The Internet of Things revolution started in 2015 and will continue to be strong in 2016. 2015 was the year everyone talked about the Internet of Things. (So was 2014. And 2013.) But unlike before, it was the year everyone started making plans, laying groundwork, and building the infrastructure. Internet of Things is coming. It’s not a matter of if or whether, but when and how. The premise of IoT is that a connected world will offer gains through efficiency.
The Internet of Things (IoT) has been called the next Industrial Revolution — it will change the way all businesses, governments, and consumers interact with the physical world. The Internet of Things (IoT) is an environment in which objects, animals or people are provided with unique identifiers and the ability to transfer the data over a network without requiring human-to-human or human-to-computer interaction. IoT has evolved from the convergence of wireless technologies, micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS)
and the Internet. IoT is also called the Internet of Everything. A critical component for the IoT system to be a success will be secure bi-directional communication, mobility and localization services.
In the future, everything will be connected. It won’t just be our phones that access the Internet; it will be our light bulbs, our front doors, our microwaves, our comforters, our blenders. You can call it the Internet of Things, The Internet of Everything, Universal Object Interaction, or your pick of buzzwords that begin with Smart. They all hold as inevitable that everything, everything will be connected, to each other and to the Internet. And this is promised to change the world. Remember that the objects themselves do not benefit us, but what services and functions they make it possible to obtain. We will enjoy the outcome, hopefully even better quality products, informative and reliable services, and even new applications.
There will be lots of money spend on IoT in 2016, the exact sum is hard to define, but it is estimated that nearly $6 trillion will be spent on IoT solutions over the next five years. IoT is now a very large global business dominated by giants (IBM, Intel, Cisco, Gemalto, Google, Microsoft, Amazon, Bosch, GE, AT&T, T-Mobile, Telefonica and many others). I see that because it is still a young and quickly developing market, there will be lots of potential in it for startups in 2016.
There will be a very large number of new IoT devices connected to Internet in the end of 2016. According to Business Insider The Internet of Things Report there was 10 billion devices connected to the internet in 2015 and there will be will be 34 billion devices connected to the internet by 2020. IoT devices will account for 24 billion, while traditional computing devicesw ill comprise 10 billion (e.g. smartphones, tablets, smartwatches, etc.). Juniper research predicted that by 2020, there will be 38.5 billion connected devices. IDC says it’ll be 20.9 billion. Gartner’s guess? Twenty-five billion. The numbers don’t matter, except that they’re huge. They all agree that most of those gadgets will be industrial Internet of Things. The market for connecting the devices you use all day, every day, is about to be huge.
Businesses will be the top adopter of IoT solutions because they see ways the IoT can improve their bottom line: lowering operating costs, increasing productivity, expand to new markets and develop new product offerings. Sensors, data analytics, automation and wireless communication technologies allow the study of the “self-conscious” machines, which are able to observe their environment and communicate with each other. From predictive maintenance that reduces equipment downtime to workers using mobile devices on the factory floor, manufacturing is undergoing dramatic change. The Internet of Things (IoT) is enabling increased automation on the factory floor and throughout the supply chain, 3D printing is changing how we think about making components, and the cloud and big data are enabling new applications that provide an end-to-end view from the factory floor to the retail store.
Governments are focused on increasing productivity, decreasing costs, and improving their citizens’ quality of life. The IoT devices market will connect to climate agreements as in many applicatons IoT can be seen as one tool to help to solve those problems. A deal to attempt to limit the rise in global temperatures to less than 2C was agreed at the climate change summit in Paris in December 2015. Sitra fresh market analysis indicates that there is up to an amount of EUR 6 000 billion market potential for smart green solutions by 2050. Smart waste and water systems, materials and packaging, as well as production systems together to form an annual of over EUR 670 billion market. Smart in those contests typically involves use of IoT technologies.
Consumers will lag behind businesses and governments in IoT adoption – still they will purchase a massive number of devices. There will be potential for marketing IoT devices for consumers: Nine out of ten consumers never heard the words IoT or Internet of Things, October 2015! It seems that the newest IoT technology extends homes in 2016 – to those homes where owner has heard of those things. Wi-Fi has become so ubiquitous in homes in so many parts of the world that you can now really start tapping into that by having additional devices. The smart phones and the Internet connection can make home appliances, locks and sensors make homes and leisure homes in more practical, safer and more economical. Home adjusts itself for optimal energy consumption and heating, while saving money. During the next few years prices will fall to fit for large sets of users. In some cases only suitable for software is needed, as the necessary sensors and data connections can be found in mobile phones. Our homes are going to get smarter, but it’s going to happen slowly. Right now people mostly buy single products for a single purpose. Our smart homes and connected worlds are going to happen one device, one bulb at a time. The LED industry’s products will become more efficient, reliable, and, one can hope, interoperable in the near future. Companies know they have to get you into their platform with that first device, or risk losing you forever to someone else’s closed ecosystem.
The definitions what would be considered IoT device and what is a traditional computing devices is not entirely clear, and I fear that we will not get a clear definition for that in 2016 that all could agree. It’s important to remember that the IoT is not a monolithic industry, but rather a loosely defined technology architecture that transcends vertical markets to make up an “Internet of everything.”
Too many people – industry leaders, media, analysts, and end users – have confused the concept of
“smart” with “connected”. Most devices – labeled “IoT” or “smart” – are simply connected devices. Just connecting a device to the internet so that it can be monitored and controlled by someone over the web using a smart phone is not smart. Yes, it may be convenient and time saving, but it is not “smart”. Smart means intelligence.
IoT New or Not? YES and NO. There are many cases where whole IoT thing is hyped way out of proportion. For the most part, it’s just the integration of existing technologies. Marketing has driven an amount of mania around IoT, on the positive side getting it on the desks of decision makers, and on the negative generating ever-loftier predictions. Are IoT and M2M same or different? Yes and no depending on case. For sure for very many years to come IoT and M2M will coexist.
Nearly a dozen contenders are trying to fill a need for long distance networks that cut the cost and power consumption of today’s cellular machine-to-machine networks. Whose technology protocols should these manufacturers incorporate into their gear? Should they adopt ZigBee, Apple’s HomeKit, Allseen Alliance/AllJoyn, or Intel’s Open Interconnect Consortium? Other 802.15.4 technologies? There are too many competing choices.
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi, two pioneers of the Internet of Things are expanding their platforms and partnerships. Crowdfunding sites and hardware accelerators are kicking out startups at a regular clip, typically companies building IoT devices that ride Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. Bluetooth Special Interest group is expected to release in2016 support for mesh networks and higher data rates.
Although ZWave and Zigbee helped pioneer the smart home and building space more than a decade ago, but efforts based on Bluetooth, Wi-Fi and 6LoWPAN are poised to surpass them. Those pioneering systems are actively used and developed. Zigbee Alliance starts certification for its unified version 3.0 specification in few months (includes profiles for home and building automation, LED lighting, healthcare, retail and smart energy). EnOcean Alliance will bring its library of about 200 application profiles for 900 MHz energy harvesting devices to Zigbee networks. Zigbee will roll out a new spec for smart cities. The Z-Wave Security 2 framework will start a beta test in February and Z-Wave aims to strike a collaboration withleading IoT application framework platforms. Zigbee alredy has support Thread.
The race to define, design and deploy new low power wide area networks for the Internet of Things won’t cross a finish line in 2016. But by the end of the year it should start to be clear which LPWA nets are likely to have long legs and the opportunities for brand new entrants will dim significantly. So at the moment it is hard to make design choices. To protect against future technology changes, maybe the device makers should design in wireless connectivity chips and software that will work with a variety of protocols? That’s complicated and expensive. But if I pick only one technology I can easily pick up wrong horse, and it is also an expensive choice.
Within those who want to protect against future technology changes, there could be market for FPGAs in IoT devices. The Internet of Things (IoT) is broken and needs ARM-based field programmable gate array (FPGA) technology to fix it, an expert told engineers at UBM’s Designers of Things conference in San Jose. You end up with a piece of hardware that can be fundamentally changed in the field.
There seems to be huge set of potential radio techniques also for Internet of Things even for long distance and low power consumpion. Zigbee will roll out a new spec for smart cities in February based on the 802.15.4g standard for metro networks. It will compete with an already crowded field of 900 MHz and 2.4 GHz networks from Sigfox, the LoRa Alliance, Ingenu and others. Weightless-P is an open standard announced by Weightless SIG, which operates at frequencies below one gigahertz. Weightless-P nodes and development cards will be expected to be in the market already during the first quarter of 2016, at the moment Weightless IoT Hardware Virtually Unavailable.
I expect LoRa Technology is expected to be hot in 2016. The LoRaWAN standard enables low-data-rate Internet of Things (IoT) and Machine-to-Machine (M2M) wireless communication with a range of up to 10 miles, a battery life of 10 years, and the ability to connect millions of wireless sensor nodes to LoRaWAN gateways. LoRa® technology works using a digital spread spectrum modulation and proprietary protocol in the Sub-GHz RF band (433/868/915 MHz). I see LoRa technology interesting because lots of activity around in Finland in several companies (especially Espotel) and I have seen a convincing hands-in demo of the LoRa system in use.
It seems that 3GPP Lost its Way in IoT and there is fragmentation ahead in cellular standards. In theory 3GPP should be the default provider of IoT connectivity, but it seems that it has now failed in providing one universal technology. At the moment, there are three major paths being supported by 3GPP for IoT: the machine-type version of LTE (known as LTE-M) and two technologies coming from the Cellular-IoT initiative — NB-IoT and EC-GSM. So here we are with three full standardization efforts in 3GPP for IoT connectivity. It is too much. There will like be a base standard in 2016 for LTE-M.
The promise of billions of connected devices leads everyone to assume that there will be plenty of room for multiple technologies, but this betrays the premise of IoT, that a connected world will offer gains through efficiency. Too many standard will cause challenges for everybody. Customers will not embrace IoT if they have to choose between LTE-M and Sigfox-enabled products that may or may not work in all cases. OEM manufacturers will again bear the cost, managing devices at a regional or possibly national level. Again, we lose efficiency and scale. The cost of wireless connectivity will remain a barrier to entry to IoT.
Today’s Internet of Things product or service ultimately consists of multiple parts, quite propably supplied by different companies. An Internet of Things product or service ultimately consists of multiple parts. One is the end device that gathers data and/or executes control functions on the basis of its communications over the Internet. Another is the gateway or network interface device. Once on the Internet, the IoT system needs a cloud service to interact with. Then, there is the human-machine interface (HMI) that allows users to interact with the system. So far, most of the vendors selling into the IoT development network are offering only one or two of these parts directly. Alternatives to this disjointed design are arising, however. Recently many companies are getting into the end-to-end IoT design support business, although to different degrees.
