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Industry 4.0: PC-based control solutions become the core technology of smart factories
Beckhoff's PC-based control technology provides an ideal toolbox for the Industry 4.0 concept. It opens up new ways to realize visionary ideas from cloud computing to social automation. In this interview, Dr. Ursula Frank and Dr. Josef Papenfort explain which fundamental technologies, functions, and services are currently available on the market, and which areas still require further development.
Beckhoff's PC-based control technology provides an ideal toolbox for the Industry 4.0 concept. It opens up new ways to realize visionary ideas from cloud computing to social automation. In this interview, Dr. Ursula Frank and Dr. Josef Papenfort explain which fundamental technologies, functions, and services are currently available and which areas still require further development.
The German initiative "Industry 4.0" aims to enhance the flexibility, efficiency, and sustainability of manufacturing through communication and intelligent control, thereby strengthening the competitiveness of German industry. What contributions has PC-based control technology made toward achieving this goal?
Dr. Josef Papenfort The core of Industry 4.0 is the integration of Information Technology (IT) and Automation Technology (AT). As early as 25 years ago, Beckhoff introduced its PC-based control technology, which continues to provide an ideal control architecture for future development. By adopting global IT standards, we have further enhanced our automation technology with the best solutions offered by the IT sector. This also applies to our TwinCAT 3 automation software, which features the modularity and object-oriented characteristics required to realize the Industry 4.0 concept. Additionally, integrating TwinCAT 3 into Microsoft Visual Studio® provides an ideal foundation for a consistent engineering environment throughout the product lifecycle, allowing direct use of the latest software engineering tools from the IT field. With the PC recognized as a technology platform, combined with Automation Device Specification (ADS), EtherCAT Automation Protocol (EAP), and OPC Unified Architecture (OPC UA), Beckhoff possesses all the resources users need to achieve the vertical and horizontal integration demanded by Industry 4.0.
Dr. Ursula Frank On one hand, Beckhoff provides the fundamental technologies required to implement intelligent production facilities and smart factories according to the Industry 4.0 strategy. On the other hand, this is becoming increasingly important—especially in relation to the Industry 4.0 concept—that systems operate not only efficiently but also safely and reliably. This is where the great potential of "technology automation" lies, integrating measurement technology and condition monitoring functions that can even monitor complex production systems. To explain, technology automation integrates the latest research results from various disciplines into automation technology, enabling us to build more reliable and energy-efficient production systems with inherent intelligent functions. This will also require new, intuitive user interfaces that allow humans to complete their daily tasks more easily and interact more effectively with intelligent devices. After all, Industry 4.0 is not about sidelining the human factor. Our multi-touch industrial panels make these new operational concepts possible.
Has Industry 4.0 already been applied in real life? Are there any additional developments needed, if so?
Dr. Ursula Frank There are already many end users, such as large kitchen manufacturers, who have automated their entire systems from receiving to shipping using Beckhoff technology, including integration into ERP systems. Some early solutions were explicitly developed according to the Industry 4.0 concept, for example, by providing continuous communication across all levels to achieve an intelligent production environment. Needless to say, in the coming years, we will continue to develop our products and solutions along this direction.
Dr. Josef Papenfort As part of TwinCAT 3, we are working to improve engineering functions by providing additional features such as simpler communication functions and configuration. In this context, the continuous development of universal communication standards is also very important, such as those defined by the OPC Foundation and the PLCopen Association. Beckhoff is actively involved in both standardization efforts. One goal is not only to communicate with ERP systems via OPC UA or ADS but also to directly call and execute these methods within the PLC. This will be the next step in communication technology development.
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What is the significance of the openness of PC control technology for the "Internet of Things"?
Dr. Ursula Frank It is very important. In short, the Internet of Things means that products, systems, and their modules can communicate with each other. This is exactly where Beckhoff's open control technology comes into play, allowing developers to design systems with intelligent operation and communication capabilities.
Dr. Josef Papenfort Open interfaces are also a significant advantage of PC control technology. This applies to engineering applications and fieldbus technologies in use, as well as components being integrated, such as RFID chips or smart sensors.
Does this openness also apply to automation architectures used as centralized or decentralized systems?
Dr. Josef Papenfort Certainly. Generally, we prefer centralized solutions because they offer significant advantages in engineering design, data management, and diagnostics. However, some systems, such as assembly machines, work better with decentralized solutions. For example, such solutions make it easy to replace individual modules because the central control component only needs to adjust the station according to new tasks. Additionally, systems or devices within production areas usually do not operate in isolation but are networked—this trend will significantly promote the Industry 4.0 concept. Accordingly, each machine is locally controlled within a large system or through the Industry 4.0 concept. In this scheme, a very important factor is software implementation, which we support through modular programming completed with TwinCAT. Whether 10 software modules run on a central CPU or on 10 different controllers separately does not matter. How data exchange occurs between modules—locally on the PC or via EAP with the same determinism and high speed—is also not important. PC control technology can easily implement either version according to different application requirements.
In the future, Industry 4.0 could even extend to areas called "machine Facebook" or "social automation." What does this actually mean in practice?
Dr. Ursula Frank The prospect of social automation involves transferring some of the latest research results from information technology and communication technology into industrial applications. As we mentioned earlier, organically integrating information technology and automation technology with PC control technology is Beckhoff's core technical philosophy. Therefore, Beckhoff will always closely monitor the latest developments in information technology applied to automation technology. For example, trends such as social media may bring new communication capabilities. We must understand the potential benefits of utilizing these communication capabilities in automation. "Machine Facebook" is one such example. For instance, users can create personal profiles on Facebook, record their lives in a "timeline" format, and provide various information or services on their own "wall." Translated into industrial applications, this could mean, for example, that a machine can write its current usage status or provide service information on a similar wall. If it lacks the required capabilities, it will recommend relevant parties to the corresponding "friends" in the Facebook machine group. Another approach is rewriting backup traffic flow information on platforms like Google Maps or TomTom network software to make this information suitable for industrial production. This would allow you to monitor machine utilization in a factory and even generate duty rosters for machines via Doodle.
