An IoT architecture to integrate different machine tools into a compound OPC UA interface

Abstract In the course of efforts to develop and define uniform routines for the implementation of Internet of Things (IoT) in industrial environments, it has become essential to integrate industrial communication standards such as OPC UA in the context of IoT ontologies and implications for practical implementation. The Sensor, Observation, Sampling, and Actuator Ontology (SOSA) offers the possibility of mapping OPC UA services such as read and write functions to the underlying system in the sense of IoT. As an aid for the practical implementation of industrial use cases, an architecture based on the considerations of a generic modular system is proposed. Variable elements in the implementation of OPC UA interfaces are identified and discussed. The architectural approach is being evaluated by implementing an OPC UA server and supplementary applications in order to embed machine tools with different control systems in industrial production networks.