In times of Industry 4.0, production systems and processes need more flexibility. Production sites, companies and value networks must be well networked internally and with each other. However, current communication and software solutions for industrial systems do not show the necessary flexibility and resilience. This is where the new research project R2C2 comes in with the help of software-defined networking and artificial intelligence.

Existing communication and software solutions for industrial systems, especially at the level of real-time communication, do not yet have the necessary capabilities for fast, automated reconfiguration. The exchange of data between automation and IT networks currently runs across many transitional layers and is often complex, slow and sometimes unreliable. However, the desired concepts and visions for future production systems require a highly flexible, resilient, secure and distributed communication and computational architecture covering all layers of real-time communication from the lowest levels to cloud communication at the highest levels.

The research focuses on the following points:

• Apply software-defined networking concepts based on the TSN (Time-Sensitive Networking) standard to provide on-the-fly reconfigurable real-time communication networks for flexible production systems.
• Development of appropriate solutions for the transition from local real-time networks to standard, as well as real-time wide area networks or wireless networks for a simplified exchange between automation and IT networks and simplified vertical and horizontal integration within and between sites.
• Application and integration of promising research results in the field of Artificial Intelligence, for example for the rapid calculation of new network routes.
• Demonstration of the advantages of the developed solution, including a use case, in which a production system is reconfigured in real time.

The research project will provide a highly innovative communication solution for future flexible production systems based on the TSN (Time-Sensitive Networking) standard. It will open up new possibilities in terms of flexibility, resilience and dynamics for future production systems, which go far beyond the current state of the art. Thereby we support manufacturing companies to adjust faster to changing system and environmental conditions as well as user requirements. R2C2 will be implemented together with COPA-DATA GmbH and TTTech Computertechnik AG, supported by the FFG and the BMVIT in the program ICT of the Future.

About the Project: R2C2 – Reconfigurable Real-time Communication for Cyber-Physical Systems of Systems