Development of a 3d virtual environment of the ammonium nitrate granulation process and automatic control using the hardware in the loop technique and integration of the industrial network as-interface

This article presents the control and virtualization of an ammonium nitrate granulation process using the Hardware In the Loop (HIL) technique and the implementation of an industrial AS-Interface (AS-i) network. A virtual process with similar characteristics is implemented using CAD tools and the Unity 3D graphics engine, with the aim of simulating the behavior of an industrial process; which by using Arduino cards allows the generation and reception of standard electrical signals, which enable direct connection to an AS-i network. The result is an interactive and immersive virtual environment between the user and the industrial process, as well as successfully achieving the connection of the simulated process with an AS-i network and with a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC), until it ends in a supervision system. The dynamic modelling of a complete ammonium nitrate granulation process is incorporated into the virtual environment, as well as the virtualization of sensors and actuators typical of an industrial process, so that the virtualization is faithful to a real process.