FINAL PROJECT REPORT FORM

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1 FINAL PROJECT REPORT FORM IMCRC Project number IMCRC 204 Budget code J11437 INVESTIGATOR DETAILS Details Principal Investigator Co-investigator 1 Co-investigator 2 Title Dr Dr Prof Forename(s) Rob Andy Neil Surname Harrison West Burns Organisation Lboro Lboro Lboro Division or Department Mech and Man Mech and Man Mech and Man PROJECT DETAILS Title of Research Project Global Automation Infrastructure (GAIN) to Enable Service-Based Engineering Funds Awarded ( ) 125k 250k (Medium) Start Date: June 2007 End Date: September 2010 OBJECTIVES AND RESEARCH SUMMARY Original objectives as presented in the grant proposal 1. Assess the potential for new, more efficient, service relationships, roles and responsibilities in the automation supply chain underpinned by the use of Web services. 2. Define appropriate automation-specific prototype services in the selected application domain. 3. Assess the overall capabilities, both qualitatively and quantitatively, and future potential of the underlying Webservices-based SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture) technology to enable a new collaborative paradigm in automation. In addition to the original objectives, the GAIN project has enabled industry to see how Web services can be applied practically to industrial automation. The project has also effectively demonstrated how a component-based engineering approach can be applied to Web services-based systems.

2 Project abstract at time of proposal In today's global economy, optimising manufacturing processes is becoming far more important than in the past to maintain productivity and competitiveness. This project aims to evaluate the potential of a service-based approach to automation to minimise the ramp-up time associated with production changes and at the same time enable continued reductions in automation support costs. The project seeks to research the feasibility of a completely service-based approach to automation, to maximise end-user control whilst minimising end-user cost and the internal engineering resources level the end-user has to carry. Traditionally most process- and controls-related automation support activities are performed locally with little provision for remote support, and there is little or no system infrastructure either within the control or IT/business systems to enable the provision of external services. Traditional cost reduction has normally been achieved via outsourcing automation-related engineering functions; however, this approach invariably results in a loss of control of the business process and an inability to respond quickly to market demand, in particular, an inability to change production systems and bring them quickly up to required volume and quality levels. A new paradigm for automation is needed which is collaborative in nature and with service-based interaction between globally distributed stakeholders. The proposed adventure project seeks to establish new, business-driven, novel research aligned to the needs of one of the UK s major manufacturing sectors, which can actively help it evolve in a global context and be more internationally competitive. This adventurous work can establish the viability of a new approach to the provision of automation solutions based on Web-Services which, if successful, can directly help the UK/EU-based supply chain partners in this sector to add significant value to their operations in global markets. OUTCOMES Summary of Outcomes: In simple terms describe your work in such a way that it could be publicised to a general audience. The GAIN project shows how future control systems might be designed and implemented using internet-based technology based on Web services. Such systems are inherently open and non-vendor-specific. The project has built practical control systems using Web services technology via the integration of simple design tools that enable a modular, Lego-like approach to be adopted. The performance of the resultant systems was also assessed, showing the potential for them to be applied practically in the near future. Web address with further details if you wish: BENEFICIARIES Beneficiaries of the research The members of the supply chain in the automation sector are the main beneficiaries of this research. Through this project, end users and machine builders are now able to appreciate the potential simplification of automation systems, which might be achieved through their future use. For the controls vendors, whilst the technology is currently too expensive to apply widely, the project has enabled the real-time performance and robustness of the technology to be assessed and improved.

3 PUBLICATIONS AUTHOR(S) TITLE REFERENCE Journal/Conf. year vol. page TYPE Refereed? co-author? International co-author? Y.S.Park, T.Kirkham, P.Phaithoonbuathong, R.Harrison Implementing Agile and Collaborative Automation using Web Service Orchestration, Presented and awarded the best paper of the conference ISIE 2009 IEEE International Symposium on Electronics 2009 Conference Y P. Phaithoonbuathong, T.Kirkham, R. Harrison, R.P.Monfared, A.A. West, Web Service Based Reconfiguration of a Live Production System, Accepted on July 2009 IJCIM International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing Journal Y R. Harrison, A. Colombo, A. Bepperling, C.S Mcleod, T. Kirkham A Service Enabled Approach to Automation Management Income th IFAC Symposium on Information Control Problems in Manufacturing 2009 Conference Y Y Y F Ubis Lopez1, T Kirkham2, B Matthews 3, J Lastra1, R Harrison2, V Villaseñor1, A2 Chowdrey2 The Challenges Along the Road to the Realisation of a Factory Automation Lifecycle. 3rd Workshop on Engineering Semantic Agent Systems Conference Y Y Y

