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Ismail Butun Editor

Industrial
IoT
Challenges, Design Principles,
Applications, and Security
Industrial IoT
Ismail Butun
Editor

Industrial IoT
Challenges, Design Principles, Applications,
and Security
Editor
Ismail Butun
Chalmers University of Technology
Göteborg, Sweden

ISBN 978-3-030-42499-2 ISBN 978-3-030-42500-5 (eBook)

https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42500-5

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020

This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of
the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation,
broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information
storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology
now known or hereafter developed.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication
does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant
protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book
are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. Neither the publisher nor the authors or
the editors give a warranty, expressed or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any
errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional
claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

This Springer imprint is published by the registered company Springer Nature Switzerland AG
The registered company address is: Gewerbestrasse 11, 6330 Cham, Switzerland
In memory of my grandparents
and
my father Orhan Bütün . . .

To my mother Emine Bütün

İsmail Bütün
Foreword

I am honored to write this foreword for the book: “Industrial IoT: Challenges,
Design Principles, Applications, and Security.” The Editor of this book, Dr. Ismail
Butun, is a well-known researcher with impactful contributions in wireless com-
munications, computer networks, and network security for the past several years.
He published more than 35 scientific articles which were noticed by the research
community. His publications have already received more than 1000 citations along
with an H-index of 12. He demonstrates his knowledge in this edited book. I find
this book very useful for academicians and practitioners in the industry.
As the industrial revolution (a.k.a. Industry 4.0) continues at full pace, it is
indispensable to include all the benefits offered by the wireless technology, as it is
also evolving at a very fast pace. Besides, as the autonomous robots are invading
the factory floors at a rapid rate, they constitute another fleet of things in the
IoT to be wirelessly connected to each other and to the control center. Moreover,
after several decades of design and development, the smart grid and micro-grid
technologies have evolved from the traditional electric grid to the point where they
include remote monitoring and control, along with smart meters, sending gigabytes
of information per hour to the control center. Further, using the 4G/5G cellular and
low-power WAN wireless technologies, the Internet of Things (IoT) such as NB-
IoT and LoRaWAN are more flexible, deployable, scalable, and reachable than ever
before.
With all these advances, the Industrial IoT (so-called IIoT) concept is evolving
and comprises the primary focus of this book. It introduces all the recent tech-
nologies devised for the industrial networks, IoT, and IIoT domains, from factory
floor deployments to in-house applications. Therefore, it is not only for experts and
academicians in the field but also for the beginners and practitioners in the industry.

vii
viii Foreword

This book covers a wide range of topics, including but not limited to, the
digital twin, IoT-based industrial indoor/outdoor lighting systems, wireless com-
munications challenges and opportunities, decentralized computing, fog/edge/cloud
computing, data streaming, cyber-security, and intrusion detection.

Georgia Tech Prof. Ian F. Akyildiz

Atlanta, GA, USA
January 2020
Preface

We are all living in a connected world and Cisco predicts 500 Billion things of the
IoT to be further included in this connection; meaning more automation, remote
access and control to be infused in our everyday routines.
This book, “Industrial IoT: Challenges, Design Principles, Applications, and
Security,” aims at presenting the recent developments in the fields of industrial
networks, IoT, and IIoT domains. For this book, 18 chapter proposals were
submitted from the academicians and practitioners in the field. After careful reviews,
six chapters were finally accepted to be included in this book with an acceptance rate
of 33%.
Since readers of this book are likely to come from various backgrounds, being
aware of the implicit structure of this book might be helpful. The contributed chap-
ters in this book cover a broad range of topics related to IIoT networks, including
wired/wireless communication technologies, industrial applications, cyber-security,
and intrusion detection. The book consists of three parts and six chapters, which I
find a convenient way of presenting the overall material:
Part I consists of Chaps. 1 and 2 to introduce preliminaries, design principles, and
challenges of the IIoT. Chapter 1 introduces an overview of most of the networking,
communication, and ICT technologies available in the industrial networks, whereas
Chap. 2 presents wireless communication technologies that apply to IIoT and also
discussed their unique challenges.
Part II consists of Chaps. 3 and 4 to introduce automation trends and applications
of IIoT. Chapter 3 is dedicated to IoT-driven advances in industrial and commercial
smart buildings, especially new advances at IoT-based industrial indoor/outdoor
lighting systems. Chapter 4 introduces the automation trends in industrial networks
and IIoT, including the most famous digital twin concept.

ix
x Preface

Part III consists of Chaps. 5 and 6 to stress on the cyber-security of IIoT.

Chapter 5 presents the security of IIoT networks, especially within the decentralized
cloud computing settings of the IIoT. Finally, Chap. 6 concludes Part III and the
book by stressing on the detection of intrusions with data streaming concept.

Göteborg, Sweden Ismail Butun

January 2020
Acknowledgements

First of all, my special thanks go to Prof. Ian F. Akyildiz (Ken Byers Chair
Professor in Telecommunications, School of Electrical and Computer Engineering,
Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, USA) for reviewing my book and
providing his valuable feedback along with the Foreword section he has written.
I would like to express gratitude to my colleagues (especially to Magnus, Marina,
Tomas, and Vincenzo) at Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer
Science and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, for their courage and
support.
Generous academicians and practitioners helped in the thorough review process
of the book, including the authors of each chapter of this book. I appreciate each of
them for providing their expertise in this process along with their valuable time.
Especially, I would like to convey my gratitude to the following external
reviewers:
• Daniel dos Santos (Ph.D.), Forescout Technologies Inc. (USA)
• Lakshmikanth Guntupalli (Ph.D.), Ericsson Inc. (Sweden)
Last but not least, I would also like to thank my editor Susan Evans (Springer
Nature, USA) and her team for providing the editorial support needed while
preparing this book.

Goteborg, Sweden Ismail Butun

January 2020

xi
About the Editor

Ismail Butun (Ph.D.) received his B.Sc. and M.Sc. degrees in Electrical
and Electronics Engineering from Hacettepe University. He received his
second M.Sc. degree and Ph.D. degree in Electrical Engineering from the
University of South Florida in 2009 and 2013, respectively. He worked as an
Assistant Professor in years between 2015 and 2017 at Bursa Technical University
and Abdullah Gul University. From 2016 to 2019, he was employed as a post-
doctoral researcher by the University of Delaware and Mid Sweden University,
respectively. Since July 2019, he has been working as a post-doctoral fellow for
Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer Science and Engineering
at Chalmers University of Technology. He has more than 36 publications in
international peer-reviewed scientific journals and conference proceedings, along
with an H-index of 12 and I-index of 14.
Dr. Butun is a well-recognized academic reviewer by IEEE, ACM, and Springer,
who served for 39 various scientific journals and conferences in the review process
of more than 106 articles. He contributed as a track chair and session chair for
numerous international conferences and workshops, and performed as a technical
program committee (TPC) member for several international conferences organized
by IEEE, Springer, and ACM. His research interests include but not limited to
computer networks, wireless communications, WSNs, IoT, IIoT, LPWAN, LoRa,
cyber-physical systems, cryptography, network security, and intrusion detection.

xiii
Contents

Part I Preliminaries, Design Principles and Challenges

1 Industrial Networks and IIoT: Now and Future Trends. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Alparslan Sari, Alexios Lekidis, and Ismail Butun
2 Wireless Communication for the Industrial IoT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 57
Hasan Basri Celebi, Antonios Pitarokoilis, and Mikael Skoglund

