LXRA-IoT

Walkthrough guide for connecting MXChip board to IoT Central

TO DO

Fix images
Check image links
@NexGenOne: Can you please review for flow/accuracy?

Objectives

This guide will walkthrough connecting the Azure IoT Dev Kit to IoT Central. Throughout the session, you'll learn how to:

Create and IoT Central application
Add and configure a new device
Load the credentials onto the Azure IoT Dev Kit

Tools Required

A Windows Live Account for access IoT Central
Access to the internet over wifi
A computer running Windows, Mac OSX,
1 x MXChip Development Board
A text editor to temporarily copy your credentials
- Notepad on Windows or TextEditor on Mac is perfect

References

The instructions in this guide are taken from several sources:

Instructions

Creating your IoT Central Application

The first step is to deploy a trial version of Azure IoT Central. These instructions below are an abridged version of our full walkthrough online

Step 1 - Access and Registration

Head to the Azure IoT Central Main page and select the "Get started" button
Next, you'll need to sign into your Microsoft account. If you don't have one, you can create one for free using the "Create one!" link.

Step 2 - Create New Application

Once you're all signed in, we'll now need to deploy a trial version of IoT Central. This instance will only last for 7 days but you won't be charged for the deployment. Amazing! You can always extend the trial to a paid version if you'd like to continue using the application.
Select the "New Application" Icon. In the pop-up, make sure to select the "Free" payment plan and the "Sample Dev Kit" template. Fill in the rest of the details and select "Create". Easy.
You should now see the front page of your very own IoT Central Application!

Step 3 - Adding a new device

On the left of the screen, you'll see some menu icons. Click on the "Device Explorer" tab.
You'll notice that several simulated devices are already available in the menu. IoT Central will automatically create simulations of new device types within the application so you can easily see how the data will flow from a real device. We'll now create a new device according to one of these pre-built templates:
- Select MXChip under Templates
- Click on the "+" dropdown and select Real
- A pop-up will appear for you to enter a device id and device name. Enter these details and select Create
After a few seconds, this device will be created and you'll be redirected to the device's configuration page. You'll now need to copy the connection credentials so your real device knows where to send the data!
- Select Connect at the top of the page
- A new box will appear. Copy and paste the Scope ID, Device ID and Primary Key in to a blank text file to use later.
- Click Close once copied

That's all for configuring your IoT Central Application! Let's know swap to the MXChip board to start streaming data.

Configuring and Connecting your MXChip Board

Now we'll need to activate the dev board to connect to the internet and start sending data to the IoT Central Application you just created.

Step 1 - Power on your Dev Board

Plug in you Dev Kit using the usb cable provided. The lights on the board should turn on and the screen should show something similar to this text:

    Connect HotSpot:
    AZ3166_??????       //Hotspot Name
    go-> 192.168.0.1    //IP Address
    PIN CODE xxxxx      //Pin Code

Step 2 - Conenct and configure your Dev Board through a browser

The device has created a wifi hotspot which we'll now need to connect to. On your computer, open the wifi settings and connect ot the new network name displayed on your device ("AZ3166_XXXXXX") NOTE - This will temporarily disconnect you from the internet.
Once connected, open up your web browser and go to the IP address displayed on the device ("192.168.0.1")
A new screen will appear and you'll be prompted to enter the details copied when you created earlier:
- Find the name of your WiFi network
- Enter the password for the WiFi Network
- The PINCODE is displayed on the Dev Board
- The Scope Id, Device Id, and Primary key that you copied in a previous step
- Keep all the measurements selected
- Click "Configure Device"
- That's it! The webpage will notify you that the device is configured

After several resets, the Dev Board show now have all lights set to green, "-- Connected --" should be displayed, and the message count should increment.

Reconnect your computer to the internet and head back over to your IoT Central application apps.azureiotcentral.com/

View data in IoT Central

Let's check out the data being streamed from the device.

Click on the "Device Explorer" tab and navigate to the device you created previously. Click the device name to see the information page.
You should now see some data visualised on the graph (if not, wait a few seconds or ask one of teh facilitators for help). Try experimenting with the board!
- What happens when you presss the "A" button?
- What happens when you press the "B" button?
- Can you influence the measurements?

Next Steps

What now? This is just the beginning of what is capable through the IoT Central Application. Try some of the following if you feel like exploring more of the features:

mjksinc/LXRA-IoT