Mr Wallenhorst, what exactly is the motivation for the testbed submitted to the IIC?
Wallenhorst: The processing and linking of sensor data for the purpose of visualization and application of modern analytics requires the availability of this data at IT level. The solution developed as part of the IIC testbed to implement a parallel path for communication with the cloud at the lowest aggregation level without adversely affecting the real-time automation system is aimed at operators of existing plants. As a rule, corresponding sensor-to-the-cloud connectivity has not been planned for during construction.

Where will the test environment be set up and what is the project roadmap?
Wallenhorst: The project is divided into two main phases: In the first phase, which will last a total of 18 months, a demonstrator will be developed on which the concepts will be tested. This demonstrator will be installed in a portable 'suitcase' so that we can exhibit it at congresses and trade fairs from the fall - i.e. as early as the SPS IPC Drives in November. In the second main phase, which will start in spring 2018, we will equip systems with the product developed from the demonstrator and implement suitable applications.

In addition to TE Connectivity, are the companies ifm and SAP as well as the OPC Foundation involved in the project? What is the exact distribution of roles?
Wallenhorst: We are supplying the so-called Y-gateway, which extracts the sensor data from the real-time system via a corresponding interface, aggregates it and communicates it via OPC UA to SAP's IT platform for vertical integration into production. It implements an IO-Link master for a maximum of eight sensors and also provides local computing power so that the data from the various sensors can already be linked at automation level. In this respect, the term 'gateway' does not really do the device justice.
Ifm and SAP are implementing a data model and suitable interfaces based on an open specification to enable the configuration of IO-Link sensors from different manufacturers.

In addition to the Y-gateway, a general device model is to be defined and implemented as part of the project. What is this all about in detail?
Wallenhorst: The development of a general data model for sensors and standardized communication of sensor process and configuration data via OPC UA is a significant contribution of this testbed to current standardization activities. The data model will be based on the IO-Link Device Description - IODD for short - and will be expanded to include process data fields and suitable service interfaces resulting from the consideration of relevant use cases. This extended data model will then form the basis for the description of a 'mapping' to OPC UA and thus for a further OPC UA Companion Standard.

The project proposal formulates the goal of transferring sensor data to IT systems via the cloud in near real time - what does this mean?
Wallenhorst: In automation technology, we associate the term 'real-time' with deterministic time behavior. IT companies understand this to mean an immediate reaction that can only take place after seconds. We have introduced the term 'near real-time' to help the IT companies prominent in the IIC to differentiate between our two subsystems.
companies in the IIC the differentiation between our two subsystems in terms of real-time capability.

Are there plans to incorporate the test environment into the activities of the national Industry 4.0 platform?
Wallenhorst: The results of the testbed are highly relevant for Industry 4.0: The data model and the interfaces together represent the part of the asset administration shell specific to sensors. In principle, we are very interested in supporting a content-related comparison between IIC and Industrie 4.0 and do not see any fundamental conceptual difference between the two initiatives.

To what extent is the testbed open to the cooperation of other interested companies from the sensor technology environment?
Wallenhorst: The first main phase will be carried out with the initiators mentioned. Of course, we are interested in the data model being supported by other sensor manufacturers and are therefore flanking the testbed with standardization activities with the IO-Link community.