Part II Automation Trends and Applications

3 IoT-Driven Advances in Commercial and Industrial Building
Lighting . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Daniel Minoli and Benedict Occhiogrosso
4 Automation Trends in Industrial Networks and IIoT. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 161
David Camacho Castillón, Jorge Chavero Martín, Damaso
Perez-Moneo Suarez, Álvaro Raimúndez Martínez,
Victor López Álvarez

Part III Cyber Security

5 Security in Decentralised Computing, IoT and Industrial IoT . . . . . . . . . 191
Monjur Ahmed, Sapna Jaidka, and Nurul I. Sarkar
6 Intrusion Detection in Industrial Networks via Data Streaming . . . . . . . 213
Ismail Butun, Magnus Almgren, Vincenzo Gulisano,
and Marina Papatriantafilou

Index . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 239

xv
Contributors

The authors are listed according to the appearances of the chapters they have
written.
Alexios Lekidis Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
Alparslan Sari Cybersecurity Research Group, Department of Electrical and
Computer Engineering, University of Delaware Newark, DE, USA
Hasan Basri Celebi Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department,
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
Antonios Pitarokoilis Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department,
KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
Mikael Skoglund Electrical Engineering and Computer Science Department, KTH
Royal Institute of Technology, Stockholm, Sweden
Daniel Minoli DVI Communications, New York, NY, USA
Benedict Occhiogrosso DVI Communications, New York, NY, USA
David Camacho Castillón GEA, Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain
Jorge Chavero Martín GEA, Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain
Damaso Perez-Moneo Suarez GEA, Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain
Álvaro Raimúndez Martínez GEA, Alcobendas, Madrid, Spain
Victor López Álvarez Telefónica I+D, Ronda de la Comunicación S/N Madrid,
Madrid, Spain
Monjur Ahmed Waikato Institute of Technology, Hamilton, New Zealand
Sapna Jaidka Waikato Institute of Technology, Hamilton, New Zealand
Nurul I. Sarkar Auckland University of Technology, Auckland, New Zealand

xvii
xviii Contributors

Ismail Butun Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer Science

and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
Magnus Almgren Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer
Science and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
Vincenzo Gulisano Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer
Science and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
Marina Papatriantafilou Network and Systems Division, Department of Com-
puter Science and Engineering, Chalmers University of Technology, Göteborg,
Sweden
Acronyms

AI Artificial Intelligence
AMI Advanced Metering Infrastructure
AWGN Additive white Gaussian noise
BACnet Building Automation and Control Networks
BAS Building Automation System
BBU Baseband Unit
BCH Bose, Chaudhuri, and Hocquenghem code
Bi-AWGN Binary input AWGN channel
BLE Bluetooth Low Energy
BMS Building Management Systems
BYOD Bring-Your-Own-Device
CBA Component Based Automation
CER Codeword Error Rate
COB Communication Objects
COSEM COmpanion Specification for Energy Metering
COTS Commercial off the shelf
CPS Cyber-Physical Systems
CSF Cybersecurity Framework
CSMS Cyber Security Management System
CSP Cloud Service Provider
CV Computer Vision
DB Database
DBMS Database Management System
DLMS Device Language Message specification
DoS Denial-Of-Service
DDoS Distributed DoS
DIDS Distributed IDS
DNP3 Distributed Network Protocol-3
EDS Electronic Data Sheet
eMBB enhanced Mobile Broadband
EPL Ethernet Power-Link

xix
xx Acronyms

EtherCAT Ethernet for Control Automation Technology

GDPR General Data Protection Regulation by EU
HART Highway Addressable Remote Transducer protocol
HMI Human–Machine Interface
IaaS Infrastructure as a Service
IACS Industrial and Control System
ICT Information and Communications Technology
IDS Intrusion Detection Systems
IEC International Electrotechnical Commission
IIC Industrial Internet Consortium
IIoT Industrial Internet of Things
IoT Internet of Things
IIRA Internet Reference Architecture
IPS Intrusion Prevention System
IRT Isochronous Real Time
ISA International Society of Automation
ISO International Organization for Standardization
IT Information Technology
LAN Local Area Network
LDPC Low Density Parity Check code
LED Light Emitting Diode
LoRa Long-Range
LoRaWAN LoRa Wide Area Network
LPWA Low-Power Wide-Area
LPWAN Low-Power Wide-Area Networks
LTE Long-Term Evolution
MAC Medium Access Control
MITM Man-In-The-Middle
ML Machine Learning
ML Maximum-likelihood
mMTC massive Machine-Type Communication
MOS Metal-Oxide Semiconductor
M2M Machine to Machine
NB-IoT Narrow-Band IoT
NERC North American Electric Reliability
NFC Near Field Communication
NIST National Institute of Standards and Technology
NLP Natural Language Processing
NMT Network Management
OPC-UA Object Linking and Embedding for Process Control Unified
Architecture
OS Ordered Statistics
OSI Open System Interconnect
OT Operational Technology
RH Radio Head
Acronyms xxi

RLC Radio Link Control

PaaS Platform as a Service
PAN Personal Area Network
PDCP Packet Data Convergence Protocol
PDN Packet Data Network
PDO Process Data Object
PERA Purdue Enterprise Reference Architecture
PII Personal Identification Information
PIIoT Private IIoT
PLC Programmable Logic Controller
PLM Product Life-Cycle Management
PoE Power over Ethernet
QoS Quality of Service
RAMI4.0 Reference Architecture Model Industrie 4.0
RAT Remote Access Trojan
ROI Return of Investment
RTU Remote Terminal Unit
SaaS Software as a Service
SCADA Supervisory Control And Data Acquisition
SCNM Slot Communication Network Management
SDN Software-Defined Networking
SDO Service Data Object
SDR Software-Defined Radio
SIS Safety Instrument Systems
SNR Signal-to-Noise Ratio
SPE Stream Processing Engine
SVM Support Vector Machine
TCP Transmission Control Protocol
TMR Triple Modular Redundancy
UAV Unmanned Aerial Vehicles
UDP User Datagram Protocol
UE User Equipment
URLLC Ultra-Reliable Low-Latency Communication
VANET Vehicular Ad-hoc NETworks
VPN Virtual Private Network
WiFi Wireless Fidelity
WirelessHART Wireless version of the wired HART protocol
 Part I
Preliminaries, Design Principles
and Challenges
Chapter 1
Industrial Networks and IIoT: Now
and Future Trends

Alparslan Sari, Alexios Lekidis, and Ismail Butun

1.1 Introduction

Industry 4.0 revolution can be summarized with one word: ‘Connectivity’. Connec-
tivity will enable intelligent production with the proliferation of IIoT, cloud and big
data. Smart devices can collect various data about indoor location, outdoor position,
status information, usage patterns of the clients, etc. They have the ability not only
in gathering information, but also sharing the information amongst intended peers.
This will be beneficial in building an efficient manufacturing process in industrial
environments and also in helping with the planned preventative maintenance on
machinery. The other benefit is in identifying errors in the production pipeline
as quickly as possible since it is an important factor to reduce the production
and maintenance costs. Industry 4.0 is also focusing on optimization problems in
the industry by using smart devices to utilize data-driven services. Industry 4.0
and IIoT are used for complex task sharing, decision making based on collected
data, and remote access to machinery. Massive connectivity of the things and data
collection/sharing capability of those promotes security to be a major requirement
for the IIoT and Industry 4.0 concepts.

