Introduction to Smart Systems

Smart Systems not only unite multiple technologies, they are strongly tailored to application sectors. This knowledge-rich environment is fertile ground for a truly European manufacturing supply chain, and its involvement of agile, innovative, SMEs.

All forms of Transport & Mobility and their necessary infrastructure are continually demanding increasing levels of safety, efficiency and environmental performance. Smart Systems offer reduced operator distraction and error, and optimisation of vehicle control, navigation and logistics.

In Healthcare, Smart Systems promise benefits across the whole spectrum of healthcare and wellbeing, from personal diagnosis and monitoring, through treatment and the preparation of targeted drugs and implants, and ultimately to enhanced levels of telemedicine and personalised health systems across the community.

Smart Systems in Manufacturing promise to carry out local optimisation underpinned by local Knowledge Bases, ranging from the examination of raw materials and parts and predicting subsequent machine settings to compensate for variation, all the way through to optimising manufacturing parameters based upon end-product performance.

The capability for Smart Systems to Communicate, with users with other collaborating systems and within smart systems themselves is paramount. Smart Systems are set to enable immense strides in the whole domain of Communications within a Connected World.

Energy is behind almost every class of human endeavour. Civilisation depends upon care, security and efficiency at every stage from the discovery and unlocking of energy sources, through the storage and distribution of energy and on to its final use. Smart Systems, either autonomously or through networking, can safeguard and optimise every aspect of this critical chain.

The demands for precision, low mass, energy efficiency and utmost reliability make Aerospace a fundamental driver for high technology developments. Smart Systems bring the potential for the elimination of human error in control, guidance and navigation, and for the continuous monitoring of safety-critical structures and mechanisms.

Smart Systems, with their ability to accept multiple inputs and to infer appropriate responses, are already finding application in local Environmental controls. Their ability to network, coupled with small size and low cost, is expected to enable area-wide improvements not only in living and working environments, but also across the recycling and disposal landscape.

Growth in Smart Systems R&D

According to the survey conducted by the IRISS project, SMEs predominantly reported 1-5 Smart Systems R&D projects running in 2012, whereas Large companies and Public research bodies typically reported more than 10 projects, and in some cases more than 50.

Forecasts for R&D activity are tabled in the individual technology descriptions presented in the “Technologies for Smart Systems” chapter of this document, but the overall view illustrated to the left shows a majority of SMEs and Research Organisations forecasting increased Smart Systems R&D activity by 2016.

Market engagement

The IRISS 2012 survey of 93 contributors with activities in Smart Systems revealed sector-to-sector differences in the level of engagement reported by different classes of organisation.

• Public research bodies reported high engagement levels in each sector, with a possible interpretation being that basic research can support a wide variety of application.
• Large organisations show a clear lead over SMEs in the Transport & Mobility sector, whereas SMEs engage proportionally more in Healthcare.
• Relatively few commercial organisations reported engagement in the Environmental sector.

Corporate impact

The great majority of the organisations surveyed forecast sales growth in Smart Systems, with a significant proportion of companies, particularly SMEs, predicting turnover increasing by more than 50% over the 4-year period up to 2016  (illustrated left).

There were no predictions of reductions in sales, however an understandable proportion of organisations expressed no opinion, or uncertainty.

A similar picture emerged for growth in terms of employment, with a strong consensus for increases in manpower associated with Smart Systems.

Some caution is advised as the sample size, although useful to gain an overall picture, does not convey sufficient accuracy to draw detailed conclusions.

Sector growth prospects

It is easy to appear to be definitive about growth forecasts. It is far more difficult to properly substantiate views of the future, and in the case of Smart Systems it is even problematic to derive truly realistic figures for the present day.

The reasons for these uncertainties are:

• Unlike standardised component parts, for which manufactured numbers, future demand and investments are predictable, Smart Systems are highly customised and made in smaller numbers, and thereby subject to strong fluctuations during relatively short commercial life cycles.
• Smart Systems are typically tied to specific applications sectors, for which the total value can only be estimated roughly, as, for example, there is no clear distinction between tangible product values and service values.
• It is difficult to discern the boundary between system and end product. It is easy, for example, to discover the total electronics value in an automobile, and to arrive at a figure for sensors and actuators, but it is tricky to identify the “smart” element of this total.

The charts to the right show the results of expert discussion groups, separately convened for each of the seven  application sectors examined. Rather than arriving at financial figures, which, for the reasons tabled above would be inexact, and by virtue of being quoted in number form might convey an undue air of precision, each sector group agreed upon a graphic representation depicting the “form”  of the current position and growth prospects in their sector.

It can be seen that:

• In all application sectors the proportion of value attributed to Smart Systems is expected to grow substantially.
• Even in those sectors showing Smart Systems as a relatively small proportion of value in 2010, that small proportion is of a very large whole.
• The Healthcare and Communications sectors predict the highest proportion of “smart” value in 2020.

Global challenges

Globalisation has drawn together a set of worldwide social, natural and economic effects, which concern every nation, company or entity. Accordingly, in addition to the specific Horizon 2020 challenges, the broader perspective must include global issues and major drivers such as:

• global healthcare
• demographic changes: urbanisation and ageing
• demand for fresh water
• food safety
• sustainable mobility
• environment and climate change
• conservation of scarce materials
• energy demand - efficient and secure access
• global convergence of information and communications technologies
• shifts in global employment patterns
• security strategies to reduce conflicts and terrorism

The indicators in the charts are shaded to reflect uncertainty