HEALTH

More than 250,000 visitors will converge on Hannover Messe to get the latest ideas for the factory of the future. Here's some of the cutting-edge technology you'll want to see:

Improving Operations End to End

Manufacturing isn't just about what happens in the factory. There is the whole product life cycle to consider. HPE’s hybrid IT solutions—powered by servers running Intel^® Xeon^® processors—can help you make the move to closed-loop manufacturing, where data informs every step of the process.

Monitoring machine health leads to cost-effective predictive maintenance. A comprehensive view of production boosts productivity and leads to better decisions about processes and purchasing. Data collected from finished products inspires future designs. The whole factory becomes an agile closed loop, with each phase of production informing the next.

Find out how it comes together at HPE's booth: Hall 6, Stand A38.

Making Legacy Machines Smarter

Many factory machines were built before the IoT era and don't have data ports. That's no problem for ADLINK’s impressive new optical character recognition (OCR) platform, which intercepts the display signal to capture machine data.

An Intel FPGA analyzes the display signal, while a quad-core Intel Atom^® processor turns the machine into a smart IoT node. Information about job status, machine condition, and operator input is all captured and presented in an easily digestible format, letting remote managers correct real-time problems and facilitate just-in-time production. Data can also be crunched in the cloud, just as it is with other IoT machines.

Check out a demo of the solution at Intel booth D38 in Hall 6.

Smart Cameras for Better Inventory Tracking

Hikvision’s machine-embedded cameras contain an Intel^® Movidius^™ Myriad^™ 2 vision processing unit (VPU) to deliver image processing in near-real time to vision-guided robots (AGVs). The AGVs can transfer materials from one point to another on the production line and move finished products to staging and warehouse areas, automating repetitive and labor-intensive tasks.

The cameras are also useful in warehouses, where information about destination and handling requirements is relayed automatically. Inventory is tracked on a granular level throughout the supply chain, so if something goes wrong, you know exactly where the problem occurred. Lost inventory becomes a thing of the past.

Check out a demo of the solution at Intel's booth: Hall 6, Stand D38.

Hassle-Free Machine Vision

Unlike machine vision systems of the past, Beckhoff’s TwinCAT has built-in software features that make it user-friendly and easy for a PLC operator with no machine vision expertise to set up.

TwinCAT integrates image processing and control applications in real time, using Intel Xeon scalable processors to detect mechanical anomalies on the production line. PLC operators can create and run machine vision applications themselves, shortening response times and allowing machines to run faster and more efficiently. Because communication between image processing and the PLC is smooth and constant, you don't need to buy third-party software to connect the two.

Check out a demo of the solution at Intel's booth: Hall 6, Stand D38—or visit Beckhoff at Hall 9, Stand F06.

State-of-the-Art Asset Management

With more than 500 manufacturing sites, General Electric has deep expertise in keeping factory equipment running in top form. Now the company is passing its industry-leading asset management technology to others.

With GE's Predix Asset Performance Monitor (APM), you can track machine health in real time to nip problems in the bud. According to GE, Predix APM can reduce reactive maintenance by 10% to 40%, lower inventory costs by 5% to 10%, and lower total cost of IT ownership by 5% to 25%.

Almost any kind of equipment can be connected to the system, which uses Intel-powered gateways for real-time monitoring. Data is also sent to the cloud, and analytics are run on powerful Intel Xeon processors, revealing trends that improve operational efficiencies and reduce costs over time.

Check out a demo of the solution at Intel's booth: Hall 6, Stand D38.

The Changing Role of Humans

As more factory equipment is run and monitored by machines, the role of humans is evolving. People no longer have to stay glued to workstations punching keys and watching displays, but are free to move to other areas where they're needed.

Instead of repairing machines after a problem occurs, they respond to automated alerts to make proactive corrections. For problems they can't solve, they can easily connect with experts outside the factory, who can zoom in to see machines in operation and apply fixes.

At Hannover Messe, you can join Intel's IoT Market Innovation Director Irene Petrick for a timely presentation, which will be translated in real time, on the role of the factory worker in the age of IoT.

Join the presentation "Industry 4.0 Demands the Co-evolution of Worker Skills and Manufacturing Operations" at 10 a.m., Friday, April 27 at Hall 8, Stand D17.