A Cyber-Physical Approach in Heterogeneous Communication Networks

Several paradigms that have the ability to reshape the architecture of the Enterprise Systems have emerged in the last few years. These refer to "Internet of Things" and Cyber-Physical Systems". Enterprise Systems are required to support the integration of smart devices, usually geographically distributed and connected in heterogenous networks. A set of principles and models needs to be addressed in order to facilitate the development of such systems. The main purpose of the paper is to address the design of Communication Networks that facilitate the integration of heterogenous devices, by adopting Cyber-Physical Systems principles. Such networks of devices can be integrated in enterprise systems or become part of large-scale networks such as Internet of Things oriented networks. A case study, involving the design of a Cyber-Physical Systems oriented communication device is presented.