Configuration of the Process Workflow

Log into Node-RED

1. Open a web browser and navigate to iot.hs-pforzheim.de/nodered.
2. Use the provided credentials to log into the Node-RED dashboard. For development purposes all students use the same account (admin) to share the same overview.

Once logged in, you should see a workspace where nodes can be arranged and configured.

Access the Flow

• After logging in, navigate to the workspace titled vwa_group0 (as seen in the screenshots). For your own group works, please navigate to your group’s workspace.
• The flow consists of several sensor inputs (e.g., temperature, humidity, barometer, CO2) that are processed and then output to an InfluxDB instance.
• Each sensor node captures data from its respective MQTT topic. The nodes for Temperature Sensor, Humidity Sensor, Barometer Sensor, and CO2 Sensor are connected to two outputs:
• One output stores the data in InfluxDB.
• The other output forwards the raw data to the debug panel via msg.payload for monitoring.

Adding MQTT Input Nodes

To replicate the sensor configuration:

1. Drag an MQTT input node from the palette (found on the left side under the common section).
2. Configure the MQTT input node:
   • Set the server details (this is already configured for your group).
   • Define the topic that matches the sensor’s topic (e.g., tinkerforge/callback/temperature_v2_bricklet/Nz7/temperature for the image’s temperature data).
3. Name the node according to the sensor type (e.g., “Temperature Sensor”).

Storing Data in InfluxDB

1. Drag an InfluxDB output node from the palette (found under storage if not available).
2. Configure the node:
   • Select the connection HSPF InfluxDB (IoT) details for InfluxDB.
   • Define the organization to match VWA
   • As bucket, select your group’s bucket (schema: vwa_groupX) as defined before in the configuration of data storage
   • Ensure the proper format for incoming data is configured (e.g., JSON format for time-series data).
3. Connect the sensor’s MQTT node to the InfluxDB output node.

Debugging the Data

1. Add a debug node (found in the palette under the common section) and connect it to the sensor’s MQTT output.
2. This allows you to view the msg.payload in real time to verify the incoming sensor data.
3. Open the debug panel on the right-hand side to monitor the output.

Deploy the Flow

1. After all nodes are configured and connected, click the Deploy button (found in the top-right corner of the Node-RED interface).
2. This will activate your flow, and you should see incoming data from your sensors being processed and output to InfluxDB.