Industry 4.0 – Where Are We Now and Where Are We Heading?

(Newswire.net — July 30, 2020) —

INTRODUCTION

While humans have been around for nearly six million years, modern humanity evolved around 200,000 years ago, and Industrialization as we know it started only in the early 1800s. This relatively short period of time has given rise to four major industrial revolutions and each of these have changed the course of living greatly. Each revolution has brought new technological advancements to humanity and influenced new innovations stemming from humankind’s dependency on technology. Today, we are in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, or Industry 4.0. This current phase is paving the way for technological advancements that are simplifying human life in ways that have never been seen before. In this article, we look at:

Industry 1.0 – The Age of Mechanization
Industry 2.0 – The Age of Science and Mass Production  

Industry 3.0 – The Digital Age
Industry 4.0 – Automation & beyond

THE FIRST INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: The Age of Mechanization 

The early 18th century saw a simple invention that led us to where we are today in terms of transport and travel – the steam engine. Steam engines used the simple concept that water could be heated to produce a form of energy, or steam. These machines made it possible for the newly explored coal extraction industry to flourish which would eventually become one of the major sources of energy for human beings during this era. Steam engines made it easier to manufacture more railroads and steamships, which allowed for societies to shift from an agriculture-based economy to an urbanized economy.

This brilliant invention also paved the way for mechanization and the establishment of factories, as commute was now easier than ever before. Soon, steam was powering almost every major industrial sector, from agricultural machines to textile manufacturing. Many new industries rose up during the 18th century, and one of the predominant ones was the silk and fabric industry which was possible because of the invention of the weaving machine. These simple inventions created a large workforce of skilled middle-class workers, enabling cities and industries to grow at alarming rates and in return changing the way the economies of the world worked.  

Image: A steam engine

THE SECOND INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: The Age of Science and Mass Production

The end of the 19th century brought along technological advancements that surpassed those from the century before it, and thus emerged what many people call the most influential revolution of them all. While coal had made its mark in the first industrial revolution as the predominant energy source, this era saw the emergence of various other forms of energy – most notably electricity, gas and oil. This led to the creation of combustion engines that were used to invent the first automobile and airplane at the start of the 20th century. 

Science played a major role in shaping this era. Chemical testing and synthesis in laboratories led to the creation of the chemical fertilizers that we use today. Mixing of alloys resulted in the demand for one of the most common and versatile materials of today – steel. Advancements in communication systems brought about one of the most useful inventions for modern people – the telephone and telegraph. 

Not only that, but mass production became a possibility with the introduction of the assembly line in factories. This allowed for factories to produce and sell to the masses albeit with a large workforce. The best example for this is Henry Ford’s company which had begun to mass produce their cars with gasoline engines – the Ford Model T on assembly lines by the 20th century. By now, many people had shifted to cities in order to find employment in these modernized factories creating an urbanized society that is still reflected upon today.

Image: An assembly line

THE THIRD INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION: The Digital Age

With each revolution came a new form of energy to provide power and resources to humans. The second half of the 20th century saw the discovery of a previously unknown and untapped energy source which had the capability to power machines and buildings with more energy than any previous form – and thus emerged Nuclear energy. Nuclear energy played a major role in the development of weaponized machinery and even propelled scientific research to new heights. 

This era is known as the digital age, as it expands on the communications systems introduced in the previous century to bring out more advanced electronics, telecommunications and computer systems. This was possible due to the inventions of semiconductors, mainframe computing, personal computing and more recently, the Internet. In fact, this article is a direct result of the technological advancements that were a part of this revolution. New technologies paved the way for previously un-touched sectors that would change the course of knowledge, such as space expedition, biotechnology and scientific research that would not have been possible without digital advancements. 

Towards the late 20th century, there was a shift from mechanical and electrical devices to new digital technologies. This led to the automation of production, bringing out two major inventions – Programmable Logic Controllers (PLCs) and Robots, thus opening the doors to the next era – the age of high-level automation.

