Compatible protocols and equipment.
Your fleet mixes makes, generations and protocols. Mobapi reads what is already in place, from recent PLCs to control systems with no network port, and brings it all onto one screen. You don’t replace a single piece of equipment.
“” is not on the list.
The list covers what we have already connected or documented, not everything Mobapi can read. Send us the make, the model and a photo of the nameplate.
We build the connectorIn the field: PLCs, sensors, inputs and outputs
What the Mobapi.BOX reads on your equipment, so that thresholds, alarms and history can be added to it.
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PLCs
The PLC that runs a line often already holds the data you need. The BOX reads it over Modbus or OPC DA.
Example: read Schneider or Siemens PLCs through the existing SCADA, without fitting a single sensor. In the field: Schneider PLC. Mobapi reads: %MW104 1873
In Mobapi.EYE: Pump 3 · flow Normal
187.3 m³/h
high threshold 220 m³/h
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Modbus TCP
One of the most widely used protocols on PLCs and measuring instruments, read over the site’s Ethernet network.
Example: bring a diesel genset and its sensors onto the same screen as the rest of the fleet. In the field: Diesel genset. Mobapi reads: register 30013 412
In Mobapi.EYE: Genset 2 · power Normal
412 kW
high threshold 480 kW
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OPC DA
The standard for exchanges between SCADA and control systems: Mobapi picks up from your OPC server what your SCADA already sees.
Example: read a turbine run by a GE Mark VIe, or a Woodward Micronet controller, read-only. In the field: OPC server, GE Mark VIe. Mobapi reads: DWATT 18.42
In Mobapi.EYE: Turbine 1 · power Normal
18.4 MW
read-only
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MQTT
The lightweight protocol of recent connected sensors: each sensor publishes its measurements and Mobapi receives them.
Example: bring in retrofitted sensors without going through a PLC. In the field: Vibration sensor. Mobapi reads: bearing2/vib 5.21
In Mobapi.EYE: Bearing 2 · vibration Warning
5.2 mm/s
threshold 4.5 mm/s
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4-20 mA sensors
A current of 4 to 20 milliamps, proportional to the measurement, which Mobapi converts into bar, degrees or percentages.
Example: track the level of a fuel oil tank that never reported one. In the field: Level probe. Mobapi reads: input AI 2 11.4 mA
In Mobapi.EYE: Tank 2 · level Alarm
46.2 m³
low threshold 50 m³
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Digital I/O
On/off signals (running or stopped, fault or no fault), which the BOX reads and time-stamps.
Example: know remotely whether a genset is running, and since when. In the field: Run contact. Mobapi reads: input DI 3 1
In Mobapi.EYE: Genset 1 · status Normal
Running
for 6 h 12 min
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Sigfox sensors
Wireless sensors that transmit straight to the Sigfox cloud. Mobapi connects to the Sigfox cloud and files their measurements with those of the rest of the fleet.
Example: take readings from tanks or rooms spread across a large site. In the field: Sigfox sensor. Mobapi reads: Sigfox cloud 0x011E
In Mobapi.EYE: Room 4 · temperature Normal
28.6 °C
high threshold 35 °C
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Serial link (RS-232): older control systems
Some older control systems have no network port, only a serial link. The BOX reads their data over that link, without modifying the control system.
Example: follow an older-generation turbine on the same screen as recent equipment. Legacy equipmentIn the field: Older control system. Mobapi reads: serial frame T 498
In Mobapi.EYE: Turbine 2 · exhaust Normal
498 °C
high threshold 540 °C
In your software: databases, files, APIs
Some of your data sits idle in a database, a file or a piece of software. Mobapi.CORE files it in the same history as your field measurements.
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Databases: PostgreSQL, MySQL, MongoDB
Mobapi reads your existing databases and shows their data alongside field measurements.
Example: see the history of an old SCADA next to today’s measurements. In the field: PostgreSQL database. Mobapi reads: measurements table 4.1 M rows
In Mobapi.EYE: Compressor 1 · pressure Normal
7.8 bar
imported history
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Files: CSV, Excel, ODS, JSON
Round readings, manufacturer exports, tracking spreadsheets: Mobapi imports them and files them with the measurements.
Example: the manual readings of a piece of equipment that is not connected yet. In the field: Round reading. Mobapi reads: round.xlsx, F42 12480
In Mobapi.EYE: Genset 4 · hour meter Normal
12,480 h
manual reading
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Google Sheets
Records kept in a shared spreadsheet are read like any other source.
