Key driving technologies for industry 4.0

Editor's Note: AspenCore has launched an ongoing series of Special Projects, a collaborative effort by the editors across the publications under the AspenCore roof to look at a big topic from multiple angles. This package represents the first of these.

SEATTLE – When attending the massive Hannover Fair in April, a variety of technologies caught the eye of editors from our sister publication Electronic Products . Some of these technologies are just emerging while others with longer histories were gathering momentum, but all of them represent opportunity for designers and manufacturing centers alike. EP describes them in Hannover Fair shows off the factory technology of tomorrow.

To get a more in-depth look at four major trends in Industry 4.0 – Cobots, additive manufacturing, mixed reality, and digital twins — check out the other articles in EP's Industry 4.0 Special Report:

	Robots are becoming more helpful, easier to use, and friendlier — At the Hannover Fair this year, industrial robots showed both utility and co-worker compatibility.
	3D printing gains industrial momentum – Once relegated to prototyping and hobbyist activity, 3D printing is evolving to address industrial requirements.
	Mixed reality: The software is willing, but the hardware is weak – While augmented and virtual reality applications for industry are blossoming, headset limitations remain an impediment to widespread adoption.
	Digital Twins enable simulation & maintenance, Industry 4.0   –  Marry EDA to the Industrial IoT to birth Digital Twins, for system-level maintenance, simulation, and optimization.
Related articles from the Aspencore network:
	Fear Not the Cobot — Discussing the newest and perhaps most exciting realm of industrial robotics: collaborative robots.

>> This article originally appeared on our sister site, EE Times: “Four technologies helping drive industry 4.0.”