What is Industry 4.0?

Industry 4.0, also known as the Fourth Industrial Revolution, is transforming factories and workplaces by integrating new features—from artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics to the internet of things (IoT)—into manufacturing and industrial processes.

Facilitating Industry 4.0 and the IoT requires a leap in connectivity, and manufacturers face significant planning challenges and major decisions to reach the next level, and MxD can help answer key questions.

A 5G network is now a resilient and potentially cost-effective way to help get to that next level as it leverages advancements in cellular technology and regulations to support critical applications in manufacturing and industrial settings. By shifting away from wired connections or Wi-Fi to the next generation of 5G wireless communications, manufacturers can make gains in reliability, speed, quality, adaptability, and security. 

When 5G is deployed as a private network inside a factory setting, it provides greater control, security, and flexibility;  it can offer data safety and network integrity by design, as MxD research has shown.

5G in Industrial Settings

In industrial settings, 5G doesn’t mean the same thing as what the big mobile carriers are marketing to customers. There are many kinds of 5G cellular services, and it is important to select the right match for your business.   

But when building your own network for your facility, you are in control.

For manufacturers embracing Industry 4.0, here are the 11 top Industry 4.0 use cases that 5G wireless technology can make a reality:

1. Autonomous Mobile Robots (AMRs)

What they do: AMRs move materials, parts, and products across factory floors without human intervention. Manufacturers deploy AMRs for increased efficiency, improved safety, lower labor costs, and better inventory and workflow management. AMRs make factory operations scalable and flexible and allow for enhanced data collection and analytics.

Why 5G is better: A 5G network can provide ultra-low latency (lag time in communications) and high reliability to enable precise navigation and features such as real-time obstacle avoidance. Because 5G is built with cellular technology, it is inherently better for mobile applications compared to other wireless technologies.

2. Real-Time Quality Control Powered by AI 

What it is: Cameras and sensors on production lines capture high-resolution images or video of products in real time, which are continuously fed into an AI system. AI trained on deep learning models scans images for defects, and flawed products can be instantly flagged, enabling immediate corrective action. 

Why 5G is better: High data throughput with 5G supports rapid image transmission and cloud-based or edge processing.

3. Predictive Maintenance with IoT Sensors

What it does: IoT sensors on machinery monitor vibration, temperature, and more to predict failures before they happen. Preventing failures reduces unplanned downtime and avoids shutdowns, lowers emergency maintenance costs, and creates greater efficiencies, MxD research has demonstrated.

Why 5G is better: 5G systems can support thousands of sensors in dense environments with minimal latency.

4. Augmented Reality (AR) for Maintenance and Training

How it’s used: Technicians use AR headsets to visualize repairs, receive instructions, or get remote support. AR systems connected to IoT sensor data can visualize issues like overheating components and excessive vibration and pressure readings on pipes and machines. New workers can learn procedures in an interactive environment, with animations overlaid on real machines.

Why 5G is better: 5G systems with low latency and high bandwidth allow for streaming of complex 3D models and remote collaboration via video.

5. Digital Twins

What they are: Digital twins are virtual replicas of physical assets used for simulations and monitoring. Digital twins help capture and retain an organization’s knowledge and can assist in upskilling and training a growing workforce. Through technology, product quality stays high, as does retained knowledge.

Why 5G is better: 5G allows for real-time data streaming from sensors to keep digital twins updated continuously.

6. Connected Worker Wearables

What they are: Worker wearables such as smart helmets, glasses, and vests can track employee location, health information, and environment. They are particularly valuable in settings like on manufacturing lines and for maintenance applications where safety, efficiency, and remote coordination are critical.

Why 5G is better: 5G can allow for continuous high-speed data transmission from multiple devices. 

7. Industrial Drones

What they do: Drones in industrial settings perform tasks such as visual inspections, inventory checks, and security patrols in large facilities.

Why 5G is better: 5G wireless connectivity supports live HD video streaming, remote control, and quick responsiveness.

8. Flexible/Smart Production Lines

What they are: Reconfigurable assembly lines driven by software-guided machines and robots can automatically adjust to changing product designs, order volumes, and materials without halting operations. Machines, sensors, and software work in unison to monitor performance, predict maintenance needs, and optimize workflows. This flexibility supports mass customization, shorter lead times, and increased productivity.

Why 5G is better: High device density support allows wireless interconnectivity of many machines.

9. Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs)

What they are: AGVs transport goods and materials between warehouse and production areas, reducing labor costs and increasing safety in factory settings. They operate efficiently and improve accuracy of inventory and workflow.

Why 5G is better: A 5G wireless network facilitates real-time navigation data and coordination with other vehicles and systems. Because 5G is built with cellular technology, it is inherently better for mobile applications versus other wireless technologies.

