Mark D. Wood, Eastman Kodak Co.
Forum Member

Kodak's business is pictures, and our goal is to make picture taking and sharing as easy as possible for the consumer. Digital capture and display devices are becoming part of a larger digital home "ecosystem," and ease of use requires imaging devices to interoperate transparently with each other and with other, multipurpose devices in the home.

Kodak has joined the UPnP Forum because it offers a solution to a problem our customers are facing. UPnP enables us to deliver the connectivity capabilities our customers want, provide the ease of use they expect from us, and simplify product development. As a member of the UPnP Steering Committee, Kodak will help drive UPnP toward a vision we all share, one where technology "just works" for consumers.

Kodak has a wealth of experience in making easy-to-use systems, and a deep understanding of imaging technologies and standards. We will actively work with the Imaging Working Committee to help define what imaging devices such as digital still cameras and electronic picture frames look like, and how they should interact with other services. Our goal is to make it easy for the consumer to get high quality results. Holistic, "big picture" thinking is required here. The many hard-working UPnP members who joined before us have already laid a sizeable technical foundation. Now is the time to develop total solutions for consumers.

Pictures are the universal language, understood everywhere. UPnP can make digital imaging easy and pervasive—truly universal—which is just what our customers want.  

Nancy Glover, Xerox Corp.
Forum Member

The primary goal of UPnP, enabling the use of devices and services without complicated setup or configuration, is also a key objective for Xerox. We see UPnP as a technology that will enable us to simplify the integration of document devices, services and systems. We want to be involved in the development of UPnP standards so we can help address issues relating to UPnP support.

Xerox has been an active participant in the UPnP Forum since it was founded in 1999. Our seat on the Steering Committee will enable us to broaden our involvement. Xerox will work on the Steering Committee, Technical Committee, and Marketing Committee as well as in the areas of business development, legal counsel and public relations.

We will continue our work on the Imaging Working Committee, where we've contributed to defining a new UPnP Page Description Language and printing device and service templates. Xerox is also a member of the newly formed Scanning Subcommittee.

Xerox has invented much of the technology that has made networking possible, including the graphical user interface, the mouse, Ethernet, object-oriented programming, laser printing and many of the basic Internet protocols. Some of the strengths that we bring to UPnP efforts are a long history of networking know-how; a long history in the standards community; a robust and varied background in connectivity, discovery and service protocols standards for the networking environment; and a desire to guide the integration of UPnP into enterprise networks.  

D. Mitchell Carr, Invensys Controls
Forum Member

Invensys is a $15 billion worldwide manufacturing, software and services company solely focused on industrial, commercial and residential controls and automation. A typical United States household contains between 100 and 200 control devices manufactured by Invensys. By active participation in the Steering, Technical and Working Committees, Invensys will enable a multitude of service capabilities to the home, such as remote HVAC and appliance diagnostics.

Invensys is nearing completion on the development of a residential ControlServer™ Control Point for networking UPnP devices and a Communications Module product that will, in one form, be a bridge to non-UPnP devices.

Invensys has been an active participant in both the Home Automation and Security Working Committee and the Appliances Working Committee, with a clear charter to supervise and manage low-level networks under UPnP. Now on the Steering Committee, Invensys will propose an Industrial Automation (IA) Working Committee focused on introducing UPnP to the factory floor. By active participation in the Steering Committee, the Technical Committee and Working Groups, Invensys will be able to contribute over 25 years of experience in factory networking and deterministic distributed, real-time control to the UPnP organization. Invensys will also actively endorse and promote the use of UPnP as a superior network protocol for control and automation in the areas of residential, commercial and industrial systems.

Members interested in participating in an IA Working Committee are asked to contact Mitchell Carr at mcarr@invensyscontrols.com or Michael Mathur at mmathur@foxboro.com.  

Heinrich Munz, KUKA Roboter GmbH
Forum Member

Industrial Automation faces nearly the same problems as do home and small office networks. As new members to UPnP, we are interested in collaborating with other members on these issues.

The world of Industrial Automation (IA) is changing from centralized Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and field bus-driven systems towards distributed intelligence. These distributed systems often use Windows CE® and Windows® PC-based controllers with TCP/IP Ethernet.

