iStreams - Searching and analysing on-line high volume industrial streams

In many industrial contexts, there is an increasing need for collection of different kinds of measurement data from various technological systems for performance monitoring, diagnostics, fault detection, and use pattern analysis. Using state-of-the-art communications technology, data may be transmitted from the embedded monitoring systems to some other location for processing and analysis. As a consequence when the volume of the collected data grows, a high performance dynamic search engine for searching and analysing (data mining) real-time data streams is needed.

For example, modern vehicles generate large volumes of digital data while in operation. This data is a valuable asset for the vehicle manufacturers, for purposes of diagnostics, testing and verification, and as input to simulation models when designing the next generation products.

The goal of the iStreams project is to develop software infrastructures to efficiently monitor, filter, mine, and analyse large volumes of data originating in vehicles or other products and industrial equipment. It is investigated how large industrial data streams can be searched and analysed directly in the streams flowing from the embedded monitoring systems, via WLAN or other wireless access technologies, to computers at test sites, and further over broadband Internet to remote computers at engineering sites. A distributed so called Data Stream Management System (DSMS) is being developed for specifying the desired computations and subsequent filtering based on such streams. Only transformed and filtered interesting stream sequences are immediately delivered all the way to the remote analysis sites. The filters are expressed in terms of predefined filter functions that the engineer can use when searching on-line measurement data. The DSMS provides means for executing the filters at different locations of the distributed system utilizing state-of-the-art hardware to obtain acceptable performance in terms of response time.

The use of a system such as the one proposed for development here would enable industrial users to significantly cut test times and test related costs. At the same time, such a system would enable gathering of more data faster then before, hence enabling increasing the quality of the developed products. The developed search engine will enable specialized companies to offer customized IT services for industrial enterprises. This enables producers of advanced technical systems to offer customers a function rather than a hardware or software.

As technological basis in the iStreams project we are extending the SCSQ prototype, developed at UDBL, to support search and analyses of high volume industrial data streams.

Professor Lennart Karlsson emphasizes the importance of cooperation with a strong research partner in information technology such as UDBL. The joint project will create opportunities for further strengthening the partners’ leading positions in information technology and in product development.

Project facts

Funding: 10 MSEK from the Swedish foundation for Strategic Research, SSF

Participants, CAD, LTU: Lennart Karlsson, Magnus Löfstrand, Ahmad Alzghoul, Petter Kyösti,

Stakeholders: Division of CAD, UDBL, Hägglunds Drives AB, AB Sandvik Coromant

Participants UDBL, UU: Professor Tore Risch and PhD Students