Dimitris Mourtzis, John Angelopoulos, Nikos Panopoulos
Blockchain can be realized as a distributed and decentralized database, also known as a âdistributed ledger,â that is shared among the nodes of a computer network. Blockchain is a form of democratized and distributed database for storing information electronically in a digital format. Under the framework of Industry 4.0, the digitization and digitalization of manufacturing and production systems and networks have been focused, thus Big Data sets are a necessity for any manufacturing activity. Big Data sets are becoming a useful resource as well as a byproduct of the activities/processes taking place. However, there is an imminent risk of cyberattacks. The contribution of blockchain technology to intelligent manufacturing can be summarized as (i) data validity protection, (ii) inter- and intra-organizational communication organization, and (iii) efficiency improvement of manufacturing processes. Furthermore, the need for increased cybersecurity is magnified as the world is heading towards a super smart and intelligent societal model, also known as âSociety 5.0,â and the industrial metaverse will become the new reality in manufacturing. Blockchain is a cutting-edge, secure information technology that promotes business and industrial innovation. However, blockchain technologies are bound by existing limitations regarding scalability, flexibility, and cybersecurity. Therefore, in this literature review, the implications of blockchain technology for addressing the emerging cybersecurity barriers toward safe and intelligent manufacturing in Industry 5.0 as a subset of Society 5.0 are presented.
Benjamin Hellenborn, Oscar Eliasson, Ä°brahim Yitmen, Habib Sadri
Purpose The purpose of this study is to identify the key data categories and characteristics defined by asset information requirements (AIR) and how this affects the development and maintenance of an asset information model (AIM) for a blockchain-based digital twin (DT). Design/methodology/approach A mixed-method approach involving qualitative and quantitative analysis was used to gather empirical data through semistructured interviews and a digital questionnaire survey with an emphasis on AIR for blockchain-based DTs from a data-driven predictive analytics perspective. Findings Based on the analysis of results three key data categories were identified, core data, static operation and maintenance (OM) data, and dynamic OM data, along with the data characteristics required to perform data-driven predictive analytics through artificial intelligence (AI) in a blockchain-based DT platform. The findings also include how the creation and maintenance of an AIM is affected in this context. Practical implications The key data categories and characteristics specified through AIR to support predictive data-driven analytics through AI in a blockchain-based DT will contribute to the development and maintenance of an AIM. Originality/value The research explores the process of defining, delivering and maintaining the AIM and the potential use of blockchain technology (BCT) as a facilitator for data trust, integrity and security.
Increasing convergence of virtual space and physical space driven by society 5.0 has propelled research in distributed ledgers to identify how trust in autonomous systems and robotics can be enabled through decentralised frameworks for decision making and consensus building. Industrial, multi-robot systems, embedded systems, and more have seen growth in applications using distributed ledgers. Although progressing, implementations are currently ad-hoc with middleware systems, such as ROS, not yet adopting a standard to permit easy integration of these technologies. Nor is the technology readiness level of distributed ledgers easily identifiable. This creates challenges for adoption and system integration.
The Food Supply Chain (FSC) can be made more efficient, resilient, and transparent by implementing industry 4.0 technologies. In this context, blockchain and the Internet of Things (IoT) become a panacea for several FSC problems. As a result of FSC complexity and their specific needs, the adoption of Blockchain integrated IoT (B-IoT) in FSC is challenging, and further investigation is required. Therefore, this study aims to explore the Critical Success Factors (CSFs) for the adoption B-IoT in FSC. To achieve this objective, a literature review is conducted to identify the CSFs of B-IoT adoption and then a grey Delphi is conducted on finalised CSFs. Ten CSFs finalised that faceplate for the adoption of B-IoT in FSC. Further, these CSFs were analysed through a grey Decision-Making Trial and Evaluation Laboratory (DEMATEL) to determine the importance and causal relationships among them. A grey DEMATEL analysis also categorised these factors into influencing and influenced groups. The findings showed that âtop management supportâ, âknowledge managementâ, âtechnology hardware readinessâ, âskilled personnelâ, and âhigh investmentâ were the influencing factors that needed to be addressed for the effective adoption of B-IoT. The FSC partners could benefit from the findings of this study by focusing on high-priority CSFs. The causal relationship among CSFs also helps the managers achieve optimal utilisation of resources. Further, this study encourages the FSC stakeholders to adopt the B-IoT in their supply chain to improve their performance.
