Fraunhofer Center for Assistive Information and Communication Solutions – AICOS28.6.2018
The digitalization of the industrial production and processes is a mandatory step for any industry to keep up with the new wave of industrial revolution, named Industry 4.0. To facilitate the process, and overcome adoption barriers, researchers at FhP-AICOS (Fraunhofer Portugal AICOS) developed with industrial partner Tekon Electronic, the Wireless Gateway for Industrial IoT (WGW4IIoT). The paper where the work is outlined was presented at the IEEE Symposium on Computers and Communications 2018, namely at the ICT4I40 Workshop, and won the distinction of ‘Best Paper’.
The so called “fourth industrial revolution” is characterized by the digitalization of all the processes and physical assets of an industry, with the objective of forming an intelligent and communicating ecosystem composed by all the elements of the production value chain, from the raw materials to the final product.
When implemented, such digitalization has positive impacts in the production value chain, from helping choosing the best raw materials and reduce their lead times to providing high quality products and reduce their production costs. However, adoption of technologies in industrial settings may not be straightforward given the associated challenges.
To mitigate this inherent adoption reluctance and encourage the implementation of the Industry 4.0 vision, FhP-AICOS’ researchers developed in partnership with Tekon Electronics the Wireless Gateway for Industrial IoT (WGW4IIoT) that allows easy adaptation to specific installation needs and further development upon identified future requirements in the industry context. WGW4IIoT’s features were first validated in the laboratory, and then subjected to field tests by the industrial partner.
The paper that presents WGW4IIoT, a modular gateway for Industry 4.0, was accepted for presentation at IEEE Symposium on Computers and Communications 2018 that took place in Natal, Brazil, namely at the ICT4I40 Workshop, where it won the distinction of ‘Best Paper’.