Rio observes that OEMs too often conduct product development in an “open loop” manner. Once the machine they build gets installed, there is no customer feedback. That’s why he recommends OEMs look closely at how Cummins—whose engines power vehicles, equipment, and generators around the world—takes a “closed loop” approach to product development and to optimized engine performance by capitalizing on IIoT.
“The Cummins engines already have intelligence in the form of the engine control module (ECM), which has access to all the engine data via sensors that are part of the engine design,” writes Rio. “By adding communications, [the ECM] transfers data to IBM CloudOne with analytics. That gives product developers access to performance data that they can use to improve the engine’s design. In addition, configuration changes can be sent to engines already out in the field to improve their operating performance and reliability.”
