## 1 Introduction  
We are now living in a technologically advanced era. Compared to previous industrial revolutions, both the planet and our way of life are undergoing rapid transformations. In terms of society, education, employment, and notably production, the rate of change is unprecedented. A quick survey of previous industrial revolutions demonstrates how they preceded the current scenario [1]. During the first industrial revolution, the notion of harnessing water and steam for mechanization began to develop. During the second industrial revolution, which began a century later, electric power was utilized for the first time in mass production. In the 1970s, the concept of automation was introduced as a result of the third industrial revolution [2]. After these three turning moments in human history, data-driven technology was implemented and a new reality, known as the fourth industrial revolution, which gave rise to Industry 4.0, was established [3]. As a relatively new concept, this topic may be seen by some as disputed and broad [4]. Due to the uniqueness associated with these transformations, more research is needed, particularly in terms of computation task cooperation, virtual modeling and digital twin machining technologies, and wireless sensor networks throughout automated manufacturing and autonomous robotic systems. The primary purpose of this study is to identify the most significant barriers to implementing Industry 4.0 in European SMEs. The study also identifies the most crucial ingredient for a successful deployment and investigates whether all organizations have an equal opportunity to adopt Industry 4.0 in the European context, which may be regarded its most significant added value. Moreover, the identification of these barriers is the main research objective, as several authors mostly focus on the identification of strategies and stimulation of Industry 4.0 implementation (e.g., see [5; 6; 7]). The research is undertaken under the premise that SMEs and massive corporations have diverse implementation needs in relation to autonomous control systems, intelligent connectivity infrastructures, and virtual machine interoperability. Consequently, rivalry posed by massive corporations may outshine SMEs. Finding a viable solution to such an issue is a major objective of the study. While it is evident that financial resources are required for the implementation of Industry 4.0, we raise the question of whether heterogeneous businesses of varying sizes are equally prepared for the change and have equal access to opportunities. This requires financial resources as well as robust knowledge and awareness of what is required for putting Industry 4.0 technologies into practice by integrating robotic navigation systems, mobile sensors and actuators, and context awareness tools in mobile edge computing environments. During the implementation of data-driven systems based on Industry 4.0, difficulties may occur [8]. The purpose of this study is to determine whether the standard position, that only large businesses can adopt Industry 4.0 because it requires significant financial resources, and the assumption that SMEs will suffer significant disadvantages due to the disparity between large and small businesses in relation to Industry 4.0, is accurate. The classification of companies in line with the standard evaluation of enterprises based on the criteria of the European Union (EU) is explored as it relates to the core issue, since the focus is mostly on European SMEs in connection to the business climate. The conditions for the deployment of Industry 4.0 technologies are explored briefly, along with the upsides and disadvantages of adopting industrial artificial intelligence, context-aware robotic networks, and cyber-physical intelligent manufacturing systems [9].