10. Edge AI and Cloud Robotics

What they are: Robots or sensors analyze data locally (edge) or coordinate via cloud AI.

Why 5G is better: It enables real-time decision-making with ultra-reliable communication between cloud, edge, and device.

11. Remote Equipment Monitoring and Control

What it is: Operators manage and control machines from a distance, even while off-site. These features are useful in manufacturing settings where equipment reliability, uptime, safety, and visibility across locations are critical.

Why 5G is better: 5G allows for secure, real-time connectivity allows industrial control without physical presence.

Final Thoughts

For most manufacturers operating in an Industry 4.0 environment, the question of shifting to 5G wireless is more “when” than “if.”

For speed, security, capacity, and savings, the deployment of a private 5G network can generate immediate benefits across many use cases.

Purdue University is taking manufacturers somewhere they have never been: inside a blast furnace. 

The university’s physics-based, data-driven, next-generation Integrated Virtual Blast Furnace (IVBF) mirrors a blast furnace, enabling an unprecedented interior view and providing an example of how manufacturing is embracing digital twin technology. Touted for its transformative impact on quality, agility, and competitiveness, digital twin technology is also helping to bridge the gap between a shrinking skilled workforce and the increasing complexity of modern manufacturing processes.

“With the IVBF, we can not only mimic the structure of a blast furnace, but we can mimic the physics, see the flow, know what the temperature is at any location inside the furnace,” said Professor Chenn Zhou, director of  the Purdue University Northwest (PNW) Center for Innovation through Visualization and Simulation (CIVS), which spearheads the IVBF project. “Using it for design, optimization, troubleshooting, scaling up of new technologies, and real-time monitoring, we can do more efficient furnace operation and more effective worker training to save money and reduce downtime.” 

With U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) funding, the CIVS team is using the IVBF to find methods to improve steelmaking efficiency and develop a virtual training model to provide what they call “critically needed workforce development within the steel industry.”

The IVBF gives operators and engineers skills needed to implement new technology and provides a “window” to look inside a space that, because of its size and temperatures (which can hit nearly 3,000 degrees Fahrenheit), poses enormous hurdles.

“It’s very challenging to take measurements inside a blast furnace,” Zhou said. “Now we can see and do virtual measurements.”

By relying on physics and data, she added, workers don’t have to depend on trial and error, which can be expensive and dangerous. The IVBF uses machine learning and a database of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling that was developed and used to simulate blast furnaces offline for more than 20 years at PNW, enabling people to work better, Zhou said, because they can safely “get inside.”

That inside look allows operators and engineers to conduct real-time monitoring, predictions, and simulations to determine the operating conditions that can best deliver energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions.  Dr. Tyamo Okosun, CIVS’s associate director for research and the IVBF project’s principal investigator, said: “This tool — a window into the blast furnace — draws upon the wealth of data collected by sensors and combines it with physics-based CFD modeling to optimize the process. It also opens doors to lower-emission operating conditions using new technologies like hydrogen injection or partial electrification.”

Virtual representations of physical products, systems, or processes, digital twins are used in myriad ways. And adoption in the manufacturing sector is moving fast. 

A recent study found that more than a quarter — 29% — of manufacturers worldwide had already fully or partially implemented digital twin strategies. 

And early in 2025, the Commerce Department announced $285 million in funding for a CHIPS Manufacturing USA institute for digital twins. The Semiconductor Manufacturing and Advanced Research with Twins USA (SMART USA) Institute will join a network of 17 other institutes — including MxD —  designed to accelerate U.S. manufacturing competitiveness. It will focus, the Commerce Department said, on ways “to more rapidly develop, validate, and use digital twins to improve domestic semiconductor design, manufacturing, advanced packaging, assembly, and test processes.” 

The goal at Purdue, an MxD member, is to use digital twin technology to deliver a cutting-edge solution that will benefit blast furnaces in Indiana, the nation’s top steel producer, and throughout the United States — as well as benefiting the workers who keep the furnaces running. 

In a recent interview with DOE’s Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, Zhou said CIVS simulation and visualization capabilities are helping to train a workforce for future industrial processes and keep people safe by providing “safety and process training simulators that are authentic, immersive, interactive, and based on real phenomena and scenarios.”

At MxD, recent digital twin highlights include: 

• MxD’s “Lungs-in-the-Loop,” which demonstrates how digital twin technology can accelerate medical device manufacturing advances, is featured on the MxD Factory Floor in Chicago and was chosen as a Manufacturing Leadership Awards 2024 Finalist.
• MxD, Siemens and Applied Dynamics International (ADI) are collaborating on the first-of-its-kind Open Process Automation (OPA) Testbed. Being built on MxD’s Factory Floor, the testbed will showcase the advantages of OPA and demonstrate the value that digital twin and machine learning technologies can deliver for manufacturers.