In a research project with the AI laboratory Fetch.ai, autonomous software agents in manufacturing are aiming to optimize the supply chain. Greater autonomy in manufacturing is expected to facilitate faster responses to market requirements and to provide customers with the opportunity for customized orders.
At the present, systems are often inconsistently utilized, as production is always subject to fluctuations in demand. Enter decentralized manufacturing marketplaces: Manufacturers and suppliers make unused capacity available at short notice and can use free capacity from other companies to help with their own orders.
As part of the research project, Festo is using the agent-based approach from Fetch.ai to achieve greater autonomy in production. The manufacturing marketplace is managed using blockchain technology. Blockchain makes the tamper-proof transmission of information possible using a decentralized database which is used by many participants. As a result, blockchains are secure directories updated in real time, and they also make the documentation of digital transactions reliable and clearly understandable for the participants.
"Blockchain technology allows us to track orders on the manufacturing marketplace and ensure that those involved in the network do not gain access to any manufacturing trade secrets. Payment in cryptocurrency can also be made securely and directly via blockchain," explains Eduard Grün, Blockchain Development Lead at Festo.
Various agents are involved in the manufacturing marketplace. Every process step, from milling and fitting through to the system quality inspection, has its own software agent representing it. This agent liaises with the product agents who are looking to use various process steps of the system in the manufacture of their products. In the first step of the research project, Festo and Fetch.ai are testing this using the modular production system MPS ®, a universal Industrial Internet of Things miniature learning factory from Festo Didactic.
"With the multi-agent architecture from Fetch.ai, we are creating a new way of better utilizing equipment on a global scale and planning the supply chain more efficiently," explains Eduard Grün.
"We are pleased to announce a partnership with a technology company as advanced as Festo," said Maria Minaricova, Director of Business Development at Fetch.ai. "With Festo's contribution, we will be in a position to demonstrate the practical advantages of autonomous AI agents in manufacturing and the supply chain. We look forward to continuing our cooperation with Festo so that we can establish these groundbreaking innovations in manufacturing on a broader scale."
Festo and Fetch.ai are using the modular production system MPS ® from Festo Didactic for the first test phase. The miniature training factory provides training solutions for mechatronics and factory automation, from the basic principles of technology to complex relationships in industrial automation.