Abstract: The participants in the Industrial Edge ecosystem want extensive automatic integration mechanisms, if possible without interfering with currently common OPC UA software stacks. The OPC UA server applications cannot however be externally accessed without further measures so that the user has to balance the server ports between the application view and the edge device view and must in the process consider port conflicts and compliance with possible network environment restrictions, as well as the other parts of its automation application with the servers via the concrete network addressing information. It is proposed to produce an initial trust relationship (with a “certificate of origin”). This certificate of origin/initial trust relationship corresponds to the CA certificate of the provision entity.

Abstract: The present invention relates to a method, a computer program product and a system for providing services, in particular in an industrial automation system. Users of control applications implemented for industrial automation systems by way of container virtualization expect the integration of such applications into their existing infrastructure to be as straightforward as possible. Depending on the network connection and the flow control environment used, in particular OPC UA servers encounter different configurations that need to be taken into consideration by developers of control applications for automated configuration methods for the control applications. For this purpose, a smart proxy for OPC UA servers in virtual machines or Docker environments, such as in Industrial Edge, is used and intervenes in the initially still unsecure service communication in order to ensure that OPC UA clients can successfully connect to OPC UA servers in a container host/Industrial Edge.

Abstract: System and method for secure time synchronization in an industrial facility, wherein a synchronization request of a facility component is transmitted to a registration service of a certificate management of the facility and the synchronization request is examined by the registration service, where the synchronization request includes a signature of the requesting facility component, and where depending on an outcome of the examination, a synchronization response is then transmitted to the requesting facility component a system time of the facility component is matched to a system time of the registration service based on the synchronization response.

Abstract: System and method for secure time synchronization in an industrial facility, wherein a synchronization request of a facility component is transmitted to a registration service of a certificate management of the facility and the synchronization request is examined by the registration service, where the synchronization request includes a signature of the requesting facility component, and where depending on an outcome of the examination, a synchronization response is then transmitted to the requesting facility component a system time of the facility component is matched to a system time of the registration service based on the synchronization response.

Abstract: An automation system, a controller, a field device and method for operating the automation system, wherein a first field device is provided for an operation on site with an operating unit, where depending on an operator input, the first field device transmits a request for a provision of data to the controller, which returns to the field device corresponding data relating to functionalities in the automation system lying outside the first field device, and where information corresponding to the data is output on the operating unit of the first field device such that an on-site display in the automation system of existing measurement values that were previously not available on the first field device, or a configuration of automation functions which do not run on the first field device is advantageously permitted.