Dr. Ursula Frank At this year's Hannover Industrial Fair, Beckhoff specially set up an Industry 4.0 exhibition area to showcase Beckhoff's open, PC-based control technology, which makes it possible today to seamlessly integrate production systems and modules into existing or new systems. These not only enable communication among themselves but also with higher-level production planning and control systems. However, fully supporting the Industry 4.0 concept still requires more research and development work in the coming years.
Dr. Josef Papenfort We return once again to the integration of information technology and automation technology within a PC-controlled architecture. Just as we combined our automation expertise with Visual Studio® IT engineering tools to create the TwinCAT 3 software, the next step might involve adding automation functions to network software such as Facebook, Doodle, or WhatsApp. Another approach has been implemented by Beckhoff, whose technical research has demonstrated that Google Glass, as a "wearable device," can significantly simplify human-machine interaction and can be used for debugging and fault diagnosis. Google Glass features functions such as online support information retrieval and the ability to troubleshoot via video-based real-time chat tools, greatly advancing the development of socialized automation.
What role do current hot topics in the IT field, such as cloud computing and big data, play?
Dr. Ursula Frank In the future, we will see more and more solutions using cloud storage technology to save data and parameters. Ultimately, where the information is stored will not matter. However, now and in the coming years, most data will still be processed within machines or systems. On the other hand, in many cases, information such as measurement data is already stored on cloud servers and analyzed offline. We will definitely see more customers turning to cloud computing. In the long run, some network software will certainly impact automation technology, such as a machine monitoring application.
Dr. Josef Papenfort At this point, for big data, which comes from multiple sources and in large volumes, the focus is mainly on data storage. Since stored images and videos are used for more thorough tracking and tracing applications, the data volume will inevitably increase. First, we will see more offline analysis, which will increasingly be performed as a cloud-based service. This approach has been practiced for years in the wind power sector. Service providers do not need access to the wind turbine's data itself but download it from the cloud for offline analysis.
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In this regard, will we be able to see more real-time services?
Dr. Josef Papenfort As more and more data is stored in the cloud, we will also see more real-time—or more precisely, deterministic—processing. With the IEEE1588 protocol, such real-time services are already implemented to achieve machine synchronization. This method of synchronously collecting distributed data will become increasingly common, especially in measurement technology, but it will not replace local control intelligence systems within machines. Another important aspect is that we already have technology for real-time data analysis sent to the cloud. In the medium term, these technologies may gain wide acceptance to filter out large amounts of unimportant information before storage.
Is this complex Industry 4.0 engineering concept still within a controllable range?
Dr. Josef Papenfort Modern systems are becoming increasingly complex, and the Industry 4.0 concept will only accelerate this trend. That is why we must focus more on efficient and reliable engineering in the future. We have taken a big step in this direction with TwinCAT 3, which reduces engineering workload through features such as source code control and automatic code generation. Here, I see potential improvements in increasing data management efficiency, for example, by directly transferring motor design data into the engineering system and providing this data without any additional work.
Dr. Josef Papenfort The core of Industry 4.0 is the integration of information technology (IT) and automation technology (AT). As early as 25 years ago, Beckhoff launched its PC-based control technology, which continues to provide an ideal control architecture for future development.
Dr. Ursula Frank There is still much to be done in this field. From an engineering perspective, data transfer between different development areas—such as control technology and E-CAD or M-CAD—is not yet completely error-free and seamless. Some methods and solutions already exist, such as the AutomationML standard, but at this time, we do not have a standard database. TwinCAT has provided many open data export and import interfaces for years. Beckhoff's TwinCAT E-CAD import program uses these interfaces to communicate directly with various electronic CAD programs on the market. However, additional tools are still needed. For example, command data in ERP systems must be transferable to the engineering level. Most importantly, data must be shareable at all levels to enable effective and synchronized engineering throughout the entire lifecycle.
As an inevitable result of Industry 4.0, will simulation play a greater role in engineering?
Dr. Ursula Frank Industry 4.0 will make systems more complex, smarter, and harder to predict. Machines can react independently and negotiate with other machines, and the human brain can no longer predict overall behavior. That is why powerful simulation tools will be indispensable. This is a truly long-term vision, but ideally, we will have a tool where simulation is not only a development concept but can also drive simulation autonomously.
Dr. Josef Papenfort Such systems can not only shorten debugging time but also reduce system costs. Simulation can support all fields, such as mechanical design, electrical engineering, and software development, because it will enable us to quickly test any changes through control technology and software without modifying hardware. Of course, appropriate interfaces must be provided to import simulation models and supply related data. Today, TwinCAT 3 already offers features such as real-time integration of Matlab®/Simulink® models and the TwinCAT Simulation Manager for easy configuration of simulation environments.
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What specific research activities have been conducted for Industry 4.0?
Dr. Ursula Frank For example, we are one of the core companies in the "it's OWL" (Intelligent Technical Systems OstWestfalenLippe) technology network, which was recognized in 2012 by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) as a "leading-edge cluster" and is the first large-scale Industry 4.0 project. In addition, we are working on creating reference models, i.e., automation solutions suitable for various production systems that can be ported to similar systems. Furthermore, the ScAut project—focusing on the technical automation platform—has brought tangible economic benefits to the development and operation of self-optimizing intelligent machines and systems. Depending on the application, technical automation functions such as condition monitoring and power monitoring can save about 20% energy, improve production efficiency by 10%, and reduce maintenance costs by 50%.
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