- Factories are expected to become even smarter in the future, leveraging key technologies such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and the metaverse.
- Artificial intelligence can be used to talk to and manufacture machines, and so-called “digital twins” help manufacturers replicate their products in the metaverse.
- There are concerns that automation could lead to job losses. Some hope that more advanced AI systems will allow us to work with machines rather than replace them.
The robotic arm works at the smart factory of the German manufacturer Rittal in Haiger, west of Hesse, Germany.
Rittal
Conversational artificial intelligence that can be used to communicate with equipment and generate machine parts. Digital versions of vehicles and planes that can be modified to fine-tune their physical counterparts. And autonomous robots that move as you pass by.
These are just a few of the technologies that will power the factory of the future, according to engineers and industry experts who spoke to CNBC.
Goetz Erhardt, Accenture’s European head of digital engineering and manufacturing, told CNBC that the factory of the future will be powered by a range of technologies, from artificial intelligence, data platforms and edge devices to the cloud, robotics and sensors. It says it will become more connected depending on the combination. .
“These technologies will support new production networks with fully automated ‘dark room’ plants, automated decision-making, enhanced equipment monitoring, and recycling and upcycling capabilities,” Erhardt said. said in an email.
From machines and automobiles to food processing plants, today’s factories are becoming more and more technologically advanced. Robotic arms involved in manufacturing processes, such as adding and removing materials, welding, and placing goods on pallets, are now a common sight.
Industrial production processes could be further shaken as far more advanced artificial intelligence techniques are added to the mix. It is possible to realize an intelligent machine in
“Generative AI (AI that creates new content in response to user input) has huge potential in equipment optimization, interaction and manufacturing intelligence, from robotic processes to machining,” he told CNBC. rice field.
Google is one of the tech giants looking to leverage large-scale language models, which can generate more human-like responses thanks to the vast amount of data they train on. The company launched its own AI chatbot Bard earlier this year to compete with OpenAI’s ChatGPT.
Consumer goods aren’t the only focus of Google’s AI efforts. The company recently upgraded its Cloud He platform for manufacturers to more efficiently pull data from machines and detect anomalies in production processes.
In the future, AI will be able to “use natural language to talk to manufacturing equipment and understand its current state and predicted future performance. ,” Google Cloud’s Floyd told CNBC.
Floyd said Google is already working to achieve this using the natural language processing capabilities of its AI tools. The company has also created a language model for robots called PaLM-E. It collects sensory information from the physical environment and text-based input.
Engineers will eventually be able to develop new machines using generative AI tools, says Floyd.
“In the future, we may generate content from different types of manufacturing equipment, from specific repair instructions to software code tailored to specific assets.”
One development that many industrialists are excited about is the “digital twin”. This is his 3D digital replica of an object in the physical world that can be modified and updated alongside the item it is trying to imitate.
Rolls Royce is an example of a company using digital twins to aid in physical manufacturing. Engineers at Rolls Royce create an exact virtual copy of the jet engine, then load it with sensors and a satellite network to feed real-time data back to the digital copy.
Silico AI CEO John Hill said: Startups focused on digital twins of business processes. “It depends on how the engine is performing in atmospheric conditions and pressure in the air.”
Another example is Renault, which has created a digital twin for its new “software-defined” car with artificial intelligence capabilities to enhance its services.
The digital twin forms part of the so-called “metaverse”. It embodies the idea that people spend more time at work and leisure in a huge 3D digital space. Some companies are also considering incorporating the physical world into some iterations of the Metaverse.
Many manufacturers see potential in an “industrial metaverse,” a version of the metaverse tailored for the manufacturing, construction, and engineering industries. Accenture’s Erhardt told CNBC that he sees use cases primarily in creative collaboration and product development, maintenance and remote repair, design and optimization of production operations, and employee training. Told.
“The Metaverse has the potential to be a game-changer for industrial companies when it combines collaborative, immersive, visual and intuitive dimensions with a digital twin provided by an integrated data pool across departments, systems, operational technology and IT. Yes,” says Erhardt. “This allows us to create a fully immersive and intuitive virtual simulation of the entire enterprise.”
Amid a wave of labor shortages, companies are looking for ways to use digital technology to cut down on menial tasks in factories.
Olivier Ribet, executive vice president of EMEAR at Dassault Systèmes, told CNBC:
“However, this is changing rapidly due to technological change. Technological change is driving down costs, democratizing automation with low-code/no-code robotics, and enabling more manufacturers to improve precision, efficiency, and production. We can now take advantage of automation in terms of efficiency.”
The rise of AI and digital automation in factories has raised concerns about the labor market, so there are downsides to consider. Especially when it comes to job security. Generative AI, a relatively recent development, could wipe out 300 million jobs, Goldman Sachs estimates.
Yet, as history shows, technological advances not only make jobs redundant, they also create new roles. This usually outweighs the number of jobs lost. A Bain & Company survey found manufacturers are still struggling to find staff, with 41% of them citing the talent pool as a “very significant” barrier to maximizing potential. It prevents you from demonstrating
Maya Pindeus, CEO of AI startup Humanising Autonomy, says connecting machines to the internet and integrating sensors and predictive AI algorithms will help them navigate their surroundings more safely, rather than replace humans. It is expected that they will be able to work collaboratively with humans.
“Think of a factory. You have robotic arms, you have different vehicles that move goods, you have operators, you have security cameras,” Pindeus told CNBC.
“What I would like to see in the factory of the future is that there is a high level of safe automation that can operate around humans … I have big robotic arms caged and really far away from humans. I’ve been to factories.It looks very inefficient to me.”
