31 www.drivesncontrols.com June 2025 COMMUNICATIONS AND SECURITY n How servo systems can benefit from open connections disrupting production. The increasing convergence of OT and IT networks further complicates security, allowing a single breach to cascade across both environments. As a result, manufacturing plants are highly susceptible to cyberattacks, often without realising it until the damage is done. To combat the growing cyberthreats, manufacturers need to adopt specialised OT cybersecurity strategies, not simply retrofit IT security measures to their industrial environments. The threat landscape is evolving rapidly, with cybercriminals weaponising AI to automate attacks. But defenders are responding in kind, leveraging AI-driven security systems to predict and prevent breaches. Governments are also stepping in, tightening regulations for OT cybersecurity under frameworks such as the UK’s NIS 2 Directive. For manufacturers, cybersecurity must be embedded into automation strategies from the ground up. As industrial automation continues to evolve, so do the cybersecurity challenges that come with it. Ensuring the resilience of your OT environment is key to maintaining seamless operations. Zero-trust architectures can restrict device access to verified endpoints, ensuring that only authorised systems can interact with robotics and industrial controls. AI-powered anomaly detection systems can enhance security by spotting irregular patterns in robotic operations, identifying cyberthreats before they cause disruption. Various cybersecurity experts are offering technologies designed to protect OT environments. OryxAlign’s securyXDR platform, for example, is a managed Extended Detection & Response (XDR) system that offers real-time monitoring across IT and OT networks to detect and neutralise threats before they spread. n Eric Irabor, a product manager for servo systems at Mitsubishi Electric, explains how open communications networks can be used to integrate servo systems into digital chains. In the age of digitalisation, the networking of machines, systems and plants is critical to success. Open network connections play a central role in enabling crossmanufacturer integration and flexible production environments. Servo systems are a prime example of the potential benefits of such technologies, particularly using communications technologies such as OPCUA, OPC-UA FX, EtherCat and CC-Link-IE-TSN. The benefits of open and standardised network connections, that can be used across industries and markets, are obvious. In general, they enable the horizontal and vertical integration of a wide variety of machines, systems and peripherals. This creates consistent data availability at all levels, from the sensor to the cloud, and facilitates datadriven optimization in production. Standardised fieldbus protocols and profiles make it much easier to commission servo systems at the field level. Fieldbus profiles such as CiA 402 are currently in use, while OPC UA FX will also play an important role in the future. The direct integration of these communication protocols into the servo controller eliminates the need for additional gateways. This results in cost savings, simplified commissioning and reduced maintenance requirements. At the same time, this standardisation allows machine-builders to change suppliers with minimal effort and efficiently transfer their existing know-how. Networking enables deep integration of servodrives into digital value chains. Connections to intelligent production ecosystems also make it possible to integrate AI-based technologies, cloud computing and digital twins into operations. This leads to greater transparency and more comprehensive control of the entire value chain. Servo systems play a key role here, because they not only enable precise and dynamic motion control, but can also act as data collectors and communications nodes. n Open networks can deliver many benefits to servo systems
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