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IoT platforms and sensor servers
Do your sensors already send their data to a network operator? Mobapi picks it up there, with no need to reinstall them.
Example: bring radio sensors already in service together with the rest of the fleet. In the field: Network operator’s server. Mobapi reads: API 14 sensors
In Mobapi.EYE: Radio sensors · battery Normal
14 / 14 online
lowest battery 61%
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API
It works both ways: Mobapi reads your software’s APIs, and your CMMS, your reporting tools or your own system retrieve the raw data through the API.
Already done: Mobapi brought together measurements from Sigfox sensors and 4-20 mA loops. The client retrieved them through the API to use them in its own system, without going through Mobapi.EYE.
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Exports
Trends and tables can be exported to a file, for a report or an audit.
On the network: Ethernet, Wi-Fi, 3G/4G, LoRaWAN, offline
The BOX sends the data over the site’s network. When the network drops, it keeps collecting.
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Ethernet
The most stable link, when a cable reaches the cabinet.
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Wi-Fi
For buildings that already have coverage.
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Mobile network (3G/4G)
With its own SIM card: the answer for remote sites, kept off the company network.
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LoRaWAN
By radio, over long distances: the BOX can also send its data over LoRaWAN.
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Offline: when the network drops
The BOX keeps up to several months of measurements on site and sends them once the connection is back (store-and-forward). The rounds app also works with no network, even in a building that acts as a Faraday cage, and syncs by itself.
Example: a remote site whose link goes down for several days in a row. In the field: 3G/4G link down. Mobapi reads: data buffered 3 days
In Mobapi.EYE: Genset 1 · temperature Normal
82 °C
no gaps in the history
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What your IT department sees
The BOX only talks to Mobapi, over an encrypted connection, and our teams manage it over a VPN. A built-in firewall blocks everything else. And it works read-only.
Mobapi.BOX in brief.
- Read-only by design: the BOX sends no commands to your equipment.
- 31 × 100 × 125 mm, DIN rail, fanless. Months of measurements kept if the link drops.
- A UPS in the same format can be added on the same DIN rail, to ride through power cuts.
- All about the BOX
Your system isn’t on the list?
Send us the make, the model and a photo of the nameplate.
Technical questions.
Is Mobapi compatible with Modbus and OPC?
Yes. Mobapi reads Modbus TCP and OPC DA, two protocols in very wide use on PLCs and SCADA systems. The Mobapi.BOX connects to the equipment and sends the measurements to the platform, where they are stored and displayed in Mobapi.EYE.
Do you need to migrate to OPC UA before monitoring an older SCADA?
No, an old OPC server from the generation known as “Classic” remains a valid source for as long as it runs, and migrating to OPC UA can wait. Mobapi reads Schneider Modicon PLCs this way, over OPC DA, through the SCADA already in place, picking up from the OPC server what the SCADA already sees.
Can older machines with no modern protocol be connected?
Yes, in two ways. We add sensors (4-20 mA, digital inputs) connected to the BOX. Or we read the original control system, even one with no network port. Mobapi has already done this on a GE Speedtronic Mark IV: the BOX, connected to its printer output, decoded the status it sent there. Either way, the equipment stays in place.
Do we need to modify the PLCs or the control system?
No. Read-only by design: the BOX sends no commands to your equipment. Your PLC program and your settings stay the same.
Does read-only monitoring pose a risk to the control system?
A tool that can only read cannot, by that path, send a command to a machine. Some protocols, such as Modbus, also allow writing: it is then up to the monitoring tool to refrain from doing so. Mobapi’s BOX is read-only by design and sends no commands to the equipment.
Can you monitor a control network that must stay cut off from the internet?
Yes, through a read-only gateway that separates two networks: the control network stays cut off from the internet. At a thermal power plant operator, Woodward Micronet controllers are read this way, through an OPC DA server. The BOX communicates only with Mobapi, over an encrypted connection, and a built-in firewall blocks everything else.
What happens if the internet connection goes down?
The BOX keeps collecting. It stores up to several months of measurements on site and sends them once the connection is back.
Where is the data hosted, and how is it protected?
On AWS in the Paris region, or on your own servers (on-premises). In the cloud, stored data is encrypted with AES-256 and, in transit, it travels over encrypted connections (TLS).