Abstract:
Industry 4.0 is considered to one of most recent developments, and is drastically changing
perception of manufacturing industries especially in the developing nations. It is essentially a
synergic integration between hardware (e.g., machines) with software using internet technology
so that process monitoring over entire process, and relevant data analytics to improve overall
performance of process can be satisfactorily achieved. Overall implementation of Industry 4.0
will transform existing manufacturing industries into smart manufacturing. An implementation of
Industry 4.0 also includes fundamentals of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), cyberphysical
systems, and Internet of Things (IoT) that further focus on acquisition of various types of data
from different hardware used in respective manufacturing process. The data is usually streamed
to centralized server, and has challenges related to maintaining privacy as well as security.
Another disruptive technology, Blockchain can be explored in implementation of IIoT, in turn,
Industry 4.0 to maintain higher level of security and privacy. More than 35 research papers were
reviewed for getting an insight about implementation, and related challenges faced during
implementation. It was observed that specific architecture is also required for effective
implementation of Blockchain in Industry 4.0 application especially connected to manufacturing
domain. An architecture focused on hybrid approach that further acquires the data, streams the
data to local server followed by insertion into Blockchain to avoid latency of time as well as too
much financial implications on transactions.
