Smart Factories and the Challenges of the Proximity Network
1. INTRODUCTION
In the Industrial Internet Consortium’ s( IIC) Industrial Internet Reference Architecture( IIRA), examples of architectural patterns for Industrial Internet of Things( IIoT) are described; two of which we select for this Smart Factory discussion: the 3-Tier Architecture and the Gateway- Mediated Edge Connectivity and Management Architecture( Figure 1). In both architectures IIoT gateways and edge devices form the boundaries of the proximity network. The challenges and corresponding solutions in the proximity network will be viewed in terms of this general architecture.
Figure 1: Gateway-Mediated Edge Connectivity and Management Architecture
As we studied the proximity network in the factory, the Synapse team noticed a prominent " progression of challenges "( Figure 2) that begins with specific use cases. Each use case creates a unique set of integration challenges that drives the selection of connection technology such as wired Ethernet, Wi-Fi or 802.15.4. The connection technology creates a secondary set of challenges that are often overlooked in the initial system design phases. We have grouped this secondary set into three general categories: Distributed Intelligence, Deployment and Long-term Management. We will focus on a subset of use cases found in the Smart Factory and follow the corresponding progression of challenges and proposed solutions.
Figure 2: The Progression of Challenges
2. USE CASES DRIVE INTEGRATION CHALLENGES
Based on interviews and on-site evaluations, Process Improvement and Predictive Maintenance emerge as the two leading IIoT use cases in the Smart Factory. These two will serve as the focal
IIC Journal of Innovation- 63-