4 AUTHOR(S) TITLE REFERENCE Journal/Conf. year vol. page TYPE Refereed? co-author? International co-author? SoA-based Production Monitoring Systems for Energy Efficiency: A Casestudy Using Ford s POSMon System Conference on Technology 2010 (ICIT) 2010 March Conference Y Y Y Improving Energy Efficiency in Serviceoriented Production Automation Systems Symposium on Electronics 2010 (ISIE) 2010 July Conference Y Y Y Configuration of SoA-Based Devices in Virtual Production Cells International Journal of Production Research (IJPR) 2010 Accept ed for publicat ion June 2010 Journal Y Y Y SoA-based Production Monitoring Systems for Energy Efficiency: A Casestudy Using Ford s POSMon System Conference on Technology 2010 (ICIT) 2010 March Conference Y Y Y Navjot Kaur, Robert Harrison, Andrew West and Punnuluk Phaithoonbuathong Web Services-Based Control Devices for Future Generation Distributed Automation Systems 2010 International Conference of Manufacturing Engineering and Engineering Management ICMEEM' Y Harrison and Armando Colombo Improving Energy Efficiency in the Production Floor Using SoA-based Monitoring Techniques Doctoral Conference on Computing, Electrical and Systems 2010 (DoCEIS) 2010 Feb Conference Y Y Y

5 SoA-based Production Monitoring Systems for Energy Efficiency: A Casestudy Using Ford s POSMon System Conference on Technology 2010 (ICIT) 2010 March Conference Y Y Y Improving Energy Efficiency in Serviceoriented Production Automation Systems Symposium on Electronics 2010 (ISIE) 2010 July Conference Y Y Y P.Phaithoonbuathong, R.Harrison, A.West, and V. Barot Configuration of SoA-Based Devices in Virtual Production Cells Verification of Web Services based Automation System Agility International Journal of Production Research (IJPR) To be Submitted to IJCIM 2010 Accept ed for publicat ion June 2010 Octobe r 2010 Journal Y Y Y Journal Y P.Phaithoonbuathong, Andrew West, Robert Harrison, and Vishal Barot A Case Study on Agile Manufacturing Paradigms and Service-Oriented Architecture To be Submitted to IJCIM Octobe r 2010 Journal Y

6 PROJECT PARTNERS Details Ford Motor Company; Schneider Electric GmbH; SODA (Service-Oriented Device & Delivery Architectures) Project

7 FINAL SUCCESS STORY FORM IMCRC Project Number: Summary of Case Study/Research Project The GAIN project has illustrated how Internet technology based on Web Services can be applied to the realtime control of industrial automation and how such automation can be seamlessly integrated with business systems. The project also showed how engineering tools can be used to configure such systems using a modular Lego-like approach. In particular the project has: 1. Assessed the potential for new, more efficient, service relationships, roles and responsibilities in the automation supply chain underpinned by the use of Web services. 2. Defined appropriate automation-specific prototype services in the selected application domain. 3. Assessed the overall capabilities, both qualitatively and quantitatively, and future potential of the underlying Web-services-based SOA (Service-Oriented Architecture) technology to enable a new collaborative paradigm in automation. Evidence of Academic Impact, including impact on the research area 1. The GAIN project formed the UK element on the ITEA SODA (Service Oriented Device and Delivery Architectures) project, and the consortium won an ITEA achievement award in November One of only three projects to achieve this. SODA is an alliance of nationally funded projects within the European Eureka Initiative. 2. The results of the project are to be exploited in a new European project, AESOP. This project is applying Web services in process control. 3. A substantial body of over fifteen publication has stemmed from the work including more than five internationally and industrially co-authored journal and conference papers. One of the project publications being awarded best paper in the 2009 IEEE Electronics Conference. 4. Two Ph.D. theses have been produced from this project. Evidence of Impact on the Economy and/or Society The project has advanced the application of Web services in the manufacturing domain. This has included demonstrating the technology in automotive Powertrain assembly applications. The project has proved the capability of Web services, and they are to be selectively applied in the future BDA Knowledge Transfer project. The expertise gained has also enabled a new European project, AESOP, applying Web services in the process control domain to be secured. A demonstrator system was created on the project, and this was exhibited at multiple locations across Europe. These included the MACH machine tool exhibition at the NEC UK, the ITEA exhibition in Rotterdam, and ICT exhibitions in Lyon and Madrid. At these exhibitions the application of this Internet technology was publicly demonstrated. These demonstrations show the potential of this open non-vendor-specific technology to offer more cost-effective solutions in the future. Benefits to Researchers, Students, or Collaborators The GAIN project has successfully shown the future potential of this technology and demonstrated this to the industrial collaborators. The control systems vendor Schneider Electric achieved major benefits in being able to demonstrate the potential for applying Web services technology in the automotive sector. The demonstrator systems developed on the project are now being used extensively for teaching. The project enabled the researchers to be involved in the development of a new, innovative IT technology related to the Internet. The researchers on the project benefited from the partnership achieved via the integration of the project within the SODA European collaboration, a partnership of national projects within the EUREKA framework. Through this, the researchers worked with international industrial and academic partners.

8 Background information and relevant website(s)