Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)

IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) is a fully connected infrastructure of industrial devices, applications and systems and various types of services. It is an extension of the issue of Industry 4.0 ideas strongly promoted by Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) market leader Advantech and one of the leaders in the uninterruptible power supply market, Eaton.

The continuous increase in the number of devices connected to the industrial network, the "networking" of equipment that previously operated as a separate unit, and the introduction of various types of sensors and devices used in the factory into the network, increases the transmission of critical data and causes compatibility problems. One of the key issues of the so-called Industry 4.0 is the strong combination of industrial infrastructure with the world of information technology, in other words, the combination of the world of OT (Operational Technology) with the world of IT (Information Technology), thanks to this combination in the already traditional matter of control of industrial systems, a number of new services and technologies have appeared such as IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things). Communication between system components was based on protocols known from IT networks and the functionality of the system was supplemented by data acquisition from additional IoT sensors. The system architecture built in this way and the unprecedented integration of its elements made it necessary to ensure security for the network created in this way. The Industrial Internet of Things has applications in industrial plants, machine learning and artificial intelligence. Its specificity allows existing processes to be improved and made more consistent.

Cyber security and management of IIoT systems

An appropriate layer of application and security systems is required for the successful operation of IIoT systems. The right software allows for remote control of edge devices (Edge Computing) where we will get secure, seamless encrypted access to remotely control IoT devices. Installation of the systems is simple and local monitoring and control requires no additional resources. The system allows a complete overview of all IoT data in a single panel in the cloud or on an edge device.

How can the Internet of Things help industry?

Thinking about the applications of the Industrial Internet of Things, the first thing that comes to mind is the ability to connect previously unconnected systems to the Internet. Through the use of IIoT, we will be able to easily monitor and control the operation of machines. The advanced routers and network gateways available in our offer have, in addition to the standard RJ45 inputs, many communication ports, such as digital inputs and outputs, RS485 and RS232 ports and much more. With these ports, the router will be able to connect directly to a device communicating in this standard and read its status. This group of products is represented, for example, by industrial routers from Milesight. Below we show a picture of a miniature and energy-efficient router UR41 is an excellent solution wherever we have little space or want to use minimal power consumption (typical consumption is only 226 mA)

IoT sensors in industrial settings

Thanks to the intensive development and progressive miniaturization of various devices for monitoring conditions from our environment, we are able to monitor in an increasingly accurate sp- way, for example, the operation of industrial machinery, liquid levels in tanks or much more. Ideal for such applications is a low-power long-distance communication system: LoRaWAN

An example of the use of wireless sensors that measure environmental parameters and examine the operation of machines with them can be the measurement of sound levels at a machine. If the operation of a machine exceeds the noise standard, it will mean that it is required to check its operation by a service technician. We can easily achieve such functionality using, for example, the Milesight WS302 device 

With the use of such devices in LPWAN technology, we will be able to easily connect devices far away from each other with low cost and without the need for subscription models of cellular technology providers. This is an excellent solution wherever we have a problem with powering the device or are unable to route communications over cable. 

IoT/CCTV video solutions

By using modern vision systems equipped with AI analysis at the edge of the network, we will be able to gain a level of control over our work environment that was previously impossible. Modern cameras will be able to check whether an employee is at his or her place of work, whether he or she is engaged in dangerous activities such as running or smoking a cigarette, and whether he or she is wearing a protective helmet while working. Smart cameras will also allow us to monitor working hours and check the location of items of interest to see if they have been moved. 

Smart CCTV systems are starting to become more popular every year. We encourage you to check out one of the leading distributors of these solutions, Milesight.

Conversion of data from analog meters to digital data

Thanks to modern AI IoT vision solutions, it is possible to check data from all commercially available analog meters with an energy-efficient camera, just by training the AI algorithm on board the device accordingly. This is a perfect solution for all applications where the meter is hard to access or we don't want to involve human labor in reading the information from it. The camera, once processed, will transmit the information using LoRaWAN radio for up to a dozen kilometers. Check out this solution in our other post: 

Detection of harmful substances in the air: CO2, Formaldehyde, cigarette smoke

With the help of battery sensors that operate via LoRaWAN long-range radio, we can efficiently detect and react early in case of accumulation of harmful substances in the inhaled air. This is an excellent solution for all large-scale warehouses, production halls, etc. These sensors will operate for many years on the same replaceable batteries, and the use of LoRaWAN will allow bidirectional communication of up to hundreds of such devices spread over a large area. We encourage you to check out our proven devices such as Netvox RA02A

RS232/485 extension via radio signal

Another important application of LoRaWAN-based equipment is to extend the signal on serial ports. With the use of controllers such as UC100, we will be able to create a system of remote data reading through RS ports or control the infrastructure with them. All this with a miniature, energy-efficient and easy-to-use device. 

This group of products is based on the companies' solutions:

Digi | Milesight | NetBrain | Paessler |Semtech | TEKTELIC | Netvox | Seeed Studio