A. Sari ()
Cybersecurity Research Group, Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University
of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
e-mail: [email protected]
A. Lekidis
Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, Greece
e-mail: [email protected]
I. Butun
Network and Systems Division, Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Chalmers
University of Technology, Göteborg, Sweden
e-mail: [email protected]

© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2020 3

I. Butun (ed.), Industrial IoT, https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-42500-5_1
4 A. Sari et al.

Semiconductor transistors are introduced in the late 1940s and led the micropro-
cessor revolution in the 1970s. Intel produced MOS (Metal-Oxide Semiconductor)
based 4 bits 4004 microprocessor in 1971. It had 2250 transistors, 10,000 nm
MOS process and area of 12 mm2 . Figure 1.11 shows the plot of MOS transistor
counts by years. In the plots, the exponential increase of transistor counts validates
Moore’s law—transistors in an integrated circuit doubles every 2 years. Currently,
transistor counts jumped to 9–40 billion with 7–12 nm MOS process and area of
100–1000 mm2 . Figures 1.2 and 1.3 shows the evolution of the flash memory and
RAM with transistor count vs. date plot. Groundbreaking technological advances in
electronics started the information age which triggered major changes in commu-
nication technologies such as the Internet (connectivity), advanced machinery, and
software development, etc. Internet became the global communication hub, enabling
us to exchange information instantly. Advanced electronics produced smart devices
with a smaller size, which constitute today’s ‘things’ of IoT and IIoT.
IoT is the proliferation of smart devices such as tablets, phones, home appliances
such as TVs, and other sensors, etc. The benefit of using smart devices at home
would be reducing electric bills and time savings etc. Managing resource usage
based on sensors or scheduling heavy-duty tasks like running dishwasher, washing
machine or dryer when the electric consumption is the cheapest. IoT devices
are commonly used by the hobbyist or another consumer usage, and even in
industry. However, IIoT is designed for heavy-duty tasks such as manufacturing,
monitoring, etc. So, IIoT uses more precise and durable (heat/cold resistant) devices,
actuators, sensors, etc. Both IoT and IIoT have the same core principles such as
data management, network, security, cloud, etc. The main differences between IoT
and IIoT are scalability and the volume of generated data and how data has been
handled. Since IIoT devices generate massive amount of data, IIoT requires data
streaming, big data, machine learning or artificial intelligence practices. In a home
network, loss of the generated data would be trivial but in IIoT it is vital. The data
in IIoT should be more precise, continuous and sensitive. For instance, considering
a monitoring system in a nuclear power plant or a manufacturing facility should be
precise, continuous and sensitive to prevent hazardous events. The implementation
of IIoT in production lines or other industrial projects, companies are aiming to
reduce production or maintenance costs and improve efficiency, stability, safety, etc.
According to a key note speech2 delivered by Tom Bradicich,3 the seven
principles of the IIoT are provided as follows:
• Big amount of analog data: Many sensors generate analog data and this data
needs to be digitized to be further treated, analyzed and stored.
• Perpetual connectivity: Devices of the IIoT are always connected. There are
three key benefits of this: (1) Real-time monitoring is possible. (2) Continuous

1 Figures 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3 are illustrated based on data from: https://www.wikiwand.com/en/
Transistor_count.
2 Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u3IaXvjDiOE.
3 Tom Bradicich, Ph.D., VP and GM, Servers and IoT Systems, Hewlett Packard Enterprise.
1 Industrial Networks and IIoT 5

Fig. 1.1 Figure shows

transistor counts in
microprocessors by date
between (a) 1971–1990 (top),
(b) 1991–2010 (middle), and
(c) 2010–2019 (bottom)
6 A. Sari et al.

Fig. 1.2 FGMOS transistor count in Flash memory over years with capacity increase

Fig. 1.3 Transistor count in RAM over years with capacity increase
1 Industrial Networks and IIoT 7

monitoring can help us to push software-firmware updates and fixes. (3) The
benefit of connected devices motivates individuals and organizations to purchase
products.
• Real-time data streaming: In the industry there are many safety mechanisms are
in use, and they are constantly generating data. Considering a nuclear power
plant, safety is of utmost critical from the operations point of view. Monitoring
requires real-time data streaming since a possible delay in data would cause
disastrous events. Hence, real-time data streaming and its aggregation are really
important.
• Data insights: Data insights (Spectrum of Value) in IoT seeks an answer to the
following question: “What are you trying to achieve?”
• Time-to vs. depth-of -insight trade-off: It is equivalent to the immediacy-of-
knowledge compared to the depth-of-knowledge. For instance, while monitoring
or analyzing a nuclear power plant data, immediate attention is required, whereas
an analysis of a scientific experiment data (data by CERN or NASA) can take
years to uncover scientific problems.
• Visibility from Big Data: Once the data is collected and stored in big data
environment, later on it should be available whenever it is needed for analysis
or other tasks.
• Edge computing: Data center class computing and analytics will be shifted
to edge (latency, bandwidth, cost, security, duplication, reliability, corruption,
compliance, and data sovereignty).
Improvement in big data and data streaming technologies enabled organizations
to use Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) products more widely
in Industry 4.0. AI and ML applications are emerging in health, education, defense,
security, industry, etc. Many technology giants are pouring billions of dollars to
develop AI products such as autonomous cars (self-driving cars). Google, NVIDIA,
and others are developing computer vision-based self-driving algorithms along with
pedestrian detection, collision detection, etc. After the famous Urban Challenge
organized by DARPA, autonomous cars brought to the spotlight once again.
Automobile companies like Ford, General Motors, Nissan, Tesla, Mercedes, etc.
invested billions in R&D. Hundreds of other small companies are building Radars,
cameras, computing and communication systems, other sensors, etc. According to
the NVIDIA developers’ blog, autonomous cars are responsible for the generation of
an enormous amount of data involved with the following equipment: Radar, Sonar,
GPS, Lidar and cameras. A single forward-facing Radar (2800 MBits/s) generates
approximately 1.26 TB of data per hour. A two-megapixel camera (24 bits per
pixel) operating at 30 frames per second generates 1440 Mbits of data per second
(approximately 1TB data per hour [29].
In computer science, the following AI disciplines are utilized for various pur-
poses: Natural Language Processing (NLP), multi-agent systems (coordination and
collaboration—distributed resolution of problems, decision and reasoning, learning,
planning, simulation), human interactions (learning, chat-bots, expert systems),
computer vision, robotics, neuroscience and cognitive science (comprehension
8 A. Sari et al.

Fig. 1.4 IoT connectivity diagram (see footnote 4)

and simulation of the brain and nervous system), decision support (game theory,
uncertainty, explicability). It is assumed that using AI and ML algorithms will con-
tribute efficiency, cost reduction and effective management of industrial networks.
Therefore, following AI-based algorithms are also utilized frequently: heuristics,
logical programming, deduction and proof, reasoning, planning, scheduling, and
search.
The wired/wireless communication technologies that are being used for IIoT
networks are as shown in Figs. 1.44 and 1.5. They are also summarized here as
follows:
BLE Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is a wireless network technology of Personal
Area Networking (PAN), which is widely used in smart devices such as phones,
watches, wearable electronics, etc. BLE applications can be found in smart home,
health and sport industry. Many operating systems have native support for this
technology such as Android, BlackBerry, IOS, Linux, macOS, Windows, etc. BLE
uses 2.4 GHz radio frequencies.

