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Factory Customer Premises Network

Objective

The objective of this project is to define, specify, develop and demonstrate a multiservice communication system (data, voice and image) based on mobile infrared terminals for indoor industrial applications suitable for SME factories and broad-site plants. The project takes into account the need to interwork with the following environments: ESPRIT CNMA, MAP, TOP, and ISDN.
The diffuse infrared emitting strategy and its advantage for indoor telecommunications is presented. The technological choices for the infrared channel are based upon 3 points: The integrated services digital network (ISDN) compatibility; The user requirements and the available infrared components. The corresponding electrical architecture for Infrared emitters and receivers is presented with its implementation for prototypes, with the first results of the prototype implementation and the total performances that can be expected from the diffuse infrared transmission channel. The feasibility of diffuse infrared transmission has been validated and the first measurments are in good agreement with theoretical results. The main problem is still the electrical consumption of the emitter. Further investigations are necessary in order to select more efficient light emitting diodes (LEDs) with shorter emitted pulses. In particular, special care must be taken in the cooling of LED devices to prevent thermal decrease of the efficiency. Laser diodes could be an alternative. They permit very short pulses and also a very selective optical filtering of ambient light. The main problem is the cost.

The objective of this project is to define, specify, develop and demonstrate a multiservice communication system (data, voice and image) based on mobile infrared terminals for indoor industrial applications suitable for small and medium sized enterprises (SME) factories and broadsite plants. The system particularly addresses the need for mobility and for reliable communications in the presence of severe electromagnetic interference, as encountered in electrical power plants, substations and other factories. It provides wireless infrared communication inside limited size cells, together with a backbone network linking all subsystems. Low cost limit feature terminals as well as high performance, multiservice mobile terminals have been specified.
The project started with an assessment of users' requirements for large plants as well as small and medium enterprises. The results are grouped into requirements for the network, terminals, and gateways and environmental conditions. In addition, a state of the art survey indicates the main problem areas in terms of technologies and techniques. Based on these results, a communication system has been defined that includes asynchronous and synchronous data streams as well as isochronous ones. Integrated services digital network (ISDN) is chosen as the basis for the systemarchitecture. The protocols used fit as closely as possible to those of ISDN, and corresponding services can be implemented. The main aspects of the project are the infrared technology and the communication system. 2 types of terminals have been developed: a mobile ISDN voice terminal, and an ISDN-VME-board to connect terminals to the factory customer premises (FCP) network.
In a pilot site demonstrator a mobile vision robot and also the host system in the control room are equipped with one ISDN-VME-board to establish a wireless link between them by means of diffused infrared light. In addition, voice communication between a phone connected to the host system v ia the ISDN-VME-board and a mobile ISDN voice terminal can be done.
The system particularly addresses the need for mobility and for reliable communication in the presence of severe electromagnetic interference, as encountered in electrical power plants, sub-stations and other factories. It provides wireless infrared communication inside limited size cells, together with a backbone network linking all subsystems. Low-cost limit-feature terminals as well as high-performance, multiservice mobile terminals have been specified.

The project started with an assessment of user's requirements for large plants as well as small and medium enterprises. The results are grouped into requirements for the network, terminals, and gateways and environmental conditions. In addition, a state-of-the-art survey indicates the main problem areas in terms of technologies and techniques.

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Coordinator

Robert Bosch GmbH
EU contribution
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Address
Robert-Bosch-Straße 7
64293 Darmstadt
Germany

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Participants (10)

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Last update: 17 June 1994

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Permalink: https://cordis.europa.eu/project/id/1694

European Union, 2024