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Factory Data ExtractionBACnet Collector

BACnet Collector

Bring building and facility systems — HVAC, chillers, energy meters, lighting — into the same data platform as your production equipment, with no point-by-point setup. Connect your BACnet/IP network and stream its data points straight into your fleet database. Everything is configured in the browser: no coding, no redeployment, no downtime.

Why this app

Zero-configuration network discovery. The app periodically scans your BACnet network with a Who-Is broadcast, registers every device it finds automatically — including device instance, vendor name and vendor ID — and starts collecting right away. New controllers added to the network are picked up by the next scan. The scan interval is configurable, and you can always add devices by IP address manually as well.

Automatic point discovery. For every device, the app discovers all available data points on its own: analog, binary and multi-state inputs, outputs and values, complete with object names, engineering units and descriptions.

Collect everything or just what you need. By default the app collects every point object a device exposes. To narrow it down, list the object identifiers you care about (e.g. analog-input:1, binary-input:3).

Readings with quality information. Every reading carries its BACnet status flags (in-alarm, fault, out-of-service) along with up-to-date object name, units and description — so you always know whether a value can be trusted.

Gentle on your network. Values are polled with batched ReadPropertyMultiple requests — a handful of telegrams per cycle instead of one per data point — with automatic fallback for devices that don’t support it. Every device is polled independently at its own read interval.

Supported devices & protocol

The collector reads from any device on a BACnet/IP network.

Protocol details

  • Standard: BACnet (ASHRAE 135), over BACnet/IP; default UDP port 47808.
  • Discovery: Who-Is broadcast for devices, then per-device object discovery.
  • Object types collected:
    • Analog — Analog Input (AI), Analog Output (AO), Analog Value (AV).
    • Binary — Binary Input (BI), Binary Output (BO), Binary Value (BV).
    • Multi-state — Multi-State Input (MSI), Multi-State Output (MSO), Multi-State Value (MSV).
  • Object identifier format: <object-type>:<instance>, e.g. analog-input:1, binary-input:3.

Building automation vendors

BACnet/IP is the lingua franca of building automation, so the collector works across the major ecosystems, including:

  • Johnson Controls — VAV controllers and building automation systems.
  • Honeywell — BACnet controllers, thermostats and controls.
  • Tridium — Niagara framework systems.
  • Distech Controls — HVAC controllers.
  • Schneider Electric / Alerton — BACnet controllers.
  • Siemens — BACnet-enabled controllers.
  • Carrier — chiller and boiler controls.
  • Energy & lighting — Schneider PowerLogic / Siemens SENTRON meters with BACnet, smart lighting gateways and building energy management systems (BEMS) with BACnet output.

What you get

Install the app in your project and assign edge PCs (gateways) to it. The app scans the local BACnet network automatically and registers every device it finds — open the app board and watch the data arrive. In the board’s settings view you can fine-tune each asset: adjust the collect interval, pause and resume collection, restrict collection to specific object identifiers, or add devices manually by IP address (optionally IP:Port).

Per gateway you can additionally configure the network scan interval, the default collect interval for discovered devices, this collector’s own BACnet device ID, the network interface to bind to, and whether data is stored in FleetDB — all directly in the gateways table, no restart needed for most settings. All readings land in the measurements table of your fleet database — each carrying its status flags, object name, units and description — and each asset’s live online/offline state is tracked in the assetstatus table. Collected readings are retained for 3 months by default (adjustable).

Common collector features

Like every IronFlock collector, the BACnet Collector is configured entirely in the browser — add and edit device connections in the built-in app board, with changes taking effect immediately and no restarts. It is reliable at the edge: each device is collected in isolation (one unreachable controller never stops the others), unanswered reads are logged and retried on the next cycle, and if the gateway loses its connection to the platform the app keeps collecting and buffers readings locally, then forwards everything in order the moment the link returns (buffer size configurable per gateway, with an optional forward-only mode). And you can try it without hardware: switch any device to demo mode and the app generates realistic building-automation sample data so you can explore the full experience before connecting a real BACnet device.

Build on your data

The included app board gives you an instant overview of incoming data. For tailored presentations, build custom dashboards and SCADA boards that display your BACnet measurements side by side with data from other apps, query them through the Data Backend, and use the Alarms app to monitor collected values in real time with SMS or email notifications. To bring devices online and install the app, see Device Management and App Management.

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