An Introduction to OPC UA TSN for Industrial Communication Systems

The industrial communication market is dominated by Ethernet-based fieldbus systems. Although they share similar requirements and market segments, their implementations and ecosystems differ considerably. As a result, end customers and device manufacturers are faced with a multitude of technologies that need to be produced, run, diagnosed, maintained, and kept in stock. Although the availability of products and services is largely satisfactory, dealing with multiple solutions generates high costs and limits IoT capability. This paper introduces Open Platform Communication Unified Architecture Time-Sensitive Networking (OPC UA TSN) as a new technology and presents the current view. This time, the industrial prospects of fulfilling industrial communication requirements while leveraging the cost benefits of standard Ethernet hardware in the midterm are in reach. We anticipate that OPC UA TSN will reveal itself as a game changer in the field of industrial automation, being a candidate for establishing a holistic communication infrastructure from the sensor to the cloud.