mqopen is open-source IoT platform for sensors and other devices interconnected using MQTT protocol. It offers solution for smart homes, data logging, environment surveillance and automation.

It creates open source network of very cheap devices which can collect data or can be controlled for some actions. Also provides tools for data processing and network health monitoring.

This project is divided in three main parts:

• Infrastructure - Network backbone for reliable and secure data exchange.
• Nodes - Endpoint network devices.
• Data processing - Processing of collected data and taking some actions. Also includes system supervising and health monitoring.

• Open source - We believe that you can only trust to open source solution. You can never be sure that any closed source solution isn't backdoored, has't some critical vulnerability or creepy snooping feature.
• Scalable - MQTT based infrastructure allows you to very easily create new kind of endpoint devices or data processing software and deploy it into existing network.
• Extensible - You can deploy only one device without need of any complex infrastructure or you can have thousand devices span over the world. Possibilities are endless.
• Secure - Designed to be secured against data leak and network compromise.

Infrastructure is based on MQTT protocol. It is lightweight publish-subscribe communication protocol originally developed by IBM.

Network is designed to span over many locations over the world, each with its own local MQTT broker. All local MQTT brokers are connected to single central MQTT broker to form large and robust network.

This approach allows to use cheap hardware for building endpoint devices and also use SSL encryption for data exchange.

Use of MQTT based network has several advantages:

• Minimize traffic - MQTT required very minimal network traffic. It also offers retain feature which allows you to send only environmental changes. Sensor do not have to periodically send that a doors are still closed.
• Response time - When some device needs to get some information, it do not have to poll some other device for it. Network can store this information itself.
• M:N relationship - Publish-subscribe communication allows you to build single device which reads data from multiple sensors and vice versa.
• Unified interface - MQTT is well documented and you can connect other MQTT compliant devices into same network.
• 3rd party independent - You don't have to rely to functionality if some 3rd party service.
• Distributed approach - Only small part of the network will be paralyzed when some broker goes down.
• Central processing - You can process and analyze data at single point.
• Real-time monitoring - Network can store information about which devices are online and which are not.
• Encryption - Bridging brokers via SLL tunnels.

Main part of this mqopen are endpoint devices. These devices can be sensors for gathering data, but also devices which can read data from the network and take some actions based on them.

Nodes are in very active development and they are continuously improved. You can read more about nodes at the appropriate page.

Finally, collected data can be processed and analyzed. mqopen provides several tools for that task:

• mqspeak - Collecting data and uploading them to ThingSpeak channel or Phant servers.
• mqguard - Network monitoring and health diagnostic tool.
• mqview - Real-time web based user interface for mqguard.

mqopen is designed with security in the mind. The biggest problem is that it uses low-cost hardware which are not able to provide robust encryption itself. For that reason mqopen network uses perimeter based security approach. That means that weakest point is access to some local network and local MQTT broker.