Voice is becoming more often used the user interface of choice for IoT solutions. Smartphones let you control a lot using only your voice as Apple, Google, Microsoft and Samsung have their solutions for this. For example Amazon, SoundHound and Nuance have created systems that allow to add language commands to own hardware or apps. Voice-activated interface becomes pervasive and persistent for IoT solutions in 2016. Right now, most smart home devices are controlled through smartphones, and it seems like that’s unlikely to change. The newest wearable technology, smart watches and other smart devices corresponding to the voice commands and interpret the data we produce – it learns from its users, and generate as responses in real time appropriate, “micro-moments” tied to experience.
Monitoring your health is no longer only a small group oriented digital consumer area. Consumers will soon take advantage of the health technology extensively to measure well-being. Intel Funds Doctor in Your Pocket and Samsung’s new processor is meant for building much better fitness trackers. Also, insurance companies have realized the benefits of health technologies and develop new kinds of insurance services based on data from IoT devices.
Samsung’s betting big on the internet of things and wants the TV to sit at the heart of this strategy. Samsung believes that people will want to activate their lights, heating and garage doors all from the comfort of their couch. If smart TVs get a reputation for being easy to hack, then Samsung’s models are hardly likely to be big sellers. After a year in which the weakness of smart TVs were exploited, Samsung goes on the offensive in 2016. Samsung’s new Tizen-based TVs will have GAIA security with pin lock for credit card and other personal info, data encryption, built-in anti-malware system, more.
This year’s CES will focus on how connectivity is proliferating everything from cars to homes, realigning diverse markets – processors and networking continue to enhance drones, wearables and more. Auto makers will demonstrate various connected cars. There will be probably more health-related wearables at CES 2016, most of which will be woven into clothing, mainly focused on fitness. Whether or not the 2016 International CES holds any big surprises remains to be seen. The technology is there. Connected light bulbs, connected tea kettles, connected fridges and fans and coffeemakers and cars—it’s all possible. It’s not perfect, but the parts are only going to continue to get better, smaller, and cheaper.
Connectivity of IoT devices will still have challeges in 2016. While IoT standards organizations like the Open Interconnect Consortium and the AllSeen Alliance are expected to demonstrate their capabilities at CES, the industry is still a ways away from making connectivity simple. In 2016 it will still pretty darn tedious to get all these things connected, and there’s all these standards battles coming on. So there will be many standards in use at the same time. The next unsolved challenge: How the hell are all these things going to work together? Supporting open APIs that connect with various services is good.
Like UPnP and DLNA, AllJoyn could become the best-kept secret in the connected home in 2016 — everyone has it, no one knows about it. AllJoyn is an open-source initiative to connect devices in the Internet of Things. Microsoft added support for AllJoyn to Windows in 2014.
Analysis will become important in 2016 on IoT discussions. There’s too much information out there that’s available free, or very cheaply. We need systems to manage the information so we can make decisions. Welcome to the systems age.
The rise of the Internet of Things and Web services is driving new design principles. The new goal is to delight customers with experiences that evolve in flexible ways that show you understand their needs. “People are expecting rich experiences, fun and social interactions… this generation gets bored easily so you need to understand all the dimensions of how to delight them”
With huge number of devices security issues will become more and more important. In 2016, we’ll need to begin grappling with the security concerns these devices raise. The reality of everything being connected can have unintended consequences, not all of them useful – Welcome to the Internet of stupid (hackable) things.
Security: It was a hot topic for 2015 and if anything it will get hotter in 2016. The reason is clear. By adding connectivity embedded systems not only increase their utility, they vastly increase their vulnerability to subversion with significant consequences. Embedded systems that add connectivity face many challenges, of which the need for security is both vital and misunderstood. But vendors and developers have been getting the message and solutions are appearing in greater numbers, from software libraries to MCUs with a secure root of trust.
Bruce Schneier is predicting that the IoT will be abused in conjunction with DMCA to make our lives worse instead of better. In theory, connected sensors will anticipate your needs, saving you time, money, and energy. Except when the companies that make these connected objects act in a way that runs counter to the consumer’s best interests. The story of a company using copy-protection technology to lock out competitors—isn’t a new one. Plenty of companies set up proprietary standards to ensure that their customers don’t use someone else’s products with theirs. Because companies can enforce anti-competitive behavior this way, there’s a litany of things that just don’t exist, even though they would make life easier for consumers.
Internet of Things is coming. It’s not a matter of if or whether, but when and how. Maybe it’ll be 2016, maybe the year after, but the train is coming. It’ll have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth and probably eight other things, and you’ll definitely get a push notification when it gets here.
More interesting material links:
1,510 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
What is common is the human vasculature and industrial internet? The capillaries. So what?
Capillaries are the smallest blood vessels in the human bloodstream. They are vital because they are just down the cells receive nourishment and they carry waste products away.
the future of the Internet of Things (IOT) and the Industrial Internet (iiot) networks, respectively, are vital capillary or small, local sensor networks. Through the data flow smoothly sensors analytics system, which is processed into valuable information.
telecom giant Ericsson, who has studied the capillary networks since 2010
“The study has been thought through how the sensors automatically join the network can be solved,”
Automation Sensor Management
The capillary sensors, or sensors to measure, for example, temperature, vibration or acceleration. One capillary network includes local sensors, for example, one factory. Measurement data is valuable information for industrial objects and on the Internet.
It is often very cumbersome to connect sensors securely and easily to the network, and transmits measurement data forward. Problems pile up, and manageability becomes more difficult when the number of the sensor swells into the thousands.
“Also, you want to change the settings of the measurement sensors, calibration of the sensors may require updates, and sometimes can be found in the bug”, says Jan Melen.
The idea of capillary network is extensive automation of management. New sensors will automatically receive a secure connection to the backend, and one click can send the update to thousands of sensors. Capillary networks contain many more advantages: better battery life, distributed computing, flexibility and SLA-service configuration.
“We can deal with all the sensors on an equal footing and to offer all mobile network services. It does not matter what it is locally last-hop radio technology, such as Bluetooth or ZigBee, “explains Jan Melen.
Identification and authentication sensors take place in the same mobile network security model and the 3GPP standard, which the network operator to identify mobile interface.
Many sensors must be connected wirelessly to the practice, when the big problem in the battery life. Often enough, the sensor transmits data only from time to time, but a network connection is switched on all the time, which eats power. Sensor batteries should last for several years.
Data can be stored in the local cache trip arm device, which Melen be referred broker.
“Thus the data does not have to constantly apply for the sensor, and the sensor have to listen to the network traffic all the time, but it may even go to sleep. Thus, a time much more battery life, “says Jan Melen.
Local caching also helps sensors updates because the updated information can take them close to the distribution.
Distributed computing is important because, in many cases the data is only a matter locally. Such data is useless to be recycled through the cloud. Capillary sensors can be back-end system connected also directly to each other.
Source: http://www.tivi.fi/Kaikki_uutiset/kapillaariverkoista-teollisen-internetin-verisuonisto-6305040
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantified benefits of Industrial Internet of Things implementations
http://www.controleng.com/single-article/quantified-benefits-of-industrial-internet-of-things-implementations/cf97117a0f62c2a4e04d4ddd9290ed02.html
Automation experts already have been implementing Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) architectures for years, prior to calling it IIoT; benefits of digital manufacturing including less downtime, fewer defects, and more new product introductions, as explained by Douglas Bellin, Cisco Systems Inc., at the A3 Business Forum, the day after the Cisco spent $1.4 billion for a cloud-based service company, Jasper Technologies Inc.
Implementations of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) architectures and the benefits of digital manufacturing deliver real benefits, including 48% less downtime, 49% fewer defects, and 23% increase in new product introductions, according to Douglas Bellin, senior manager, industry lead, Cisco Systems Inc. Bellin made the comments at the A3 Business Forum Feb. 4 in Orlando, the day after Cisco spent $1.4 billion for a cloud-based service company, Jasper Technologies Inc.
Bellin offered other pieces of advice about the IIoT and what it means for engineers.
The connected journey for the IIoT starts with proprietary serial islands and expands to connected machines, machine integration, machine as a service, and advanced machine automation. Courtesy: Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering, CFE Media”Okay, a show of hands. Who likes their IT department?” Bellin asked. Just a few raised their hands in a room with more than 100 attendees, and one was from the information technology (IT) department. Operational technology (OT) and IT personnel will need to work together more closely, Bellin suggested, as migration and changes continue to develop.
Reducing pain points
The IIoT resolves pain points that we all have suffered with for years, such as rising energy costs, aging and remotely located workers, globally distributed operations, customer support across time zones, world competition, product proliferation, asset optimization, and others.
The Internet of Everything (IoE) brings people, processes, data, and things together to make better business decisions. While almost every machine has a controller with a lot of data available, data driven manufacturing is not the norm, Bellin said, citing that 86% of 64 million U.S. machines are completely unconnected.
Some say 40% of businesses won’t be the same or exist as we move forward if they don’t do IoT.
Disruptive trends
Disruptive trends are changing manufacturing in many ways such as:
IT and OT are converging
Industrie 4.0 and Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC) are advocating IoT
Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have an increased focus on services, such as offering machines as a service, similar to software as a service (SaaS)
An increase in data-driven manufacturing
There are more secure operations and machines.
Implementations of digital manufacturing have delivered benefits including:
48% less downtime
49% fewer defects
23% increase in new product introductions
16% gain in overall equipment effectiveness
35% improved inventory
18% less energy use.
Cisco, Fanuc, and Rockwell Automation are working together in the robot space capturing stranded data and pushing it into the cloud (remote servers) in a capable form. This provides predictive maintenance with a two-week lead-time on failures. Bearings failures and resulting unplanned downtime and related costs and fines are falling dramatically as a result. The goal is to have 3 to 5 weeks of failure prediction.
Where’s the IoT going?
Bellin discussed the five waves of connectivity, which are: Connectivity foundation, business, people, things, and convergence, which are designed to be the framework of the IIoT. Courtesy: Mark T. Hoske, Control Engineering, CFE MediaThe connected journey means rapid commissioning of machines, greater security, start-up templates, a machine integration platform, OEE monitoring, data offload via MTC and OPC interfaces, scaled factory data acquisition, and advanced security.
Then IIoT will enable machines as a service, a security framework, machine-to-cloud communications, secure bi-directional communications, and remote access.
Finally, IIoT will deliver advanced machine automation, time-sensitive networks (TSN), high-speed standards, advanced controls, and human-machine interface (HMI) integration with analytics.
Digitization creates foundation of new applications and outcomes. Fanuc has found tremendous savings with problem prediction.
This accelerated the journey to value-added services. If softer U.S. economy results in 2019, as some economists predict, offering services will keep machine builders ahead of the curve.
“Manufacturing is moving from product-centric to services-centric, led by a digital transformation where services and the digital journey converge. This delivers deeper insights into product and customer needs,” Bellin said.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Candlestick sensor monitors thermal conditions
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4441425/Candlestick-sensor-monitors-thermal-conditions?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_analog_20160218&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_analog_20160218&elqTrackId=7afe2b4a1ff34ab398dea05cdf25a131&elq=585f63ce10014054ba3001eee3f28b1a&elqaid=30884&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27023
Offered in three heights, candlestick-style sensors from Advanced Thermal Solutions simultaneously measure air temperature and velocity to allow engineers to characterize thermal conditions inside electronic systems. The narrow, low-profile base-and-stem design of the sensors minimizes the disturbance of airborne heat flow in the test area to ensure accurate measurements.
