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28.07.2020

INTRANAV presents current innovations and industry developments for IOT and Industry 4.0 in logistics and production.

Digitisation ensures that more and more technologies are being developed that change both our private and working lives. IoT is one of them and IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) is an innovation that has managed to have a lasting impact on production and logistics. The so-called RTLS, Real-Time-Location-Systems for indoor tracking of various devices and vehicles, are also part of it. But of course, development does not stand still here either, and these are the trends INTRANAV sees for the industry in 2020.

1. Focus on UWB in the commercial and private sector

UWB stands for Ultra-Wide-Band and is a method for short-range radio with low power requirements. It allows extremely precise positioning – much more accurate than alternative methods such as BLE or WLAN. This is the reason why UWB has already been established as a standard in intralogistics for some time. Goods and vehicles can be located with centimetre precision and thus form the basis for controlling and locating material flows. Now the technology is finding its way into the private sector, as it was only last year that the manufacturer Apple began to rely on the technology and used it for the new iPhone. As before, decisions made by the smartphone manufacturer often cause others to follow suit shortly afterwards. The use of UWB will also become increasingly popular in 2020. As in the smart factory, the technology will probably soon be found in smart home systems and thus continue to penetrate into private use.

2. Same quality, better price – cheaper hardware

A further and decisive development that has the potential to change the market significantly in 2020 is above all the prices for the hardware of RTL systems. For medium-sized companies, the “Return of Investment” has so far been an exclusion criterion for the use of new technologies and especially the UWB systems which are often used in RTLS. The cost factor here arose particularly from the purchase of the numerous tags. These have to be placed on assets, vehicles and even people in the factory to ensure that localization really delivers value. But with a stronger focus on ultra-wideband technology, this problem is solved. The higher market share means that more tags can be produced in larger quantities, resulting in lower prices for individual tags. So very soon, even medium-sized companies will be able to address the issue of indoor localization without having to fear a loss. The systems thus have the chance to be made available to a large number of companies.

3. Container management RTLS as factory standard

One of the aspects that logistics companies or departments should consider is container management, i.e. the planning, control and monitoring of stocks and movements of loading equipment. The aim here is to ensure the availability of the load carriers required for production, transport and storage with the lowest possible container stock. One challenge here is the fact that suppliers, logistics service providers and the customer himself need load carriers and exchange them with each other. This makes it necessary to be able to check each individual container in and out and to know which and how many are full or even empty. RTLS are already an established and sensible solution here and are used in many factories right from the start. A localisation system is able to automatically locate and identify each container. Where does the container come from, where should it go, where is it currently located and does it still have to be filled or has it already been filled? The employees receive all this information in a bundled and easily retrievable form.

4. Interface management is gaining in importance

A further and decisive development that has the potential to change the market significantly in 2020 is above all prices. However, a technology that is gaining in popularity often confronts companies with the question: Do I have to change my entire structure and invest in a range of new software and hardware in order to be able to use the solutions? This problem is solved by the increasing number of standardized interfaces. A middleware can be used with different technologies without additional effort. Different manufacturers, systems and technologies are increasingly being combined. New technologies can thus be implemented into existing processes, which makes integration much easier and more likely.

5. Integration into superordinate IT systems

A further and decisive development that has the potential to change the market significantly in 2020 is above all the prices for the hardware of RTL systems. For medium-sized companies, the “Return of Investment” has so far been an AusERP, MES, WMS, LVS, SLS. A large number of higher-level IT systems have established themselves on the market in recent years. Whether resource planning, production management or warehouse management, everything can be displayed in one system and checked in real time. Processes are thus made more efficient and an exact overview is gained of what is happening where and what measures can be taken. These digital systems are especially characterized by their easy handling and clarity. Everything is in one place and employees can be given easier access if necessary. The principle of outdoor and indoor tracking can be used to track all objects located in the factory, warehouse or even in the company, whether vehicles, assets, containers, machines or even people. If real-time tracking is combined with IT systems, which will increasingly happen in 2020, IT systems will be able to use far more accurate data and establish links to the data already processed there.

6. 5G

A further and decisive development that has the potential to change the market significantly in 2020 is above all the price of mobile communications. The innovation that is already on everyone’s lips for the further development of Industry 4.0 is the mobile communications technology 5G. And this will not change in 2020; on the contrary, this focus will increase even further. According to a strategy paper of the German Federal Ministry of Transport, the 20 largest German cities and all major traffic routes are to be supplied with a 5G network by 2025. The fact that 5G data transmission will be much faster will open up new fields of application. One of these is IoT, in which numerous objects can be connected with each other. The low power consumption also allows the connected objects to remain functional for months or even years without human intervention. Furthermore, the use of autonomous vehicles and their positioning will soon no longer be an exception in industry due to the low latency and the real-time positioning that this enables.

7. Artificial Intelligence-as-a-service (AIaaS)

Artificial intelligence has long been a much discussed technology. As a service, however, it is a concept that will experience an upswing this year. It is a third-party offering of artificial intelligence. This makes the use of and investment in artificial intelligence much cheaper for companies and is no longer associated with a high risk, like the own programming and maintenance of such an extensive program. Data security continues to play a central role. If this can be guaranteed, AIaaS can also be an efficient extension for RTLS. The system would then be able to determine routes on its own and make production-supporting decisions based on the conditions in the warehouse and factory.

8. Switch to sustainable production

(Energy) resources should increasingly be conserved and used wisely, because they are limited and the influence that we humans have on our living space is already enormous. Material production is an industry that taps and consumes these limited resources to a large extent and in doing so emits additional pollutants into the environment. Systems that are responsible for managing business processes in industry, such as ERP and MES, need to be adapted more to these changes and challenges. Production and manufacturing should be made more efficient to make the best use of resources and increase sustainability. Real-time location systems are of central importance here. In addition to the localization of goods and vehicles, they can also provide useful and sensor data and generate reports that show what more sustainable use must look like. With comprehensive real-time feedback on their own production, companies will find it much easier to identify where improvements can be made and what consumes the most resources.

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