A system and method for secure remote access to an industrial control system using hardware based authentication is provided, comprising secure user authentication, secure interactive remote access or secure machine-to-machine remote access or communication, and remote access services. Secure user authentication comprises two-factor authentication based on smart cards, and secure interactive remote access via a managed remote-access appliance comprises a virtual machine and software that can only be used with a smart card credential.

A method of providing process data to a remote computing device includes receiving configuration data describing a configuration of at least part of the process control system. The configuration data includes information associated with a plurality of process control entities, and the information regarding each entity includes at least one tag associated with a level in a hierarchy of the system. The method includes identifying a plurality of levels within the system based upon the tags, including at least a first-level identifier and a plurality of second-level identifiers associated with the first-level identifier. Further, the method includes identifying a plurality of control modules, each associated with a second-level identifier, and each associated with the entities based upon the configuration data. The method includes generating a hierarchical list of available process data, and selecting from the hierarchical list a set of information to include on a watch list or alarm list.

Updating performance of a display screen in a terminal device that displays a screen for remotely monitoring an object to be controlled by a control device is appropriately maintained. An information device for factory automation connected to the control device that controls an object communicates with a terminal device having a display capable of displaying a screen for remotely monitoring the control device. The screen includes one or more components. The screen data for displaying the screen includes attributes of the respective components relating to the display, and a logic executed by the programmable indicator to determine the attribute values. When the terminal device displays a screen, the programmable indicator transmits the attributes and attribute values of the respective components in the screen data to the terminal device.

A permission-engine computer system receives a request for electronic access by an equipment supplier to a manufacturing facility of a manufacturer to perform a remote support activity for equipment in the manufacturing facility. The permission-engine computer system routes the request to a plurality of predefined approvers and receives approval of the request from the plurality of predefined approvers. In response to receiving approval of the request from the plurality of predefined approvers, the permission-engine computer system signals a gateway computer system of the manufacturer that the request is approved. The gateway computer system automatically creates a connection between an electronic device in the manufacturing facility and a computer system of the equipment supplier in response to approval of the request. The connection is used for the remote support activity.

A method and arrangement for providing access of a first computer to at least one application installed on a virtual machine of a second computer via a network connection, wherein at a first step, a Remote Desktop Protocol connection (RDP-C) is established from the first computer to the virtual machine and, at a second step, at least one communication relation of the first computer to an industrial controller is made available to the at least one application as a local communication relation of the application from the virtual machine to the first computer via a virtual channel of the RDP-C connection such that from a user's perspective, only exactly one connection to the virtual machine must be established via the RDP-C, where required back channels can be automatically established and where no security settings must be changed in firewalls or routers.

A method of monitoring health status of a machine component on a real time basis is provided. The method includes generating a first signal indicative of an operational characteristic of the machine component by at least one sensor module at regular predetermined intervals. The method includes receiving the first signal by at least one Internet of Things (IoT) module. The method includes converting the first signal from analog format to digital format by the at least one IoT module to generate a second signal. The method includes transmitting the second signal wirelessly by the at least one IoT module. The method includes receiving the second signal by a mobile device. The method includes processing the second signal by the mobile device to determine a real time health status of the machine component and displaying the real time health status of the machine component on the mobile device.

Disclosed is an information processing device including: a first communication unit configured to permit communication with a remote maintenance device that remotely operates machine tools; a second communication unit configured to permit communication with the machine tools; an operation unit including a remote maintenance switch; and a control unit configured to, according to whether the remote maintenance switch is in an ON state or an OFF state, determine whether or not to permit communication for remotely operating the machine tools by the remote maintenance device, and control connection and disconnection between the remote maintenance device and the machine tools. Accordingly, it is possible to perform remote maintenance on machine tools while maintaining the confidentiality of information indicating the operation state of the machine tools.

A CI server 10 includes an acquisition unit that acquires first information from a plant 5 and acquires second information from a source other than the plant 5, a determination unit that determines a setting value of the plant 5 and a first condition for reflecting the setting value in the plant 5 based on the first information and the second information, and a transmission unit that transmits the setting value and the first condition to the plant 5. The plant 5 operates based on the setting value and the first condition.

Provided is a method for remote monitoring of a production plant and in particular a packaging plant, the plant has a plurality of working units as well as a data collection device, to which these working units are connected at least partially and/or at least intermittently for data transmission, wherein the data collection device collects relevant data for the working units and wherein a data transmission device transmits data from the data collection device to a data recording device, wherein at least one characteristic and in particular a type and/or a scope of the data to be transmitted can be determined by a user and in particular by a user of the data collection device.

A system for securely disseminating information relating to a process control plant includes a process control node and a controller that is coupled to a plurality of process control devices. The process control node includes a communicator module operable to transmit, via a first network, information of the process plant received from the controller. The system also includes a data services module operable to receive from the communicator module, via the first network, the information of the process plant and to transmit some or all of that information via a second network, and a mobile server, coupled to the second network and to a third network, and operable to receive data from the data services module. The mobile server is operable to communicate with a plurality of mobile computing devices via the third network.