Sergio A. Salinas Monroy, Pan Li, Yuguang Fang, Kenneth A. Loparo
Additive Manufacturing (AM) is transforming the way that we fabricate, deliver, and consume a wide range of products and components, including those for consumers, medical devices, automobiles, and aircraft. In AM, 3D-printers are used to fabricate products by depositing material in a layer-by-layer fashion, leading to extremely low marginal production costs and significantly simplifying the manufacturing supply chain by providing the opportunity for production that is much closer to consumers. With extremely low marginal costs, AM facilities can quickly scale their production up and down, or redirect their resources to produce entirely different types of goods to meet dynamic market demands. However, most AM companies that employ 3D-printers have not yet upgraded their operations in a way that improves their supply chain. In this paper, we first offer an overview on the state-of-the-art of AM supply chains and then present a novel blockchain-empowered system architecture, namely, Additive Manufacturing-as-a Service (AMaaS), that can facilitate the speedy adoption of AM in manufacturing industries. Finally, we identify several major research challenges in terms of market design, control algorithms, and security, as well as research directions to tackle them.
Open access
Blockchain Technology Applications and Security
Digital Transformation in Industry
Additive Manufacturing and 3D Printing Technologies
Francesco Longo, Giovanni Mirabelli, Vittorio Solina, Laura Belli ¡ 14 authors
The recent COVID-19 pandemic has highlighted all the weaknesses of manufacturing systems and supply chains. In this challenging context, smallholders have faced several crises mainly related to the difficulty of finding manpower for harvesting activities and the impossibility of distributing food, due to the forced closure of many distribution channels. The main consequences were lost sales and wasted food. With the aim of increasing the responsiveness of smallholders in the face of COVID-like crises, this paper provides an overview of methodologies and approaches currently available in the literature in terms of: ICT tools, blockchain-based solutions, business models, sustainability-oriented frameworks, simulation models. The analysis of the literature provides two main outputs: (1) a list of challenges to be faced in the coming years to improve the working conditions of smallholders, (2) the definition of future research developments, which mainly concern the design of an ICT platform, which integrates multiple technological aspects.
Given the challenge of manufacturing data silos and information credibility issues in traditional aviation suppliersâ result-oriented management approach, this paper proposes a blockchain-based aviation supplier manufacturing process quality data-sharing platform. Firstly, the paper introduces the possibility of integrating manufacturing supply chain quality management with blockchain technology. Secondly, the quality and data sharing platform architecture of the production process of new aviation suppliers is presented based on quality state and island kinds of aviation suppliers. Then, a detailed method for the implementation of quality and data security sharing is proposed to support the sharing platformâs real-time and orderly operation. Build critical technologies such as manufacturing quality data block packaging models, data storage security sharing, and supplier assessment models on this foundation. Finally, depending on data collection of supplier product production processes to shared application practices based on a specific aircraft industrial park under the supervision of the platform architecture and technology. The application platform integrates the data supply and request components, providing practical and intelligent sharing solutions for airlinesâ product quality data.
Production control is an essential component of a production system used to monitor and manage production orders. Centrally controlled production systems rely on basic data management, such as storing the bill of materials and required work schedules. Components of customer orders are added to generate the corresponding production orders. However, this type of production control can pose serious problems in case of unforeseen events such as machine failure or changing customer requirements during production. In such scenarios, costly and time-consuming re-scheduling becomes necessary, which endangers the company's competitive position and leads to data retention issues. This paper introduces a new method of production control based on the concept of smart orders. Smart orders use smart contracts for autonomous routing based on programmed information in the source code, enabling self-control through the production system. Smart contracts are transaction programs that work with âif-then logicâ, allowing for partially flexible process schedules and reducing the need for human intervention. The smart order uses the functionalities of blockchain technology, such as security, transparency, and immutability, to ensure the integrity of production data. The paper concludes by presenting the expected value propositions of smart order-based production control on the production system. Depending on the production control system used, companies can integrate the results presented in this paper into their own blockchain implementation strategy.
Yash Madhwal, Yury Yanovich, S. Balachander, K. Harshini Poojaa ¡ 6 authors
The manufacturing industry comprises various departments, and the supply chain is crucial in ensuring uninterrupted commodity flow during production. However, traditional supply chain systems face transparency, data visibility, and security challenges. This scientific article presents a Proof of Concept (PoC) that explores integrating IoT devices with blockchain technology to address these issues. Our PoC focuses on enabling IoT devices to autonomously sign transactions to the blockchain using IoT devicesâ authenticated private keys, eliminating the need for external wallets. This approach offers scalability, efficiency, and real-time responsiveness benefits. Leveraging the devicesâ transaction processing capabilities enhances scalability, allowing for a higher transaction volume. Automation of transaction signing streamlines the process, improving efficiency and eliminating delays caused by human interaction. Real-time responsiveness is ensured, eliminating any latency introduced by external wallets. We provide a detailed workflow of the use case and simulation results, making our research findings more accessible. Through this work, we demonstrate the feasibility and advantages of this method in scenarios where continuous, automated interaction with the blockchain is required through IoT devices. The PoC code is publicly available on GitHub.
