Coursera, M.S. Krishnan, Coursera
Topics: Manufacturing, Applications, IoT, Advanced Sensing, Communication Technology
Transcript Excerpt
IIoT, just like every other digital technology, expands the scope and capabilities of what it is possible to accomplish. Many companies’ future trends are beginning to emerge from simple IIoT applications to improve particular processes. So now, many companies are becoming utterly transparent about the whole supply chain process, from upstream suppliers to downstream logistical partners and customers, which is a significant trend. Another trend that is being seen is more customized sensors for unique applications and sensors that are coming with more powerful chips so that devices have intelligence. What is being said is that more and more dedicated sensors would look at connecting not just to the manufacturing process but also focusing on the talent and then operations of workers working in factories. For example, some sensors are sometimes put on the body of the workers to see what kind of movements workers are doing, and then collect information from those sensors to improve the functional design of the product to make the technology more ergonomic and then improve the physical strain on the body of the employees working on the product. While on the topic of dedicated sensors, sensors are becoming intelligent and learning, and the devices are being embedded with intelligence. There are chips within the sensors now that can learn over time so that an artificial intelligence application can go through manufacturing. An excellent example of this would be breath sensors, where the sensor can sense breath and decode what kind of disease an individual may have and how serious or critical it is. There is another possibility of putting microsensors in blood vessels to measure the blood pressure from inside the body. There is talk of these breath sensors, blood sensors, and other microsensors in the works in the R&D. All of these possibilities are a measure of real-time data and examples of how this sensor technology is moving along. These are all advancements in communication technology, miniaturization, microsensors, and electronic circuits regarding how powerful the devices can get. All these capabilities are coming together to define the future trend for the industry, as well as IIoT sensors and what is called the integrated manufacturing industry. Four points of all these technological concepts come together and are connected through sensors to enhance the potential for applications and technology. This may be another future trend, how IIoT will evolve as the threads that connect this platform of the future of manufacturing.
