Guaranteeing process visibility and better equipment availability, data has become an essential lever for industrial performance. You still have to choose the right technology for the industry: 5G, Bluetooth, LoRa… We take stock of each of them, with their strengths, their weaknesses and the guarantees offered by a secure network.
Driven by an increasing modernization of production and logistics chains, the industry is bowing to the canons of the connected factory. L'Industry 4.0, as it is also called, relies heavily on wireless networks and mobile computing. In the connected factory, each machine is able to communicate with the others, what is called machine to machine (M2M), but also with other devices in the factory and remote sites.
Machines are not the only ones to be connected to each other, objects too, such as produced objects, but also tools or safety clothing for example. We then speak of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), referring to the Internet of Things (IoT) which connects everyday connected objects (television, heating, lighting, cars, etc.) to the Internet.
The benefits of wireless networks for IIoT
In industry, the promises of this everywhere connection of means of production and objects are numerous: acquiring the data necessary for monitoring processes, their location, making it possible to optimize these processes, to improve their control. , ensure equipment availability through predictive maintenance, increase the lifespan of machines, etc.
Numerous assets to ensure flexible supply chains and workflows while increasing productivity and operational profitability.
Which network to choose for the industry?
The choice of the IIoT network is not easy. It depends on many factors. Firstly those inherent to the industrial environment (economic sector, type of factory and production, geographical location, etc.). Then those which are attached to the characteristics of each wireless network: its range, its performance in terms of throughput, its reliability (failure rate, impact of interference, its latency, its energy consumption, compliance with standards and regulations, the choice of an open source or proprietary solution, its cost… without forgetting its capabilities to secure data.
Wireless technologies for smart factories include:
Bluetooth : the short-range network
A Bluetooth low energy (LE, or low consumption) network, in version 4 or 5, has the advantage of being easily installed on machines to connect several sensors to the corporate network. However, its range and throughput are too low to transmit high quality data.
Use case: data collection. A Bluetooth interface is installed in a machine equipped with sensors. The operator approaches his tablet or phone to take a data reading.
- Scope : short (< 10 m)
- Flow rates : low (a few hundred Kbit/s to a few Mbit/s)
- Consumption : weak
- Reliability : weak (sensitive to electromagnetic disturbances)
- Cost : weak
LoRa and Sigfox : long-range networks favored by the industry
Unlike Bluetooth, which requires approaching the transmitter, LoRa (Long Range) and Sigfox networks are two networks designed to transmit data over a very long range, at low speed and with low power consumption. Concretely, it is enough to install “transmitters and a concentrator on the industrial site to take readings from the various sensors. The advantage of LoRa is that it is open source and does not require a subscription to an operator. However, Orange and Bouygues Telecom use it and enter into roaming agreements to follow a LoRa chip in several countries. Conversely, Sigfox is based on a proprietary system from the French company of the same name. A choice that turned out to be unwise, because Sigfox is currently in receivership. On the security side, these networks are not connected to the Internet and therefore are not exposed to possible attacks.
Use cases : data transmission from a sensor. A sensor is placed at the bottom of a tank. We will be able to know the filling level of the tank remotely. Another use, a sensor is installed in a container. We can follow his itinerary in several countries.
- Scope : long (1 to 20 km)
- Flow rates : low (0.3 to 50 Kbit/s)
- Consumption : weak
- Reliability : strong
- Cost : weak
WiFi : the network which has the advantage of flow rates
Well known to the general public, WiFi provides wide bandwidth to carry out multiple readings in real time and remotely. It can also be used to control machines or receive multiple video streams. The range of a single WiFi adapter can be extended by repeaters or a mesh network, a mesh of adapters.
Use cases : machine control, readings from several devices, video transmission, etc.
- Scope : average (50-100 m)
- Flow rates : high (> 100 Mbit/s)
- Consumption : average
- Reliability : average
- Cost : AVERAGE
5G : the network of the future, with the advantages of range and throughput
The latest standard in force for cellular networks, 5G is gradually becoming more widespread in France. Few companies still use it, choosing systems proven in an industrial operating environment, such as 3G and 4G. The range of these cellular networks can be high and their speeds are particularly interesting for transmitting a large quantity of data. The other side of the coin is that the waves sometimes do not pass through the thick walls of certain industrial buildings. The classic problem of network coverage also arises: an isolated industrial zone will have little chance of benefiting from it. In addition, 4G and 5G devices are relatively power hungry. Finally, we must not neglect the subscription costs which can quickly inflate the bills when it is necessary to connect hundreds of objects.
Use cases : video transmission from a camera. A camera placed on a production line will send its images to a control room.
- Scope : long (100 m to a few km)
- Flow rates : high to very high (> 100 Mbit/s to several Gbit/s)
- Consumption : high
- Reliability : average
- Cost : pupil
These wireless technologies are not mutually exclusive. The same site may use several of them, and coexist with installations based on Ethernet or fiber cabling, which are less sensitive to electromagnetic disturbances in industrial environments.
