The first industrial revolution came with the advent of mechanization, steam power and water power.
This was followed by the second industrial revolution, which revolved around mass production and assembly lines using electricity.
The third industrial revolution came with electronics, I.T. systems and automation, which led to the fourth industrial revolution that is associated with cyber physical systems.
Generally-speaking, Industry 4.0 describes the growing trend towards automation and data exchange in technology and processes within the manufacturing industry. This automation creates a manufacturing system whereby machines in factories are augmented with wireless connectivity and sensors to monitor and visualize an entire production process and make autonomous decisions.