IOTech, the edge software company, today announced the launch and availability of Edge XRT, its time-critical edge platform for Microsoft Azure Sphere. Designed and optimized for resource-constrained environments, Edge XRT delivers out-of-the-box device connectivity and edge intelligence for microcontroller units (MCUs), gateways and smart sensors at the IoT edge. It reduces time-to-value from weeks to hours.
Azure Sphere is a secured, high-level application platform with built-in communication and security features for the connected devices. It comprises a connected crossover microcontroller unit, a custom Linux-based operating system, and a cloud-based security service.
“We’re delighted to collaborate with Microsoft and its partners to deliver real-time IoT edge capability for low-profile, yet powerful, devices,” said Keith Steele, CEO of IOTech. “The availability of Edge XRT for use with Microsoft Azure Sphere is an important step to accelerate the deployment, and even more importantly, dramatically reduce the time-to-value, for both greenfield and brownfield IoT edge solutions.”
Edge XRT for Azure is fully compatible with Azure Sphere-certified chips and Azure Sphere OS. An Azure Sphere device is designed to integrate securely with the Azure Sphere security service running in the cloud. The security service ensures the integrity of the device and provides the secure channel used by Microsoft to automatically install Azure Sphere OS and customer application updates to deployed devices.
Edge XRT reduces the time-to-value for Azure Sphere, delivering securely connected device service deployments from weeks to hours. In addition, by moving specific workloads to the edge of the network, devices spend less time communicating with the cloud. The result is devices react more quickly to local changes and operate reliably, even in extended offline periods.
Edge XRT simplifies connectivity to sensors and devices at the edge by configuration versus coding. This enables connectivity to Azure Sphere devices using a range of standard industrial protocols such as Modbus, BACnet, EtherNet/IP and others. It allows ready access to edge data, which can be sent securely to and from its digital twin running on Azure IoT Hub.
Edge XRT can also host edge intelligence applications for Azure Sphere devices. It allows users to create edge applications that can be downloaded and updated securely over the air via the Azure Sphere security service throughout the life cycle of the device.
“Microsoft is pleased to collaborate with IOTech to enable the integration of device data with Microsoft Azure Sphere deployments,” said Galen Hunt, Distinguished Engineer and Managing Director of Azure Sphere, Microsoft. “Edge XRT software helps reduce device integration configuration time and deployment, helping customers and partners realize value from IoT solutions rapidly and at scale.”
IOTech and Microsoft will discuss the collaboration and solution during an upcoming webinar on March 25: Accelerating Time-to-Value for IoT Applications at the Far Edge. Register here.