The use of a single sensor to measure both temperature and velocity eliminates errors that can occur when airflow is nonisothermal, while multiple sensors can be used to thoroughly map an entire system’s thermal and airflow conditions. Each sensor has a polyimide-sleeved stem that allows continuous repositioning.
Candlestick Sensor
Measure Temperature and Air Velocity with Minimal Flow Disturbance
http://www.qats.com/Products/Instruments/Temperature-and-Velocity-Measurement/Sensors/Candlestick-Sensor
The Candlestick Sensor is a flexible, robust, base-and-stem design air velocity sensor that measures both temperature and air velocity for characterizing thermal conditions in electronic systems. The Candlestick Sensor is narrow and low profile to minimize the disturbance of the heat flow in the test domain. It features a flexible, plastic-sleeved stem, which facilitates installation and repositioning during the testing process.
Air velocity and temperature sensors are calibrated for low (natural convection) and high velocity flows. They are capable of temperature measurements ranging from -20° to +120°C ±1°C. Velocity measurements range from 0 to 50 m/s (10,000 ft/min) ±2%, depending on the particular model of sensor.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wireless mesh networked badges coming to ESC Boston
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/now-hear-this/4441407/Wireless-mesh-networked-badges-coming-to-ESC-Boston?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_weekly_20160218&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_weekly_20160218&elqTrackId=0c35dc3bf244441ebf180e32f4d74d84&elq=67b4966efe9f430b8e0133b911161c89&elqaid=30892&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27031
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chemical sensors get wearable, faster
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/sensor-ee-perception/4441365/Chemical-sensors-get-wearable–faster?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_weekly_20160218&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_weekly_20160218&elqTrackId=5c586f0d498744579040bfbcc70d93f2&elq=67b4966efe9f430b8e0133b911161c89&elqaid=30892&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27031
Driven in part by the Internet of Things (IoT) frenzy and our data and control craving, chemical sensors could be our next design dependency as they shift from a mix of multiple discrete devices into a single, easy-to-apply chip or module.
Now, high-speed, high-sensitivity, miniature, low-power gas and chemical sensors are being built into thermostats, digital night lights, baby monitors, and wearable devices, and their rising clout is evinced by their use in smart home and smart health applications, as well as medical and industry.
The various chemical sensor types provide molecular-level analysis of substances such as foods, medicines, gases, and fuels. Typically, these sensors have been represented by full-fledged, desktop instruments that analyzed and yielded a response to a chemical concentration. These sensor devices are still widely used to detect chemicals in applications such as farming, pollution control, water management, industrial safety, and, of course, national security.
Now there are miniature chemical sensors, such as gas sensors, air quality sensors, hydrogen sensors, etc. These sensors have usually been placed outdoor in the home automation systems, mostly as temperature and weather sensors for climate control applications (humidity and storm warnings.)
Tomi Engdahl says:
Kone has all over the world millions of elevators with remote monitoring and management, it wishes to make a cloud form. Now the machine has been signed with IBM’s multi-year agreement to expand IBM’s cloud-based industrial services and Internet technologies will speed up the construction of intelligent innovations.
Agreement, the machine can take advantage of IBM Watson IoT Cloud Platform with different parts of the world in the elevators, escalators, doors and turnstiles to remote monitoring and optimization of management. The system will analyze vast amounts of data from sensors, helping to identify and anticipate problem situations and to minimize the use of the absent time.
The solution is cheaper and faster than traditional dispatches maintenance man’s place in a fault situation.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4011:ibm-liittaa-koneen-hissit-pilveen&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Objects connected to the Internet devices require their own memory, but modern techniques tend to be too resource hungry to it. Adesto Technologies has developed a new memory that consumes 10-100 times the existing non-volatile memory technologies less power.
Adesto invites the Mavriq-Circles technology behind the acronym CBRAM (Conductive Bridging RAM). It is reportedly the world’s first commercial product had time to resistive or ReRAM memory technology.
CBRAM works so that it forms the link between the two electrodes.
One big advantage of CBRAM memory is compatible with the standard CMOS process.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4013:uusi-muisti-kukistaa-flashin&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Lora network is growing in popularity
The race of what technology will be connecting the future IoT networks, ie the Internet of Things technology equipment, is a high speed. At present, the strongest position is Semtechin LoRaWAN or shorter Lora. The network demo in again next week at the Embedded World exhibition in Nuremberg.
Lora network nodes can survive for years on battery power. The network has a range of conditions, some up to 50 kilometers and typically at least 30 km.
Lora-light data collected online, mainly due to the movements and location as well as a variety of sensors measured values. Data is displaced from 0.3 to 22 kilobits per second. Europe there is also 100 kilobit high speed option. USA FCC restrictions require the lowest data rate is 0.9 Kbits per second.
The technology is managed by Lora Alliance. It ensures, for example, the certification of Lora devices. Currently, certification and makes two laboratories in Europe, one of which is Espotel in Espoo Finland.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=4012:lora-verkon-suosio-kasvaa&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Aaron Tilley / Forbes:
Microsoft, Qualcomm, Intel, Cisco, Samsung, others form Internet of Things standards group Open Connectivity Foundation
Microsoft, Qualcomm And Intel Start Playing Nice On ‘Internet Of Things’ Standards
http://www.forbes.com/sites/aarontilley/2016/02/19/microsoft-qualcomm-and-intel-start-collaborating-on-internet-of-things-standardization/#17c75e791de0
Chip making rivals Intel and Qualcomm want to finally play nice in the “Internet of Things.”
For the past few years, the two companies have led separate and competing standards groups around the growing billions (or is trillions?) of connected light bulbs, thermostats, cars and more – the Open Interconnect Consortium (OIC) on Intel’s side and AllSeen Alliance on Qualcomm’s. Now the two will begin collaborating with each other under OIC’s new name: the Open Connectivity Foundation (OCF).
The new entity will replace all of OIC’s activities. Existing OIC members will move over to this new organization. Qualcomm will stay involved in AllSeen and any device running the AllSeen standard will also work on the new OFC standard, a spokeswoman said.
“We believe that fragmentation is the enemy of IoT. That’s why we are working with these likeminded companies to invest in the future of IoT,” said Michael Wallace, a senior vice president and general manager of emerging businesses at Qualcomm, in a blog post scheduled to be published on Friday morning.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Internet of Linux Things
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/25/the-internet-of-linux-things/
The Linux Foundation is a non-profit organization that sponsors the work of Linus Torvalds. Supporting companies include HP, IBM, Intel, and a host of other large corporations. The foundation hosts several Linux-related projects. This month they announced Zephyr, an RTOS aimed at the Internet of Things.
The project stresses modularity, security, and the smallest possible footprint. Initial support includes:
Arduino 101
Arduino Due
Intel Galileo Gen 2
NXP FRDM-K64F Freedom
The project (hosted on its own Website) has downloads for the kernel and documentation. Unlike a “normal” Linux kernel, Zephyr builds the kernel with your code to create a monolithic image that runs in a single shared address space.
https://www.zephyrproject.org/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung ARTIK Dev Boards Start To Ship
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/26/samsung-artik-dev-boards-start-to-ship/
Another week’s news, another single board computer aimed at Internet of Things applications is launched. This time it’s Samsung’s Artik 5, a platform they’ve been talking about for a while now but which you can now buy as a dev board from Digi-Key for $99.99. For that you get Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and Zigbee connectivity, a dual-core ARM Cortex A7 running at 1GHz, 512MB of memory, and 4GB of eMMC storage. There are the usual plethora of interfaces: GPIO, I2C, SPI, UART, SDIO, USB 2.0, JTAG, and analogue.
The single board computer marketplace is starting to look rather crowded, and with so many competitors to choose from at more reasonable prices you might ask yourself why the ARTIK could be of interest to a maker. And given that Samsung are positioning it in their literature on its increased security for use in commercial applications such as IoT hubs, IP cameras and industrial and commercial lighting systems, you’d probably be on to something. If you were to make a very rough analogy with the Raspberry Pi range this has more in common with the Compute Module when it comes to intended marketplace than it does with the Pi Zero.
One answer to that question though could be that it is one of the first devices to support the Thread networking protocol for IoT devices.
http://www.digikey.com/product-detail/en/SIP-KITNXB001/1510-1316-ND/5825102
Tomi Engdahl says:
Passive WiFi On Microwatts
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/26/passive-wifi-on-microwatts/
A lot of you use WiFi for your Internet of Things devices, but that pretty much rules out a battery-powered deployment because WiFi devices use a lot of juice. Until now. Researchers at the University of Washington have developed a passive WiFi implementation that uses only microwatts per device.
Working essentially like backscatter RFID tags do, each node has a WiFi antenna that can be switched to either reflect or absorb 2.4 GHz radiation. Your cell phone, or any other WiFi device, responds to this backscattered signal. All that’s missing is a nice steady signal to reflect.
A single, plugged-in unit provides this carrier wave for multiple WiFi sensor nodes. And here’s the very clever part of the research: to keep the carrier from overwhelming the tiny modulated signal that’s coming from the devices, the plugged-in unit transmits off the desired frequency and the battery-powered units modulate that at just the right difference frequency so that the resulting (mixed) frequency is in the desired WiFi band.
If you’re a radio freak, you’ll recognize the WiFi node’s action being just like a frequency mixer.
Passive Wi-Fi
Bringing Low Power to Wi-Fi Transmissions
http://passivewifi.cs.washington.edu/
What is Passive Wi-Fi?
We introduce Passive Wi-Fi that demonstrates for the first time that one can generate 802.11b transmissions using backscatter communication, while consuming 3 – 4 orders of magnitude lower power than existing Wi-Fi chipsets. Passive Wi-Fi transmissions can be decoded on any Wi-Fi device including routers, mobile phones and tablets. Building on this, we also present a network stack design that enables Passive Wi-Fi transmitters to coexist with other devices in the ISM band, without incurring the power consumption of carrier sense and medium access control operations. We build prototype hardware and implement all four 802.11b bit rates on an FPGA platform. Our experimental evaluation shows that passive Wi-Fi transmissions can be decoded on off-the-shelf smartphones and Wi-Fi chipsets over distances of 30 – 100 feet in various line-of-sight and through-the-wall scenarios. Finally, we design a Passive Wi-Fi IC that shows that 1 and 11~Mbps transmissions consume 14.48 and 49.28 µW respectively. This translates to 10000x lower power than existing Wi-Fi chipsets and 1000x lower power than Bluetooth LE and ZigBee.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart Sweatbands
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/21/smart-sweatbands/
If you’ve ever known anyone who has to monitor their blood glucose level, you know it is annoying to have to prick your finger with a lancet to draw blood for each measurement. A new sweatband that incorporates flexible electronics can measure glucose–as well as sodium, potassium, and lactate–from your sweat, without a painful pin prick.
