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Assets

The Asset resource represents complex machines, appliances, or logical entities whose state and behavior are derived from one or more connected devices. Assets provide a higher-level abstraction for managing sophisticated equipment within your IoT infrastructure.

Overview​

An asset is a composite entity that aggregates data and functionality from multiple devices to represent complex physical or logical systems. For example, an electric power line may be represented as an asset that derives its state from multiple energy meters (devices) distributed along the line. Assets enable you to model and monitor sophisticated equipment as unified entities rather than managing individual sensors separately.

Key Properties​

Basic Information​

  • name (required): A meaningful name for the asset (e.g., "Production Line A", "HVAC System Building 1")
  • description: Detailed description of the asset and its purpose (e.g., "Main production line for automotive parts assembly")
  • projectId (required): The project this asset belongs to
  • assetTypeId: Reference to the asset type definition that describes this category of assets

Hierarchy and Organization​

  • plantId: The plant where this asset is physically located
  • parentId: Reference to a parent asset, enabling hierarchical asset structures
  • tags: Array of alphanumeric tags for categorization and filtering

Metadata and Custom Properties​

  • metadata: Flexible key-value storage for custom attributes and properties specific to the asset

Asset Hierarchies​

Assets support hierarchical relationships through the parentId field, allowing you to model complex equipment structures:

Example Hierarchy​

Manufacturing Plant (Asset)
├── Production Line A (Asset)
│   ├── Conveyor System (Asset)
│   ├── Assembly Station 1 (Asset)
│   └── Quality Control Unit (Asset)
└── Production Line B (Asset)
    ├── Packaging System (Asset)
    └── Labeling Machine (Asset)

Benefits of Hierarchical Organization​

  1. Logical Grouping: Organize related equipment into meaningful structures
  2. Aggregated Monitoring: Roll up metrics from child assets to parent assets
  3. Maintenance Planning: Plan maintenance activities at appropriate hierarchy levels
  4. Access Control: Apply permissions at different organizational levels

Asset Types​

The assetTypeId field links assets to predefined asset type definitions that specify:

  • Common properties and attributes
  • Expected device relationships
  • Data processing rules
  • Visualization templates
  • Maintenance schedules

This enables consistent management of similar assets across your infrastructure.

Device Integration​

Assets derive their intelligence and state from connected devices:

Common Integration Patterns​

  1. Sensor Aggregation: Multiple sensors feeding data to represent overall asset health
  2. Control Systems: Devices that both monitor and control asset behavior
  3. Distributed Monitoring: Geographically distributed devices monitoring a single logical asset

Example: Electric Power Line Asset​

Electric Line Asset "Main Distribution Line"
├── Connected Devices:
│   ├── Energy Meter 1 (Device) - Substation A
│   ├── Energy Meter 2 (Device) - Distribution Point B
│   ├── Energy Meter 3 (Device) - Substation C
│   └── Fault Detector (Device) - Mid-line monitoring
└── Derived Properties:
    ├── Total Power Flow
    ├── Line Efficiency
    ├── Fault Status
    └── Load Distribution

Resource Management​

Base Resource Properties​

All assets inherit standard resource properties:

  • uuid: Unique identifier (auto-generated if not provided)
  • createdAt: Resource creation timestamp
  • updatedAt: Last modification timestamp
  • metadata: Flexible key-value storage for custom attributes

Project Association​

Every asset must be associated with a project through the projectId field, enabling:

  • Access control and permissions management
  • Resource organization and billing
  • Multi-tenant isolation