Industry is taking a serious look at the Internet of Things. After all, the sensors, networks, databases and data analysis software needed for IoT applications are already deployed in many industrial sectors, and machine-to-machine (M2M) connectivity is already well underway. As自动化世界Editorial Director David Greenfield says in a recent post about英特尔对物联网技术的使用y to improve semiconductor manufacturing, “Judging by the increasing speed with which real world IoT applications in manufacturing are being reported, it’s clear that the concept has legs.” Now, apparently, the Internet of Things concept also has thrusters and a planetary orbit.
A press release from The Center for the Advancement of Science in Space (Casis), which manages the U.S. National Laboratory on the International Space Station (ISS), provided an overview of seven proposed experiments to be conducted on the Space Station. Among them is the test of a payload processor whose results could lead to better sensors and machine communications in commercial/industrial applications.
According to CASIS, “Drs. John Samson, Jr. and Benjamin Malphrus from Morehead State University (Morehead, KY) in conjunction with Honeywell Aerospace (Clearwater, FL) will build and test a small, low-power, high-performance Dependable Multiprocessor (DM) Payload Processor on ISS. Such DM Payload processors are applicable to a wide variety of commercial applications including space-based machine-to-machine network communications, global tracking, and remote sensing.”
Such “announced unsolicited investigations” are ISS projects that do not involve targeted solicitation for grants. Instead, any U.S. researcher, academic institution, or commercial organization can submit a white paper describing an experiment that uses the unique environment of the ISS National Lab for Earth benefit. In some instances, CASIS can provide funding for unsolicited proposals based on scientific merit and potential benefit to the American taxpayer.
Many industrial technologies have been adapted from or tested in outer space applications. Wireless access points from industrial automation vendor Moxa Americas, for example, are enabling communication around the ISS. The Remote Sensing division of ABB Inc. is leading research to develop a new industrial sensor by providing the technology to study planetary rocks from a Mars or Moon Rover. The federal government supplied $2 million for the sensor’s development, with ABB providing the remaining $6 million. (Learn more in Automation World’s article, “It Came from Outer Space…”)
“Through this wide array of unsolicited investigations, CASIS continues in its mission to not only utilize the ISS National Laboratory to its fullest capacity but also bring about novel research inquiry,” said CASIS Chief Operating Officer Duane Ratliff. “These projects represent a broad range of studies that can potentially yield groundbreaking results.”
其他拟议的ISS实验包括Milliken＆Company的Jeff Strahan（Spartanburg，SC）评估阻燃剂和/或抗药性（FR）纺织品，作为一种人身保护的方式，可以免受火灾相关的危害。拉特利夫说：“研究微重力中不同材料的FR行为将有助于为未来的FR纺织品提供更好的设计，并使那些在电气和能源行业中穿着诸如军事人员和民用工人之类的FR保护服装的人受益。”
The oil & gas industry has shown some of the biggest interest in IoT technology, particularly in light of recent sensor and wireless-communications advances. At its Emerson Exchange 2014 conference, Emerson Process Management referenced a number of its oil & gas customers when talking about extending what it does for process sensing to such concerns as corrosion, energy consumption, health and safety, and the environment.
艾默生过程管理首席战略官彼得·佐尼奥（Peter Zornio）说：“典型的炼油厂维护预算中约有36％用于腐蚀修复和维修。”“工业部门的生命周期能源使用可能会提高50％pervasive sensing.] Together with strategic interpretation, the data [from advanced sensors] can be transformed into actionable information”
艾默生可能希望与A-76 Technologies（休斯顿，德克萨斯州）的Lauren Thompson联系，这是石油和天然气行业的首位CASIS获奖者。汤普森计划在恶劣的空间环境中测试一系列新的腐蚀抑制剂和润滑剂。根据Casis的说法，“暴露于太空环境的独特挑战将在极端条件下表现出加速材料降解的表现。涂有A-76产品的金属（计划将来用于防止地球上的石油和天然气管道腐蚀）使用ISS Nanoracks外部平台接触太空。”
没有关于汤普森是否使用高级传感器和无线通信来进行测量并报告她的发现。
Note: And in terms of real-time communications, live streaming video from the International Space Station is available online at:http://www.ustream.tv/channel/live-iss-stream. It includes internal views when the crew is on-duty and Earth views at other times. The video is accompanied by audio of conversations between the crew and Mission Control.
