10,505 research outputs found
A Model-Driven Engineering Approach for ROS using Ontological Semantics
This paper presents a novel ontology-driven software engineering approach for
the development of industrial robotics control software. It introduces the
ReApp architecture that synthesizes model-driven engineering with semantic
technologies to facilitate the development and reuse of ROS-based components
and applications. In ReApp, we show how different ontological classification
systems for hardware, software, and capabilities help developers in discovering
suitable software components for their tasks and in applying them correctly.
The proposed model-driven tooling enables developers to work at higher
abstraction levels and fosters automatic code generation. It is underpinned by
ontologies to minimize discontinuities in the development workflow, with an
integrated development environment presenting a seamless interface to the user.
First results show the viability and synergy of the selected approach when
searching for or developing software with reuse in mind.Comment: Presented at DSLRob 2015 (arXiv:1601.00877), Stefan Zander, Georg
Heppner, Georg Neugschwandtner, Ramez Awad, Marc Essinger and Nadia Ahmed: A
Model-Driven Engineering Approach for ROS using Ontological Semantic
Operator interfaces for the lifecycle support of component based automation systems
Current manufacturing automation systems (specifically the powertrain sector)
have been facing challenges with constant pressures of globalisation,
environmental concerns and ICT (Information and Communication Technology)
innovations. These challenges instigate new demands for shorter product
lifecycles and require customised products to be manufactured as efficiently as
possible. Manufacturing systems must therefore be agile to remain competitive
by supporting frequent reconfigurations involving distributed engineering
activities. [Continues.
A New Concept of Digital Twin Supporting Optimization and Resilience of Factories of the Future
In the context of Industry 4.0, a growing use is being made of simulation-based decision-support tools commonly named Digital Twins. Digital Twins are replicas of the physical manufacturing assets, providing means for the monitoring and control of individual assets. Although extensive research on Digital Twins and their applications has been carried out, the majority of existing approaches are asset specific. Little consideration is made of human factors and interdependencies between different production assets are commonly ignored. In this paper, we address those limitations and propose innovations for cognitive modeling and co-simulation which may unleash novel uses of Digital Twins in Factories of the Future. We introduce a holistic Digital Twin approach, in which the factory is not represented by a set of separated Digital Twins but by a comprehensive modeling and simulation capacity embracing the full manufacturing process including external network dependencies. Furthermore, we introduce novel approaches for integrating models of human behavior and capacities for security testing with Digital Twins and show how the holistic Digital Twin can enable new services for the optimization and resilience of Factories of the Future. To illustrate this approach, we introduce a specific use-case implemented in field of Aerospace System Manufacturing.The present work was developed under the EUREKAâITEA3 Project CyberFactory#1 (ITEA-17032), co-funded by Project CyberFactory#1PT (ANI|P2020 40124), from FEDER Funds through NORTE2020 program and from National Funds through FCT under the project UID/EEA/00760/2019 and by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF, Germany, funding No. 01IS18061C).info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersio
Distribution of machine information using Blackboard designed component for remote monitoring of reconfigurable manufacturing systems
A blackboard-based design for a system component called the "Broadcaster" is described in this paper. It supports remote monitoring of reconfigurable manufacturing systems using a novel system architecture coupled with the Component-Based system paradigm. The design of this component has been evaluated using a case study on a web services-enabled test rig funded by the Ford Motor Company, U. K. The test rig has been implemented using a fully distributed control device called FTB, designed by the Schneider Electric Company. Evaluation of this component has been carried out using three scenario test cases which demonstrate the potentials offered when deploying this solution to a real production environment. The system component not only operates in a heterogeneous reconfigurable manufacturing environment, offering a vendor-independent solution to monitoring machines, but it also supports remote monitoring of the machines throughout their development and management lifecycles
MergePoint: A Graphical Web-App for merging HTTP-Endpoints and IoT-Platform Models
More and more devices are connected to Internet of Things Platforms in various application domains. The resulting device integration effort is moderated by the concrete integration syntax and the technical abilities of the device integrator. Therefore, researchers from various communities have been investigating and designing component coupling architectures to achieve interoperability for more than 30 years. Emerging Smart Home scenarios challenges classical integration approaches as no single formal integration standard exists. In this paper we introduce a reference architecture called MergePoint that automates HTTP-Endpoint integration with smart home platforms such as openHAB in a plug-and-play manner. Based on a prototypical system implementation, our empirical evaluation demonstrates that average integration time can be reduced by 78% and average tool usability score is increased by 65% compared to textual integration approaches. MergePoint can serve as a reference implementation for practitioners that want to automate the integration between HTTP-Endpoints and IoT Platform Models
Ontology-based data semantic management and application in IoT- and cloud-enabled smart homes
