Industry 4.0 value networks in legacy systems

Abstract

The current economical situation has forced European industries to increase their competitiveness regarding production system flexibility. One of the key initiatives within this research and development process is the german “Industrie 4.0” initiative aiming on increasing flexibility and improving vertical and horizontal integration. One key element of this initiative is the “Industrie 4.0 component”, a self-aware and self-adaptable production system component. An essential open issue is the implementation architecture of such components. While several approaches are focusing on the design of a completely new component structure, this paper is focusing on the migration of existing control devices towards Industry 4.0.