Researchers at the University of California at Berkeley and Stanford announced the band earlier this month. It contains five sensors on a flexible substrate and uses electrical properties to analyze your sweat.
The wearable device communicates with Bluetooth
http://physicsworld.com/cws/article/news/2016/feb/02/sweatband-measures-tiny-electrical-signals-in-perspiration
Tomi Engdahl says:
ARM Unveils New, High Efficency CPU
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/23/arm-unveils-new-high-efficency-cpu/
ARM has announced their latest IP core the Cortex A32. This 32-bit chip brings the benefits of the ARMv8-A architecture to low-power devices, ostensibly ones that will be the backbone of the Internet of Things.
For the last few years, the state of ARM CPUs has been firmly planted in the world of ARMv7 instructions. These chips, the Cortex A5, A7, A9, A15, and A17 are divided into ‘good, better, best’ segments, with the A7 pulling its weight as the processor in the Raspberry Pi 2, and a dual-core A15 finding its way into the latest BeagleBoard.
So what does this announcement mean for the next generation of the Internet of Things, single board computers, and the wearable electronics of tomorrow? Absolutely nothing. Only the processor IP was released, and it will take at least a year for this core to make it into a chip. It will be 18 to 24 months until you can find this core in a consumer device.
New Ultra-efficient ARM Cortex-A32 Processor Expands Embedded and IoT Portfolio
https://www.arm.com/about/newsroom/new-ultra-efficient-arm-cortex-a32-processor-expands-embedded-and-iot-portfolio.php
Tomi Engdahl says:
IoT Security, Power Consumption in Benchmark Group’s Sights
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1329053&
The Embedded Microprocessor Benchmark Consortium (EEMBC) trade group plans to embrace the Internet of Things with two forthcoming benchmarking exercises addressing edge-node IoT energy consumption and IoT security.
The 38-member EEMBC, best known for its CoreMark processor and ULP (ultra-low power) microcontroller benchmarks is now heading up towards the system with working groups addressing entire edge-node power consumption, including RF communications, and another on security.
Both benchmarking exercises are expected to build on the energy measurement platform and profile approach used for ULPBench.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gecko SoCs reduce dev cost for wireless IoT
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4441494/Gecko-SoCs-reduce-dev-cost-for-wireless-IoT?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160224&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160224&elqTrackId=fa5e1449814b42528bbfdfbbc913d61b&elq=332d63f5118d4655b50ab2c909b9634a&elqaid=31025&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27121
Ultra-low power processor developer SI Labs released a new series of system-on-chip (SoC) devices in its Wireless Gecko portfolio at Embedded World. Flex Gecko handles a variety of proprietary protocols, the Blue Gecko family adds Bluetooth Smart connectivity to that flexible base, and Mighty Gecko adds Thread and Zigbee on top of that. All three families include an ARM Cortex-M4 processor, sensor interface, and energy management, and are both pin- and software-compatible.
The goal of the new Gecko families is to reduce development cost for wireless IoT, according to SI Labs’ VP of marketing for IoT products, Daniel Cooley. “Customers are moving away from choosing processors based on millamps or kilobytes,” Cooley said. “They’re basing their choices on total cost of ownership.” For wireless devices, this total cost includes both product development and the effort to gain the necessary regulatory and industry certifications. “Wireless development can be tough,” Cooley said, “with antenna design and matching, field updates to protocols, certifications, and the like.” To help developers, the company is offering an extensive support structure. “SI Labs has a tool for each of these challenges,” Cooley added.
Wireless Gecko IoT Connectivity Portfolio
http://www.silabs.com/products/wireless/Pages/wireless-gecko-iot-connectivity-portfolio.aspx
Design a low energy connected IoT device with the Wireless Gecko EFR32™ portfolio of wireless SoCs. Take advantage of a multi-protocol radio with an integrated ARM® Cortex®-M4 MCU to introduce Bluetooth® Smart (BLE), ZigBee®, Thread and proprietary wireless connectivity with a single platform.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Raspberry Pi 3 on sale now at $35
https://www.raspberrypi.org/blog/raspberry-pi-3-on-sale/
In celebration of our fourth birthday, we thought it would be fun to release something new. Accordingly, Raspberry Pi 3 is now on sale for $35 (the same price as the existing Raspberry Pi 2), featuring:
A 1.2GHz 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A53 CPU (~10x the performance of Raspberry Pi 1)
Integrated 802.11n wireless LAN and Bluetooth 4.1
Complete compatibility with Raspberry Pi 1 and 2
For Raspberry Pi 3, Broadcom have supported us with a new SoC, BCM2837. This retains the same basic architecture as its predecessors BCM2835 and BCM2836, so all those projects and tutorials which rely on the precise details of the Raspberry Pi hardware will continue to work. The 900MHz 32-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A7 CPU complex has been replaced by a custom-hardened 1.2GHz 64-bit quad-core ARM Cortex-A53.
All of the connectors are in the same place and have the same functionality, and the board can still be run from a 5V micro-USB power adapter. This time round, we’re recommending a 2.5A adapter if you want to connect power-hungry USB devices to the Raspberry Pi.
Tomi Engdahl says:
SensorTape Unrolls New Sensor Deployment Possibilities
http://hackaday.com/2016/02/29/sensortape-unrolls-new-sensor-deployment-possibilities/
An embedded MEMS sensor might be lots of fun to play with on your first foray into the embedded world–why not deploy a whole network of them? Alas, the problem with communicating with a series of identical sensors becomes increasingly complicated as we start needing to handle the details of signal integrity and the communication protocols to handle all that data. Fortunately, [Artem], [Hsin-Liu], and [Joseph] at MIT Media Labs have made sensor deployment as easy as unraveling a strip of tape from your toolkit. They’ve developed SensorTape, an unrollable, deployable network of interconnected IMU and proximity sensors packaged in a familiar form factor of a roll of masking tape.
For communications MIT Media labs picked a combination of I²C and peer-to-peer serial.
SensorTape
https://vimeo.com/155159411
SensorTape is a modular and dense sensor network in a form factor of a tape. It enables intuitive deployment of sensor arrays, as SensorTape is modular, it can be cut and joined in an arbitrary order.
SensorTape is just a research prototype at this point, but we may explore turning it into a product in the near future.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hot and ‘Connected’ at Mobile World Congress
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1329035&
The hot corner at the Mobile World Congress this week is an area called Innovation City. The GSM Association has joined with AT&T, the Global M2M Association, Jasper, KT and Sierra Wireless to showcase mobile connected products and services, and to show how these offerings from different companies in different nations all connect.
We also spotted new mobile and connected products, ranging from Huawei’s Mate Notebook, Sony’s Xperia Ear to Nokia’s 5G autonomous cars and Xiaomi’s Mi5.
AT&T is conducting “Smart Cities” pilots in six U.S. areas, including Atlanta, Dallas, Chapel Hill and Montgomery County, Maryland.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Quantified benefits of Industrial Internet of Things implementations
http://www.controleng.com/single-article/quantified-benefits-of-industrial-internet-of-things-implementations/cf97117a0f62c2a4e04d4ddd9290ed02.html
Automation experts already have been implementing Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) architectures for years, prior to calling it IIoT; benefits of digital manufacturing including less downtime, fewer defects, energy savings, and more new product introductions, as explained by Douglas Bellin, Cisco Systems Inc., at the A3 Business Forum, the day after the Cisco spent $1.4 billion for a cloud-based service company, Jasper Technologies Inc.
Implementations of Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) architectures and the benefits of digital manufacturing deliver real benefits, including 48% less downtime, 49% fewer defects, and 23% increase in new product introductions, according to Douglas Bellin, senior manager, industry lead, Cisco Systems Inc. Bellin made the comments at the A3 Business Forum Feb. 4 in Orlando, the day after Cisco spent $1.4 billion for a cloud-based service company, Jasper Technologies Inc.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Resource-rich MCU targets wearable IoT
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1329059&
It seems like a contradiction in terms to talk about a resource-rich MCU in conjunction with the small, battery-powered application space that is wearables. But ARM aims to resolve that contradiction with its recent release of the Cortex-A32 processor. The combination of processor architecture and process technology in the new device does just that, boasting a 25% more efficient 32-bit core in as little as 0.25 mm2 of silicon.
The Cortex-A32 is built on ARM’s ARMv8-A architecture and represents an upgrade path for the popular A-5 and A7 architectures used in many 32-bit application processors
The A32 is designed for scalability to address a range of applications. At the high end, a quad-core device can operate at GHz clock speeds, consuming less than 75 mW per core. In its smallest configuration, a 100 MHz single-core A32 with AMBA interface and 8k each of instruction and data cache takes less than 4 mW of power.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Singtel, Ericsson to Test 5G Mid-2016
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1329056&
Singapore telco Singtel revealed last Monday that a trial run for Narrow Band Internet of Things (NB-IoT) is being carried out in the second half of 2016, as a part of its deal with Swedish communication technology company Ericsson. Their partnership, which was sealed early 2015 was made in line with the Singtel’s vision to support the rapid growth of connected devices using Singtel’s current 4G LTE network. Singtel is targeting 5G availability by 2020.
Wider coverage and user-friendly devices especially built for IoT is the standard for the NB-IoT technology. Singtel’s Group Chief Technology Officer Tay Soo Meng said “IoT connectivity is an important part of Singapore’s enterprises and supports the Singapore Government’s Smart Nation initiative.”
Singtel expects a growing demand for cost-efficient connectivity for sensors and devices and will focus on power-saving capabilities, looking at 10 years of battery life for its devices.
Ericsson highlights that long-term battery life with minimal power requirements and maintenance are prerequisites for devices in the emerging IoT market.
“We are pleased to work with Singtel to enhance their network to support the adoption of IoT,”
“Together we will continue to explore future IoT technologies such as Cat-M and NB-IoT which promises to reduce device costs and improve coverage and battery life even further. Examples of applications that can leverage on these technologies are temperature, air quality and flood water sensors.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sarah Buhr / TechCrunch:
Amazon unveils Tap, a $130 Alexa-enabled portable bluetooth speaker, and the $90 Echo Dot, which adds Alexa support to other speakers — Amazon adds the $130 Tap and the $90 Dot to the Echo family — Amazon’s voice-operated command center Echo produces something close to modern …
Amazon adds the $130 Tap and the $90 Dot to the Echo family
http://techcrunch.com/2016/03/03/amazon-adds-the-130-tap-and-the-90-dot-to-the-echo-family/
Amazon’s voice-operated command center Echo produces something close to modern-day magic within our homes: Get the latest news, order a pizza, turn off the lights or find out who killed Bruce Wayne’s parents in fewer than 1,200 milliseconds.