Source

INDUSTRY 4.0: Automation takes over 

We are now experiencing the fourth industrial revolution, or Industry 4.0. This revolution is expanding on the ideas that were first touched upon in the previous century – digital transformations, most notably the Internet and automation. Industry 4.0 has seen the emergence of a network of smart machines that are digitally connected with each other while creating and sharing information. These smart machines have made industrial automation easier and have led to more efficient factories with more production and less waste while catering to high rising demands.   

​As automation slowly takes over industrial manufacturing, another problem arises – safety and value for human capital. Industrial robots – a popular traditional automation solution – are heavy, powerful, and fast, with little regard for human safety. This has been the cause of numerous accidents in the past. While these robots have multiple uses and have made automated mass production no longer an idea of the future, there are hardly any safety mechanisms that allow human operators to go anywhere near their vicinity. They require huge caged fences and ample power supplies and thus prove to be an expensive investment in industrial safety technology and financial resources. By the early 2000s, there arose a new solution to this problem that reinvented industrial automation – the birth of collaborative robots, or cobots.

Image: A family of collaborative robots manufactured by Universal Robots

A cobot is a complex machine which works hand in hand with human being operators, and are built on a concept known as Human Robot Collaboration. While robots have been around for decades, cobots are a much newer, niche technology. In fact, the world’s very first cobot came to the market in 2005, created by a trio of Danish students.  These cobots do not require any fencing as they are equipped to work with safety measures, allowing humans to continue their daily work without any hinderance. Cobots can be programmed by human operators to their wishes, thus bringing flexibility and safety into the workspace. They are programmed in such a way that they detect any abnormality in their surrounding environment, making sure that the powerful cobots do not come into contact with any human worker nearby. Bear in mind though, that cobots are not meant to replace humans. They are merely deployed to assist employees in repetitive and straining tasks in order to minimize wastage of time, thus enabling humans to utilize that time exploring their creativity and talent in growth sectors. 

Image: Cobots deployed by Bajaj, one of the largest cobot-using companies in India (source)

India has only just begun to utilize this powerful technology and is slowly growing its share in the world market. Cobots have proven to be quite resourceful for many industrial procedures, such as manufacturing, pick and place, injection molding, packaging, painting and polishing, palletizing, machine tending, gluing, and welding. Many factories do not have the correct working conditions that ensure safety for its employees, with packed machines, less space and ergonomic risks being high. As India’s global market share in manufacturing increases, so will the demand for faster and higher quality production. These cobots can be exceptionally useful for SMEs, due to their labor-intensive conditions, small footprint, low energy consumption and easy programming. Re-assignment of repetitive and intensive tasks to cobots also results in people being employed for more value-added strategic work, or for operating the cobots thus creating more jobs that add value to firms. Another reason why cobots are an excellent choice for India is that less physically taxing jobs can lead to higher employment within women, something that studies have shown that India still needs to develop.   

In today’s world, change is the only constant. For humans, industries are constantly growing and moving towards more advanced technologies. With the implementation of collaborative robots, we are gradually progressing from Industry 4.0 to Industry 5.0, where man and machine can work together in a co-operative environment. Industry 4.0 introduced the notion that robots, interconnected devices and fast networks of data can work together with humans to improve productivity and quality. Collaborative robots can thus allow customers to customize what they want. Since humans will still be required to be on the factory floor, they will be upskilled in higher value driven activities leading to mass customization for the customers.  This new age will be all about man and machine working side by side to create individualized products, services and experiences. The human mind and the collaborative root will complement each other, where the unique cognitive skills of a craftsperson will be paired up with the machine’s ability to deal with requirements for heavy lifting, consistent quality and around-the-clock exactitude. Industries around the globe are moving towards this new dynamic environment, and collaborative robots will be at the center propelling this shifting paradigm.