IoT Wireless 3-Channel Production Counter (OEE)

01Overview

The NCD IoT Wireless 3-Channel Production Counter is a long-range wireless transmitter with three independent, opto-isolated digital inputs. Each input counts pulses — a part passing a photo eye, a press cycle, a button push, a contact closure — and independently tracks how long that input stays active (uptime). It transmits per-channel counter values, uptime, and live input states at user-defined intervals over the long-range wireless network to an Atrium IIoT Gateway. Counter and uptime data are the two raw inputs behind OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness): counts feed the Performance and Quality factors, while uptime feeds Availability.

The counter ships in one enclosure with a choice of wireless module frequency, selected at time of order to match your region and range needs. All variants share the same inputs, firmware, and Atrium integration.

What’s in the Box

• IoT Wireless 3-Channel Production Counter in an IP65 enclosure with wireless module installed
• Antenna with RP-SMA connector (868–900 MHz dipole, or 2.4 GHz dipole, matching the selected module)
• U.FL to RP-SMA pigtail cable adapter
• 3.6 V 16,000 mAh single D-cell (LR20) battery pack with supercapacitor (power switch ships in the OFF position)
• Mounting hardware

02Specifications

Full technical specifications. All wireless-module variants share the same inputs, enclosure, battery, and Atrium integration; only the radio frequency and range differ (see the Overview comparison table).

03Prerequisites

Before installing this counter, make sure you have the following in place.

Hardware Required

• NCD Atrium IIoT Gateway — powered on and connected to your local network
• IoT Wireless 3-Channel Production Counter (this unit) with antenna attached
• 3.6 V 16,000 mAh D-cell battery pack (included, switch in OFF position for shipping), or a 12–24 V DC supply for external power
• The sensors you intend to count — photo eye, break-beam, proximity switch, or contact-closure source — with an M12 connector or cable to wire them in

Software / Network

• A current version of Atrium running on your gateway
• A computer or mobile device on the same local network as the gateway
• A modern web browser (Chrome recommended)

04Mounting & Wiring

Installation has three parts: wire your sensors into the input channels, set the on-board jumpers for your sensor type, then power on and mount the enclosure.

Wiring the Inputs

Each of the three channels is opto-isolated and accepts a 3.3–24 V signal or a contact closure. Sensors connect through the M12 8-pin connector. PNP (sourcing) and NPN (sinking) output sensors are both supported — the on-board jumpers select the wiring scheme.

Powering On

1. 1
   Open the enclosure

   Remove the four screws securing the enclosure lid and lift the cover to expose the PCB, jumpers, and power switch.
2. 2
   Set the jumpers and wire your inputs

   Configure the three jumpers (above) for your sensor type, then land your sensor wires on the M12 connector pins you selected. Repeat for each channel you are using — unused channels can be left unconnected.
3. 3
   Set the power switch

   The 3-position power switch ships in the center OFF position. Slide it to ON BAT to run on the internal battery, or ON EXT if you have connected a 12–24 V DC supply to the barrel connector. Press the CFG button to confirm power — the TEST LED lights while the button is held.
4. 4
   Close and seal the enclosure

   Replace the lid and tighten all four screws evenly to maintain the IP65 seal.

M12 Connector Wiring

Field sensors land on the M12 8-pin connector. Each of the three inputs is a +/− pair — INP1 on PIN 1/2, INP2 on PIN 3/4, INP3 on PIN 5/6. Sensor power (V out) is on PIN 8, set to 3V3 or 12 V by the Operating Voltage (COM) jumper, with ground on PIN 7.

Break-Beam Sensor Wiring

NCD’s 3-channel break-beam sensors use the standard 3-wire color scheme — Brown = +V, Blue = 0 V, Black = signal. Wire each sensor to its channel as follows (remember these sensors need the counter on external power):

Contact-Closure Wiring (Pull-Down)

A dry contact needs no external supply. Wire the contact between the channel’s INP+ pin and PIN 8 (V out), then set the internal jumpers so the input idles low and goes high when the contact closes:

• Operating Voltage (COM) jumper → set PIN 8 to 3V3 (or 12 V).
• Pull jumper → set to Pull Down — the input idles low; closing the contact pulls it high.
• Contact Closure Selection jumper → enable the channel’s INP+ and PIN 8 as the contact-closure inputs.

Example (Input 1): wire the contact between PIN 1 (INP1+) and PIN 8. Use PIN 3 for Input 2 and PIN 5 for Input 3. Set Edge Detection to count on the closing (rising) edge.

Mounting the Enclosure

• Wall-mount: Use the enclosure’s mounting tabs and fasteners appropriate for your surface. Position the unit so the antenna has a clear line of sight toward the gateway where possible.
• Magnet-mount: The optional magnetic mounting plate attaches to any ferrous surface — ideal for machine frames, guarding, and panels near the equipment being counted.

05Pairing with Atrium

Once powered on, the counter begins transmitting over the long-range wireless network immediately. Atrium detects it automatically. By default, new sensors are held as pending (blacklisted) until confirmed — the setup wizard whitelists them and begins logging telemetry. No radio pairing or pre-registration is required. A short guided wizard walks you through onboarding.