The Echo has received more than 33,000 Amazon reviews at a nearly five-star rating since launching in late 2014 and was one of the best-selling items going for more than $100 over the holidays. Amazon has not released sales figures for Echo, but its rise in popularity and the ability to build upon and integrate with the companion Alexa API have moved the Echo front and center as a must-have device for the smart home.
Amazon is now introducing two new members to the Echo family with slightly different uses in hopes of achieving a similar reaction: Amazon Tap is a portable version of the original Echo, and Echo Dot is a tiny, hockey-puck-sized version that includes a built-in line-out connector to hook into your choice of speaker.
Jacob Kastrenakes / The Verge:
Amazon’s Alexa will be able to control Nest and Honeywell thermostats this month
Amazon’s Alexa will be able to control Nest and Honeywell thermostats this month
Amazon takes another big step into your home
http://www.theverge.com/2016/3/3/11148624/amazon-alexa-nest-honeywell-thermostat-control
Last month Amazon started allowing its Alexa voice assistant to control smart home thermostats. Now, Amazon’s virtual assistant will be compatible with two major brands: Honeywell and Alphabet-owned Nest. Both companies’ Wi-Fi-connected thermostats, which are usually controlled by smartphone apps, should work with Alexa by the end of March, Amazon says. Alexa will also start working with some of Insteon’s smart home thermostats, too.
Thermostat support launched in February, with the Ecobee 3 being the first you could control through Alexa. It’s technically possible to link Alexa with other thermostats today through the app IFTTT, but direct integration should make it a lot easier to use. It’s critical, too, if Amazon really wants Echo to be the control system for the smart home. And judging by its rapid expansion of Alexa (and today’s expansion of the Echo speaker line), it seems like that’s exactly what Amazon wants to do.
Tomi Engdahl says:
GPS-based mood sensing could save lives
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/sensor-ee-perception/4441498/GPS-based-mood-sensing-could-save-lives?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160303&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160303&elqTrackId=ad17fcee2f2a4922823a6d5a03066cc1&elq=dbfa4215f1d04cbcac2e5d7095349c28&elqaid=31145&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27227
Aside from navigation, GPS tracking is notorious for being just another way for commercial entities to drain cash from wallets via local “special deal” alerts. These alerts also suck the life out of our batteries. Who would have thought that same GPS technology could generate data that could be used to unobtrusively monitor our moods and detect — or even predict — depressive states in people?
That’s the promise of research being conducted at the University of Birmingham and University College London in the U.K. If designers are able to apply the research findings into smartphones or even GPS-enabled personal health monitors, they could help initiate an intervention — and potentially save lives.
The part about being unobtrusive is important: It’s easy to query any health monitor wearers or smartphone users as to their state of mind when they’re in a good mood, but as depression creeps in, the likelihood of getting a response decreases rapidly. This makes it difficult to gather sufficient data to make an accurate determination, so the monitoring has to be through another means that doesn’t require direct user interaction.
That is where GPS and movement tracking comes in, as another symptom of depression is reduced mobility activity. Of course, that inactivity could be for any reason: sickness, twisted ankle, last weeks of intense work before a new product launches, or simply a case of bad weather and bingeing on Game of Thrones.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Small development platform for IoT-sensors
Advantech introduced last week’s Embedded World event in ARM, Bosch Sensortecin, Sensirionin and Texas Instruments with an open IoT sensor platform. There’s also a Finnish know-how in Oulu ARM unit.
The development of an open sensor platform brings IoT applications and different techniques together. Advantech addition to the development of the ARM has been operating within a development unit in Oulu, which has about 60 employees.
“Standards-based data processing, software and sensor formats are the keys to the Internet of Things, stressed in Nuremberg ARM’s Marketing IoT products Zach Shelby
“ARM’s mbed operating system supports the required protocols and formats. It can be used M2.COM-based sensors connected safely and easily cloud services, assured Shelby Nuremberg. He developed the IoT technologies even before the term even widely known.”
Advantech introduced the event for M2.COM-format 30 x 22 mm in size IoT module. WISE-1520 (pictured) is based on the Texas Instruments Cortex-M4-controller and Wi-Fi connection.
The card has 75 pin connector for data collection and device control for. The card supports USB, PWM, SDIO, I²C-, I²S-, UART, GPIO-, SPI and ADC connections. The module can also be connected Advantech Pico-ITX-sized development board. There will also be testing the temperature and humidity sensors.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2016/03/04/pieni-kehitysalusta-iot-antureille/
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Ouch, bearings breaks down, I need service!” – Machines are given their own social media
Finnish software developers intend to revolutionize the communication between people and equipment. Resort to is, of course, social media. Machine-Book platform called the machine to send a status update, for example, when it is free of maintenance.
Equipment and people’s social network, each machine has its own social media accounts and message wall. People will then be able to like machines, which updates they want to follow.
Book Machine-platform software developers have created a Nordic IT service company Cybercom’s Finnish unit.
“We believe that the social communication between devices and people are following the trend of the Internet of Things,” says sales manager of industrial services Tatu Hautala. “We try to humanise the equipment and to establish a level playing field between the Community of equipment and people.”
The Community does not mean consumers and those of household appliances, but Cybercom is targeted at industrial equipment manufacturers and their after-sales service to customers.
Cybercom sees a niche market specifically for maintenance of industrial equipment, because the majority of manufacturers will tend to move the role of the manufacturer in the services business.
“By far the largest part of the service business again consists of maintenance services. In those we see great potential for more efficient, ”
The underlying profit Industryhack
Machinebookin origins date back to Cybercom’s profit Konecranes Industryhack event last year. In the winning team created a device avatars and “digital soul”. In a simple portal machines sent messages.
“From there it went. Since then, the idea has left to live, and the avatar concept is an integral part in how the Book Machine is connected to a variety of devices, “Tatu Hautala says.
The machines can also chat with each other.
“We wanted to publish the concept as early as possible. The next step is vigorously deploying this client base. Barcelona audience was very receptive, and we have done experiments with the customer, ”
He thinks that the Machine Book, may never see the public service. Rather, it finds its place in closed corporate environments and their own cloud service platforms.
Source: http://www.tivi.fi/Kaikki_uutiset/auts-laakerini-hajoaa-tarvitsen-huoltoa-koneet-saavat-oman-somen-6309567
Tomi Engdahl says:
Embedded World: Renesas package the IoT developments
Renesas plans to spurt the new Synergy platform to the Internet of Things. The company said last week at the Embedded World 2016 event to offer a new platform included free of charge in Sweden with IAR Systems’ Embedded Workbench development package.
Renesas Synergy Development Platform includes a charge distributed a special version of IAR Embedded Workbench. It has been operating in synergy with integrated C / C ++ compiler and debugger development platform. Also included is an analysis tool for C-STAT and runtime analysis tool for C-RUN.
“Free does not mean free,” said the Embedded World in Nuremberg at a press conference
The new tool, and through additional programs Renesas believes that it can speed up the Internet of Things (IoT) the design of products targeted. “Our offering to increase its value, and thus developers and end customers,” says Renesas IoT Business Unit Marketing Director Mark Rootz.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2016/03/03/renesas-paketoi-iot-kehitysvalineet/
More: http://www.renesas.eu/products/embedded_systems_platform/synergy/index.jsp
Tomi Engdahl says:
IBM Helps Automakers Build IoT
http://www.eeweb.com/company-news/ibm/ibm-helps-automakers-build-iot/
IBM announced its new Cloud-based service designed to help automakers turn driver and vehicle data into actionable insights for predictive vehicle maintenance, real-time diagnostics on engine trouble, and to guide drivers to the most efficient traffic routes.
By 2020, 90 percent of new cars will be equipped with extensive connectivity services.1 To make the most of this connectivity, automakers are increasingly using IoT solutions that help to securely deliver data generated from cars directly to the cloud for near real-time analysis.
IBM’s Internet of Things (IoT) for Automotive solution, built on the recently announced IBM IoT Foundation, helps automotive manufacturers gather data from individual sensors that can be combined with other data for real-time analysis. The service provides driver, vehicle and environmental insights through analytics, tapping both vehicle and geolocation data collected in the car. It also deliversnew insights from third party data such as from parking providers as well as an automotive manufacturer’s customer data and vehicle history.
The international automotive supplier Continental is using IBM MessageSight and IBM InfoSphere Streams, components of the IBM IoT for Automotive solution, to help manage complex data streams and apply analytics to its eHorizon solution, which allows vehicle electronics to anticipate road conditions using digital mapping and crowd sourced data.
The IBM IoT for Automotive solution is available on IBM Cloud’s SoftLayer infrastructure.
Tomi Engdahl says:
IBM Watson IoT Global Headquarters
http://www.eeweb.com/company-news/ibm/ibm-watson-iot-global-headquarters/
IBM announced the opening of Watson IoT Global Headquarters extending the power of cognitive computing to a connected world. It opens with 1000 Munich-based experts to drive IoT and Industry 4.0 innovation, launched the eight new IoT client experience, and introduced Watson API services for IoT on the IBM cloud.
IBM also will deliver Watson APIs and services on the Watson IoT Cloud Platform to accelerate the development of cognitive IoT solutions and services, helping clients and partners make sense of the growing volume and variety of data in a physical world that is rapidly becoming digitized.
Cognitive IoT
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/cognitive-iot/
The early visionaries of the Internet of Things, IBM’s thought leaders among them, foresaw a time when practically any physical object could be equipped with sensors and hooked up to the Internet to translate the physical world into digital information.
They were focusing on factory assembly lines, electrical grids, automobiles, highways, buildings, and the like. The goal was to gather streams of information from sensors that could be used to automate processes—such as balancing supply and demand in a power grid—and operate more efficiently.
Today, these applications have become mainstream, so it’s time to take advantage of a second generation of Internet of Things technologies and capabilities–something we at IBM call the Cognitive Internet of Things.
Cognitive IoT technologies will make it possible for business leaders to understand what’s happening in the world more deeply. By infusing intelligence into systems and processes, businesses will be able to not only do things more efficiently, but to improve customer satisfaction, to discover new business opportunities, and to anticipate risks and threats so they can better deal with them.
Think of it this way: First-generation IoT technologies gave us nuggets of information that could make a big difference in achieving operational efficiencies. The next generation creates vast communities of devices that share information, which in turn can be interpreted in a larger context and managed by people using cognitive systems. In the era of Cognitive IoT, no machine is an island.
Watson APIs for IoT
http://www.eeweb.com/company-news/ibm/watson-apis-for-iot/
IBM® announced a series of new Watson Internet of Things (IoT) offerings, capabilities, and ecosystem partners that are designed to extend the power of cognitive computing to the billions of connected devices, sensors, and systems that make up the Internet of Things.
