ABB and IBM have announced a collaboration project that brings together the Swiss group’s digital division — ABB Ability — with the US-based IBM’s Internet of Things cognitive capabilities to “unlock new value for customers in electricity generation, utilities, industry, transport and infrastructure”.

The first two joint industry solutions powered by ABB Ability and IBM Watson will bring “real-time cognitive insights to the factory floor and smart grids”.

A spokesman said: “These solutions will move beyond current connected systems, which simply gather data, to cognitive industrial machines that use data to understand, sense, reason and take actions supporting industrial workers to help eliminate inefficient processes and redundant tasks.

For example, ABB and IBM will leverage Watson’s artificial intelligence to help find defects via real-time production images that are captured through an ABB system and then analysed using IBM Watson IoT for Manufacturing. Previously, these inspections were done manually, which was often a slow and error-prone process.

“In another example, ABB and IBM will apply Watson’s capabilities to predict supply patterns in electricity generation and demand from historical and weather data, to help utilities optimise the operation and maintenance of today’s smart grids, which are facing the increased complexity created by the new balance of conventional and renewable power sources.

Forecasts of temperature, sunshine and wind speed will be used to predict consumption demand, which will help
utilities to determine optimal load management as well as real-time pricing.”