MCP Integration¶

aas-mcp provides a Model Context Protocol (MCP) server that enables AI assistants to interact with Asset Administration Shells through the Shellsmith ecosystem.

What is MCP?¶

The Model Context Protocol (MCP) is an open standard for connecting AI assistants to external data sources and tools. It allows AI models to securely access and interact with various services, databases, and APIs through a standardized interface.

MCP servers expose capabilities as tools that AI assistants can invoke to perform specific tasks, like querying databases, calling APIs, or managing resources.

Installation¶

aas-mcp is automatically installed when you install Shellsmith with the optional mcp dependency shellsmith[mcp]. You can also install aas-mcp independently:

pip install aas-mcp

MCP Client Configuration¶

Claude Desktop¶

Add aas-mcp to your Claude Desktop configuration file:

macOS: ~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json
Windows: %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "aas-mcp": {
      "command": "aas-mcp",
      "env": {
        "SHELLSMITH_BASYX_ENV_HOST": "http://localhost:8081"
      }
    }
  }
}

Other MCP Clients¶

The configuration format is similar for other MCP-compatible clients like LM Studio, Continue, or custom MCP implementations.

Consult your client's documentation for the specific configuration syntax.

BaSyx Environment Configuration¶

The MCP server connects to an Eclipse BaSyx environment. Configure the connection using:

Environment Variable¶

export SHELLSMITH_BASYX_ENV_HOST=https://your-basyx-host:8081

`.env` File¶

Create a .env file in your working directory:

SHELLSMITH_BASYX_ENV_HOST=https://your-basyx-host:8081

Dynamic Configuration¶

Each MCP tool accepts an optional host parameter to override the default configuration on a per-request basis.

Available MCP Tools¶

The aas-mcp server exposes 25+ tools for comprehensive AAS management:

Shell Management¶

Tool	Description
`get_shells`	Retrieve all available Asset Administration Shells
`get_shell`	Get a specific Shell by its identifier
`create_shell`	Create a new Asset Administration Shell
`update_shell`	Update an existing Shell (full replacement)
`delete_shell`	Delete a Shell and optionally its Submodels

Submodel Management¶

Tool	Description
`get_submodels`	Retrieve all available Submodels
`get_submodel`	Get a specific Submodel by its identifier
`create_submodel`	Create a new Submodel
`update_submodel`	Update an existing Submodel (full replacement)
`delete_submodel`	Delete a Submodel and optionally unlink from Shells
`get_submodel_value`	Get the raw `$value` of a Submodel
`update_submodel_value`	Update the `$value` of a Submodel (partial update)
`get_submodel_metadata`	Get the `$metadata` of a Submodel

Submodel Element Management¶

Tool	Description
`get_submodel_elements`	Get all elements from a Submodel
`get_submodel_element`	Get a specific element by its path
`create_submodel_element`	Create a new Submodel Element
`update_submodel_element`	Update an existing element (full replacement)
`delete_submodel_element`	Delete a Submodel Element
`get_submodel_element_value`	Get the raw `$value` of a Submodel Element
`update_submodel_element_value`	Update the `$value` of an element (partial update)

Reference Management¶

Tool	Description
`get_submodel_refs`	Get all Submodel references from a Shell
`create_submodel_ref`	Create a Submodel reference in a Shell
`delete_submodel_ref`	Remove a Submodel reference from a Shell

Health & Monitoring¶

Tool	Description
`get_health_status`	Check the health status of the BaSyx environment
`is_healthy`	Boolean check for environment health

Starting the Server¶

Run the MCP server directly:

aas-mcp

The server runs in stdio mode by default. It will listen for MCP requests and respond with tool results.

Note

The server typically runs as a background process managed by your MCP client (like Claude Desktop).