Cyber–Physical Production Systems for Data-Driven, Decentralized, and Secure Manufacturing—A Perspective

With the concepts of Industry 4.0 and smart manufacturing gaining popularity, there is a growing notion that conventional manufacturing will witness a transition toward a new paradigm, targeting innovation, automation, better response to customer needs, and intelligent systems. Within this context, this review focuses on the concept of cyber–physical production system (CPPS) and presents a holistic perspective on the role of the CPPS in three key and essential drivers of this transformation: data-driven manufacturing, decentralized manufacturing, and integrated blockchains for data security. The paper aims to connect these three aspects of smart manufacturing and proposes that through the application of data-driven modeling, CPPS will aid in transforming manufacturing to become more intuitive and automated. In turn, automated manufacturing will pave the way for the decentralization of manufacturing. Layering blockchain technologies on top of CPPS will ensure the reliability and security of data sharing and integration across decentralized systems. Each of these claims is supported by relevant case studies recently published in the literature and from the industry; a brief on existing challenges and the way forward is also provided.