Wi-Fi Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) is an IEEE 802.11 based wireless network tech-
nology that is widely used with computers, tablets, smart devices, and vehicles such
as cars, buses, drones, etc.

4 Source: Postscapes and Harbor Research, available at: http://postscapes.com/what-exactly-is-the-

internet-of-things-infographic/.
1 Industrial Networks and IIoT 9

Fig. 1.5 A subset of IoT and IIoT communication technologies and protocols are illustrated

IPv4/IPv6 Internet Protocol versions 4/6 (IPv4/IPv6) can be considered as the

backbone of the Internet and other packet-switched based networks. It is one of
the most widely used technology in real life.
NFC Near Field Communication (NFC) is a communication technology which
devices can do connection approximately within 4 cm distance. NFC devices are
commonly used in electronic payments, key-cards, electronic tickets, etc. Many
smartphones are supporting this technology such as Android, Blackberry, IOS, etc.
Z-Wave/ZigBee Z-Wave is a low energy wireless protocol. ZigBee is also a low
power (low energy consumption) wireless communication protocol based on IEEE
802.15.4 standard to create PAN. Z-Wave/ZigBee are commonly used in home
automation, medical and industrial applications.
4G/LTE/5G 4G (fourth generation), LTE (Long Term Evolution), and 5G (fifth
generation) are dominating broadband cellular network technologies in nowadays
mobile telecommunications.
NB-IoT Recently, NB-IoT (Narrow Band Internet of Things) rapidly deployed by
mobile operators with the proliferation of IoT. NB-IoT is an LPWAN standard that
focuses on specifically low cost, energy-efficient, and indoor coverage.
10 A. Sari et al.

Fig. 1.6 A subset of IoT and IIoT use cases are illustrated

According to one of the leading sector representative5 of industrial investment

companies, IIoT will constitute one of the main pillars of Industry 4.0 and would
be described as follows: “The IIoT is a network of physical objects, systems
platforms and applications that contain embedded technology to communicate and
share intelligence with each other, the external environment and with people.” By
following this definition and the technological trends, economic predictors6 deduct
this conclusion: “The IIoT has the capacity to significantly boost the productivity
and competitiveness of industrial economies, but poor supporting conditions -
especially the lack of digital literacy - will hold many countries back”.
There will be plenty of application areas for IIoT ranging from smart cities to
precision agriculture, smart traffic to smart grid (the future of electric grid), and so
on, as shown in Fig. 1.6.
As discussed thoroughly in [11], IoT networks are vulnerable to various types of
attacks and weaknesses. Due to the absence of a physical line-of-defense, security
of such networks is of a big concern to the scientific community. Besides, as
cyber-attacks on industrial environments happen more frequently and their results

5 More information is available at: https://www.accenture.com/us-en/.

6 More information is available at: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20150120005160/en/
\Industrial-Internet-Boost-Economic-Growth-Greater-Government.
1 Industrial Networks and IIoT 11

are elevated to a devastating scale, effective intrusion detection is of the utmost

importance of industrial networks. Hence, research regarding Intrusion Detection
Systems (IDSs) for industrial networks is arising.
Prevention and early detection of intrusions are important, especially for mission-
critical industrial networks, such as smart grid systems.
For instance, data streaming concept provided in later chapters (Chap. 6), might
indeed enhance detection/response time in IDSs of the industrial networks. Hence,
future IIoT implementations can benefit from data streaming not only to reduce up-
streaming data size, but also to improve the security of the network especially by
enhancing the overall IDS response time.
Nowadays, there exist example applications in industrial networks (such as smart
grid systems), where sensors can generate data at rates of ∼3 GB (Gigabyte)’s
per hour [46, 54]. This is way much beyond the Ericsson’s and Bloomberg’s
expectation [38], which was ∼280 PB (Petabyte) of data to be generated by 680
million smart sensors per year (which is equivalent to 1 byte of information
per sensor per year). However, current client/server architecture of the traditional
networks is not capable of transferring, storing, and processing such big volume of
data. Hence, a sampled version of the generated data is used. Secondary benefit of
data streaming would be utilization of the unused portioned of the mentioned big
data from which IDSs would also benefit.

Centralized system architectures that gather all the data in the cloud to
process it cannot scale, both due to communication bandwidth and issues
of scalability of processing accumulated data; e.g. matching patterns of data
streams, on-the-fly, is a lower-latency process compared to searching for
patterns in terabytes/petabytes of stored data. Due to this, only small fractions
of generated data is actually being processed and used in such infrastructures.
With this reasoning, it is possible to see that besides helping resolving
bottleneck situations, stream processing can enable usage of more data for
applications in general and hence for IDSs as well.

So far, a brief overview of industrial networks and IIoT is presented in Sect. 1.1.
The rest of the chapter is structured as follows: Challenges faced by the practitioners
and the researchers while working on industrial networks are presented in Sect. 1.2.
Section 1.3 projects the future of industrial networks, including the technologies that
can be adopted by. Whereas, Sect. 1.4 presents enabling technologies for industrial
networks. Finally, Sect. 1.5 concludes the chapter.
12 A. Sari et al.

1.2 Challenges in Industrial Networks

Industrial networks are subject to many technical challenges that need to be

considered before, during, or after any implementation. These challenges are as
follows but not limited to:

1.2.1 Wireless Coexistence

Wireless coexistence stands for the safe operation of the devices that are
using wireless technology for the purpose of their communication. Especially,
‘signal interference’ is the main problem against coexistence of different
wireless communication standards, which might cause fading of the signals if
they are operating in the same frequency bands. This is on top of the existing
wireless communication problems such as reflection, refraction, diffraction,
scattering and free space path loss of the signals on air.7 Eventually, wireless
signal interference might cause packet drop, data loss, jitter and delay
in transmission, and an asynchronization between the two communicating
parties. Therefore, while designing IIoT, wireless coexistence of the devices
should be maintained, for instance by providing enough physical distance in
between the devices, and or by efficiently dividing and sharing the frequency
spectrum that is being used.

1.2.2 Latency

Latency, sometimes referred to as delay, (for the industrial networks) is the time
passed between the release time of a specific command and the start time of the
execution for that specific command. In some specific cases, it might be also referred
to as the time passed in between the data collection and the output of reaction.
For instance, even with the existence of cloud-end implementation, Ferrari et al.
have shown that, by using inexpensive industrial grade IIoT devices, the round-trip
latency of IIoT applications can be less than 300 ms for inter-continental commu-
nications and less than 50 ms for intra-continental communications [28]. Although,
any figure below 300 ms is considered as sufficient for telephony communication to
avoid undesired “talk-over” in conversations, every ms counts when the industrial
networks are considered. Especially real-time response might be needed for the
installments that are involving high speed machinery with safety requirements.

