At the heart of this year's steute booth, the business unit “Wireless” will be presenting the latest version of its wireless network solution “nexy”, facilitating the transmission of sensor data to the Internet of Things (IoT) or other superordinate IT systems.

Different sensors and electromechanical switches, but also actuators and command devices, can be integrated in this wireless network solution. They all transmit and receive data via the sWave.NET® wireless standard developed by steute for precisely such applications. Access Points collect data from the wireless sensors and actuators and forward them to a Sensor Bridge which acts as a service manager, responsible for passing the data on to superordinate company IT platforms. The result is uninterrupted communication from the shop floor all the way up to the management levels of the customer's IT system. A state-of-the-art dashboard provides clear visualisation of the status of all terminal devices integrated in the network.

One characteristic of the nexy software is its simple adaptation to individual requirements. For diverse applications, such as eKanban or AGV fleets, appropriate solutions are already available. An additional key feature is the fact that this network solution is open: steute has its own wide range of wireless network-compatible sensors, but if an application should demand the integration of other sensor types which steute does not provide, these sensors can simply be fitted with an sWave.NET® module and then also be used within the network. This opens up the possibilities for using and expanding the wireless network enormously.

In the latest version, all connected sWave.NET® field devices can receive new firmware updates remotely. Updates are sent to the Sensor Bridge and from there distributed throughout the local network. In this way, all terminal devices always run on the latest software with minimum effort required. In addition, users are able to store the current configuration of the Sensor Bridge and thus the entire parameterisation of the wireless network on an FTP drive automatically. In this latest software version, the Sensor Bridge also communicates with the SAP system of the user via an additional SAP connector.

In this way nexy digitalises, integrates and automates the production process. For users this means quick, easy and individual realisation of IT projects. As steute will be demonstrating at the SPS 2019.

steute at the SPS smart production solutions, Hall 9, Booth 450