IIoT definition: what is the Industrial Internet of Things and what is its role in Industry 4.0?

The industry of the future aims at exploiting the technologies resulting from artificial intelligence to offer customers personalized consumer goods. However, in order to prevent any risk of failure of its production systems,Industry 4.0 requires specificpredictive maintenance. Stopping the production of an article, even for a short period of time, generates additional operating costs, which often have a heavy impact on the finances of a plant. Predictive maintenance” consists in anticipating the occurrence of a breakdown, rather than implementing corrective actions. If innovation is revolutionizing equipment and influencing manufacturers’ strategic decisions, the evolution of “predictive maintenance” must imperatively follow the same growth curve. It is a matter of optimizing the company’s performance and its chances of success in the context of tough global competition.

IIoT: definition of the Industrial Internet of Things

A true emblem of the digital revolution, the IoT (Internet of Things) uses software to exploit all the benefits of the connectivity principle. This technology, based on the automation of the devices that make up a production unit, reveals its full potential in the world ofIndustry 4.0.

industry 4.0 IIoT definition

Through the programming of a manufacturing line’s control computers, the IoT is directly involved in boosting its productivity. This interconnection offers a multitude of opportunities and assets, including:

  • permanent communication between the different links involved in the industrial process;
  • instantaneous management of the huge volume of data analyzed by the company;
  • constant control of the parameters necessary for the good progress of the production, like the maintenance of a normal temperature of the equipment;
  • better compliance with specifications, by reducing or eliminating equipment downtime.

What role for IIoT in Industry 4.0?

There are a wide variety of examples that can illustrate the many benefits of the Internet of Things in the industrial sector. Even if the list is long, some stand out like :

  • monitoring of chemical dosing inside tanks from a simple iPad;
  • the identification of underperformance areas in a production line;
  • connectivity between the different vehicles in a port, to optimize logistics;
  • the study of the functionalities actually used on a machine.

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