Semantic Automation Systems, a Suitable Approach for Automation Networks in the Industry 4.0

Abstract

The Industry 4.0 demands a change of paradigm for the automation engineering and some new requirements that has to be accomplished like data integration, big data processing, semantics, communication protocols, and standardization. The interoperability is another essential concept, it is a key for the development of the Industry 4.0. This work presents a semantic approach to model automation systems through an ontology, and its applicability in industrial automation networks using OPC UA. The Automation I4.0 Ontology, the model proposed in this project, provides a semantic tool to represent high-, middle, and low-level concepts of automation systems, and offers a way to integrate directly in software applications and semantic-based communications protocols such as OPC UA. It demonstrates the suitability of the semantic-based automation systems to be implemented by semantic-based or object-based communication protocols in Industry 4.0 applications. This initiative intends to empower the development of the Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things for the automation engineering.