Using a unified cybersecure platform to support comprehensive industry 4.0 connectivity
Figure 1: Levels of connectivity used in Industry 4.0 automation systems from IO-Link on the factory floor to MQTT and OPC UA reaching higher-level enterprise systems and the cloud. (Image source: Omron Automation)
This article first presents a diagram of the levels of connectivity in Industry 4.0
factory automation networks, and how OPC UA links the factory to higher-level enterprise networks and the cloud using Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) and other standard protocols. It closes with a look at how Omron’s Sysmac Studio software ties it together.
Safety, sensors, and servos At the automation network level closest to the factory floor, sensors, safety controllers, motor drives, and servos are found and have specific connectivity requirements. IO-Link supports intelligent sensing, and EtherCAT links the various motion, I/O, safety, and vision subsystems into a real- time machine network.
automation systems (Figure 1). It then uses product examples from Omron Automation to move through the various levels of automation from IO-Link and intelligent sensing to EtherCAT for vision systems and real-time machine control, EtherNet/IP for
22
Powered by FlippingBook