Analysis of time-sensitive networking technologies for the design of a unified communication infrastructure for Industrial Automation and IoT connectivity

Industrial automation solutions have traditionally been differentiated and separated from one another by different incompatible and non-interoperable standards used for communication between devices. As a result, customers have often found themselves locked into proprietary ecosystems. Vendors have had to develop multiple versions of essentially the same product to support these ecosystems. Over the past few years a new driver has arisen to further bolster this device and system integration push: the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), which can be defined as the connection of devices through the internet in order to collect and share data without human assistance. Since there is no complete IIoT system on the market, the need to integrate a variety of different technologies remains a fact of the IIoT. This combination of different-vendor devices has been limiting innovation and integration of new solutions, with customers not being able to optimize their automation systems to its full value. Intregration of communication levels is an essential requirements for today's most advanced production systems. Furthermore, when it comes to complex processes with real-time requirements, communication standards have their own limitations. In order to face the issue presented, this thesis project will be focused on the study and analysis of a vendor-independent technology able to fulfill today's and tomorrow's industrial communication requirements, with particular focus on Time Sensitive Net- working (TSN) technology designed to face real-time demands.