1. 1
   Power on and close the enclosure

   Set the power switch to ON BAT or ON EXT, then close the lid. Within one reporting interval (default 600 seconds, i.e. 10 minutes), Atrium will detect it. You can also press RESET and wait ~15 seconds to force an immediate transmission.
2. 2
   Open Atrium and go to Sensors

   Navigate to your gateway’s local address (e.g. http://ncd-[last-4-of-MAC].local) and click Sensors in the top navigation. A banner shows “X sensors need setup” with detected sensors grouped by type. Your counter appears under the 123 – 3 Channel Production Counter type group.
3. 3
   Launch the sensor setup wizard

   Click Set Up on the counter in the banner to open the per-sensor Sensor Details wizard. Use Save & Next to step through each field, Save to commit without advancing, or Skip to onboard manually later.
4. 4
   Select sensors to set up

   The Set Up Your Sensors step lists all detected sensors with checkboxes, pre-selected by default. Deselect any you don’t want to add, then click Set Up [X] Sensors.
5. 5
   Name and locate the counter

   Click the sensor in the Sensors table to open its configuration. On the Sensor Meta tab, enter a Sensor Name, Asset (the machine or line it monitors), and Location. See Section 6 for full details.

06Sensor Meta

The Sensor Meta tab controls how Atrium identifies and tracks this counter. Access it via Sensors → [your sensor] → Configure → Sensor Meta.

07Metric Configuration

The Metrics tab lets you configure conversion formulas, units, custom labels, and dashboard visibility for each data channel. Access it via Configure → Metrics.

This counter exposes the following metrics — a counter and an uptime value for each of the three inputs, the live state of each input, plus device health and a transmission descriptor:

Custom Conversion Formulas

Each metric supports a custom conversion formula using value as the variable name. Leave the formula as value or blank to display raw data. This is useful for converting a raw cycle count into a production unit. Examples:

value / 12              // 12 counts = 1 finished carton
value * 2               // each cycle produces 2 parts
value / 3600            // convert an uptime in seconds to hours

Custom Labels & Visibility

Each metric can be assigned a Custom Label (e.g. “Line 2 Good Parts” or “Press Run Time”) that replaces the default metric name throughout Atrium — strongly recommended so the three channels read clearly on the dashboard. Unchecking Visible on Dashboard hides that metric’s card and chart without deleting data; hide any unused input channels to keep the dashboard clean.

08Hardware Settings

Hardware settings control the counter’s on-board configuration — reporting interval, network addressing, input behavior, and counting thresholds. Default values shown below are served from the NCD config-options API where Atrium exposes them and may vary by firmware version — confirm against your unit. Shift schedules and production targets for this counter are configured in Atrium’s Productivity Monitor app (see Section 9).

Adjusting the Reporting Interval

1. 1
   Go to Sensor Configuration

   Navigate to Sensors → [your sensor] → Configure → Sensor Configuration.
2. 2
   Update the Delay value

   Enter your desired interval in seconds. The minimum is 5 seconds, but very short intervals on battery power significantly reduce battery life.
3. 3
   Click Save Hardware Settings

   The new value is staged and will be pushed to the counter on its next transmission.
4. 4
   Update the Report Interval in Sensor Meta

   Update the Report Interval on the Sensor Meta tab to match your new Delay value so offline detection stays accurate.

Battery life depends almost entirely on how often the counter transmits — more frequent reporting and continuous high-rate counting shorten it. Advertised life is up to 5 years; estimate the life for your specific reporting interval and battery with NCD’s battery life calculator.

09Shifts, Targets & the Productivity Monitor

For OEE, counts and uptime are usually measured per shift rather than as a single ever-growing total. The counter can automatically reset its per-channel counters and uptime at scheduled shift-change times and emits a Shift End report at each reset — giving you a clean per-shift record without manual intervention. Shift schedules and production targets are configured in Atrium’s Productivity Monitor app, covered below.

Understanding report_type

Every transmission carries a report_type value that tells you why the counter sent data. This is what lets you separate a routine reading from a shift boundary or an alarm condition when you analyze or export the data:

Tracking Production in the Productivity Monitor

Atrium’s Productivity Monitor app (Apps → Productivity Monitor) turns this counter’s raw counts into live production tracking against shift quotas. Click Manage Machines → + Add Machine, set Tracking Mode to Production Counter, select this counter and its counting metric (e.g. digital_input_1_counter), then define one or more shifts with a start/end time, active days, and a unit quota.

Once configured, each machine shows a live gauge of units produced versus the shift target, flagged Quota Met, On Track, or Behind. The fleet view rolls every line up into a single at-a-glance board.

10Sensor Dashboard

The Sensor Dashboard provides a real-time and historical view of all data from this counter. Access it by clicking the sensor in the Sensors list and selecting Dashboard.

Live Metrics

Time Range & Charts

Use the time range selector to view historical data for the last hour, 6 hours, 24 hours, 7 days, or 30 days. A custom date/time range is also available. Each metric has its own interactive chart — drag to zoom into a time window, double-click to reset. Charting cumulative counters over time shows production volume; the slope of the line is the production rate.

