Node-RED was developed in late 2013 by Nick O’Leary and Dave Conway-Jones, both scientists with the IBM Engineering Technologies Group, as an open source side project. The goal was to provide a simple way to quickly connect devices with web services and programming interfaces.
Key features of Node-RED include:
- Flow-Based Programming: Node-RED uses a flow-based programming model, allowing users to create applications by connecting nodes and flows, representing different functionalities.
- Visual Interface: It provides a visual programming interface where users can drag and drop nodes, create connections, and design workflows without the need for extensive coding.
- Extensibility: Node-RED offers a wide range of nodes that cover various functionalities and integrations. Additionally, users can create their own nodes or install existing ones from the Node-RED library to extend its capabilities.
- Integration Capabilities: It supports numerous protocols and APIs, making it ideal for IoT projects, home automation, data integration, and more.
Node-RED can be used for various purposes such as data processing, automation, and rapid prototyping. It's particularly popular among IoT enthusiasts and developers due to its ease of use and ability to integrate diverse devices and services.
Node-RED is commonly used in conjunction with MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport) for lightweight messaging in IoT applications. It is often deployed on single-board computers like Raspberry Pi and cloud platforms.
Users can run Node-RED locally on their machines or deploy it in the cloud. The flows created in Node-RED are stored in JSON format and can be easily exported and imported, allowing for easy sharing and collaboration.
To learn more about Node-RED
