IIoT development box integrates sensors, actuators and cloud services into new and legacy industrial equipment

RS Components has launched the 4ZeroBox IIoT unit from Italian manufacturer TOI. 4ZeroBox is the hardware component of their 4ZeroPlatform, a plug-and-play data gathering, processing and reporting system created to optimise Industry 4.0 smart manufacturing and factory-maintenance processes.

This versatile modular IIoT unit can be installed into both legacy and modern industrial equipment, enabling fast integration with sensors, actuators and cloud services. Based on a 2.4GHz Espressif Systems ESP32 microcontroller with 4Mb of flash memory, it arrives in a DIN-rail mountable case with industrial-grade sensor channels and support for WiFi, Ethernet, Bluetooth, LoRa, CAN, RS485, RS232, SD card, JTAG, I2C and SPI. The solution can be increased using 100s of MikroElektronika click boards via two onboard MikroBus sockets.

The solution also incorporates a Zerynth Virtual Machine premium licence so that it can be programmed in Python or hybrid C/Python. Zerynth comprises a compiler, debugger and editor, as well as tutorials and example projects for simple learning.

Also included with the solution is a one-year subscription to the company's 4ZeroManager, a cloud-based or on-premises device management service for organising, monitoring, and remotely updating connected devices at scale. The subscription incorporates a web interface to control connected devices and customise data forwarding to other services such as ERP and MES.

Suitable applications cover a wide variety of arenas including production plants to industrial refrigeration, waste management, precision agriculture, transportation and logistics, energy and utilities, retail, and smart homes and buildings.