The application of emerging technologies of Internet of Things (IoT) and cloud computing have increasing the popularity of smart homes, along with which, large volumes of heterogeneous data have been generating by home entities. The representation, management and application of the continuously increasing amounts of heterogeneous data in the smart home data space have been critical challenges to the further development of smart home industry. To this end, a scheme for ontology-based data semantic management and application is proposed in this paper. Based on a smart home system model abstracted from the perspective of implementing usersâ household operations, a general domain ontology model is designed by defining the correlative concepts, and a logical data semantic fusion model is designed accordingly. Subsequently, to achieve high-efficiency ontology data query and update in the implementation of the data semantic fusion model, a relational-database-based ontology data decomposition storage method is developed by thoroughly investigating existing storage modes, and the performance is demonstrated using a group of elaborated ontology data query and update operations. Comprehensively utilizing the stated achievements, ontology-based semantic reasoning with a specially designed semantic matching rule is studied as well in this work in an attempt to provide accurate and personalized home services, and the efficiency is demonstrated through experiments conducted on the developed testing system for user behavior reasoning
Web service control of component-based agile manufacturing systems
Current global business competition has resulted in significant challenges for
manufacturing and production sectors focused on shorter product lifecyc1es, more diverse
and customized products as well as cost pressures from competitors and customers. To
remain competitive, manufacturers, particularly in automotive industry, require the next
generation of manufacturing paradigms supporting flexible and reconfigurable production
systems that allow quick system changeovers for various types of products. In addition,
closer integration of shop floor and business systems is required as indicated by the
research efforts in investigating "Agile and Collaborative Manufacturing Systems" in
supporting the production unit throughout the manufacturing lifecycles.
The integration of a business enterprise with its shop-floor and lifecycle supply partners
is currently only achieved through complex proprietary solutions due to differences in
technology, particularly between automation and business systems. The situation is
further complicated by the diverse types of automation control devices employed.
Recently, the emerging technology of Service Oriented Architecture's (SOA's) and Web
Services (WS) has been demonstrated and proved successful in linking business
applications. The adoption of this Web Services approach at the automation level, that
would enable a seamless integration of business enterprise and a shop-floor system, is an
active research topic within the automotive domain. If successful, reconfigurable
automation systems formed by a network of collaborative autonomous and open control
platform in distributed, loosely coupled manufacturing environment can be realized
through a unifying platform of WS interfaces for devices communication.
The adoption of SOA- Web Services on embedded automation devices can be achieved
employing Device Profile for Web Services (DPWS) protocols which encapsulate device
control functionality as provided services (e.g. device I/O operation, device state
notification, device discovery) and business application interfaces into physical control
components of machining automation. This novel approach supports the possibility of
integrating pervasive enterprise applications through unifying Web Services interfaces
and neutral Simple Object Access Protocol (SOAP) message communication between
control systems and business applications over standard Ethernet-Local Area Networks
(LAN's). In addition, the re-configurability of the automation system is enhanced via the
utilisation of Web Services throughout an automated control, build, installation, test,
maintenance and reuse system lifecycle via device self-discovery provided by the DPWS
protocol...cont'd
An approach to open virtual commissioning for component-based automation
Increasing market demands for highly customised products with shorter time-to-market and
at lower prices are forcing manufacturing systems to be built and operated in a more efficient
ways. In order to overcome some of the limitations in traditional methods of automation
system engineering, this thesis focuses on the creation of a new approach to Virtual
Commissioning (VC).
In current VC approaches, virtual models are driven by pre-programmed PLC control
software. These approaches are still time-consuming and heavily control expertise-reliant as
the required programming and debugging activities are mainly performed by control
engineers. Another current limitation is that virtual models validated during VC are difficult
to reuse due to a lack of tool-independent data models. Therefore, in order to maximise the
potential of VC, there is a need for new VC approaches and tools to address these limitations.
The main contributions of this research are: (1) to develop a new approach and the related
engineering tool functionality for directly deploying PLC control software based on
component-based VC models and reusable components; and (2) to build tool-independent
common data models for describing component-based virtual automation systems in order to
enable data reusability. [Continues.
Business Case and Technology Analysis for 5G Low Latency Applications
A large number of new consumer and industrial applications are likely to
change the classic operator's business models and provide a wide range of new
markets to enter. This article analyses the most relevant 5G use cases that
require ultra-low latency, from both technical and business perspectives. Low
latency services pose challenging requirements to the network, and to fulfill
them operators need to invest in costly changes in their network. In this
sense, it is not clear whether such investments are going to be amortized with
these new business models. In light of this, specific applications and
requirements are described and the potential market benefits for operators are
analysed. Conclusions show that operators have clear opportunities to add value
and position themselves strongly with the increasing number of services to be
provided by 5G.Comment: 18 pages, 5 figure
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