The advancement of digitalization necessitates the development of new encryption technologies for industrial operations, which are becoming more interconnected across borders. The collaboration between the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied and Integrated Security AISEC, the Technical University of Munich, Siemens AG, and high-tech firm TRUMPF in the PoQsiKom project aims to create a secure method for remotely accessing protected areas of machine tools.
This innovative approach relies on a versatile chip equipped with quantum security technology that is adaptable to future threats. The partners will unveil their prototype at Hannover Messe 2024, located in Hall 002, Stand B24. With the increasing trend toward smart manufacturing, there is a greater need for communication among various operating equipment components. As this communication extends beyond the confines of internal trust domains, such as in global partnerships, simply having authenticated and secure communication links is insufficient.
Ensuring the integrity of the data generated and exchanged by these devices is also crucial. One instance involves the safety of machine tools, where safety systems used to rely on physical presence for acknowledgment, with local hardwired terminals being the norm. However, the implementation of cryptographic components, also known as security primitives, in each device has enabled remote acknowledgment of safety systems, even from different countries. Photoelectric barriers protect the machine tool’s safety area, and when breached by a third party, animal, or object, the machine stops, requiring a trained person to release it before operation can resume.
Previously, this required an in-person check at the specific location, but with remote access, stricter requirements for data availability, authenticity, integrity, and confidentiality are necessary. For example, ensuring the authenticity of the emergency stop, along with the integrity and confidentiality of transmitted video data, is essential. At the Hannover Messe, a hardware chip (trust anchor) serves as the security primitive, proving the authenticity of the applications used. Agile and post-quantum secure cryptography can be flexibly adjusted to the relevant use case, protecting data exchange via remote access, even against quantum computer attacks.
The trust anchor is integrated into the devices, with a real-time-capable operating system hardened against malware to prevent data compromise during processing. The security technology also guarantees the correct and unchanged status of remote systems. The generic trust anchor programming interface (GTA API) enables simple and efficient use of the trust anchor, aligning with international standardization activities such as “ISO/IEC TS 30168 Internet of Things (IoT) — Generic Trust Anchor Application Programming Interface for Industrial IoT Devices.”
The encryption algorithms used can be run on devices with limited resources and implemented in specific field-programmable gate array (FPGA)-based solutions. In the PoQsiKom (Post-Quantum Secure Communication for Industry 4.0) project, TUM is tasked with developing the FPGA-based hardware platform for the trust anchor, and in collaboration with Siemens AG, implementing the cryptographic post-quantum algorithms. Fraunhofer AISEC is responsible for securing the real-time-capable operating system, while Siemens AG is developing and standardizing the GTA API.
TRUMPF is creating a concept for acknowledging safety systems via the Internet and implementing it, including the trust anchor for secure communication developed within the project, in a demonstrator to be showcased at Hannover Messe. The project is funded with €2.4 million from the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action (BMWK) and is scheduled to continue until November 30, 2024. It is internationally associated with the South Korean KOSMO (Korean Smart Manufacturing Office), which will also present a demonstrator at the same stand during Hannover Messe 2024.
