificate provision by the gateway.

Jerry O’Gorman, President of B+B SmartWorx commented, “We hear tremendous interest from customers around IIoT applications that promise to help deliver more value from operations data, but we also hear tremendous frustration from them around proposed solutions that suggest replacing key components of their process systems.  We feel that will be the key for SmartSwarm351; users get just the data they need, when they need it, without disruption to, or reconfiguration of the legacy SCADA systems, making IT/OT convergence a practical proposition.”

SmartSwarm 351 is the first product released using the SmartSwarm OSP, a software framework designed to power edge-of-the network Intelligent IIoT gateways.  The OSP makes use of distributed micro-services architecture to support Rapid Distributed Applications Development in one of many languages, including C++, Java and Python.

SmartSwarm351 joins other products in B+B SmartWorx’s portfolio of IIoT products delivering intelligence at the edge of the network.

Product Details:
https://advantech-bb.com/smartswarm/

Product and Availability:
SmartSwarm 351 is available today in both wired and cellular versions from B+B SmartWorx and selected distribution partners: http://bb-smartpartners.com/search.php

About B+B SmartWorx

Founded in 1981, B+B SmartWorx designs and manufactures intelligent M2M and IoT connectivity solutions for wireless and wired networks. Specializing in intelligent connectivity at the “edge” of networks in remote and demanding environments, the company’s product solutions use Ethernet, serial, wireless, cellular and USB communication technologies.

In 2016 B+B SmartWorx became part of Advantech, a leading global provider of trusted and innovative products, services and solutions in industrial automation and embedded computing across diverse industries and applications.   Together, the companies work to enable an intelligent planet.

B+B SmartWorx is headquartered in Ottawa, Illinois, USA with EMEA operations based in Galway, Ireland and the Czech Republic. Additional engineering locations are based in California. To learn more, visit us a www.advantech-bb.com

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For more information contact:
B+B SmartWorx, Inc.
Gail Farlee
VP of Marketing & Sales Operations
Tel:  815-434-8702
[email protected]