The Watson APIs for IoT help accelerate the development of cognitive IoT solutions and services on the IBM Watson IoT Platform. By using these APIs, you will be able to build cognitive applications that:
Interact to with humans naturally by using both text and voice
Understand images and recognize scenes
Learn from sensory inputs to find meaningful patterns
Correlate data with external data sources, such as weather or Twitter
These APIs enable cognitive capabilities in these key areas:
Natural language processing (NLP)
Machine learning
Video and image analytics
Text analytics
IoT Delivery Acceleration
http://www.eeweb.com/company-news/ibm/iot-delivery-acceleration/
BM announced the expansion of IoT platform – the IBM IoT Foundation, through an integration with ARM, provides out-of-the box connectivity with ARM® mbed™-enabled devices to analytics services. The fusion allowed huge quantities of data from devices such as industrial appliances, weather sensors, and wearable monitoring devices.
IBM also announced the first in a series of IBM Cloud-based, industry-specific IoT services with IoT for Electronics. The service will enable electronics manufacturers to gather data from individual sensors that can be combined with other data for real-time analysis.
The IBM IoT Foundation is a platform upon which a family of fully managed, cloud-hosted offerings on the SoftLayer Infrastructure is built. IoT Foundation makes it simple to derive value from Internet of Things (IoT) devices. It includes:
Analytics tools capable of dealing with large quantities of fast-moving data,
Access to IBM Bluemix, IBMs Platform-as-a-Service, that is capable of handling the immense flow of data and provide anytime access for decision makers; and
Security systems capable of helping organizations protect IoT data as rigorously as they do their own confidential financial, IP and strategy information
“Deploying IoT technology has to be easy, secure and scalable for it to feel like a natural extension of a company’s business,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hazard Warning Application
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/hazard-warning-application/
Seizing the opportunity of the Internet of Things
“With the Internet of Things set to change our industry beyond recognition within the next few years, we need to adopt the new technology fast and e ectively to stay ahead of our competitors,” begins Michael Öhman, Service Manager for the Integration and Mobility Platform at Scania IT, the technology services company for the Scania automotive group. “Our work with IBM is helping us to do just that.”
Scania IT recognized that the dawn of the Internet of Things (IoT) represented a golden opportunity to start o ering valuable new products and services to its customers in the logistics industry.
Michael Öhman continues: “The Internet of Things goes far beyond connecting machines and devices – we wanted to use it to enhance collaboration by connecting people. Speci cally, we planned to develop an app to support communication between drivers of delivery vehicles and eet owners to help them improve safety and achieve major productivity gains.”
Scania IT decided to build the new application using IBM® MessageSight, an appliance designed to support secure, low-latency messaging in Internet of Things and mobile environments.
“When we were evaluating potential solutions, we saw that IBM MessageSight was well-suited to our requirements, because it features the lightweight MQTT protocol that will enable us to support rapid messaging between millions of users at low cost,” recalls Michael Öhman.
Weather Data for You, for Your Device
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/weather-data-for-you-for-your-device/
Weather is so important, for so many things. Weather predictions can help to tell us how to control our heating, to close the skylight when it’s going to rain, or tell us to get our vehicle under cover when a damaging hailstorm is coming. Now you can get that weather data inline with your device data as part of the device context in IoT Platform.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Devices Send Events over HTTP to IoT Foundation
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/devices-send-events-over-http-to-iot-foundation/
What’s changed?
You now have more choices about how your device communicates with IoT Foundation. When publishing messages to IoT Foundation you can use:
MQTT
MQTT over WebSockets
HTTP – New!
Why might you want to use it?
MQTT is a great protocol for the Internet of Things and offers reliable and lightweight communication. But, as a device developer, sometimes you find you’re constrained by the libraries available in a particular environment, or existing code. Your device might be trapped behind a firewall which only allows communication over port 80.
The widespread availability of HTTP client support means that almost any device can now easily publish data into the Internet of Things Foundation.
IBM Watson IoT Platform
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/ibm-watson-iot-platform/
Some IoT platforms target consumers; others support specific hardware, software or communications solutions. But no single IoT platform provides everything required to cover all use cases. However, the IBM Watson IoT Platform combines essential IoT services with IBM Watson cognitive computing capabilities and offers an open way to integrate devices, gateways, external sources of data and other Internet of Things platforms.
IBM takes an unbiased approach to Internet of Things through an open architecture that is designed to integrate cognitive capabilities with other IoT service providers. IBM encourages developers and engineers to create IoT solutions with innovations to deliver novel solutions for the Cognitive Era.
Three recent, important technology integrations demonstrate the openness of the IBM Watson IoT Platform and how it is now possible to leverage broad IoT ecosystems to deliver new value.
Integrating IBM Internet of Things Foundation with the Jasper Control Center platform
The combination of the Jasper Control Center platform and IBM IoT Foundation is designed to provide enterprises worldwide with advantages such as:
End-to-End IoT deployment: Manage Internet of Things application development, connectivity and service lifecycle from a single dashboard.
Analytics and automation: Leverage Watson’s powerful analytics and cognitive services on your data from the Jasper Control Center platform and optimize your solution by extending Jasper’s automation with additional automation and logic from the IBM IoT Foundation services.
Central visibility and global scale: Monitor a global view of your Internet of Things deployments, and drill down to the details to view device, application and service data from the Jasper Control Center platform, —all from the IBM IoT Foundation dashboard.
Integrating IBM IoT Real-Time Insights with IFTTT and Node-RED
The IBM IoT Real-Time Insights (RTI) team recently added a new action that enables integration with IFTTT, one of the early IoT platforms to capture the imagination of consumers. IFTTT is a web-based service that allows users to automate the Internet of Things. It does so through recipes that power actions across hundreds of connected consumer devices and a plethora of popular web applications such as Box, Google Docs, Slack, Twitter and even Salesforce.com.
In the same announcement, integration of RTI with Node-RED has been extended to combine logic with the right actions in real time.
Node-RED is an open source tool for visually weaving together data flows from devices, external services and application programming interfaces (APIs) to program IoT logic and trigger alerts and actions in other systems. This tool is already widely used in the IoT Foundation
Reshaping Future IoT Applications
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/reshaping-future-iot-applications/
Weather has a major impact on our lives and the economy. It is the single biggest variable in business performance, responsible for half a trillion dollars impact in the US alone every year.
Combining weather data with traditional business data, and data from an unprecedented number of Internet of Things (IoT) enabled systems and devices is fundamentally transforming enterprise decision-making. Combining weather data with other kinds of information—at massive speed and scale that can support an incredible volume of queries at very low latency is an exciting new IoT possibility. I can’t think of a data ingestion use case on the planet we can’t handle for the Internet of Things…very cool. Today, weather sensors are focused on providing weather forecast data; we envision that tomorrow, they could be used for other IoT applications such as smarter cities or utilities. This powerful combination of weather science, data science and technology is what lead to IBM’s relationship with The Weather Company’s global B2B division, WSI, and ultimately, IBM’s acquisition of The Weather Company’s Product and Technology Business.
IoT Engineering Progress
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/iot-engineering-progress/
IoT-generated data is growing twice as fast as social and computer-generated data. It is extremely varied, noisy, time-sensitive and often confidential. This complexity is increasing as billions of devices interact in the world and test the limits of programmable computing.
It is projected that IoT data will yield insights driving potential economic value of as much as $11 trillion by 2025. What’s more, it’s estimated that business-to-business (B2B) users can generate nearly 70 percent of the potential value of the Internet of Things, in large part through operational efficiency gains made possible by initiatives such as smart factories and connected supply chains. The Internet of Things enables informed decisions and, when appropriate, automated actions; the benefits of these can be passed through to consumers, enabling smart healthcare, intuitive vehicles with safety features and connected, personalized homes…the possibilities are almost endless.
Making sense out of this plethora of unstructured, dark and edge data requires a new approach. Cognitive IoT is just such an approach—a way of deciphering IoT data that can handle increasingly large inputs while generating meaningful output.
At IBM InterConnect, Persistent Systems and IBM unveiled our collaboration to pursue a combined Internet of Things strategy and help customers develop solutions on the Watson IoT Platform using the IoT Continuous Engineering solution.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Platform of Platforms in the Internet of Things
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/the-platform-of-platforms-in-the-internet-of-things/
IDC sees transformation happening across five different areas:
Leadership transformation
Omni-experience transformation
Information transformation
Operating model transformation
Workforce transformation
The Internet of Things will be a critical piece of this transformation because it not only allows new business models to emerge but also will enable changes in work processes, productivity improvements, cost containment, and enhanced customer experiences, to name a few.
The Holistic IoT Platform
IDC believes there are five key elements to the IoT platform. The five elements are the following:
Device Management
Connectivity Management
Application Management
Dashboard and Reporting
Analytics
IBM’s Role in the Internet of Things
IBM continues to invest heavily in the Internet of Things and seeks to be that platform of platforms for the IoT market. In April 2015, IBM announced a $3 billion investment over the next four years to deliver IoT solutions and services to its customers — with the focus on efficiently helping create, build, and manage connected products and systems at the heart of the IoT. In December 2015, IBM announced Watson IoT as a means to couple the cognitive analytics that Watson offers with the IoT business opportunity. This further solidifies IBM’s investment in the IoT market
Creating Intelligent Buildings with IoT
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/creating-intelligent-buildings-with-iot/
The Internet of Things (IoT) is going to transform how we work and live in more ways than many of us can imagine. Rapid advances in technology such as cognitive analytics, pervasive connectivity and embedded sensors are transforming every part of business. This transformation is leading to improved operations and lower costs, and engaging and personalized experiences.
We are quickly approaching the day when we will walk into a building and it will become instantly, digitally aware of the environment it needs to create to help make you successful. Buildings and facilities are places we all work, collaborate, build—the IoT is helping buildings to become more than containers, rather places that help occupants increase productivity.
Cognitive buildings may seem futuristic, but there are already leaders that are driving these environmentally aware buildings. Others are using asset tracking and facilities management solutions to transform how they manage buildings. We have had the good fortune to collaborate with several of them to help build and implement cutting-edge solutions that are using the IoT as a catalyst for transformation.
Siemens is combining its existing data analytics capabilities with a suite of IBM software made up primarily of Maximo and Cognos to help drive the future of the digital building by using data from different devices and sensors to enable local intelligence and analytics to help customers achieve their goals.
KONE’s plans to drive further innovation and develop new solutions and services that help make for a smoother, safer and more personalized experience for people as they move around buildings. For instance, new technology means that elevators can be ordered remotely to be waiting ready when needed with information about the destination already programmed. IBM’s open standards based Watson IoT Cloud platform will also enable KONE to open its services via APIs to the vast developer ecosystem fostering the development of new smart building applications by business partners around the world.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wireless Connectivity Design Considerations for the Industrial IoT
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/arrow_electronics/wireless-connectivity-design-considerations-for-the-industrial-iot/
Wireless communications, dominant in consumer electronics for some time now, is quickly making its way into the industrial Internet of Things (IoT). Developers of industrial systems, once freed from the restrictions of cables, are discovering new ways to increase efficiencies and productivity, cut costs and better control processes and equipment. In fact, the only limit on industrial wireless applications appears to be the imagination of developers. Enabled by ultra-low power sensors and wireless communications devices, as well as highly integrated microcontrollers (MCUs), the IoT is quickly spreading throughout traditional industrial markets like factory and building automation, the energy infrastructure, smart lighting, as well as non-industrial markets such as automotive, retail, health care and others.
