Botech PI
Central UPS Monitoring Platform

Power Intelligence (PI)
for Signals & Critical Field Assets

PI is a central UPS monitoring and resilience layer for traffic signals and distributed infrastructure. It actively polls UPS units, radios, switches, cameras, and related equipment—turning noisy telemetry into clear, actionable intelligence for operators and emergency response.

~350+ intersections monitored
Multi-vendor UPS support
Hybrid on-prem & cloud deployment
Explore the Platform Talk to Engineering
Designed and developed by Botech Engineering & Consulting Inc. for high-reliability, city-scale deployments.

Overview

Power Intelligence (PI) turns fragmented UPS telemetry into a coherent, network-wide picture of critical power and communications health. It monitors the UPS at each cabinet and the downstream equipment it powers—signals, radios, switches, cameras, sensors, and more—to preserve situational awareness when outages occur.

Instead of waiting for complaints or delayed SNMP traps, the platform actively polls each device, trends behavior, and elevates events with clear context. Operators see what failed, where, and how it affects operations, all in one place.

UPS & battery health Signal & comms visibility Multi-vendor device support Operator-friendly views
Key Functions
  • Centralized UPS monitoring with adaptive polling over SNMP, serial, and proprietary APIs.
  • Holistic view of each site: UPS, controller, radios, switches, and cameras in a single panel.
  • Rule-driven alerts that prioritize critical corridors and emergency routes.
  • Trend analysis for batteries, line power stability, and repeated nuisance issues.

Deployed as a lightweight Windows service or Linux daemon, it scales from a small pilot to a city-wide deployment without re-architecting the network.

The Need for Resilient, Safe Traffic Movement

Outages at signalized intersections disrupt mobility, elevate collision risk, and slow emergency response—especially during storms, grid failures, or upstream utility events. On segmented wireless networks, passive alerts can arrive late or not at all after equipment reboots.

Active polling sustains situational awareness across intermittent links. PI continuously monitors UPS units and powered devices, so the control center retains a live picture of what the field is doing even when traditional alerts are delayed or lost.
City-Scale Deployment Context

The platform is designed for large, heterogeneous networks with hundreds of intersections and cabinets spread across hybrid wireless and fiber backbones. Typical deployments use zone-based “mini-cities” to keep communication paths tractable and isolate failures.

  • UPS supports both signal operation and the communications fabric feeding the TMC.
  • Policies prioritize corridors near hospitals, fire stations, and key emergency routes.
  • Adaptive polling balances visibility against bandwidth and device load.

System Architecture

PI uses a distributed, fault-tolerant design with local buffering and automatic re-sync after outages. It scales horizontally across zones, with no single point of failure at the central application.

Deployment Footprint

  • Scale: ~350+ intersections monitored, with hundreds already connected.
  • Adaptive polling: frequency tuned based on historical behavior and link quality.
  • Zone isolation: issues are constrained to zones instead of collapsing the entire grid.
  • Cross-platform: Windows Service or Linux daemon for flexible hosting.
  • Integrations: TMC systems, O/M dispatch, utility alerts, collaboration tools, and status feeds.

Universal Driver Framework

A universal driver framework supports SNMP (RFC 1628), serial, and proprietary APIs across multiple UPS vendors. New hardware is onboarded through configuration instead of custom code for each deployment.

  • End-to-end encryption, token-based authentication, and signed configurations.
  • Comprehensive logs and audit trails for every state change.
  • NTP-synchronized timestamps for coherent event timelines across devices.

Polling Engine

Multiple polling engines maintain sessions to different vendor devices and transport types, each tuned to bandwidth, latency, and reliability characteristics.

Core Engine

Normalizes data, evaluates policy rules, and drives alerting downstream to operations, dashboards, and reporting systems.

Data & Archives

Time-series databases and archives capture raw telemetry and summarized events for root-cause analysis, KPIs, and long-term planning.

Key Capabilities

UPS & Cabinet Visibility

Track line power, battery runtime, transfer events, and cabinet-level health with clear indicators for each intersection or site.