7 More reading available at: https://www.accoladewireless.com/wlan-wifi-signal-issues/.

1 Industrial Networks and IIoT 13

These important aspects (wireless coexistence and latency) of wireless communi-

cation, which is the enabling technology for IIoT and IoT networks, are thoroughly
discussed in Chap. 2 of this book. Especially, next generation wireless technolo-
gies, such as 5G and the ultra-reliable low-latency communication (URLCC) are
presented including the theoretical limits and the latency. The trade-offs in low-
latency communication for receivers with computational complexity constraints
are carefully discussed. Accordingly, it is stressed that, for mission critical IIoT
deployments such as the factory implementations requiring real-time response, the
latency is utmost important. With very stringent latency requirements and low-
complex IIoT receivers, the time required for the decoding of a packet (should not
constitute a computationally demanding operation) must be also considered while
analyzing the total latency.

1.2.3 Interoperability

Interoperability refers to the essential capability of various computerized merchan-

dises or systems to promptly connect and exchange data with each other, without
facing any restriction. There are two types of interoperability issues defined for
IIoT [31]:
1. The cross-layer interoperability (also known as heterogeneity), which is defined
as the orchestration of the Open System Interconnect (OSI) layers in a seamless
and burden-less way. Recently, this issue is solved by using two emerging vir-
tualization technologies; namely, Software-Defined Radio (SDR) and Software-
Defined Networking (SDN) [5]. On one hand, SDN is a network architecture
based on the separation of the control plane and the data plane which makes it
possible to obtain a directly programmable network. This separation unifies the
control plane over all kinds of network devices, making the network configured
and optimized based on the network status [26]. On the other hand, by providing
a higher degree of flexibility in designing wireless interfaces competent enough
to support multiple communications technologies, SDR [39] can be a solution
for addressing the interoperability problems. Akyildiz et al. [52] mentioned
that a vast number of devices in IoTs constitute a fundamental challenge
to the ubiquitous information transmissions through the backbone networks.
The heterogeneity of IoT devices and the hardware-based, inflexible cellular
architectures possess even greater challenges to enable efficient communication.
Hence, they offered an architecture on wireless SDN and proposed software-
defined gateways that jointly optimize cross-layer communication functionalities
between heterogeneous IoT devices and cellular systems.
2. The cross-system interoperability, which is defined as maintaining the continuous
operation of the networks and the systems within the existence of different
system architectures. E.g., part of an IIoT might consist of LoRa-based end-
devices and the other part might be dominated by Nb-IoT end-devices. This
 Another Random Document on
Scribd Without Any Related Topics
 IX
L'espoir même a des
portes closes;
Cette terre est pleine de
choses
Dont nous ne voyons
qu'un côte.

V.
H
u
g
o
.

Eric was wandering through the maze of gardens, grottos, and

domed halls that formed the dwelling of the sorceress. It was night
—but a clear night; almost as light as day because of the radiant
moon that lay low in the sky; she was oppressively near the earth,
intruding her wise rays, that had seen all too much, into every
corner and hiding-place. Eric hated her indiscretion; he had hoped to
wrap himself in the mantle of the dark so that he might steal away
at last.
He could stand no longer the suffocating oppression which had
gradually been coming over him. To-night he had slunk away from
the luxurious feast his fair jailer had been giving him.
He had left her there, upon her throne of gold, amidst priceless
draperies, amongst the garlands of red poppies that had been
entwined round the tables at which richly clad, loud-voiced youths
were gathered—youths who drank and sang, and whose eyes had a
strangely tired look, always straining after some pleasure that
seemed to pass them by and leave them with empty outstretched
hands.
All had clamoured round that golden throne, pressing near to the
queenly figure who sat there in a scarlet robe, her eyes still
bandaged beneath the wreath of poppies which was pressed upon
her shining tresses.
Her penetrating laugh had sounded clearly above all the din, and she
had lifted her hands high in the air throwing the gorgeous-coloured
poppy-leaves over their bowed heads; and she had drunk out of a
golden goblet which she had held in turns to their thirsting lips.
One of the youths was as young as Eric himself and of marvellous
beauty, with eyes like flashing jewels, but which held a look of such
intense suffering that Eric could not bear the sight.
This boy had dragged himself on his knees to the steps of the
throne, uttering incoherent prayers, the hot tears running down his
cheeks; then he had hidden his face within the scarlet folds of her
dress and had cried as if his heart would break, whilst the wild
woman in red had laughed, laughed, mocking his sorrow with hard
words, till all the others had laughed with her.
It was then that Eric had fled, with a mad desire to get out into the
cool night and flee as far as he could from all these revels of which
his simple soul could not grasp the meaning.
Yet the wonderful woman had dropped some of the poison into his
veins, because, in spite of his great desire to escape, he felt a
burning regret in his heart at the thought that he was leaving
without having seen the woman's eyes. At the same time he almost
dreaded to find the face of his dreams behind that white cloth which
had become uncanny to him ... and yet?... why was this burning
pain at his heart? Why had he come here? Why had he not turned
back when the old bell had so persistently warned him? Suddenly he
felt older, wiser, as if years had elapsed since he left the sea-shore
and lost his way within this labyrinth so full of beauty and
temptation.
He thought he felt once more the soft touch of the woman's hands,
that he saw the glowing flower of her lips, the soft yielding figure,
the white arms, the rippling fair hair, the tiny feet, and he stood still
clasping his hands over his burning eyes.
Why had he not torn the bandage from her brow, and pressed his
lips upon that tempting mouth, crushing it beneath his own? Indeed
he had been a fool! And no doubt it was thus she considered him,
and was now deriding his memory amongst those shameless guests
who crowded around her tables; those tables that were bending
under the weight of the costly dishes, and where the brilliant
poppies were shedding their petals as they faded and drooped
amongst hundreds of lighted candles.
Eric groaned in his distress; he longed to go back before that golden
throne and tell the beautiful woman that he hated her ... hated
her!...
But now he must escape—but why was the moon so bright? Why
could he not find his way to the snow-white hall, and from there,
over the deep water, past the mysterious well, out into the wide
world once more?
Why did his head ache and throb? Why did his throat feel dry with
ill-contained sobs? What had come to him? Never had he felt thus.
All the sweet peace of his soul had been replaced by waves of
unknown sensations and desires; and beneath it all, that burning
pain at his heart, that unsatisfied yearning for something he could
not grasp.
The moon flooded everything in a hard, merciless light; he ran from
place to place seeking an issue, only to find everywhere blank walls
to stop him. He knew that he was losing his head, the blood beat in
his temples, his eyes could no more clearly see.... With a stifled cry
of distress he dropped down, and all became dark around him.
 X
For in much wisdom is much grief; and he that increaseth
knowledge increaseth sorrow.
Ecclesiastes.

