Towards the generic integration of agent-based AASs and Physical Assets: a four-layered architecture approach

Abstract

The I4.0 Component is a key concept of the Platform Industrie 4.0 initiative. The I4.0 Component is made up of an asset performing services and an Asset Administration Shell (AAS) representing the asset in the system. I4.0 Components must meet the requirements of interoperability, identification, representation, information management, integration, and asset management. Industrial agents are a suitable approach to implement I4.0 Components since they meet these requirements and provide additional features such as distributed decision-making capabilities. Nevertheless, the development of generic approaches for the integration of AASs and assets is not straightforward due to the diversity of physical assets in the factories. This paper proposes a four-layered architecture for the implementation of I4.0 Components based on industrial agents, two in the agent-based AAS and the other two in the physical asset. The division into layers enhances the separation of concerns, encapsulating the different integration aspects at different abstraction levels. This approach is complementary to the standard IEEE 2660.1-2020 on recommended practices for industrial agents, which focuses on the deployment of the interface between the agent and the physical asset. As a proof of concept, the proposed architecture will be applied for the integration of a software agent and a robot from an assembly cell, aiming to create an I4.0 Component.