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has released the Otto Industrial API with the intention of enabling a fully connected and optimized smart factory, including self-driving vehicles. The application programming interface (API) is an integration system that enables machine-to-machine communication and full industrial automation by simplifying the process of connecting equipment and programmable logic controllers (PLCs) to Otto. It connects self-driving vehicles to existing automation systems and processes, providing faster integration with industry-standard software and protocols.

The company collaborated with Inductive Automation to integrate Ignition software as part of the API architecture. The software platform can translate different protocols to the ones needed to speak to PLCs within manufacturing environments, contributing to a closed-loop automation system. The API enables Ignition to seamlessly access the data as OPC tags and to integrate them with built-in components and scripting. This process removes connectivity barriers that can interfere with the utilization of industrial self-driving vehicles.

The system is designed to create a connection that enables data to be exchanged between industrial machines from different vendors. The company says that this will lead to fuller integration of automation solutions in a smart manufacturing environment.