After a short time Eric's senses came back; he looked up and saw
that he was in a small, very dark chamber. How he got there he did
not know, he had never seen the place before. Then he rose to his
feet with a start. A curtain had been quietly drawn aside, and he
could see now into an inner chamber out of which a faint light
shone.
Forgetting all his fear and misery he ran forward, hoping to find an
outlet whence he could reach the old moaning bell, and thence
escape to liberty under God's great sky, free like a bird once more to
wander wherever he would. But the sight he saw riveted his feet to
the ground: upon a low narrow couch lay the woman he had learnt
to hate. She was stretched motionless, asleep on her back, her
wonderful face only faintly discernible—and oh! marvel, her eyes
were no longer covered.
All about her seemed wrapped in grey vapours; the soft draperies
with which her body was covered were also grey, like finely woven
cobwebs.
At each side of her couch, close to her head, stood large jars of
tarnished silver, filled with irises the colour of autumn clouds.
At her feet, rigid and unblinking, as if cast out of steel or carved in
granite, his eyes gazing into space, was an eagle of unusual size;
there he sat in quiet majesty at the feet of this vision of beauty, like
a ghost of the mountains that had been turned to stone. A faint haze
lay over all, something mysterious and grave-like; nor was it to be
discovered whence the light came. There were no windows, no
opening anywhere, and yet everything was distinctly visible.
The face of the woman was more perfect than it had ever been. Eric
was now bending over it with a feeling of awe and wonder.
Was ever sleeper so still, was ever living face so pale, lips so
blanched? Gradually a cold sensation of fear began to creep over the
startled youth; he bent lower, his face close to that silent one. He
sprang back with a cry of horror ... beneath the long lashes he saw
that the woman was looking at him, and yet....
Oh! What was it? What horrible nightmare was this?... She was
looking, she was staring ... yes, she was staring with sightless eyes
—eyes out of which the light of life had gone for ever! for ever!...
Eric sank to his knees and hid his face against the still form, and as
he did so he felt something wet upon his cheek, something that was
trickling slowly down upon the floor where he knelt, something that
was gradually spreading in a dark patch, which widened over the
grey folds of the robe. And then Eric saw that within the woman's
heart a dagger had been thrust.... A dagger within the very centre of
her heart.
 XI
Over thy creations of beauty there is a mist of tears.
Tagore.

High and austere in their forsaken silence stood the walls of the
great church—God's own sun looked in through the crumbling
windows, and God's own sky was its only roof. Many of the columns
had fallen, but others stood, erect and rigid, frowning down from
their immense height, grey and lonely, like giant trees in winter.
Large heaps of stones lay about the mosaic floor that still showed
signs of a beautiful design; statues had fallen from their pedestals
and lay in helpless attitudes, their arms broken, their vacant eyes
gazing with stony indifference into the sunshine. Sometimes their
heads were missing, having rolled away as they fell.
Nature was rapidly doing her work; she was spreading her consoling
mantle of verdure and flowers over this crumbling work of art, which
human hands had once, long ago, built with pious vows and prayers.
Growths were bursting out of every crevice and crack in rambling
confusion. Even the wild plants of the heath beyond had begun to
creep into the church, giving the forgotten monument a festive look
as if flowers had been strewn everywhere on the floor for some
blessed feast-day. In greater masses than any other plant, wild
lavender had taken possession of the church, bursting the mosaic
floor asunder in a thousand places and pushing its way everywhere,
so that over all lay a bluey-grey shimmer like evening mists rising
out of a bog.
Through the wide-open portals the desolate land could be seen,
stretching as far as the eye could reach, covered with the same
dusty blue flower, and quite on the horizon it mixed with the sky, so
that it was difficult to discern where the one began and the other
ended.
A peculiar stillness lay over everything; it was not easy to imagine
that human feet had once crowded towards the now broken altar
that shone like a death-cloth as the rays of the sun struck upon the
still white stone. The thick carpet of lavender sent out a faint
perfume of other days, within which a whole treasure of memories
was stowed away ... forgotten. Peace, peace, peace was over all, the
peace of things that are past.
Before the altar, stretched out all his length on the ground amongst
the blue of the lavender, lay Eric, his face pressed against the floor,
his golden curls matted, his neat clothes soiled and dusty. He lay
there, all his young body expressing one long cry of protest against
the cruel things he had just learnt.
He had fled and fled, blind instinct guiding his steps, quite ignorant
as to how he had found his way out. And then, when he once more
saw the great sky over his head, he had rushed unseeingly forward,
climbing the rocks, leaving the sea far behind.
On, on, in breathless haste to get away from that silent figure
wrapped in grey folds, with the sightless eyes and the dagger within
her heart ... neither did he know how he had reached this desolate
place.
He had seen this ruined fane standing grey and forsaken on a waste
of blue-grey flowers; he had seen it outlined in magnificent solitude
against the clear sky, and a great wish had come over him to take
refuge there, in that holy place, after the atmosphere of tragedy and
temptation he had just left behind.
What mattered that the place was a ruin, that holy chants and
fervent prayers were no more heard within the skeleton walls! It had
been God's house, and the weary wanderer needed sanctuary.
Motionless as one asleep or dead he lay.
There was no sound around him except the buzzing of bees amongst
the sweet-smelling lavender.
They flitted hither and thither, fetching out of each blossom its
treasure of honey and sweetness, whilst tiny blue butterflies danced
in their midst in frivolous useless gaiety. All of a sudden a flight of
doves came floating out of the summer sky and settled like white
sunlit clouds on every window-sill, where they fluttered their wings,
filling the whole place with flashes of light, as the sun gleamed on
their snowy feathers.
But still Eric lay without movement, his face among the crushed
flowers.
The doves cooed and kissed each other; the bees swarmed around,
and from somewhere very far overhead a bird sang a glad song, his
voice rising shrill and pure into the warm air.
The sun began to slant his rays through the beautiful high windows,
lighting up one of the sides of the building with sheets of gold.
He sent his warm beams to kiss the young man's curls, and to
caress the white hands that were clasped before him; then one of
the rays fell upon a picture that still kept its place above the altar.
At that very moment Eric, for the first time, raised his head—and
there, smiling down upon him in angelic pity, was a face of such
perfect sweetness, that he felt the hot tears come rushing to his
tired eyes.
With folded hands he knelt in a posture of adoration, and gazed into
the wonderful countenance that looked into his. A long cloak of
some indescribable shade flowed down, enfolding the Virgin's
ethereal limbs. Her hands were outstretched in a gesture of
blessing; upon her head she wore a high golden crown, and the sun
beat upon it making it shine like real metal; and her eyes, her
wonderful eyes, were full of tears.... But in her heart.... Oh! did he
rightly see? or was he dreaming the same awful dream over
again?... in her heart, too, a dagger had been thrust! Must all hearts
be killed? What was this old world teaching him? Was sorrow
everywhere? Were those that blessed treated alike with those who
poisoned heart and soul?
How ignorant he had been, singing like a bird in the sunshine,
understanding nothing, feeling nothing but his own joy to be alive!
Now all seemed changed; pain and temptation, hard words and
sweet smiles, had replaced each other in bewildering confusion, and
into the heart of this miraculous Mother of God, this most pure of all
women they had also thrust a cruel blade—and yet she continued to
smile, her fair hands extended to his helpless gropings to
understand!
His eyes riveted to the Holy Face, he approached the devastated
altar around which the sun-rays had concentrated all their
brightness, till the picture of the Virgin was no longer a painting, but
a living woman, all light and radiance, Divine pity and love.
The weary wanderer sank on his knees, his hands folded, his head
bent on the altar, and as he knelt there murmuring old forgotten
prayers of his childhood, real warm tears streamed from the eyes of
the holy picture and fell drop by drop on his sunny locks.
And it was like a gentle blessing which held within it a sweet promise
of peace and comfort.
 XII

