Internet of Things, Cloud computing, Artificial Intelligence and cyber-physical systems are the four technologies that have enabled the development of Industry 4.0
Industry 4.0 is now a reality that all companies must live with. Accepting it is easy, a little less putting it into practice. Also because at the moment not everyone is clear on what technologies are related to Industry 4.0.
Let's start by saying that Industry 4.0 as we know it today is based on four different technologies: Internet of Things (IoT), Artificial Intelligence (AI), cloud computing, and cyber physical systems (CPS). So these are various technologies that used together give way to a new production model. A company that nowadays wants to face the market competitively and with momentum for stable growth must come to terms with these new technologies and must implement them. Also because, at the expense of the initial investment, the advantages produced by IoT, artificial intelligence, cloud computing and cyber physics are obvious.
Internet of Things
Not for everyone, however, is clear what the Internet of Things is. The acronym IoT indicates all those devices of daily use connected to the Internet. The evolution of the Net has made objects become intelligent, that is able to receive information and transfer them from the virtual world to the real one.
Artificial Intelligence
Artificial Intelligence (or AI, from the initials of the two words, in Italian) is a discipline belonging to computer science that studies the theoretical foundations, methodologies and techniques that allow the design of systems hardware and software systems capable of providing to the computer performances that, to a common observer, would seem to be of exclusive relevance of human intelligence. This technology coupled with machine learning enables machinery to make decisions, adjust automatically and make production systems more efficient.
Cloud computing
Cloud computing is nothing more than the power of data storage over the Internet. This technology allows companies and factories that do not have a data center in their facilities to still use external servers to work and save their data and business processes.
Cyber Physical or CPS
Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) are systems in which the "cyber" part, i.e., the sum of computational and communication capabilities, and the physical part are tightly integrated both as a design and as an operation. The concepts separated by hardware and software interact by going beyond simple integration, behaving as a single system. To be clearer let's take some practical examples: autonomous vehicles, robotic systems or industrial process control systems.