Cyber-physical Systems: Milestones and Research Challenges

CPS entails the incorporation of four key characteristic technologies. CPS device technologies, CPS computational technologies, Cyber Physical System of Systems (CPSoS) and CPS networking and communication (CPS-ComNet) technologies. Multiple CPS architectures, of which the Industrial Internet Reference Architecture (IIRA), Reference Architecture Model for Industrie 4.0 (RAMI 4.0) and Intelligent Manufacturing System Architecture (IMSA) are the major referenced architectures and this demand to facilitate interoperability between such architectures for effective integration. This framework has evolved toward having smart CPS with intelligence and decision-making capabilities and highly networked and integrated components. CPSs have been categorized into two types namely Cyber Physical Production Systems (CPPS) for the development of products and Cyber Physical Service Systems (CPSS) for the servicing of products. These developments facilitate the adoption of the CPS in smart cities, smart farming systems, smart manufacturing, and smart supply chain systems, etc., while it gives CPS the importance as one of the core technologies making up Industry 4.0 era. Despite these advances, cybersecurity and privacy, real-time control of systems, interoperability of services, etc. are key challenges facing the development of CPS and they demand solutions overcoming such challenges. This paper, therefore, presents the role, evolution, characteristics, architectures, and applications of CPSs and their future potentials.