Exponential Disruptive Technologies and the Required Skills of Industry 4.0

Table 2

Disruptive technologies of industry 4.0.

Rank	Disruptive technology (search terms)	Appearances	References
1	Internet of Things (IoT)	33	[1, 8, 15, 16, 22, 25, 27, 29, 40, 43–66]
2	Big Data (data mining, data analytics, and advanced algorithms)	30	[8, 10, 16, 29, 33, 44, 46, 47, 49–53, 55, 56, 59, 60, 63–74]
3	Additive manufacturing (3D printing, 3D scanning)	28	[1, 7, 8, 10, 33, 40, 47–59, 61–67, 69, 75]
4	Cloud computing	27	[8, 10, 29, 33, 44–46, 48–50, 52, 53, 55, 56, 59, 63–67, 69, 70, 72, 76–78]
5	Autonomous robots (industrial robots, robot arms)	24	[1, 8, 10, 15, 33, 48, 50–57, 59, 61, 62, 64, 65, 67, 69, 75, 79]
6	Virtual reality (VR) and Augmented reality (AR)	21	[8, 10, 33, 47, 50–53, 55, 56, 61–66, 69, 75, 80, 81]
7	Cyber-physical systems (CPS)	20	[8, 15, 16, 24, 25, 27, 29, 44, 46–48, 52, 56, 66, 69, 70, 72, 82–85]
8	Artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning	19	[1, 8, 33, 50, 53–57, 59, 61, 62, 64–66, 75, 78, 86]
9	Smart sensors (smart actuators, smart objects, and smart dust)	15	[35, 48, 49, 51, 54, 58, 62, 63, 65, 75, 87–91]
10	Advanced simulation (3D modelling and 3D visualization)	15	[33, 35, 40, 49, 52, 56, 64, 65, 69, 75, 79, 91–94]
11	Nanotechnology (advanced materials, nanomaterials, nanobots)	13	[40, 51, 53–55, 57, 59, 62, 64, 75, 86, 89, 91]
12	Drones, UAV, UASs, and RPA^1	10	[8, 35, 40, 51, 54, 55, 62, 65, 75, 92]
13	Biotechnology (synthetic biology, molecular biology)	10	[35, 40, 53–55, 57, 59, 62, 86, 91]
14	Block chain (Bitcoin, cryptocurrency, digital currency)	7	[8, 37, 46, 56, 58, 59, 63]
15	Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) or industrial internet	6	[12, 24, 25, 33, 37, 38]
16	Cybersecurity	6	[37, 48, 49, 54–56]
17	Smart factory and intelligent factory	5	[8, 15, 16, 24, 26]
18	Internet of services (IoS)	5	[8, 27, 29, 37, 48]
19	Vertical and horizontal (V&H) system integrations	5	[11, 33, 56, 64, 69]
20	Renewable energy and advanced energy storage	4	[53, 54, 59, 62]
21	Machine-to-machine communication (M2M)	4	[8, 29, 57, 67]
22	5G network (advanced network technology)	4	[49, 56, 58, 73]
23	Information and communication technology (ICT)	3	[16, 44, 46]
24	Quantum computing	3	[53, 54, 62]
25	Mobile devices (smartphones, smart cameras)	3	[51, 63, 67]
26	Manufacturing execution system (MES) and SCADA^2	2	[16, 53]
27	Neurotechnology	2	[59, 62]
28	Predictive maintenance	2	[72, 75]
29	Advanced human to machine interface (HMI)	2	[64, 75]
30	Material science	1	[54]
31	Internet of data (IoD)	1	[53]
32	Internet of energy (IoE) (smart grid)	1	[67]
33	Flexible production system (FMS) and cluster concept	1	[50]
34	Location detection (digital traceability and GPS)^3	1	[64]
35	Digital twin	1	[75]

¹UAV: unmanned aerial vehicle, RPA: remotely piloted aircraft, UASs: unmanned aircraft systems, ²SCADA: supervisory control and data acquisition, and ³GPS: global positioning system.