What is a SHARC?

Since making the SHARC public earlier this year we've received numerous questions regarding what the SHARC is and what makes it unique. We've talked to executives, management teams, engineers, operators, maintenance, and numerous marketing and business advisors. We've sold them internationally and even sent some to "influencers". My opinion is pretty biased, but I think the SHARC is the most innovative Industry 4.0 hardware announced this year.

In this article, I will attempt to aggregate the most relevant information about the SHARC in one place.

Greatest thing since sliced bread

We believe that the greatest thing about the SHARC is that it enables ANYONE to capture data from discrete and analog sensors while remaining agnostic from a software standpoint. The SHARC uses the most widely used sensor pinout in the industry to allow plug-and-play to a large number of sensors. Our iPhone app (Sharc Studio) and web application (sharc.tech) allow for simple device setup via Bluetooth. It's almost as simple as setting up your IoT lightbulb at home.

Power

The SHARC is powered by 48 volts DC and was designed to receive power from Power Over Ethernet (POE+). This typically requires a POE+ switch that distributes power over the network line which is connected to the SHARC. Recently we discovered that we can also power the SHARC from the power that is provided to an existing sensor via a "T" adapter. We have tested this extensively and have yet to identify any concerns with the existing SHARC version.

Connectivity

Pretty straightforward. We use Bluetooth for initial setup and for troubleshooting if there is no network. We use the network standard RJ45 connector for our physical connectivity and WiFi for wireless.

Communication

The voice of the SHARC is over MQTT. MQTT has become the IoT industry standard allowing for lightweight, secure, and scalable communications. Our MQTT payload structure is available on our sharc-support Github page. Our topics are simply sharc/{{sharc_id}}/evt/io/{{sensor_name}} and our payload looks like this:

{
  "seq": 1,
  "v": 0
}

With "s0,s1,s2,s3" representing the "sensor type selector" on the SHARC and "sensor_name" from the topic. The field "v", of course, represents the value.

Bring your own software

The software to facilitate the capture of sensor data from the SHARC is available from open-source software such as Node-Red and United Manufacturing Hub or paid software such as Inductive Automation's Ignition... anything that can subscribe to MQTT topics. When the topic is received you can decide whether to store it into a database of your choosing or immediately visualize it.

Unique?

A few different pieces of hardware have been pointed out to us as possible competition since announcing the SHARC. After investigating those products we still believe the SHARC is unique in our field. You don't have to have another piece of hardware that facilitates communication. You don't need to have a specific off-the-shelf software. We have one model that can do discrete or analog.

What's Next?

Our roadmap for 2024 hasn't been updated, but we plan to add software-controlled selection for the sensor type, galvanic isolation, and a multiple-input SHARC at nearly the same price point (Great for those OEE'ers).

Interested in purchasing?

You can contact us directly through our Contact Us page if you're looking for bulk discounts or need to order through a purchase order. Or order straight from our secure store.