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Sensor/System Drivers

A core component of OpenSensorHub is the sensor/system driver. We use both terms sensor driver and system driver to describe a type of module that can connect a data feed (and/or command feed) to OpenSensorHub's system registry, which allows the connected sensor or system to be represented using the OSH core data model.

Sensor Driver​

As noted before, a Sensor Driver is used to connect to a data feed, typically via a sensor/device, or some remote data feed.

This allows the driver to:

  • report the sensor's data outputs via datastreams
  • expose a command interface via control streams
  • report a descriptions and updates through SensorML descriptions

Sensor drivers implement the ISensorDriver interface, which is an extension of IDataProducer (to manage outputs), ISystemDriver (for system descriptions), and ICommandReceiver (to expose command input interfaces).

osh-core also provides an AbstractSensorModule, which implements common methods for module lifecycle management, generation of system descriptions/ids, and helper methods for attaching outputs, command interfaces, and features of interest to the system.

For an example implementation of a sensor driver, please see the Driver Template Dissection.

See ISensorModule's (ISensorDriver implementing IModule for easy integration) API reference.

System Group Driver​

Since systems can have parent/child relationships, the system group driver is necessary in flexibly building this relationship by using system drivers.

The ISystemGroupDriver is simply an extension of the ISystemDriver interface with a method to expose its member system drivers.

See ISystemGroupDriver's API reference

SensorSystem​

The default implementation of the ISystemGroupDriver interface in OpenSensorHub is the SensorSystem class, which provides an implementation for a system group driver that manages data-producing modules (sensors and processes).

The SensorSystem class includes methods for module and submodule lifecycle management. This means that the registration of all member sensor drivers will be handled by the parent system group driver.

Also, the SensorSystem class ensures that member drivers' system descriptions are attached to the parent SensorSystem's system description, fulfilling the parent/child relationship in the OSH core data model.