TY - JOUR

T1 - Bringing IoT to the lab: sila2 and open-source-powered gateway module for integrating legacy devices into the digital laboratory

AU - Porr, Marc Julian

AU - Schwarz, Sebastian

AU - Lange, Ferdinand Heinrich

AU - Niemeyer, Laura

AU - Hentrop, Thorleif

AU - Marquard, Daniel

AU - Lindner, Patrick

AU - Scheper, Thomas

AU - Beutel, Sascha

N1 - Funding information: The authors thank the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research for funding our research in context of the project “Digitalisierung in der Industriellen Biotechnologie (DigInBio)” (BMBF FKZ 031B0463C) and the Projektträger Jülich. The publication of this article was funded by the Open Access fund of Leibniz Universität Hannover. The authors thank the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research for funding our research in context of the project “Digitalisierung in der Industriellen Biotechnologie (DigInBio)” (BMBF FKZ 031B0463C) and the Projektträger Jülich. The authors also thank their partners in that project: the Institut für Bio- und Geowissenschaften, Department for Bioprocesses and Bioanalytics at the Forschungszentrum Jülich and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Institute of Biochemical Engineering at the Technical University of Munich for testing prototypes of the hardware presented here. They also thank the Tecan Software Competence Center for help and support with their open source SiLA2 implementation and the Bopla Gehäuse Systeme GmbH for permission to publish CAD-Files and drawings based on their technical documentation under an open hardware license. The publication of this article was funded by the Open Access fund of Leibniz Universität Hannover.

PY - 2020/10

Y1 - 2020/10

N2 - In this article a gateway module to integrate legacy laboratory devices into the network of the digital laboratory in the 21st century is introduced. The device is based on ready to buy consumer hardware that is easy to get and inexpensive. Depending on the specific requirements of the desired application (bare embedded computer, RS232 serial port connector, IP65 certified casing and connectors) the needed investment ranges from about 95 € up to 200 €. The embedded computer runs an open source Linux operating system and can in principle be used to run any kind of software needed for communicating with the laboratory device. Here the open source SiLA2 standard is used for presenting the device's functions in the network. As an example the digital integration of a magnetic stirrer is shown and can be used as a template for other applications. A method for easy remote integration of the device to ensure an easy and consistent workflow in development, testing and usage is also presented. This incorporates a method for remote installation of SiLA2 servers on the box as well as a web frontend for administration, debugging and management of those.

AB - In this article a gateway module to integrate legacy laboratory devices into the network of the digital laboratory in the 21st century is introduced. The device is based on ready to buy consumer hardware that is easy to get and inexpensive. Depending on the specific requirements of the desired application (bare embedded computer, RS232 serial port connector, IP65 certified casing and connectors) the needed investment ranges from about 95 € up to 200 €. The embedded computer runs an open source Linux operating system and can in principle be used to run any kind of software needed for communicating with the laboratory device. Here the open source SiLA2 standard is used for presenting the device's functions in the network. As an example the digital integration of a magnetic stirrer is shown and can be used as a template for other applications. A method for easy remote integration of the device to ensure an easy and consistent workflow in development, testing and usage is also presented. This incorporates a method for remote installation of SiLA2 servers on the box as well as a web frontend for administration, debugging and management of those.

KW - Digital integration

KW - Digitalization

KW - Digitization

KW - Embedded computing

KW - Internet of things (IoT)

KW - Laboratory

KW - Network

KW - SiLA2

UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85097292189&partnerID=8YFLogxK

U2 - 10.1016/j.ohx.2020.e00118

DO - 10.1016/j.ohx.2020.e00118

M3 - Article

VL - 8

JO - HardwareX

JF - HardwareX

SN - 2468-0672

M1 - e00118

ER -