Dimitris Mourtzis, John Angelopoulos, Nikos Panopoulos
Following the technological advances, new personalized, and immersive services, based on recent developments in virtual co-existence, i.e., Metaverse, new opportunities for teaching methodologies and practices for reskilling educators and students emerge. However, the Metaverse infrastructure is still in its infancy. Thus, researchers, educators, and digital designers have an opportunity to lead the way. To realize the Metaverse potential as a three-dimensional, global, interconnected, immersive and real-time online world, new ways of connecting the physical world with Extended Reality (XR) experiences are required. Online learning has become mainstream, and Education is mainly focusing on the integration of immersive technologies into academic curricula to make learning more engaging and conceivable. Thus, Metaverse is one of those focal points for educators to create 3D virtual classrooms. Additionally, heading towards Industry 5.0, huge amount of personal data is continuously uploaded to the Cloud. As such, Blockchain is required to improve the quality of online education by enhancing accreditation processes, including security issues and scalability. Therefore, in this research work the design and development of collaborative platform for the design of Product-Service Systems (PSS), encapsulating a plethora of virtual tools is presented. Ultimately, with the integration of Metaverse, Blockchain and their accompanying digital technologies, young engineers can coexist with their educators, industrial partners, and their colleagues, in an attempt to achieve greater engagement, learn by doing, and get familiar with foreign and multi-cultural educational systems. Consequently, the presented framework promotes design education based on the collaboration provided by Metaverse, and academic credits are granted for young engineers through the Blockchain framework.
Yusra Abdulrahman, Edin ArnautoviÄ, Vladimir ParezanoviÄ, Davor SvetinoviÄ
This paper presents an exhaustive investigation into the potential of integrating blockchain and Artificial Intelligence (AI) technologies within aerospace engineering, explicitly emphasizing supply chain management and operational efficiency. Given the decentralized nature of blockchain, it has the potential to enhance diverse facets of an aircraftâs lifecycle management significantly. At the same time, AI stands to revolutionize predictive supply chain models and structural fault detection. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of the current state, potential applications, challenges, and future research directions in this field based on an analysis of previous relevant literature. Further, it compares blockchain technology against traditional record management systems, underlining its data storage, security, transparency, and traceability advantages. Although these technologies promise significant advancements, many legal, regulatory, and technological readiness issues need addressing for broader acceptance within the industry. The findings highlight the importance of targeted research and development to unfold an array of new applications, driving innovation in aerospace engineering. This paper serves as a comprehensive survey for researchers, practitioners, policymakers, and industry stakeholders, illustrating the transformative potential of AI and blockchain in the aerospace sector.
With the transition to Industry 4.0 factories have achieved significant gains in production with respect to quality, reliability, flexibility, and utilization of resources.Nonetheless, there are open challenges that shall be addressed when it comes to traceability of defects and automation actions that are interrelated with both optimization and security aspects along the production chain.Current industrial solutions use a centralized client-server architecture; however, if the central authority is undermined, the system can fail.In this regard, one of the most promising technologies is blockchain, as it is a decentralized technology based on a peer-to-peer network instead of a client-server model.In this paper, we propose a blockchain framework based on Ethereum platform, which is applied in three different production lines namely for antenna manufacturing, microelectronics, and elevators.Initially, we have three different private Ethereum networks, for each factory, with the Proof-of-Authority consensus mechanism.We have developed smart contracts for defect detection as well as firmware update for production equipment.As shown through experiments, the developed smart contracts have certain advantages compared to existing practises in terms of traceability and cyber-security.Furthermore, we have developed a blockchain API that connects the proposed framework with an industrial middleware platform and the overall OPTIMAI Industry 4.0 ecosystem.Experiments for each production line showcase the potential of our approach and it gains in terms of security, storage, traceability, and transparency.
Blockchain, smart contracts, and the Internet of Things (IoT) are essential technologies for the business process re-engineering of supply chains in the era of Industry 4.0. The agricultural food supply chain is one of the research areas where these disruptive technologies can play a crucial role in automating business processes, providing real-time goods monitoring, and securing transactions. With the help of blockchain, smart contracts, and the IoT, a productâs health and environment can be monitored throughout the supply chain. In this study, we have critically examined the relevance of these technologies through various activities of the agriculture supply chain using the approach of Business Process Modeling (BPM). The blockchain and smart contracts-based findings of the BPM were then incorporated along various layers of the Reference Architecture for Modeling Industry 4.0 (RAMI 4.0). This enabled us to introduce the IoT, blockchain, and smart contract based smart agriculture framework, Agri-4-All. Agri-4-All can be used to automate the intra-organizational and inter-organizational processes of the agricultural supply chain. We developed, deployed, and tested the intra-organizational and inter-organizational smart contracts written in the Solidity language for a typical scenario related to the agriculture supply chain. Our hybrid smart algorithms implemented using Ganache and Truffle suite reduce the gas cost in our proposed intra-organizational smart contracts by 13.89 times as compared to the traditional smart contract-based model.