Industrial robot system state simulation and risk utilization test environment design

Abstract

Network-connected industrial robot systems (IRS) are increasingly exposed to security risks. However, existing testing environments lack the flexibility, modularity, and generalizability of models required for accurate risk simulation. To address these challenges, this paper proposes the IRS State Simulation and Risk Utilization Test Environment (IRSSRE), a novel framework for cost-effective, scalable, and customizable IRS risk analysis. IRSSRE displays the operational states of IRS through Modelica-based modeling at both the component and system levels, ensuring realistic data interactions and state transitions. It also enhances risk management by modularly designing Risk Trigger Modules that explicitly define potential threats, reducing modeling overheads and facilitating the validation of risk utilization scenarios. The capabilities of IRSSRE are demonstrated by simulating a small-scale IRS and replicating the states of both normal and compromised systems through the analysis of four representative attack types and the comparison of device model state curves. The efficiency and effectiveness of the IRSSRE framework are experimentally evaluated, and a comparative analysis with existing alternatives is performed, further demonstrating IRSSRE’s superior performance with respect to low resource overhead and high scalability. IRSSRE offers significant value through the integration of operational and security attributes, enhanced configurability and validation efficiency enabled by modular risk management, and support for simulation replication and granular state-level threat analysis. These contributions advance the field of IRS security testing and provide a scalable foundation for future research in cyber-physical system security.