Enabling data sharing with DDS on real-time constrained industrial robots.

Data Distribution Service (DDS) is a decentralized, zero-configuration, communication middle-ware. This thesis presents a performance analysis of a communication based on DDS in the context of industrial robotics. The purpose is to find out if DDS is an adequate alternative for establishing a communication network between industrial robots, as well as other devices, and consider the advantages and disadvantages that this technology brings. Several current works are explored to give an insight in the current state of smart industrial automation, as well as to serve as a basis for the tests conducted in this thesis related to DDS performance. Using ABB industrial robots, a prototype is prepared and a series of experiments are carried out in order to measure the performance of the connection compared to a traditional end-to-end Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) socket. After explaining both the software and hardware architecture of the build setup, several test cases are presented in order to compare the performance of the system with different configuration parameters and network traffic conditions. An analytic review on the capabilities of the prototype, based on the test data is presented. The specific DDS distribution used in this thesis complies with the requirements needed by ABB robots in many different applications.