"When it comes to monitoring machine statuses, various data is already being evaluated in the cloud today, but safety technology has hardly been an issue in this context to date - we want to change this with our new safety-to-cloud solution," says Siegfried Rüttger, Project Manager Industry 4.0 at the Schmersal Group, summing up this year's trade fair motto for the Wuppertal-based company. In concrete terms, this means that all of the company's solenoid interlocks and safety sensors that are equipped with an SD interface (SD stands for serial diagnostics), as well as some safety light curtains, will be able to transfer data to any cloud via the PSC1 safety controller or an SD gateway, as well as via a separate edge gateway.

According to Rüttger, linking this cyclical SD data within the cloud offers the user extensive, location-independent diagnostic options. These include, for example, switching cycles, the status of safety, limit range and distance warnings and much more. The edge gateway forwards the data in OPC UA format, a standardized protocol for M2M communication. If, for example, contamination occurs on the light curtain sensors and the signal weakens as a result, a warning message can be transmitted via mobile devices such as tablets or cell phones so that the operator can initiate corrective measures at an early stage before the light curtain switches off safely. To visualize the data via dashboards, the common cloud platform Microsoft Azure can be used, which offers a variety of functionalities for the presentation - for example in the form of tables, diagrams or graphics.

At SPS IPC Drives 2017, Schmersal will be demonstrating the concept using the example of gateway hardware developed together with Hilscher. In principle, however, the software can also be ported to gateways from other manufacturers - such as Bosch or Siemens - which offer similar functionalities. It is also important for Rüttger to emphasize that the solution is not only suitable for new systems, but also for operating existing machines: "We have been equipping our SD-Bus devices with a self-diagnosis option for many years; in practice, however, this information was used far too little. With our new approach, we are now able to provide the relevant data much more easily via the cloud in order to carry out a better evaluation there. The key advantage here is that you don't have to touch the controller!"

When asked whether it is conceivable for Schmersal to move the safety PLC itself to the cloud at some point, Rüttger replies: "At the moment, it's difficult to imagine, but I wouldn't categorically rule it out. It would definitely be a huge advantage - and who knows what might be technically possible in a few years' time. Just look at what is currently happening in terms of wireless transmission technologies - the 5G standard, for example. We can certainly expect a lot more in this respect."