Multi-Vendor Support

Designed to work across multiple UPS manufacturers and device types without per-site custom builds.

Contextual Alerting

Alerts are grouped and labeled by zone, corridor, and priority, reducing noise while keeping critical events front-and-center.

Operator-Friendly Views

Logical views show the network in terms that operations staff actually use: intersections, routes, and critical paths, not just IP addresses.

Resilient Telemetry

Local buffering prevents data loss during brief outages, with automatic resynchronization when links recover.

Safe Behavior Under Stress

Designed to prioritize safe traffic operation when power is marginal or communications are unstable.

Data, Alerts & Reporting

PI structures UPS and cabinet data into an event stream that can feed dashboards, analytics platforms, or SCADA systems. Automation bridges raw telemetry into datasets that can be visualized and reported without hand-built exports.

Real-time Live alarm & status updates for operators and dispatch.
Historical Battery, outage, and nuisance issue histories for planning.
Integrations REST, MQTT, and data connectors for dashboards and BI tools.

Typical Automation Flow

  • Polling engines normalize device responses into a common schema.
  • Core engine evaluates rules and raises operational events.
  • Connectors write summarized events into datasets suitable for dashboards and reports.

Dashboards (internal or third-party) can then focus on visualization and planning, while PI remains the source of truth for what is happening in the field—without tying the platform to any specific reporting product.

Performance & Reliability

Designed for Live Infrastructure

The platform is built to run continuously in live traffic environments. Adaptive polling and backoff logic prevent overloading limited wireless links, while still maintaining enough cadence for safety-critical awareness.

  • Configurable polling intervals by device, type, and zone.
  • Graceful handling of flapping devices and intermittent links.
  • Watchdog processes to restart critical services automatically.

Security & Access Control

Deployed in municipal or utility environments where cyber posture matters.

  • TLS-secured communication paths where applicable.
  • Token-based access, role-defined views, and signed configuration packages.
  • Detailed audit logs for operator actions and system events.
Phase 1
Initial UPS & cabinet monitoring deployment

Establishes visibility at key intersections and corridors.

Phase 2
Expansion across remaining intersections & field assets

Extends monitoring and standardizes telemetry across diverse hardware.

Phase 3
Integration with analytics, planning, and broader resilience programs

Links UPS performance, cabinet reliability, and network health into long-term planning and capital decision-making.

Frequently Asked Questions

How does PI communicate with UPS units?

It uses active polling over SNMP (RFC 1628), serial links, or vendor-specific APIs through a universal driver framework. Polling intervals can be tuned per device or zone to balance network usage and responsiveness.

Can it integrate with existing ATMS or central systems?

Yes. REST, MQTT, and file/data connectors allow it to interoperate with existing ATMS platforms, SCADA systems, and custom dashboards.

Is it cloud-only?

No. It can run on-premises, in a private cloud, or in a hybrid setup, depending on IT and security requirements.

How secure is the platform?

Communication paths use modern encryption where supported, along with token-based access, signed configuration bundles, and layered network controls. Detailed logging provides traceability for both system events and operator actions.

Can it monitor non-UPS devices?

Yes. Radios, switches, cameras, detectors, lighting, and other cabinet equipment can be included as part of the monitored asset set, provided appropriate interfaces are available.

How quickly can new devices be added?

Most devices can be onboarded in minutes by configuration. New drivers can be added to the universal framework without rebuilding the core application.

Contact & Collaboration

Botech Engineering & Consulting Inc.

Email: bogeng@botech.ca
Website: www.botech.ca

Power Intelligence (PI) is available for municipal, utility, and industrial deployments. Our team can assist with system design, integration, and commissioning support.

Next Steps

  • Review existing UPS and cabinet inventory.
  • Define target corridors, intersections, and resilience objectives.
  • Plan phased deployment, starting with high-priority sites.

We can align PI with your existing ATMS, communication standards, and broader resilience strategy.