Industrial Data Communications and Networking
As compared to traditional enterprises, industrial environments including
factories and process plants have unique requirements for their communications
networks/applications. These include characteristics such as support for real
time traffic and high availability of time critical applications. Till about a
decade back, data communications and networking technology was not widely
adopted in the industrial environment for either data acquisition/transfer or
for direct control of specialized components. However, in recent times,
networking technology enabled by the Ethernet has rapidly advanced to support
these functions.
Aricent has proven industry expertise in Ethernet technologies, high
availability and redundancy, as well as on NMS/EMS solution development. This
accompanied by a comprehensive portfolio of software solutions/services for
Industrial networks enable Aricent deliver quality solutions which meet the
stringent performance requirements of this segment.
Customer Challenges
- Industrial Networking equipment needs to support redundancy and high
availability for time critical applications
- Basic and advanced Layer 2/3 switching/routing protocols for Real-Time
Applications, WiFi APs and Servers has to be supported
- Apart from routing and switching protocols, features like Quality of
Service, Firewall, VPN, Access Control, IGMP Snooping, Multicast
Capabilities, Time Sync (IEEE 1588), Fault Management, Configuration,
Accounting, Performance Measurement, Monitoring and Control are a
“must-have” in the equipment
Aricent Capabilities
- Industry-proven IP/Ethernet software solution – Aricent
provides a complete software development framework - Intelligent Switching
Solution (ISS), as well as individual protocol stacks tailored for equipment
manufacturers looking to build high performance Industrial data
communications and networking products (including Ethernet switches/routers,
Industrial WLAN, WiFi access points and servers. Aricent’s software can
support deployments ranging from greenfield build-outs to carrier grade
network scenarios
- Advanced feature-set support – Features include advanced
spanning tree algorithms, Ethernet Operations, Administration and Management
(OAM) capabilities, Ethernet in the First Mile (EFM), Provider Backbone
Bridges (PBB), Provider Backbone Bridge Traffic Engineering (PBB-TE),
virtualization of switching components, fault tolerant high availability,
and Ethernet protection switching. MPLS is available as an add-on to the
ISS-Metro package
- Standards-compliant software – Aricent’s ISS-Metro is
compliant with 802.1ag, 802.3ah, 802.1ah and 802.1Qay standards from the
IEEE as well as the Y.1731 and G.8031 standards from the ITUT
- Support for multiple network processor and hardware board
platforms – Aricent solutions have been optimized for performance
on multiple network processors as well as hardware boards. This has been
ensured by building a complete ecosystem cemented with strategic silicon
partnerships
- Wide range of service offerings – Aricent’s services,
delivered by professionals with deep domain expertise in Ethernet
technologies, include product strategy and design, product development,
testing and certification, as well as sustenance and support
Key Benefits
- Accelerated time to market & reduced costs –
Time-to-Market advantage with ready to use IPR portfolio and skilled
resource pool with deep domain expertise reduces the product development
cycle for Equipment Manufacturers. Global delivery models provide execution
flexibility and reduce costs
- End-to-end testing house – Testing Center of Excellence
provides end-to-end testing services which include protocol conformance,
interoperability, deployment scenarios, as well as feature/system Load,
stability, performance and dimensioning capabilities
- Flexible business model – Aricent’s offers flexible
Business models based on its IPR portfolio as well as Services. These
include licensing models, royalty based payment models, IPR buy-outs for
products. Services models such as T&M, Fixed price, Risk & Reward, etc. are
available from Aricent