SmartThings IoT Platform Introduction

SmartThings is a smart Device control system that includes SmartThings cloud (cloud Platform), SmartThings Hub (Gateway), SmartThings Mobile (mobile client), and a variety of associated devices or services.

Let's say we have a control scenario: When the door opens, the lamp in the living room is opened and a text message is sent to the owner. How to achieve this control. First we need a switch sensor, when the door is opened, the sensor sensors and the event on the reporting platform, the platform received the incident report, the control room lamp switch open, while sending a short message via SMS service.

Of course, these devices, such as sensors and light switches, may not have a network interface and cannot communicate directly with the platform, requiring a gateway as a transit point. The gateway is responsible for abstracting the state of the sensor into an event that is escalated to the cloud platform and then receives and executes the instructions issued by the cloud platform. Gateways are not required, and if a smart device has a network interface and supports SmartThings communication protocols, it can bypass the gateway directly to communicate with the cloud platform.

The application logic of SmartThings is implemented in the cloud platform, i.e. "if ... So ... "Such control logic is not handled on the mobile client, gateway, sensor, but in the cloud platform based on pre-set conditions and logic implementation control. Why did you do that? SmartThings that the "Device" and "smart" should be separate, that is, as the sensor does not require it to have high intelligence, it is only responsible for detection, and the communication part of the gateway to complete. In the cloud platform, various sensor events and device operations are abstracted into standard interfaces, such as Event.ContactSensor.opened, which represents an open event for a switch sensor. SmartThings that one of the benefits of putting control logic on the cloud platform is that application developers do not have to focus on specific hardware or learn hardware-related programming. Let's take a look at a specific example on the SmartThings website:

def openedcontactsensor (evt, Settings) {
    def light = Settings.switch1
    if (evt = = Event.ContactSensor.opened) { C2/>light.on ()
    }
}

This example implements an associated control logic for a sensor and a switch. SmartThings even launched a browser-based development environment where developers can develop and publish apps directly on the browser.

The cloud platform not only implements business logic, it is also an app store for end users, developers publish IoT applications to the cloud platform, and end users can download the applications they need from the platform via a mobile client and then use them in a simple configuration. Also see the above example, "When the door opens, then open the living room lights, and send text messages", when the user downloaded the control logic, only need to specify in the mobile phone client which is the door of the sensor, which is the living room lamp switch, as well as its own mobile phone number, this control logic is effective. In addition, the mobile client also helps users manage their own gateways, devices, and the presence and events of various devices.

The architecture of SmartThings is divided into presentation layer, intelligent layer, abstraction layer, connection layer and capability layer, through which five levels are divided, and the complete ecological chain of integration of IoT hardware vendors, IoT application developers, Internet service providers and end users is established. The IoT industry is booming and individuals and businesses have the opportunity to find their place in the ecosystem.

SmartThings hierarchy diagram (quoted from the official network)

Reference: http://www.smartthings.com/#getting-started http://build.smartthings.com/smartapps-overview/http:// build.smartthings.com/the-cloud-first-approach/