Going Wireless – It Needs to Be Easy
Integrating wireless connectivity into industrial systems has become vastly easier in recent years as new end-to-end building blocks – low-power sensors, wireless connectivity devices, MCUs, gateways and servers – have been introduced. Industrial system developers now have access to a wide variety of wireless technology with diverse capabilities and varying degrees of integration
Industrial Wireless: One Size Won’t Fit All
Fortunately, a variety of local area wireless connectivity standards with a wide range of capabilities and unique characteristics is available. This is especially beneficial to the developers of industrial systems because industrial applications cover a broad spectrum of use cases and each one has its own set of challenges. Developers are able to select the wireless connectivity technology that best meets the requirements of the application.
For example, the developers of a smart metering system for a utility grid might decide that the longer signaling range of a Sub-1 GHz wireless protocol is best suited to this application. Another design team working on a home automation system could opt for Wi-Fi® because of its compatibility with controlling appliances remotely. Lighting networks might be better suited to ZigBee® for its low power consumption, mesh topology and extensive support ecosystem. 6LoWPAN could be the choice of developers of a factory automation system who see real benefit in implementing a network of nodes with Internet Protocol (IP) addresses. For some systems, the very low power and limited range of near field communication (NFC) and Bluetooth® Smart or a proprietary 2.4-GHz protocol might suffice.
Connectivity to the Cloud and Wired Networks
At some point, most industrial wireless IoT networks usually interface with the cloud and/or traditional industrial wired networks. Cloud connectivity has many advantages, but the first issue to address is where in the local IoT will this connectivity be implemented. Most likely, the IoT will connect to the cloud through one of its upper levels, such as a server or gateway. The gateway or server would aggregate cloud communications from other nodes and transmit over the cloud.
Building a Gateway to the Internet of Things
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/arrow_electronics/building-a-gateway-to-the-internet-of-things/
Connectivity can add great value to many embedded applications. In industrial systems for example, end equipment can communicate with remote sensors, other end equipment, and a centralized management console to improve reliability and productivity. Extending connectivity beyond the LAN out to the WAN is often referred to as the Internet of Things (IoT) or the Internet of Everything (IoE). For many applications, attaching devices to the IoT cloud provides additional benefits to the entire ecosystem – end customers, service providers and equipment OEMs.
The IoT includes not just new devices specifically designed for IoT compatibility but also systems already in place today and operate outside of the IoT cloud. However, the path to creating a ubiquitous cloud of interconnected devices requires a means for devices which are not IP-based to connect without having to bear the cost of a full Ethernet or Wi-Fi interface with accompanying protocol stack. This can be achieved through the use of gateways to bridge these devices to the Internet in the context of real-world applications. In addition, adding intelligent and embedded control to gateways can simplify IoT device design by providing access to shared processing resources.
Many strides have been made in advancing IoT technology in industrial applications because of the value gained in connecting end equipment for automation, system reliability and centralized management.
Gateways offer an elegant means for simplifying the networking of “things.” They achieve this by supporting the different ways nodes natively connect, whether this is a varying voltage from a raw sensor, a stream of data over I2C from an encoder, or periodic updates from an appliance via Bluetooth®. Gateways effectively mitigate the great variety and diversity of devices by consolidating data from disparate sources and interfaces and bridging them to the Internet. The result is individual nodes don’t need to bear the complexity or cost of a high-speed Internet interface in order to be connected.
There are several ways that an IoT gateway can extend connectivity to nodes. (a) Nodes connect to the IoT via a gateway using a less expensive and less complex wired or wireless PAN technology. (b) Nodes connect directly to the Internet using a WAN connection such as Wi-Fi or Ethernet. (c) Nodes connect indirectly to the Internet using a PAN connection such as 6LoWPAN.
Ideally, OEMs need an uncomplicated way to introduce connectivity to both new and existing designs.
Embedding Internet connectivity is more than just a trend. The IoT is quickly reaching beyond niche industrial and medical applications into every market utilizing electronics.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Top Internet of Things Trends for 2016
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/top-internet-of-things-trends-for-2016/
http://www.ibmbigdatahub.com/blog/top-internet-things-trends-2016
2015 proved to be a year of tremendous growth for the Internet of Things (IoT), and we saw many IoT opportunities become reality in 2015. Because businesses are realizing that IoT capabilities are a must, I expect 2016 to be the year the IoT becomes expansive and in which many businesses move from interest in it to implementation of its solutions.
Blockchain
Why is everyone so interested in a blockchain, and what does that interest mean for the Internet of Things? A blockchain is beginning to play a major part in the Internet of Things by enhancing security, enabling inclusion of low-value devices to be increasingly viable and making managing a device easier for decades to come.
Application programming interfaces
The Internet of Things is the killer app for cloud, especially for hybrid clouds that are emerging as the primary model for the Internet of Things. As a result, application programming interfaces (APIs) and a sound strategy around them is becoming increasingly important to enterprises. APIs serve as a bridge to connect useful information and plentiful data to the Internet of Things, making the Internet of Things useful by connecting many disparate things into a powerful network that offers astounding possibilities.
Cognitive Internet of Things
Data from outside the device is the way enterprises can differentiate themselves. Think language, social data and weather data. Capturing and analyzing this type of data in context can unlock new possibilities for businesses.
In 2015, clearly a new approach was required for making use of the plethora of unstructured Internet of Things data. The cognitive Internet of Things is just such an approach—a way of deciphering IoT data that can effectively handle increasingly large inputs while generating meaningful output.
Focusing on the intelligence behind the data
2016 will be a year in which enterprises focus on making the best use of big data from connected devices, and I expect cognitive computing to emerge as the most practical way to do so.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Start Your Day the Arduino Way with this IoT Shower Controller
http://hackaday.com/2016/03/04/start-your-day-the-arduino-way-with-this-iot-shower-controller/
No longer content with adding value to the thermostat in the hallway or making your fridge smarter than it should be, IoT vendors are pushing into the inner sanctum of homes, the holy of holies – the bathroom. Sure, you can spend big bucks on an electronically controlled valve to turn your shower into a remote-controlled spa that shares your bathing habits with the cloud, but if you’re on a more modest budget and have the hacker spirit, you might want to check out this DIY automated shower valve with IoT features.
Arduino IoT Shower
Connected, Automated and Efficent Existing Archaic Shower
https://hackaday.io/project/9882-arduino-iot-shower
Here, we have sympathetically married abundantly common pre-existing shower valves with the yet to be released Arduino MKR1000 to create an automated, connected and subsequently more efficient bathing experience.
Through either the Windows 10 or Android application, you may preset an optimal temperature and begin the shower. The MKR1000 will then monitor and regulate the temperature and shower valve to create a luxurious escapade in your dirt ass poor bath room.
Tomi Engdahl says:
IoT lacking that je ne sais quoi? Try the IoTSP
When a networked toaster just isn’t enough
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/02/05/iotsp/
You know how it is – you’ve hooked up a networked drone-sensing doorbell, Java-enabled remote control toaster and Bluetooth toothbrush, and can now determine the degree of browning of your morning slice via smartphone app from the other side of the kitchen, while commanding Smartbrush™ to order extra teeth-whitening paste for automated UAV delivery once your teeth fall below a predetermined level of brightness, but you’re still missing that certain interconnected je ne sais quoi.
Well, for when the IoT just doesn’t measure up, try pushing the envelope and the acronym with the Internet of Things, Services and People (IoTSP) – a paradigm-redefining concept from “global leader in power and automation technologies” ABB.
ABB – The Internet of Things, Services and People (IoTSP)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BouuzptOKPY
Tomi Engdahl says:
Finland: Tampere became interested in the IoT traffic
Tampere intends to pilot an information technology company CGI with IOT and cloud services in the development of intelligent transport. Through a set of modes of transport would be collected pilots real-time sensor information on the progress of traffic and driving conditions.
CGI compile the City of Tampere intelligent transport on the basis of the overall picture of IoT structures. New methods will be tested in practical pilots, collecting experiences on new ways to gather real-time information about the road network.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2016/03/07/tampere-kiinnostui-iot-liikenteesta/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Devices Send Events over HTTP to IoT Foundation
http://www.eeweb.com/company-blog/ibm/devices-send-events-over-http-to-iot-foundation/
You now have more choices about how your device communicates with IoT Foundation. When publishing messages to IoT Foundation you can use:
MQTT
MQTT over WebSockets
HTTP – New!
Why might you want to use it?
MQTT is a great protocol for the Internet of Things and offers reliable and lightweight communication. But, as a device developer, sometimes you find you’re constrained by the libraries available in a particular environment, or existing code. Your device might be trapped behind a firewall which only allows communication over port 80.
The widespread availability of HTTP client support means that almost any device can now easily publish data into the Internet of Things Foundation.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mozilla tests the waters for Firefox OS IoT apps, including a Samantha-style virtual assistant
http://techcrunch.com/2016/03/02/mozilla-tests-the-waters-for-firefox-os-iot-apps-including-a-samantha-style-virtual-assistant/
Back in December, Mozilla called it a day with its failed Firefox OS for mobile business, and said it would pivot the technology into a new Internet of Things strategy. Amid a good dose of skepticism that a platform (and organization) that failed in one area can succeed in another that is arguably even more complex, Mozilla has laid out the first projects in its IoT shortlist. Get ready for an intelligent “personal user agent”, a smart home initiative, a crowdsourced network based on sensors and a voice interface for IoT devices.
Mozilla also says it is now looking for community members to help develop and test in each of the areas
Tomi Engdahl says:
Analog Devices Unveil Energy Harvesting PMU for IoT
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1329092&
To address the scarcity of energy in IoT applications, Analog Devices has unveiled a power management unity (PMU) for efficient energy harvesting.
The PMU, called ADP509x converts harvested power down to the 16μW to 100mW range with sub-μW operation losses.
The ADP509x also delivers a fast cold-start-up time. Devices relying on energy harvesting in low energy conditions often have to slowly accumulate enough energy to turn on, resulting in long delays before the device can start sensing, processing, and transmitting. This can result in missed data collection, slow operation, and poor user experience. The PMU solves these problems with a multiple-power-path design, which enables fast start-ups and smooth operation.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The IoT Library: Wireless Sensor Networks Tuned for Big Data Collection
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=31&doc_id=1329069&
Wireless sensors used in sports broadcasts, for one example, are giving us more data to play with.
Wireless sensors are hot, especially low-power, three-axis accelerometers and high-performance gyroscopes—the kind found in drones and mobile camera modules, smartphones, mobile communication and gaming device, augmented reality systems, virtual reality, image stabilization, and industrial measurement applications.
