• In a Data Center there were about 4-5 VFDs (Variable Frequency Drive) and they needed to be controlled and monitored using MQTT protocol.
• The primary objective of the project was to enable secure and reliable cloud connectivity for the existing VFD infrastructure without replacing the installed devices. The solution was required to provide real-time monitoring, remote control, and seamless data exchange between the field devices and the cloud-based monitoring platform using the MQTT protocol.

Initial Situation of VFD Integration Over MQTT

• VFDs were looped on RS485 Port and provided output in Modbus RTU (RS485) Protocol.
• The monitoring and control system that was cloud based only supported MQTT protocol

Customer Requirement

• Customer wanted to monitor and control VFDs data like Voltage, Current and Frequency from cloud.
• The VFDs work on Modbus RTU Protocol and Cloud API understands MQTT. Therefore, a direct exchange of data between them was not possible.

Solution Provided

• ProtoConvert suggested a Gateway in which we can get the data from all the VFDs on RTU and post it on MQTT Broker.

Note: Client had purchased MQTT Broker Subscription

• The customer’s monitoring system subscribed Parameter tags on MQTT Broker.
• With the help of ProtoConvert Gateway, customer could monitor and control Data Center’s VFD data via MQTT Broker.
• The customer’s monitoring system could send back commands to update the Parameters on MQTT Broker.
• The gateway was configured to continuously poll the VFD parameters, publish real-time data to the MQTT Broker, and subscribe to control topics for receiving remote commands. This enabled secure bidirectional communication between the cloud application and the field devices while ensuring reliable data transfer and simplified integration.

Result for VFD Integration Over MQTT

• ProtoConvert Gateway had subscribed to these Parameter Values and on change relayed the commands on Modbus RTU enabled VFDs.
• The solution enabled centralized cloud-based monitoring and remote control of all connected VFDs, improving operational visibility, reducing manual intervention, and providing a scalable architecture for future expansion of the data center automation system.