Waldkirch / Hanover, February 12, 2020 – Sensor technology, SensorApps and the cloud – SICK AG will introduce its new portfolio of solutions for Sensor Intelligence at the Hannover Messe 2020 [Hall 9 / Booth F18] in Hanover from April 20 to 24, 2020. The focus is on solutions which customers can use to directly access their sensor data and thereby create individual added value for their business processes. Deep learning technology is playing an essential role in the quick and easy configuration of sensor applications in particular. With the motto “Go Beyond”, SICK is inviting trade show visitors to transcend the boundaries of what was previously possible.
Now more than ever, companies are feeling the dynamic effects of ecological, economic and social influences: In a volatile market, they have to show that they are flexible and act sustainable, all while fulfilling increased customer requirements. This is compounded by challenges and opportunities which accompany digital transformation. Companies in production and logistics no longer have to ask whether they should digitalize their processes and implement Industry 4.0 concepts, but rather with which partner to do it and how to smoothly integrate the new approaches. With the motto “Go Beyond”, SICK is inviting guests at the Hannover Messe to exchange experiences on how to master the coming challenges in digitalization. “In the last few years, we have worked hard to considerably simplify the use of data acquired by sensors. Many sensor solutions have been created that make it possible to increase the efficiency of system and process operation,” says Bernhard Müller, Senior Vice President of Industry 4.0 at SICK AG.
Digital integration for sensor-based applications
SICK combines sensor intelligence with in-depth industry and application knowledge and offers an extensive portfolio of solutions. The company is therefore breaking new ground in the field of sensor-based applications. The offers SICK will present will be bundled in three brands: SICK AppSpace, SICK Integration Space and SICK Sensor Academy (SIA), which supports digital transformation in industrial environments. The solutions are based on the broad application know-how from SICK and enable simple vertical data integration from the sensor right through to the cloud. In doing so, flexible data structures are used and valuable information and knowledge is made available with digital services and expert advice so that users can optimally master their Industry 4.0 concepts.
New SensorApps for individual applications
Products from SICK AppSpace offer support in solving applications in line with customer requirements. In SICK AppSpace, programmable sensors and edge devices can be configured using SensorApps with new functions. For specific applications, SensorApps can also be used independently by the customer and developed together with SICK experts with the support of a developer community. At the Hannover Messe, SICK will show how users can solve specific applications without programming knowledge. A graphic interface for the networking and configuration of pre-defined function blocks is available for this purpose.
Simple solutions for sensor vision applications.
The simple development of apps is also playing a growing role in challenging image processing programming. SICK is working on making it possible for its customers to be able to install SensorApps with new sensor functions based on deep learning from SICK AppSpace directly onto a sensor or an edge gateway from SICK. The company will show how it works at the Hannover Messe. Artificial intelligence makes an essential contribution here. A new feature is that now, even complex image processing tasks can be configured in the SICK AppSpace without special image processing knowledge. Deep learning algorithms can also be used here. A neuronal network can be trained based on image data. This generates an algorithm which is loaded into the app and runs on the programmable camera.
Solving and linking complex business processes
“Today, customers come to us with problems which have nothing to do with classical automation engineering dealing with sensor systems, logic and actuator engineering,” explains Bernhard Müller. “Instead, they want to make business processes much more efficient. So the sensor gathers data which helps solve the problem and brings it to the data level,” says Müller.
In order to access the virtual representation of the sensor and its data, SICK uses LiveConnect to deliver a standardized connection from an edge gateway, like the SIM1012, to SICK AssetHub. This visualizes the sensor status and creates the basis for observing and analyzing the sensor data online and in real time. Services from SICK or other vendors can dock in SICK AssetHub. For example, the SICK AssetHub service module offers services for maintenance employees and enables access to sensor maintenance schedules and certificates, among other things.
Virtual commissioning of sensor solutions
SICK is presenting another innovation: For the first time, digital twins of sensors can be integrated into system simulation tools. In doing so, SICK is closing a gap that has existed in simulation tools for years. The operating functions of SICK sensors can now also be considered for the virtual commissioning of systems. In this way, applications can be simulated and the optimal parameterization can be determined - even for different devices. Commissioning times are reduced and initial operational readiness is achieved in a much shorter time. SICK provides libraries of real sensors which are successively supplemented with digital twins of SICK sensors.
I 4.0: “You can*t learn to run until you can walk”
At the Hannover Messe, SICK will introduce the new sensor-based portfolio of solutions and, live on-site, provide insight into how Industry 4.0 can be implemented into digital worlds of solutions through the connection of hardware and software. “Customers who already use SICK sensor technology can directly profit from the new solutions by integrating them into their existing system. You will be surprised how the intelligence your sensor already has,” says Müller. New systems are therefore not necessary. Potentials can be easily tapped from existing systems. In exchanges of information with experts at the booth as well as in in-depth presentations, interested parties can learn how to implement Industry 4.0 in their companies.
You can find detailed information on the trade show at: https://s.sick.com/de-en-HM20
SICK is one of the world’s leading producers of sensors and sensor solutions for industrial applications. Founded in 1946 by Dr.-Ing. e. h. Erwin Sick, the company with headquarters in Waldkirch im Breisgau near Freiburg ranks among the technological market leaders. With more than 50 subsidiaries and equity investments as well as numerous agencies, SICK maintains a presence around the globe. In the 2018 fiscal year, SICK had almost 10,000 employees worldwide and a group revenue of around EUR 1.6 billion.
Additional information about SICK is available on the Internet at http://www.sick.com or by phone on +49 (0) 7681 202 4183.