• Ethernet Industrial Protocol (IP). Driven by Rockwell Automation, Ethernet IP simply puts the old Control and Information Protocol (CIP) coming from the field busses DeviceNet and ControlNet on top of TCP/IP.
• ProfiNet. Driven by Siemens, the initial ProfiNet uses TCP/IP Ethernet as a configuration medium for all of the field devices. The old Profibus field bus handles real-time communication.
• Interface for Distributed Automation (IDA): IDA is the most modern approach because it does not use the old field bus and is supported by several suppliers including Klöpper und Wiege Software GmbH; Jetter AG; KUKA Roboter GmbH; Lenze GmbH & Co. KG; Phoenix Contact; Real-Time Innovations, Inc. (RTI); Schneider Electric; and Sick AG. IDA is a working task force developing specifications, protocols. For more information, visit http://www.ida-group.org.

IAONA Trade Group

An organization, Industrial Automation Open Networking Alliance (IAONA), is focusing on industrial Ethernet. The IAONA trade group has more than 100 member companies with branches in the United States (http://www.iaona.com/) and Europe (http://www.iaona-eu.com/). IDA is going to merge with IAONA. Further, there are discussions between IAONA and other groups pursuing other Ethernet approaches. IAONA could be an umbrella organization for working groups dealing with Ethernet in IA.

Common Challenges

While the different groups have their specific engineering and control protocols on top of TCP/IP, there are several common problems and open questions. Questions remain about cabling for industry; connectors; infrastructure devices, such as switches, hubs and routers; and network (web-based) management and device profiles.

One of the biggest obstacles to today's automation is the configuration and management effort required in a plant, which requires very well trained, expensive staff. It is clear that a new paradigm like TCP/IP-Ethernet based automation must lower the configuration and management effort by far.

UPnP and Industrial Automation

The situation in IA is similar to the UPnP initiative: many different devices connected to each other on TCP/IP networks, where the systems must run without management staff such as network administrators around all the time.

Since the problems in the two different environments are very similar, it would be very useful to use UPnP in IA as well. All the TCP/IP Ethernet technologies should be based on UPnP. KUKA Roboter is very interested in participating in IA efforts with other UPnP members.  

Richard E. Geasey, Lantronix
Forum Member

When Lantronix joined the UPnP Forum last year, the company hoped to benefit from working with industry leaders to enhance and extend the capabilities of its Device Server products through a networkable, standards-based device control protocol. Lantronix believed in the ability of the UPnP organization to release a standard that greatly simplifies the implementation of device networks in home and corporate environments. However, the company never imagined the benefits gained by forming relationships with UPnP members—big and small.

Shortly after joining the Forum, members suggested that Lantronix speak with another UPnP member, Premise Systems. Forum members recognized that Premise Systems and Lantronix developed complementary technologies and encouraged us to work together to develop UPnP demonstrations to showcase at various events.

Companies Work Together for Mutual Gain

"When the members of the UPnP Forum began talking about Premise Systems software, it was apparent that Lantronix could benefit from their technologies and expertise," said Fred Thiel, Lantronix CEO. "Our focus is on hardware connectivity solutions, and Premise Systems offered a logical software complement. What we did not count on was the ease of integration and the potential breadth of solutions that opened once we began working together."

Realizing that UPnP Forum members were right, both companies saw the benefits of working together. By combining Premise Systems SYS™ home and business automation software with Lantronix' Device Server™ Technology, the companies opened the door to new applications based on UPnP protocols.

The Sky is the Limit

Premise Systems and Lantronix began brainstorming potential applications. The UPnP vision laid the foundation and the protocol provided the technical means to develop proof-of-concept demonstrations. Both groups realized the combination of UPnP, Lantronix Device Servers and Premise Systems software virtually eliminated the technical barriers encountered when inter-connecting and controlling off-the-shelf devices. The biggest challenge for the two companies was deciding what to create, given the levels of confidence and excitement that developed once they realized the potential. The feeling was, "The sky is the limit."

"In the initial phase of our partnership, the teams generated a whirl-wind of ideas for applications. Narrowing down the options was more difficult than most of the technical challenges," said Dan Quigley, Vice President of Product Development at Premise Systems. "UPnP is a protocol that inspires possibilities. It was quickly evident that our technologies resonated, and when used in tandem, epitomized the UPnP vision."

Intel Developers Forum Showcases Results

The Intel Developers Forum (IDF) was the first opportunity to showcase the fruits of the partnership. Lantronix and Premise Systems worked together to network-enable, add intelligence to, and then control several common devices including a motion sensor, refrigerator, temperature sensor, access card reader and a barbeque.

The event was so successful for the two companies that we continue to work together on a variety of technical and business projects. As Lantronix and Premise Systems build upon the advantages provided by UPnP, both companies recognize that the benefits of Forum membership can extend beyond mere technology.