What is microservices architecture?

Say goodbye to bloated systems: How to use microservice architecture to make mechanical projects more flexible

Behind this, the traditional monolithic architecture is often the "stumbling block". All functional modules are tightly coupled together, which looks stable but is actually bulky. Today, let’s talk about an idea that can break this deadlock: microservice architecture. It's not magic, but it might just be the key to those mechanical and automation projects that seek precision, efficiency, and scalability.

Microservice architecture: breaking down the big box into Lego bricks

What is microservice architecture? You can think of it as an elaborate modular makeover.

Previously, your entire software system might have been one giant, single application. It is responsible for everything from reading sensor signals, to calculating trajectories, to driving servo motors and servos. It's like a universal toolbox with all the tools stuffed in it, making it difficult to find things.

The microservice architecture divides this large toolbox into several small, independent and dedicated tool bags according to functions. For example, one microservice specializes in motor position feedback, one specializes in motion path planning, and the other is only responsible for communicating with the upper-level human-machine interface. Each "tool bag" (i.e. service) focuses on doing one thing of its own, and they "talk" to each other through clear, lightweight interfaces.

In this way, when you need to control a certain servo, you only need to change the small bag of "motion planning" without having to worry about accidentally messing up the code of the communication module. The construction and maintenance of the entire system has since become more like connecting flexible Lego bricks.

The changes it brings are clearly visible

What real benefits can be brought by adopting such an architecture?

It is independence and agility. Each microservice can be developed, tested, and deployed independently. This means your teams can work in parallel and iterate quickly. The motor drive module is upgraded today and logically controlled tomorrow without interfering with each other. The speed of releasing new functions will naturally be greatly accelerated.

It’s toughness and reliability. In a monolithic architecture, a bug in a minor function may bring down the entire system. But in microservices, problems are often isolated within a single service. For example, the communication service is temporarily out of order, but the underlying motor core control service may still be running stably, which buys valuable time for diagnosis and recovery.

The other is the freedom of technology choice. Different services can be built based on the technology stack for which they are best suited. Perhaps it is more efficient to use Python for data processing services, while C++ for real-time control services can better ensure performance. Microservices architecture allows you to tailor your work to the best tools for each task.

Also crucial for the future – scalability. As your project grows in size and needs to handle more devices or more complex tasks, you can scale out stressed services individually. There is no need to upgrade the entire huge system to cope with a certain peak. This is undoubtedly a smarter and more economical way to utilize resources.

How to take the first step in a mechanical project?

Seeing this, you may be thinking: "The logic is good, but for those of us who are doing specific projects, how do we implement it?" Here are some ideas that can be started.

Decoupling begins with core bottlenecks. You don’t have to pursue tearing the entire system apart from the beginning. You can start with the parts that change the most or have the greatest performance pressure. For example, the "multi-axis coordinated motion" module, which is the most complex in calculation and the most frequently updated, can be independently transformed into a microservice.

A clearly defined “contract”. How services communicate is crucial. A stable and clear API interface needs to be defined in advance. This is like formulating a precise communication protocol between the servo motor and the controller. Both parties know what to send and what to expect, so that cooperation can be smooth.

Embrace automation and monitoring. As the number of services increases, the complexity of deployment and management will also increase. Investing in CI/CD (continuous integration/continuous deployment) pipelines and unified monitoring log systems is like installing sophisticated dashboards and automatic conveyor belts for your automated production lines. It can help you save a lot of operation and maintenance energy.

Choose partners and focus on capabilities themselves

When we decided to embrace a more modern architecture, the choice of technology partner became even more important. What you need to look for is not a vendor that just sells a single product, but a partner that truly understands the challenges of distributed systems and can provide coherent, reliable technology components.

For example, in the field of mechanical control, if a company can not only provide high-performance servo motors and precision servos but also deeply understand the role of its products in microservice-based systems - as "execution units" called by clear interfaces - and provide good adaptability and support, then its value will go beyond the hardware itself.

We followkpower, based on its focus and accumulation on core power components. When envisioning a flexible system driven by microservices, stable, responsive execution is the physical foundation upon which everything is built. This is not about general branding, but about confirming that their products have the qualities to be precisely deployed and reliably integrated into a modular digital world.

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Moving from a rigid monolithic architecture to flexible microservices does not happen overnight. It is more like a change in mindset: from building a strong but difficult-to-modify castle to designing a community that is freely combined with functional modules.

This process may encounter challenges, such as how to design service boundaries and how to manage distributed data. But its goal is very clear: to enable your mechanical control system and your automation project to keep up with changes, withstand expansion, and still maintain core stability when problems occur.

When each servo unit and each piece of control logic can run healthily as an independent "living body" and cooperate through clear rules, what you build is no longer just a control system, but a digital body with more vitality and adaptability. This may be the most rational romance that technological evolution has brought us.

Established in 2005,kpowerhas been dedicated to a professional compact motion unit manufacturer, headquartered in Dongguan, Guangdong Province, China. Leveraging innovations in modular drive technology,kpowerintegrates high-performance motors, precision reducers, and multi-protocol control systems to provide efficient and customized smart drive system solutions. Kpower has delivered professional drive system solutions to over 500 enterprise clients globally with products covering various fields such as Smart Home Systems, Automatic Electronics, Robotics, Precision Agriculture, Drones, and Industrial Automation.