Control of Cyber-Physical Production Systems: A Concept to Increase the Trustworthiness within Multi-Agent Systems with Distributed Ledger Technology

In the course of increasing the flexibility in the area of production, industrial enterprises have been presented with cyber-physical production systems (CPPS). Through the use of autonomously acting CPPS and CPPS components – which often receive multi-agent systems as their corresponding cyber parts – new challenges arise from the need for flexibility and interoperability on the one hand and consistency, trustworthiness as well as reliability of the systems and their components on the other. In order to meet these challenges, this research paper is dedicated to the creation of a technical concept for implementing distributed ledger technology production systems. The paper follows a design-science approach, which consist of analysis, design, and evaluation. The technical concept is based on the GAIA method, which aims to design multi-agent systems and specifically addresses the security and trustworthiness of CPPS-environments. The subsequent evaluation of the concept based on discussions with experts documents its relevance and potential

Enterprise Information Systems vs. Digital Twins – A Case Study on the Properties, Purpose, and Future Relationship in the Logistics Sector

Traditional enterprise information systems have been around for more than 40 years. They are designed to support business processes and deliver information to the people within a company who require it for their work. However, there are blind spots that these systems are unable to address. In this article, we investigate how digital twins, which are based on the technology and architecture of the Industrial Internet of Things, as well as the principles of cyber-physical systems, can be used to fill such gaps and elucidate how their application will affect the prospective relationship between internal information systems and digital twins. The insights are based on a single case study within the logistics department of an industrial company and its service provider. From the case study, properties of both system types were identified that provided a basis for comparison and stimulated discussion about their future dependencies

Crafting an IoT-Ecosystem – A Three-Phased Approach

The Internet of Things acts as a seed for enterprises to collaborate and create new value. This value creation is often concentrated in big enterprises that command large amounts of resources. The craft sector’s small and medium sized enterprises struggle to adopt such new technologies. Lacking resources and in-house capabilities, they increasingly rely on services provided by large enterprises. Collaboration among equals can offer an alternative path for these small and medium sized enterprises. Combining their strengths in an IoT-ecosystem is one way to overcome these limitations. We conducted a case study in the electrical engineering craft to build such an IoT-ecosystem. Participating organizations planned how to develop the existing ecosystem into an IoT-ecosystem. This process was observed to be structured into a status quo and three sequential phases. Our research shows, that sharing data can act as the initial phase to unlock new value in an existing ecosystem. Every enterprise can then work on connecting its clients’ systems to enable an eventual opening to join the IoT-ecosystem. This three-phased approach offers enterprises a tool to work towards an IoT-ecosystem. Researchers can apply the three-phased approach as an analytic tool to reason about progress towards an IoT-ecosystem

Handlungsfelder der gestaltungsorientierten Wirtschaftsinformatik im Kontext der Digitalen Fabrik

In Wissenschaft und Praxis beschäftigen sich unterschiedliche Disziplinen mit Methoden, Konzepten und Werkzeugen zur Verbesserung der Leistungsfähigkeit industrieller Unternehmen. Hierfür hat sich der Begriff der Digitalen Fabrik interdisziplinär etabliert, wobei festzustellen ist, dass ein einheitliches und disziplinübergreifendes Verständnis bisher nicht existiert. In diesem Beitrag werden daher die verschiedenen Definitionen für die Digitale Fabrik aufgezeigt sowie deren Bestandteile strukturiert dargestellt. Darauf aufbauend erfolgt die forschungstheoretisch begründete Zuordnung derjenigen Teilgebiete, die zu den Handlungsfeldern der gestaltungsorientierten Wirtschaftsinformatik gehören. Basierend auf der Erkenntnis, dass die Digitale Fabrik bisher ingenieurswissenschaftlich getrieben ist, werden für die identifizierten Felder Handlungsempfehlungen für die Wirtschaftsinformatik abgeleitet

Entwicklung und Evaluation eines Informationsversorgungskonzepts für die Prozess- und Produktionsplanung im Kontext von Industrie 4.0

Aktuell wird in Industrieunternehmen die zunehmende Digitalisierung, Vernetzung und IT-Durchdringung der Produktion unter dem Begriff Industrie 4.0 diskutiert. Aus der Umsetzung von Industrie 4.0 resultieren Änderungen, von denen die Prozess- und Produktionsplanung (PPP) betroffen ist. Die Veränderungen werden anhand eines innovativen Use Case in der Motorenproduktion eines international agierenden Automobilherstellers exploriert. Dieser Use Case bringt wertvolle Erkenntnisse in Bezug auf die möglichen Veränderungen der Aufgaben in der PPP und des damit verbundenen Informationsbedarfs. Der konkrete Informationsbedarf der Aufgabenträger in der PPP wird auf Basis von Experteninterviews empirisch erhoben und anhand des Use Case auf Industrie 4.0 übertragen. Im Anschluss wird ein Informationsversorgungskonzept auf Basis von Business Intelligence (BI) entwickelt, das den Informationsbedarf der Aufgabenträger zielgerichtet deckt. Das Konzept wird prototypisch realisiert und im Rahmen eines Workshops von Experten aus Industrieunternehmen evaluiert

Vertrauenswürdiger Datenaustausch in Ökosystemen – Entwicklung eines Metamodells zur Trennung von Daten und Kontext

Im Rahmen der digitalen Transformation schließen sich Unternehmen derzeit in neuen Ökosystemen zusammen und tauschen vermehrt Daten und Informationen aus. Dieser Austausch soll soweit möglich, souverän und vertrauenswürdig erfolgen, d.h. Unternehmen möchten bestimmen, wie ihre Daten verwendet werden und wertvolle Geschäftsinformationen sollen nicht weitergegeben werden. Gleichzeitig müssen Daten mit Partnerunternehmen ausgetauscht und ausgewertet werden, um neue Geschäftsmodelle zu realisieren. In diesem Beitrag wird daher ein Metamodell entwickelt, dass die Trennung zwischen Daten und Informationen ermöglicht und damit technische Grundlage eines vertrauenswürdigen Datenaustausch sein kann. Der Beitrag basiert auf einem Case aus der Logistik und zeigt anhand eins konkreten Beispiels Herausforderungen, Lösungsansatz und Potenziale auf

Development of an architecture framework for Intelligent Transport Systems

Intelligent Transport Systems (ITS) are considered to be the answer to current challenges in road traffic, such as increasing congestion and energy consumption. With the increasing deployment of ITS and new possibilities of digitalisation, the connection and interworking of ITS and ITS services in the form of ITS value chains and networks have become more and more attractive or even indispensable. However, the interoperability of systems and services and the smooth cooperation and collaboration of involved organisations and actors are not an obvious matter. ITS architecture addresses the issue of interoperability in particular, incentivises the deployment of ITS even further and provides organisational, functional and technical guidance."br" This report describes the outline and the status of a German research project with the objective of developing a National ITS Architecture Framework which aims to support ITS activities in Germany. The framework is not based on existing ITS architectures since it is expected to provide a wider view than any ITS architecture before. A common strategy and vision of all involved actors are the core of the approach. They are the foundation of the business architecture which describes the functional decomposition of the system and the relationships between organisations. Strategy and business architecture also represent the top layers of the so called ITS architecture pyramid and distinguish the presented ITS architecture framework from others. The TOGAF Architecture Development Method has been used and tailored to the needs of ITS architecture since it excellently integrates the core aspects and provides a step-by-step guidance for the complete process of developing an ITS architecture