Mesh Route Map

Click View Map in the Mesh Route Map panel to visualize how this counter’s data routes over the wireless mesh to reach the gateway. Useful for diagnosing signal path issues in multi-sensor deployments.

Interactive Preview

The panel below simulates the Atrium Sensor Dashboard for this Production Counter (3-Channel) sensor. Data updates every 5 seconds to demonstrate the live monitoring experience.

11Setting Alerts

Atrium uses a Triggers & Actions model for alerting. A Trigger defines the threshold condition on a metric. An Action defines what happens when all triggers fire simultaneously (e.g. send an email or activate a relay output). Navigate to Alerts in the top navigation (the page is titled Alerts & Actions) to configure.

Creating a Trigger

1. 1
   Go to Alerts → Triggers

   Click + New Trigger to open the Create Trigger form.
2. 2
   Configure the trigger

   Select the Device, Metric (e.g. digital_input_1_counter or digital_input_2_uptime), Condition (Above or Below), and Threshold value — for example, alert when a shift count falls below a target, or when uptime drops, indicating a stoppage. The optional Hysteresis field (shown as Reset At in the trigger table) prevents repeated firing when the value oscillates near the threshold. Click Create Trigger.

Creating an Action

1. 1
   Go to Alerts → Actions

   Click + New Action. Actions link one or more triggers to a response — when all assigned triggers fire simultaneously, the action executes.
2. 2
   Assign triggers and configure the response

   Select the trigger(s) to watch and configure the response — an email notification or a relay output. Email must be configured in Settings → Gateway Configuration for email actions to work.

12Exporting Data

All counter data can be exported to CSV directly from the Sensor Dashboard for use in spreadsheets, OEE calculations, reporting tools, or other analysis software.

1. 1
   Open the Sensor Dashboard

   Navigate to the counter and click Dashboard.
2. 2
   Select a time range

   Choose the time range you want to export using the selector at the top of the dashboard — for OEE reporting, align this with a shift or a day.
3. 3
   Click “CSV” on the desired metric

   Each metric chart has a CSV download button. Click it to download a timestamped CSV of that metric’s data — counter, uptime, or input state — for the selected time range.

13Product Notes

Reference information for ordering and accessories.

Order this counter, choose your wireless-module frequency, and add optional accessories on its product page:

Buy Now on store.ncd.io →

14Troubleshooting

Common issues and their solutions.

Counter not appearing in Atrium

• Confirm the power switch is on ON BAT or ON EXT. Press the CFG button — the TEST LED should light, confirming power.
• Verify the counter’s Network ID matches the gateway’s Network ID (default: 7fff).
• Confirm the antenna is attached to the RP-SMA connector.
• Move the counter within ~1 meter of the gateway to rule out range issues; press RESET and wait ~15 seconds for a transmission.
• Check that the Atrium gateway is powered on and connected to your network.

Counter showing as Offline in Atrium

• Verify the Report Interval in Sensor Meta matches the Delay in Sensor Hardware Settings (both default to 600).
• Check the battery percentage on the last received reading — replace the battery if below 10%, or switch to external power.
• Check the RSSI value — readings consistently above 75 dBm may indicate marginal signal (higher values = weaker signal in Atrium); consider repositioning the counter or gateway, or adding a repeater.

Count is wrong, missing, or double-counting

• Check the Edge Detection setting — counting on the wrong edge (rising vs falling) can miss or double cycles.
• Increase the Input Debounce Time if a noisy mechanical contact is producing extra counts; decrease it if fast cycles are being missed.
• Verify the jumpers (Contact Closure Selection, Operating Voltage, Pull Up/Down) match your sensor type (PNP vs NPN) and wiring.
• Confirm the input signal is within the 3.3–24 V range and lands on the M12 pins selected by the Contact Closure jumper.

Hardware settings not updating on the counter

• Settings are staged and applied on the counter’s next check-in. Wait one full reporting interval after saving.
• Confirm the counter is actively transmitting by checking the Last Heard timestamp on the dashboard.
• If the device was previously configured on another network, perform a Factory Reset (below) to clear a mismatched Destination Address or Network ID.

15Factory Reset

A factory reset restores the counter’s wireless module to default settings. This is useful if the counter is not being detected by a gateway, or if you are redeploying it to a new network. The procedure uses the physical RESET and CFG (Configuration) buttons on the PCB.

Factory Reset Procedure

1. 1
   Open the enclosure

   Remove the four screws and lift the lid to expose the PCB, RESET button, and CFG button.
2. 2
   Press and release RESET

   Press and release the RESET button, then wait approximately 1 second.
3. 3
   Hold CFG for more than 15 seconds

   Press and hold the CFG (Configuration) button for more than 15 seconds, then release. The hold must exceed 15 seconds to trigger a factory reset — a 5–15 second hold only enters Configuration Mode.
4. 4
   Wait 3–5 seconds

   Allow 3–5 seconds for the reset to complete. The device sends a factory-reset notification, then a “ready for configuration” message.
5. 5
   Press RESET, then close the enclosure

   Press and release the RESET button to return the counter to normal RUN mode. Replace the lid and re-secure the four screws.