Fostering DIHs for Embedding Interoperability in Cyber-Physical Systems of European SMEs

The initiative for Fostering DIHs for Embedding Interoperability in Cyber-Physical Systems of European SMEs (DIH4CPS) will help European enterprises overcome these innovation hurdles and establish Europe as a world leading innovator of the Fourth Industrial Revolution. DIH4CPS will create an embracing, interdisciplinary network of DIHs and solution providers, focussed on cyber-physical and embedded systems, interweaving knowledge and technologies from different domains, and connecting regional clusters with the pan-European expert pool of DIHs. Backed by the IVLab, an experienced and well-established network organisation focussed on Interoperability, DIH4CPS can innately build on an extensive existing network, add value to its existing knowledge transfer capabilities and guarantee the sustainability of the growing DIH network. DIH4CPS expands the already existing network and aims for creating an integrated platform for DIHs from different, especially digitally underdeveloped sectors and regions. A selection of eleven initially starting application experiments guarantees an outstanding funding for European SMEs and Mid-Caps right from the start and demonstrates the high dedication of the consortium to reduce the digital divide. At least ten additional experiments will take up that torch during the project and allow external companies from sectors in need to further exploit the DIH4CPS network and uplift their portfolio, especially by including (semi)-autonomy into their products and systems. DIH4CPS will not only benefit the application experiments but also the individual DIHs by significantly complementing the regional investments made. Implemented in the IVLab structure, the DIH4CPS Network will leverage and sustain its impact far beyond the project duration, creating a vibrant, overarching and cross sector one-stop-shop for collaboration between SMEs, DIHs and Tech providers.

Digital twins bringing agility and innovation to manufacturing SMEs, by empowering a network of DIHs with an integrated digital platform that enables Manufacturing as a Service (MaaS)

The DIGITbrain project is deeply rooted in the innovation ecosystem of the I4MS project CloudiFacturing and the industrial platforms FIWARE and IDS, and it will build on these results, by means of extending the CloudiFacturing solution with an augmented digital-twin concept called “Digital Product Brain” (DPB) and a smart business model called “Manufacturing as a Service” (MaaS). By having access to on-demand data, models, algorithms, and resources for industrial products (i.e. mechatronic systems supporting the production of other products), the DBP will enable their customisation and adaptation according to individual conditions. The availability of industrial-product capacity will facilitate the implementation of MaaS, which will allow manufacturing SMEs to access advanced manufacturing facilities within their regions or to distribute their orders across different ones. The DIGITbrain project will address four principles that will foster the uptake of advanced digital and manufacturing technologies. A) Technology: leverage edge-, cloud- and HPC-based modelling, simulation, optimisation, analytics, and machine learning tools and augment the concept of digital twin with a memorizing capacity that records the provenance of the industrial product over its full lifecycle. B) Feasibility: support more than 20 highly innovative cross-border experiments, bringing together technology providers and manufacturing end users, and facilitating cost-effective distributed and localised production, based on on-demand manufacturing machine capacity. C) Sustainability: coach and empower DIHs to implement the smart business model MaaS and contribute to their long-term sustainability, by increasing their portfolio with services tailored to the industrial needs of their regions. D) Network of DIHs: engage DIHs across Europe that implement MaaS, enable manufacturing SMEs to co-create and experiment with digital innovations before investing, and attract national and regional funding.