Machine to Machine: The Intelligent Factory Automation
The question is not "if" manufacturers will adopt wireless sensor networks, but when. Nostradamus should not predict the future of this technology. The number of sensors on the market has exploded and will continue to grow. Today, more data is detected than ever before with smart devices at home, in cars, and around factories.
To visualize what the future holds for wireless sensor networks, we need to look no further than new cars. If you have purchased a new car in the last five years, you know very well that every component of the car is monitored by sensors. Tire pressure, oil, airbags, brake pads, and location are just a few of the hundreds of monitored components of your car that give it intelligence. That's why we don't see as many are broken down cars on the side of the road as we have in the past. Warnings are provided well in advance that something needs attention. The new cars now have hundreds of sensors. Cars are safer, they use less fuel and this new car feel lasts a little longer.
Manufacturing will follow the same paradigm. As with cars, every aspect of the plant's operation will be monitored. Real-time data on how a factory automation solutions works will work as a new car. Being warned that equipment starts showing items before unexpectedly breaking down prevents unforeseen downtime and foreign energy consumption. The result of these warnings is a safer and up-to-date plant that will not be left on the side of the road.
Smart sensors make smart factories. The use of monitoring conditions and processes in factories is not new, but data availability has never been easier. Wireless systems provide data that is not only real-time but may have been impossible to obtain before. Remote locations or hazardous environments will no longer create a data black hole; Mobile assets can be easily tracked and coordinated, making fleets manageable. The use of wireless sensors opens a window into a world of information that was not before. Being yarn-free allows strong, fast and flexible data systems to improve almost every process you imagine in a critically accurate environment.
The bottom line is that wireless sensors will become ubiquitous in factories. The data they provide is far too valuable. Sensor size has decreased, processors provide more power and the cost continues to crumble. We use new cars as an example of an advanced indicator of the direction of sensor automation. Most of us have seen and experienced value. It doesn't take much imagination to visualize the same mechanical and environmental conditions monitored in factories. Wireless sensor networks are the next thing that drives "The Intelligent Factory Automation".
To visualize what the future holds for wireless sensor networks, we need to look no further than new cars. If you have purchased a new car in the last five years, you know very well that every component of the car is monitored by sensors. Tire pressure, oil, airbags, brake pads, and location are just a few of the hundreds of monitored components of your car that give it intelligence. That's why we don't see as many are broken down cars on the side of the road as we have in the past. Warnings are provided well in advance that something needs attention. The new cars now have hundreds of sensors. Cars are safer, they use less fuel and this new car feel lasts a little longer.
Manufacturing will follow the same paradigm. As with cars, every aspect of the plant's operation will be monitored. Real-time data on how a factory automation solutions works will work as a new car. Being warned that equipment starts showing items before unexpectedly breaking down prevents unforeseen downtime and foreign energy consumption. The result of these warnings is a safer and up-to-date plant that will not be left on the side of the road.
Smart sensors make smart factories. The use of monitoring conditions and processes in factories is not new, but data availability has never been easier. Wireless systems provide data that is not only real-time but may have been impossible to obtain before. Remote locations or hazardous environments will no longer create a data black hole; Mobile assets can be easily tracked and coordinated, making fleets manageable. The use of wireless sensors opens a window into a world of information that was not before. Being yarn-free allows strong, fast and flexible data systems to improve almost every process you imagine in a critically accurate environment.
The bottom line is that wireless sensors will become ubiquitous in factories. The data they provide is far too valuable. Sensor size has decreased, processors provide more power and the cost continues to crumble. We use new cars as an example of an advanced indicator of the direction of sensor automation. Most of us have seen and experienced value. It doesn't take much imagination to visualize the same mechanical and environmental conditions monitored in factories. Wireless sensor networks are the next thing that drives "The Intelligent Factory Automation".
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