The lavender-covered waste and the gaunt ruins of the church had
been left far behind, and our traveller was now ascending the rocky
pass of the great rugged mountains that rose high and forbidding
above his head. He had felt a longing to climb somewhere very high,
with a wish to be as near the blue sky as possible.
Something of the peace that the holy picture had filtered into his
heart still remained. Within his clear look there was a dreamy
wonder as if he still saw pure visions before him, the warm tears of
the Mother of God having consecrated him to a deeper
understanding. But there remained a shadow upon his soul from his
dark experiences within the dwelling of the sorceress.
He was no more the gay, flitting, singing bird he had been. He
strode forward with a more manly tread; something of the boyish
eagerness had gone out of his step, some of the sweet confidence
had gone from his eyes when they rested on those he met on his
way.
When he played on his flute he marvelled at the new tones it had
taken; they seemed deeper, sadder, and his voice vibrated less with
the joy of living.
Yet the world was still wonderful and full of promise; these rocky
mountains had shapes and colours that made his heart rejoice.
In this he was still the same Eric Gundian whom King Wanda had
loved: he was without fear, and not even the sight of these treeless
giants of stone daunted his wanderer's spirit.
Each night when he slept, no matter where he rested his head, the
vision he was following always appeared to him clear, vivid,
unchanged—those great solemn eyes that looked into his without
ever a droop of the lids. He felt he must cross these enormous
heights before he could reach what he was seeking; that as yet his
road had been too easy, and that it would be needed of him to make
some great effort before he was worthy of attaining his goal.
He looked back in thoughts upon the way he had come, and there
seemed to him a great difference between the Eric of yesterday and
to-day.
Dense clouds were enfolding the peaks of the mountains and
creeping like soft monsters along the sides, filling the deep
precipices with damp moving masses which were all coming towards
him ready to swallow him up.
Steeper and steeper became the road, the air rarer, whilst the clouds
lay thick and impenetrable over all.
Eric toiled on; only seldom could he look down upon what lay
beneath because of the vapours that were wrapping themselves
around him.
He knew not where he was going, but he stolidly continued his way
in spite of the hard rocks and stones that wounded his feet, in spite
of the path becoming always more irksome and dangerous.
Often he had but a narrow ledge to walk on, with a chasm on one
side, a high wall of rock on the other; and as the clouds lay over
everything he was in constant peril of life.
There were moments when a straying sun-ray would break through
the clouds, casting a sudden light upon them, transforming them
into mother-of-pearl; and sometimes the shaft of light ran straight
along the white mist as if a finger of a god were pointing downwards
to the dwellings of men.
Then out of the wall of mist a shadow rose and stood before him. It
was faintly outlined against the whiteness that was about him, and
the shadow was that of a man. And as he looked, full of surprise,
another was at his side, and then a third, and these three shades
pointed down the road he had been ascending.
Eric turned, and there, behind him, was a whole procession of
diaphanous figures all following his footsteps.
They seemed transparent, yet all of them had personality; their
faces although blurred and indistinct were full of different
expressions.
Some were old and bent, others strong, stalwart, upright. Several of
the female figures were young and fair; there were even small
children amongst them, and all appeared waiting for him to lead the
way.
He moved on, passing the three forms he had first seen, and with a
shudder he realized that when he tried to touch them his fingers met
nothing but space—his hand passed right through!
And each time he turned his head there they were, all of them,
pressing close on his heels, silent, persistent. Truly it was a
gruesome company to be wandering with in this wilderness of rocks
and clouds.
Eric wondered how long it would last, and if they meant to go with
him all the way.
Who were they? And what did they want of him?
Although many of them were beautiful, Eric thought them horrible
and uncanny, and kept wondering in what way he could relieve
himself of their presence; indeed he had not reckoned with such
companions on his road.
Should he turn back? But if he did he would have to pass them all,
and he remembered with a shudder how his hand had gone right
through those bodiless shapes when he had tried to touch them, so
it was better to go forward instead of retracing his footsteps.
Eric came now to a turn of the path where a great rock jutted out,
barring his way in such a fashion that to pass it he would have to
put one foot before the other on a ledge so narrow that the sight
alone made him feel giddy and faint.
Beneath him gaped the great sea of clouds covering unknown
depths he could not penetrate; but forwards he must go! Was he not
like a hunted animal with this procession of ghosts so remorselessly
tracking him?
He bravely set his face to the dangerous pass, and very carefully, his
hands clutching at the rough surface of the rock, he managed to
turn the dreaded corner; as he did so, there, right in the middle of
his path, blocking his way, was a very old man.
He sat with head bent, his long grey beard dragging on the ground;
within his clasped hands he grasped a thick stick against which he
was leaning.
He looked sad and weary, and yet he was full of quiet dignity; a
surprising figure to meet in a lonely place. His grey clothing hung
loosely over his emaciated body, his wide mantle fell in thin folds
about him; on his head he wore a broad-brimmed, weather-beaten
hat.
At the young man's exclamation of surprise he raised his head and
looked keenly at him, but spoke not a word. Yet this old man was
not a spectre like the others, but in verity a living human creature,
and for that reason welcome to our lonely wanderer.
"Speak to me," cried Eric. "I am half mad with the longing to hear a
human voice. Tell me, if thou canst, who are these silent ones that
dog my steps, and make these mountains horrible to me? Fain would
I be rid of them!"
He turned to look behind him and there they were, close upon his
footsteps, huddled together on the narrow shelf he had just passed;
and all of them looked at him with hungry, expectant eyes; and yet
through their bodies the rocks could be distinctly seen. It was a grim
sight! The old man did not reply, but turned his head towards the
silent apparitions and scrutinized them long and earnestly, then a
slow smile broke over his face.
At last he spoke:
"Be not hard upon those that are dead, my son; these here find no
peace because they did not receive a holy burial, nor were prayers
said over their silent hearts; they felt thy coming, so they have
arisen from where they lay in waiting, to follow thee. Let thy heart
be soft unto them. Their presence around thee speaks in thy favour,
for they try to follow only those whose conscience is without stain,
for those alone can help them whose lives have been pure."
"Who are they?" asked the young man, and the old one answered:
"They are the restless souls of those who died here amongst the
mountains. They all had hopes in their hearts when they started,
and dreams or ambitions; each thought himself strong enough to
scale these cruel heights, but they dropped down on the way; few,
very few, ever reach the top. They lose courage or weary and try to
turn back; but it is difficult to go back for those who have started on
these paths that lead so high."
"Tell me, O wise man," cried the youth, "what mountains are these,
and why did I feel that I must try to ascend them?"
"They are called the mountains of Life, my son. For some they bear
also the name of the mountains of Temptation; for others they mean
Toil; for others Trouble; for some they are named Redemption, and
for the fewest they are called the mountains of Attainment."
"For me what shall they be called, my father?"
"That remains to be seen, my boy," responded the solemn voice.
"Tarry awhile beside me and I shall tell thee a few things that may
be of use to thee. Thy fair face pleases me, and I wish thee well. But
I am old, and my voice has no more the force as of a river in spring-
time when the snows have melted; it is more like a sluggish stream
over which a thick sheet of ice has been laid. But sit thee down close
by me that I need not raise it overmuch."
So saying he drew his cloak away, making room for Eric on the rock
