This tutorial will guide you through an example that shows how the Fosstrak ALE Middleware is configured to collect data from an LLRP-compliant RFID reader.
You will need the following files:
You will also need to install the following programs if they are not already present on your machine:
Install Apache Tomcat if you have not installed it yet.
Copy the two WAR files (fc-server-VERSION.war and fc-webclient-VERSION.war) into the Tomcat's webapps directory and start Tomcat. Tomcat will automatically deploy the two WAR files for you.
To simplify this demo, we use a reader emulator to generate tag reads.
We will return to the LLRP reader emulator once the other components are configured.
To display the reports with the aggregated data sent by the filtering and collection server, we will start a Fosstrak tool that displays incoming HTTP requests. Make sure the provided port is not used by some other application.
java -cp <READER_RP_CLIENT_VERSION>.jar \
org.fosstrak.reader.rp.client.EventSinkUI <PORT>
example:
java -cp reader-rp-client-0.3.1.jar \
org.fosstrak.reader.rp.client.EventSinkUI 9999
The screen will remain empty until the configuration of the filtering and collection server is complete.
In this example, we will use the web-based client to configure the filtering and collection server. Before we can use the web-based client, we need to tell it the URL through which the filtering and collection server can be accessed.
Start your web browser and point it to the address of the web-based client.
http://<SERVER>:<PORT>/<WEBCLIENT_VERSION>/services/ALEWebClient.jsp example: http://localhost:8080/fc-webclient-0.4.0/services/ALEWebClient.jsp
In the next step, specify two endpoints that tell the web-based client where the "Filtering and Collection API" and the "Logical Reader API" can be found.
Set the endpoint to the filtering and collection server by selecting the "setEndpoint(String endPointName)" method in the "Filtering and Collection API". Click "Invoke" to execute the command.
endpoint: http://<SERVER>:<PORT>/<FCSERVER_VERSION>/services/ALEService example: http://localhost:8080/fc-server-1.0.0/services/ALEService
Verify that a connection between the web-based client and the server can be established by clicking "getVendorVersion()". A version number should be returned.
Set the endpoint to the filtering and collection server's Logical Reader API by selecting "setEndPoint(String endPointName)" in the "LogicalReader API". Click "Invoke" to execute the command.
endpoint: http://<SERVER>:<PORT>/<FCSERVER_VERSION>/services/ALELRService example: http://localhost:8080/fc-server-1.0.0/services/ALELRService
Verify that a connection between the web-based client and the server can be established by clicking "getVendorVersion()". A version number should be returned.
The next step is to configure the fc-server with the LLRP reader connected. Click on "define(String readerName, LRSpec spec)" in the section LogicalReader API.
DO NOT CONFUSE the define method for an EventCycle with the define method for a logical reader! For this tutorial name your reader "LogicalReader1" and use the LLRPReader.xml as your LRSpec.
readerName: <READERNAME> specFilePath: <PATH_TO_SPEC>\<SPEC_NAME>.xml example: readerName: LogicalReader1 specFilePath: c:\epc\LLRPReader.xml
Verify that the reader has been created by clicking on "getLogicalReaderNames()". The call should return a list of logical readers in brackets. Make sure that the reader just creates is listed.
In the Rifidi emulator you can now see the message exchange with the Fosstrak ALE middleware.
You can inspect the logical reader specification LRSpec by the method "getLRSpec(String readerName)".
In the next step you will define an ALE ECSpec. This tells the ALE Middleware how the RFID tag reads ariving from the Rifidi Emulator should be filtered and aggregated.
Invoke the method "define(String specName, String specFilePath)". DO NOT CONFUSE the define method for an EventCycle with the define method for a logical reader! For this tutorial name your EventCycle "specCURRENT" and load this ECSpec message
specName: <SPEC_NAME> specFilePath: <PATH_TO_SPEC>\<SPEC_NAME>.xml example: specName: specCURRENT specFilePath: c:\epc\ECSpec_current.xml
Verify the correct defintion of your ECSpec by invoking the method "getECSpecNames()". You should get a list of ECSpec names currently defined in brackets. Make sure that the ECSpec you just defined is listed.
When there is no subscriber for an ECSpec, the ECSpec is not executed. We therefore need to specify a listener by subscribing our event sink to the ECSpec "specCURRENT" we added earlier.
Invoke "subscribe(String specName, String notificationUri)" and register the URL on which the event sink GUI is listening.
notificationURI: http://<SERVER>:<PORT> specName: <SPEC_NAME> example: notificationURI: http://localhost:9999 specName: specCURRENT
The ALE will start sending empty ECReports to the event sink GUI as the Rifidi emulator is not configured to send EPC tag reads via the LLRP protocol yet.
Start the LLRP Commander (via Eclipse) and connect to the remote adapter instance running on the ALE. Check, if you can send and retrieve messages from the reader by sending a GET_READER_CAPABILITIES message.
Create a new LLRP message and replace the content by the content from the LLRP RO_SPEC. Send the message to the Rifid Emulator. From the context menu (right-click on the Rifidi Emulator), select "Send ENABLE_RO_SPEC message" to instruct the reader to enable the ROspec just loaded.
Now the virtual reader is ready to deliver tags to the ALE.
Switch to the Rifidi reader emulator and create a tag (SGTIN96, GEN2). When you place the tag on the reader antenna, the tag reads will be reported to the Fosstrak ALE Middleware. After the tag reads are filtered and collected as specified in the ECSpec, they are delivered by the Fosstrak ALE middleware to the event sink GUI.