First open source software platform for the smart factory and for the data-driven industry digitalisation
Berlin, 21 March 2018 – FIWARE, an open software platform for intelligent applications in the areas of Industrial IoT, Smart Cities and Smart Agrifood, will be present at the Hannover Messe from 23 to 27 April 2018 in Hall 8 at Stand C31. FIWARE will showcase its open source software platform with which industrial companies can master the upcoming challenges of digitization. Together with the Industrial Data Space (IDS) Association, the FIWARE Foundation presents the world’s first open source-based implementation of the IDS reference architecture. With FIWARE, companies employ an intelligent manufacturing platform based on open source components that decision-makers can use to optimize their Smart Factory’s production systems and value chains. The FIWARE platform provides a relatively simple but powerful set of Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) that facilitate the development of smart applications in multiple vertical sectors. The specifications of these APIs are public and royalty-free.
FIWARE will present how this works at its own stand with two application examples:
– Zero Defect Manufacturing: The demo by Swiss mechanical engineering company Georg Fischer AG and the Innovalia Group shows how the maintenance of milling machines and the functionality of coordinate measuring machines (CMMs) can be improved when each of the two machines use part of the data produced by the other machine. The context data is exported directly from the shop floor in a factory via IDS Connectors implemented using open source FIWARE platform technologies. Thus, systems connected to both machines work synchronously and adapt to each other for the best possible result of the manufactured end product.
– Predictive Fleet Maintenance: The core of this application is a platform developed by Stratio Automotive for the predictive maintenance of vehicles in different kinds of fleets. By installing the Stratio Plug IoT device in buses or trucks, for example, various variables are monitored via the FIWARE-based Stratio system and the predictive maintenance and availability of vehicle fleets is increased. The demo shows how the system exchanges data with the Cities of Málaga and Porto for mutual benefit. Both cities export air quality, weather forecast and traffic data managed by the FIWARE-compliant smart city platforms deployed in both cities and operated by Telefónica and Ubiwhere respectively, which the Stratio system can exploit to improve results of predictive maintenance. The data captured through devices by the Stratio system, on the other hand, can be used by the cities to assess road conditions, for example. Part of this data has been made available to third parties as priced data in the Data Portal of the City of Málaga, in a first pilot of Data Economy concepts run by the City.
In both cases, the FIWARE solution guarantees that data exchange is secure and that information is only accessed if the necessary rights are available.
IDSA as a partner at the Hanover Fair
In addition to FIWARE, the Industrial Data Space Association (IDSA) will also be represented at the stand as a partner this year. With the Industrial Data Space (IDS), it addresses a key topic of Industry 4.0: How do companies and institutions create a network via which data can be exchanged decentrally so that processes can be improved and information can be monetized with third parties?
FIWARE and IDSA are working together on this. The model that both partners will present at the Hannover Messe is based on IDSA’s reference architecture with the IDS Connector for secure data exchange based on FIWARE Context Broker technology, as major component managing data publication and access. Reference architectures like these are essential for Industry 4.0 because they enable effective communication between the various actors.
Ulrich Ahle, CEO of the FIWARE Foundation, says: “The transformation to a Smart Factory is of enormous importance for German industrial decision-makers. This is the only way they can optimize their value chain and survive in the competition. That’s why platforms in industry are currently the subject of heated debate, because they are the basis for digitization. We currently have about 500 different platforms on the market, most of them proprietary and developed by companies themselves. With our open source approach we are taking a new approach, as our solution can be implemented faster and without licensing costs, and can be used immediately thanks to the software components. Together with our partner IDSA, we want to demonstrate at the Hanover Fair that open source platforms are secure and can also be used in industrial environments without problems due to their reliability”.
The implementation of IDS Reference Architecture elements using FIWARE technologies has been the result of a collective effort of several FIWARE members, namely (by alphabetical order): APInf, Atos, FICodes, Martel-Innovate and UPM with the support of the FIWARE Foundation.