where he was resting. The waiting shapes had become fainter, and
were like torn pieces of mist that had caught upon the rocks.
"But before all else, I pray thee, tell me," said Eric, "why thou sayest
these shadows have awaited my coming; and why thou dost not
thyself lead them to peace? Thou who art so wise?"
The venerable face turned to the young one with a sad smile, and
the old solemn voice answered in a low tone, "To be wise is not the
same as to be good. Long ago, in the days of my youth, and later
also in the years of my manhood, I was a great sinner, and many a
dark unavowed act have I committed. But wise I always was, and
even magic have I understood.
"There comes a time, my son, when the heart longs for peace; the
white peace of solitude. Amongst men it could never be found, so I
came up here; but that was only after my head had bent beneath
the snow of age, after I had tasted all fruits both bitter and sweet;
and this I tell thee: few are worth the eating. Yet thou shalt also eat
of many; but have a care, I pray thee, and grasp not those that
were best left untouched; and yet? and yet?
"When I look back I know it all had some meaning behind it—
something that was but a link of one long chain, and the chain is so
long that the links are but of small importance, although each link
deems itself the one which holds all the chain together; and it is
better it should be so, because the long chain needs each separate
link. My talk is dark to thee," added the old man, laying his hand on
Eric's.
"Forgive an old man whose thoughts ramble along; seest thou, up
here in this wild solitude amongst the clouds and eagles, one learns
to look down upon things and to realize their value; but it is useless
to begin such knowledge too soon, for we, the weary ones, need all
thy joy, all thy careless happiness, we need thy efforts, thy hopes,
thy dreams, thy tears; none are wasted; they all go to make one
great whole! Life is long and yet it is short, and many roads there
are, but they all, without exception, lead to the same end. I am very
near that end now; some reach it sooner than I. I know not what
thou seekest, but all men are running after the same thing, though
they call it by different names, not knowing that they can grasp but
its shadow, because the thing itself is God's.
"I have given it a name. I call it Happiness; but truly this I can tell
thee: men know not when they have it ... they see it before them,
and then they turn round and they see it far behind ... but whilst it is
theirs they are blind. Dark are my words to thee, but I love thee the
more, because I read within thy eyes that all I am saying is without
sense to thee, dear beginner of Life."
"But thou hast not told me," queried Eric, "why these phantoms
hope to find salvation through me, and why with thy great wisdom
thou canst do less for them than I with my foolish youth?"
Sadly the old man replied:
"Because, my son, youth and innocence have a strength that all the
wisdom from over the seven seas cannot equal. Indeed, we who
have lived and now look back, are far more willing to stretch out our
hands in help; our hearts are larger, our patience greater, our
understanding deeper; but it has thus been decreed that all this
cannot be weighed against one little drop of thy pure innocence or
of the faith thou hast, that removeth mountains."
The old head bowed itself over the clasped hands, and on the long
grey locks lay a mist that was silvery and lustreless, as if some one
had breathed over a mirror.
The sad, tired eyes gazed with a far-off look into space, following
forgotten visions of long ago.
There was a deep silence which the young man did not try to break.
He bowed in awe before this gaunt old figure, and longed to hear
more, to drink in the wise words that fell from his lips.
Although many were quite incomprehensible to him, his instinct told
him that he could learn much wisdom if he listened with all his soul.
Strange it was that such a man should call himself a sinner when
such a delightful peace filled Eric's whole being as he sat there close
beside him.
The old man turned his head and looked into the young man's eyes.
"Fair thou art in thy glorious untouched youth. I did not hope to look
again on so good a sight. I wish I could give thee some of my
wisdom to keep thee from harm, but a loving, pure heart is also a
shield, perhaps even better than any I could give thee; and yet
when old age lifts its eyes to look upon youth, and sees it beautiful,
a prayer comes to its lips that it may remain thus unsoiled for ever!
"Thou must go forth without fear; and have patience, dear youth,
with those quiet followers of thine. If thou art strong enough thou
mayest lead them to peace; for this I must tell thee: thy way will be
hard and long till thou reachest the end which is thy desire; but by
the love of my snowy hair I entreat thee climb to the highest
summit, let not thy soul be satisfied till thou hast scaled the last,
steepest peak.
"There may be easier roads, but take them not; others may tempt
thee from thy giddy path, but listen not to their talk. I shall put all
my faith in thee, and I will not that thou disappoint me. Before I die,
I want to know that one has reached the greatest height."
"But tell me," cried the youth, "will I find at the end that for which I
am seeking, which I am wandering after all the world over?"
"That I cannot answer thee now, my son," replied his companion.
"Come with me to my dwelling; I shall gaze into my magic stone and
perchance I shall be able to tell thee. Give me thy hand, for I am
weary; we have not far to go, and it will be sweet to me to lean
upon thy youth."
With great care and solicitude Eric helped the feeble old hermit to
his feet, and following the gentle pressure of his hand, he let himself
be directed to the mouth of a dark cave, hewn out of the rock, close
to where they had been sitting.
"What a lonely place to live in!" cried the young man. "In truth it is
like an eagle's nest hung on the very edge of the precipice!"
"It is a good dwelling for me, who only want to look backwards and
not forwards," said the old man.
"Here I live in peace away from the clamouring of the crowd; I live
with the thought of what has been, and what was evil drops away
from what was good.
"I remember far more clearly the sun that shone than the days that
were dark. I see faces I loved, and those I hated have no more
power over me. Even strange it seems that once I could hate; yet
well do I remember how I loved; for this also shalt thou learn: that
Love is the beginning and end of all things.
"Love is the key that opens every door. Love is the answer to all
questions. Love is the very centre of the heart of the universe. Love
is the voice of God, the punishment and the recompense He gives to
His people.
"Love carries the heart to the verge of the unknown. In Love all is
contained: joy and pain, hope and despair, the night and the day;
what was, what is, and what shall be ... but again my tongue
wanders away with me, soon thou shalt weary of my talk.
"Look about thee and tell me if my dwelling is to thy liking."
The cave in which they stood was dark; but when Eric's eyes had
got accustomed to the dimness he saw that indeed it was but a poor
abode.
His host lit a small ancient oil lamp which spread a feeble light
around. He placed it upon a table hewn out of the root of a tree,
and sat heavily down on a stool near by, resting his head in his
hand, his still keen eyes following the young man's movements as he
looked about him.
The cave was not large, and the sides were of bare stone. A cavity
had been cut out at the farther end where a few rough skins were
spread, and that was the bed, indeed more like a grave than a
resting-place.
In one of the corners there was a rude hearth with a few old pots;
opposite was a shelf bending beneath the weight of many old
volumes bound in shabby leather; a tiny aperture gave a very faint
light somewhere near the roof, otherwise the door was the only
opening; it was shut by a thick woollen curtain hung on a string.
Against one of the walls stood a large wooden chest covered with an
old shawl, once of fine bright texture, now so mellowed by age that
its curious design was hardly discernible; a few low stools and a big
heavy table completed the whole furnishing of this primitive
dwelling.
"Well," asked the hermit, "what sayest thou to my sumptuous
apartment?"
Smiling down upon his host Eric rejoined:
"Somewhat gloomy it seems to me—and too near the edge of the
precipice on dark nights. In very truth the thought makes me
shudder, that if one had not a care one could step from the door
over the brink!"
The old man laughed softly, but with the sound of some one who for
many a year had no more been accustomed to mirth.
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