Device Ecosystem at the Edge – Manufacturing Scenario
Figure 3: Edge Object Model
20 mA signal), energy meter (Modbus RTU),
etc. Protocols supported by each device are
shown in (parentheses). For the gateway,
there are 4 ‘physical devices,’ each having
its own connection and protocol. But for
the IIoT system user, this is a single
aggregated device, ‘injection molding
machine.’ In fact, the user may not even be
aware of the existence of these separate
physical devices.
E DGE P ROCESSING
Each Edge Device shown in the model above
is continuously generating data about its
status, values of different parameters
affecting the production such as
temperature, pressure, current, etc. and
production data such as cycle time and parts
produced, etc. But the Edge is not just about
data generation. Local processing at the
Edge is critical to ensure real-time decision
making. Thus, a smart manufacturing system
should manage among other things:
Edge Object Model
With the above considerations, our Edge
Object Model looks something like the
model reflected in Figure 1.
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Edge workflow
Local high-level control like GO/ NO GO
Edge analytics
September 2017