Cyber thingy machines 4.0

The problem is that it is all about finding the right name. Are Cyber Physical Systems any different to M2M, the Internet of Things or Industrie 4.0? No - because they are all fundamentally the same, although people do sometimes use them in slightly different ways. But really people will either end up using the expression that means something to them, or the expression that becomes too fashionable to ignore. So using a couple of IT examples, as the IT world is the home of unnecessary jargon, BYOD – Bring Your Own Device – is both meaningful and relevant to many people and therefore has gained traction (another buzz word), while Cloud Computing, although maybe not instinctively apparent what it means, is so well used that it has become part of the lingo. So where does that leave our Cyber Physical Systems? Perhaps they are currently being left in the wake of the Internet of Things, but it is amazing what a bit of resolute marketing can do if companies really care. Why they should care is as clear as the difference between IoT, CPS and M2M. And while new terms are needed for new things, it would be helpful if we could establish a jargon rulebook which could ensure both clarity and a lack of duplication. But while this might leverage bleeding edge thinking it probably doesn't have the bandwidth for a paradigm shift in word usage – as some might say!