Project Haystack 4 open-source library aims to help developers create smart building and IoT applications
J2 Innovations, a Siemens Company and a founding member of Project Haystack, has released Haystack Core, an open-source software library for the latest Haystack 4 open standard. It can be used by developers to create new smart building and IoT applications.
Written in TypeScript, the open-source initiative will enable more sophisticated applications to be built with ease and at speed. Haystack Core paves the way for a host of new solutions that can manage energy usage, reduce carbon emissions and leverage the latest technologies. By using the Haystack Core APIs J2 Innovations’ OEM and ecosystem partners will be able to create their own Haystack based devices more easily and faster.
Now in its tenth year since inception, Project Haystack is an open-source initiative that streamlines the way data from the Internet of Things is handled to solve interoperability issues between devices and equipment. With an emphasis on standardising semantic data models, and using web services, its mission is to unlock the value from the vast quantity of data being generated by the smart devices that permeate our homes, buildings, factories and cities. Applications have been developed for automation, control, energy, HVAC, lighting and other environmental systems.
Today Project Haystack encompasses the entire value chain of building systems and related intelligent devices. Founding member companies include Siemens, ConserveIT, J2 Innovations, SkyFoundry, Legrand, and Lynxspring. Associate members include many other building-related suppliers and service providers of all types.
Novel and innovative ways to apply Haystack are constantly evolving. J2 Innovations has recently contributed Haystack JSON, a new JSON encoding format that aims to improve upon the existing encoding format by making Haystack data more accessible for developers.
“It’s significant that we’re able to announce this just before Haystack Connect 2021. The initiative has the potential to take Haystack to a different level of sophistication in the smart buildings and IoT applications world and beyond,” says Gareth Johnson, senior cloud architect, and creator of the library, at J2 Innovations. “This is the first library written in TypeScript that fully supports Haystack 4.”
“Haystack has always been about being an open, productive, and powerful development environment and we think this will inspire the community to innovate and build leading-edge software applications that will tap into the vast potential of the eco-system. And the more interesting apps being created will mean the more powerful and pervasive Haystack will become in our lives.”
John Petze, executive director of Project-Haystack.org adds, “This substantial addition to the library of Haystack tools and software applications demonstrates the continued efforts of the community to advance and streamline the use of smart device data. J2 Innovations has been part of the Haystack journey since the founding of the effort in 2011. We are excited to see this major contribution!”
The Haystack Core libraries provide a suite of powerful APIs that make it easy for working with Haystack data. This includes an implementation of the Haystack data model, filter compilation, unit database, Zinc, Trio and JSON support, client network support with automatic watch management and specialised Haystack React hooks. The open-source code can be downloaded from GitHub, the advanced development platform
Jason Briggs, CTO, J2 Innovations, and Gareth Johnson, senior cloud architect, J2 Innovations will unveil and deliver a presentation on Haystack Core at Haystack Connect 2021 on May 4th, 2021 at 14:00 EST. Gareth will also deliver a session on the new Haystack JSON encoding (a.k.a Hayson) just after on May 4th at 14:30 EST. The presentation will cover utilisation with JSON and OpenAPI schema to create robust Haystack-enabled REST APIs and more.
Haystack Connect 2021 is organised and produced by the Project Haystack Organisation an open-source community of people and companies who share the vision that a connected, collaborative community can move the industry forward in ways that no single supplier can. The event builds on the inspiration and mission of the community to address the challenges of making smart device data work seamlessly across applications of all types through the adoption of a standard approach to semantic modeling of equipment systems and their data.
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