Sensors can perform tiny, discrete sensing and measurement functions or they can be networked together to create an intelligent, big data approach to things like dynamic motion analysis.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The aim of Project Sensor Web, meanwhile, is to create a network of sensors that can supply crowdsourced data that would be accessible by everyone, rather than proprietary.
Connected Devices/Projects/SensorWeb
https://wiki.mozilla.org/Sensor_Web
SensorWeb wants to advance Mozilla’s mission to promote the open web when it evolves to the physical world. It aims to find the easiest path from sensors to open data so contributors can collaboratively use sensors to get great detail of understanding their living environment. We are launching a pilot project to build a crowdsourcing pm2.5 sensor network.
SensorWeb is a blueprint to enable many hyper local uses cases and make sure everyone gets to access that data. It can be the real-time air quality of their neighboring street, the current wait time at their favorite cafe, water quality from rivers close to the village, etc.
Today, we all use the web to access information generated by people. SensorWeb envisions a future of web that everyone freely shares and accesses real-time sensor data for better understanding of our living environment.
Pilot project
We are working on a pilot project to build a crowdsourced PM2.5 air pollution sensor network. PM2.5 air pollution is a growing problem that affects many parts of the world. Government around the world are asked to publish open data of PM2.5 index from their monitoring stations. However, government and companies can only set up so many stations.
http://www3.epa.gov/pmdesignations/faq.htm#0
Tomi Engdahl says:
PlatformIO
https://hackaday.io/project/7980-platformio
PlatformIO is an open source ecosystem for IoT development
(Cross-platform code builder. Continuous and IDE integration. Arduino and MBED)
PlatformIO.org is an open source ecosystem for IoT development. Cross-platform build system and library manager. Continuous and IDE integration. Arduino and MBED compatible. Ready for Cloud compiling.
Supported development platforms: Atmel AVR & SAM, Espressif, Freescale Kinetis, Nordic nRF51, NXP LPC, Silicon Labs EFM32, ST STM32, TI MSP430 & Tiva, Teensy, Arduino, mbed, libOpenCM3, etc.
While PlatformIO.org itself is a console application, it can be used in combination with one’s favourite IDE Integration or text editor such as Arduino, Atom, CLion, Eclipse, Qt Creator, Sublime Text, VIM, Visual Studio, etc.
http://platformio.org/#!/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Advanced IoT network
Secure world wide network of interconnected devices
https://hackaday.io/project/7342-advanced-iot-network
Network of sensors and other interconnected devices using MQTT protocol. Project offers open source and secure solution for smart homes, data logging or automation.
Network is designed to span over many locations, each with its own local MQTT broker.
MQTT implement client authentication based on username/password, but credentials are sent in plaintext only. This is reasonable because small devices, like Arduino, doesn’t have enough resources to implement SSL encryption. For that reason, endpoint devices establish a connection with local broker with no encryption and must be placed in secure perimeter.
Local broker is more powerful device, capable of encrypted connection to central broker. Central broker is used to allow data exchange between multiple local brokers and for collecting and analyzing data.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Teardown: Amazon Dash Button keeps you connected
http://www.edn.com/design/consumer/4441569/Teardown–Amazon-Dash-Button-is-the-ultimate-in-consumer-convenience?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_consumerelectronics_20160309&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_consumerelectronics_20160309&elqTrackId=c6b2f63c0ec04158b438b0553c634a71&elq=435b35b9d62546759201b438adfd6f2c&elqaid=31218&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27293
Amazon’s Dash Button, which I previously mentioned back in late May 2015, is the ultimate in consumer convenience (or, if you prefer, consumerism gone crazy). Simply press a button on the inconspicuous adhesive-backed device (perfect for attaching to your washer and dryer, refrigerator, counter, or cabinet), and your Amazon account is charged for the purchase while the corresponding product gets automatically ordered and shipped to you.
Initially unveiled on April 1, 2015 (therefore explaining why I at first thought the announcement was an April Fools’ joke from the company), they cost only $4.99, and Amazon more recently announced that it’d even refund the purchase price after your first associated-consumable order.
Somewhat surprisingly, the battery is welded to its associated positive and negative terminals, dooming the device it powers to a finite-duration lifetime, since the battery’s also not rechargeable
It’s an InvenSense INMP441 MEMS microphone, actually. Recall that the Dash Button requires connection to an owner’s Wi-Fi network, but there’s no wired Ethernet port alternatively available to send initial configuration data to it. One alternative means of accomplishing this objective, as is also done with products such as the Google Chromecast and Belkin’s WeMo switch, involves the device initially broadcasting a wireless network with SSID “Amazon ConfigureMe,” to which the Android version of the Amazon Shopping app connects. At that point, accessing the Dash Button’s built-in Web server at 192.168.0.1 enables entry of the remaining setup parameters.
The other configuration option is pretty (albeit not completely) unique, and leveraged by the iOS version of Amazon’s configuration app (the reasons for the operating systems’ setup discrepancy are unclear to me; perhaps Apple doesn’t give Amazon sufficient low-level access to accomplish an Android-like Wi-Fi hotspot scheme). In this case, setup parameters are sent via ultrasound from the smartphone or tablet to the Amazon Dash, using the former device’s speaker and the latter device’s aforementioned MEMS microphone.
Micron Technology M25P16 16 Mbit SPI serial interface flash memory.
BCM43362 2.4 GHz 802.11b/g/n Wi-Fi module
STMicroelectronics STM32F205 microcontroller
More generally, the Amazon Dash appears to be based on a Broadcom WICED (Wireless Internet Connectivity for Embedded Devices) reference design module.
http://www.broadcom.com/application/internet_of_things.php
Tomi Engdahl says:
Home> Tools & Learning> Products> Product Brief
Power-stingy RF transceiver covers ISM band
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4441564/Power-stingy-RF-transceiver-covers-ISM-band?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160307&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20160307&elqTrackId=7558cdad65654deab479be3f8299980e&elq=3e84ffd54ab14e57a0fedaa09d8fc430&elqaid=31195&elqat=1&elqCampaignId=27267
perating over the unlicensed ISM frequency band between 779 MHz and 965 MHz, the ZL70550 RF transceiver from Microsemi boasts best-in-class low-power characteristics. The device consumes only 2.8 mA while transmitting at an output power of -10 dBm and a similar 2.5 mA during reception. Its sleep-state current of just 10 nA makes it well-suited for low-duty-cycle applications.
The ZL70550 can be used for wireless applications operating on coin-cell batteries or energy harvesters, such as electronic shelf labels, retail asset tracking, process control, wearable monitoring, and medical diagnostics. Working from a supply voltage of 1.7 V to 3.6 V, the ZL70550 offers variable output power and data rates of up to 200 kbps
Tomi Engdahl says:
“Is not anyone at home Ok, I turn off the faucets and turn off the lights?” – Intellectuals new IoT solution
Simple IoT solution BiiHome protect homes from evil harm. The Finnish company BaseN announced BiiHome a couple of weeks ago in Barcelona’s mobile event in conjunction with the start-up company BiiSafen.
Based on a smartphone and a small radio device
BiiHome based on a simple radio-beacon device and smartphones. It monitors via smartphone, whether in an apartment or even a small business state of people or not.
“This will examine only whether the residents of phones out of the state or not”, says Vitikainen.
on the basis of the presence information to contact the property BiiHome technique to master, but the cloud. This in turn gives the order, for example, turn off the lights, close the taps turned on or left off the stove. And accordingly, when residents arrive back, BiiHome can raise the temperature of the apartment.
Source: http://www.tivi.fi/Kaikki_uutiset/eiko-ketaan-ole-kotona-ok-suljen-hanat-ja-sammutan-valot-alykotiin-uusi-iot-ratkaisu-6373876
Tomi Engdahl says:
IoT objects in the world’s smallest module
Future Internet of Things requires cloud services in addition to solutions for smaller electronics devices. Now NXP has packaged the necessary elements for a very small 17 x 14 x 1.7 millimeters a circuit module.
American Dutch-NXP SCM system modules (SCM) are directed to products which require the addition to the small dimensions of the high processing power and functionality. The application area is that many will come IoT solutions.
Very small structure is suitable, for example, VR glasses and other wearable electronics devices, as well as medical and industrial solutions.
6Dual and i.MX 6Quad - in addition to the application processor system modules, the power management portion of memory and related activities.
Source: http://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2016/03/09/esineisiin-maailman-pienin-iot-moduuli/
More: http://www.nxp.com/products/single-chip-modules:SINGLE-CHIP-MODULE?tid=vanSCM
Tomi Engdahl says:
PlatformIO is an open source ecosystem for IoT development
Cross-platform build system. Continuous and IDE integration. Arduino and MBED compatible
http://platformio.org/#!/
The next generation integrated development environment for IoT.
C/C++ Intelligent code completion and Smart code linter with Built-in Terminal and Serial Monitor.
PlatformIO IDE for IoT development
PlatformIO IDE is the next generation integrated development environment for IoT:
Cross-platform build system without external dependencies to the OS software: 200+ embedded boards, 15+ development platforms, 10+ frameworks
C/C++ Intelligent Code Completion and Smart Code Linter for rapid professional development
Multi-projects workflow with multiple panes and Themes support with dark and light colors
Built-in Terminal with PlatformIO CLI tool and powerful Serial Port Monitor
Use whenever. Run everywhere.
PlatformIO is written in pure Python and doesn’t depend on any additional libraries/tools from an operation system. It allows you to use PlatformIO beginning from PC and ending with credit-card sized computers (like Raspberry Pi, BeagleBone, CubieBoard)
PlatformIO allows developer to compile the same code with different development platforms using the Only One Command platformio run. This happens due to Project Configuration File (platformio.ini) where you can setup different environments with specific options (platform type, firmware uploading settings, pre-built framework, build flags and many more).
Tomi Engdahl says:
F5 adds 100 Gbps blade to VIPRION range
IoT: not always lots of traffic but plenty of signalling
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2016/03/10/f5_adds_100_gbps_blade_to_viprion_range/
F5 Networks has added a 100 Gbps Ethernet blade to its eight-blade chassis range, targeting 4G and future 5G network deployments, along with high performance DDoS mitigation.
The specs for the blade are straightforward: two 100 Gbps Ethernet ports and six 40 Gbps Ethernet ports, and claimed support for more than a billion concurrent connections.
To try and put the performance into a useful context, The Register asked F5′s Robert Pizzari why Internet of Things and M2M applications are seen as demanding high performance.
“In 2G and 3G, the main signalling protocol was SS7,” Pizzari said, “whereas in the move to LTE and 4G, the signalling control plane moves to a protocol called DIAMETER.”
He says one of the first things the industry discovered in that shift is that there are a lot more interactions that generate signalling events.
A 2G or 3G voice call, for example, produces just one signalling event in each direction; in the all-IP LTE/4G world, interactions between applications, handsets, and sessions produce signalling traffic
Even though their data needs will often be modest, Internet of Things and M2M devices and applications will have the same effect on the network’s signalling requirements.