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Considerations
The potential benefits of using the edge in an IIoT
application are hard to argue with, however they are
not completely without drawbacks.
The first barrier is the requirement placed on process
knowledge. There must be some initial understanding
of the manufacturing process and subsequently the
appropriate handling of the output data. Without the
requisite understanding, it is difficult to extract value
from collected data – or even to know which data to
collect in the first place.
Another issue to consider is the scale of the solution,
in combination with the type of data collected. If the
edge node needs to process (for example) imaging or
machine vision data from multiple sources, the data
throughput is likely to be extremely demanding,
requiring more expensive hardware and potentially
affecting computation times.
By routing all data through an edge node, some of
the benefits associated with an IoT solution’s
‘distributed-ness’ are negated. From a security
perspective, a compromised edge node represents a
much greater security risk than a single compromised
IoT device, especially considering that mission-critical
operations are more likely to be performed on an edge
node than an individual microcontroller.
This is not to suggest that an edge node is a net
drawback for the security of an IoT solution. The use of
an edge node may allow the associated IoT devices to
use networking technologies that are easier to secure.
Additionally, the superior hardware of an edge node (in
comparison with a microcontroller) may allow for more
robust encryption and security protocols to be used.
Conclusions
Edge computing is yet another entry in the toolkit of
IIoT solutions. With the potential to reduce costs,
accelerate process improvement and lay the
groundwork for exciting technologies, edge computing
is a natural choice for innovative businesses looking to
forge ahead.
By building on the lessons learned and good practice,
such as those outlined by organisations such as NPL,
businesses are enabled to implement and experiment
with these technologies and extract additional value
from their processes and stay abreast of the latest
innovations in industry.
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