According to a recent announcement, ADLINK Technology, a global developer of Edge Computing solutions, has joined forces with Fair Friend Group (FFG) to develop a new ROS2 toward Converged 5G for Factories of the Future project. The collaboration integrates wireless 5G network technologies with ROS2 (Robot Operating System 2) platforms to provide system architecture enabling real-time control and reliable communication. Igniting the next wave of growth for the network communication sector, the project can drive Industry 4.0 ecosystem development to bring on a productivity revolution for Factories of the Future.
With Industry 4.0 implementation growing, smart manufacturing has advanced to a high level of automation. Manufacturing using AMR (Autonomous Mobile Robots) and COBOT (Collaborative Robots) is quickly becoming standard, with the result of increased demands on network systems and interface standards for communication between machines.
5G-enabled industrial wireless communication is capable of support for wide-ranging needs arising from communication between humans, machines, and sensors, with high reliability, low latency, long transmission distance, multiple application scenarios, and optimal portability for mobile equipment. ROS2 provides high-efficiency middleware for data exchange and is quickly becoming the API standard for smart robotics development. ADLINK has further developed a uniform data exchange environment for factories using DDS (Data Distribution Service) as a backbone.
“Taiwan’s manufacturing industry has robust capabilities that are well recognized by the world. By combining leading-edge 5G network technologies with open source ROS2/DDS platforms, we have crafted a highly competitive manufacturing environment converging IT, OT and CT, to create a smart robotics industry ecosystem realizing challenging Future Factory implementations,” said Jim Liu, CEO, ADLINK.
FFG will build the world’s first demo production line for Factories of the Future, implementing fast and reliable ROS2-based data exchange. Dr. Ren Luo, CTO, FFG said, “Factories of the Future incorporate numerous portable, flexible, interconnected, and dynamically adjustable elements to accommodate customized production with optimal efficiency. The integration of 5G communication technologies and ROS2/DDS platforms at this time will realize high-performance implementation.”
Ken Briodagh is a writer and editor with more than a decade of experience under his belt. He is in love with technology and if he had his druthers would beta test everything from shoe phones to flying cars.Edited by
Ken Briodagh
