The partnership, an extension of earlier joint ventures, is based on Eurotech’s device & data management technology and Hitachi High-Tech Europe’s data analytics solutions, which address predictive maintenance requirements.
But let’s cut to the chase and see how Hitachi’s analytics technology maps to Eurotech’s Industrial IoT architecture. A kiosk presentation of this concept was made at CeBIT, says Bob Emmerson, Freelance Writer and Industry Observer.
Eurotech’s architecture acts as an intermediary system between the distributed, software defined M2M devices at one end and the business applications at the other. This is realised via the functional integration of an intelligent, multi-service gateway approach at the edge and an M2M/IoT integration platform in the cloud or data center. Everything is based on open and industry standards.
In early 2015 Hitachi acquired Pentaho, a company that employs an open source-based platform for data integration and business analytics. This platform pulls data from different sources, including the enterprise environment (ERP and CRM). It represents a parallel integration process. A key feature is software that manages the process flow of multiple diverse data sources. They are user-defined flows that can be added or dropped at any time.
The intelligent, freely programmable gateway enables data acquisition, integration, and rules activation. By enabling data to be processed close to the source, less data needs to be transmitted to the cloud: this would typically be exception data: measurements that are outside the limits determined by the application. Data analysis performed in these gateways is used to generate real-time business intelligence on operations in the local environment as they occur. In addition, following the partnership agreement, Hitachi High-Tech can provide embedded analytic algorithms to enabled further processing at the edge.
The IoT Integration Platform shown in the schematic is the second key building block. It provides all the data, device, security and embedded application management needed to deploy and maintain intelligent devices in the field. It enables real-time aggregated data streams from the devices as well as historic enterprise data from the IT infrastructure.
Pentaho’s centralised data integration platform allows business users to access, discover and blend all types and sizes of data. It provides a spectrum of advanced analytics, ranging from basic reports to predictive modeling. Users can analyse and visualise data across multiple dimensions, while minimising dependence on IT. It delivers accurate, analytics-ready data to end users from any source. With visual tools to eliminate coding and complexity, Pentaho puts big data and all data sources at the fingertips of business and IT users.
An additional, important benefit, not visualised in the schematic, comes from access to processed data (information) by design engineers as well as R&D departments. This enables improvements to be incorporated in new releases: it can also facilitate the creation of brand-new designs that leverage the potential of real-time data.
The author of this blog is Bob Emmerson, Freelance Writer and Industry Observer
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