Potential for smart spindles adoption as edge computing nodes in Industry 4.0

Smart spindles extend conventional electromechanical machine tool sub-systems with additional sensing and local data processing capabilities, according to the Cyber-Physical Systems paradigm, in the framework of Industry 4.0. The article investigates the possibility and advantages of performing local elaboration of spindle-specific data, which allows embedding and protecting the expertise of component creator in form of proprietary data processing algorithms and numerical models. The main elements and functionalities of a smart spindle are discussed, focusing on how they can deliver a competitive performance exploiting edge computing, the convenience of use for the end user and aspects related to data privacy.