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- Ubiquitous IoT in a Single Solution and Device
- Utilities, Asset Management and Marinas
- Building the Hybrid Solution
Technology companies Senet and UnaBiz have joined forces to provide a more universal low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) solution that leverages UnaBiz’s devices and software platform, along with Senet’s LoRaWAN network connectivity. With the partnership, global businesses that have traditionally been used in other parts of the world with Sigfox connectivity can begin deploying IoT solutions with Senet-based connectivity in North America.
There are few Sigfox networks available in the United States, if any. LPWAN is a type of wireless telecommunications for long-range transmissions at low power, and the protocols incorporated within LPWAN include Sigfox, LoRaWAN, NB-IoT and 4G LTE-M. Each protocol has a greater presence in some parts of the world than others. UnaBiz says its partnership with Senet aligns with its Internet of Things (IoT) convergence strategy, enabling what it calls “massive IoT,” according to Henri Bong, UnaBiz’s CEO and co-founder. “We believe in a unified LPWAN world,” he says, in which the IoT networks across all continents can be made compatible.
The collaboration will bring LPWAN solutions to North America.
“The partnership with Senet,” Bong explains, “is the first step toward network roaming among LPWAN operators, including LoRaWAN.” UnaBiz is focused on leveraging Senet’s presence in North America, covering major cities, as well as its partnership with IoT networks company Helium. The goal for UnaBiz, according to Bong, is to provide its technology to users anywhere around the world, with LoRaWAN among the protocols built into its devices. “There is no reason to reinvent the wheel or compete with [Senet], not to mention it would be a waste of resources.”
“By leveraging each other’s strengths,” Bong adds, “we can bring both freedom and choice to our customers, enabling them to adopt IoT solutions and scale in the most cost- and resources-efficient manner.” While the partnership allows UnaBiz to expand its addressable market into North America, attracting new customers, he says the company also hopes to enable existing customers to scale throughout North America with hybrid solutions and platforms.
Ubiquitous IoT in a Single Solution and Device
UnaBiz is a Sigfox operator headquartered in Singapore and Taiwan, with a presence across Asia and Europe. In 2022, the company purchased Sigfox after the French company filed for insolvency in January of that year (see IoT Network Provider Sigfox, with Bankruptcy Protection, Seeks Buyers and IoT Company UnaBiz Appointed New Sigfox Owner). UnaBiz’s software platform and devices enable providers to build a variety of solutions for IoT sensors, using LPWAN based on the Sigfox protocol.
Henri Bong
Senet and UnaBiz hope now to be more technology-agnostic, says Bruce Chatterley, Senet’s CEO, with a focus on solving customers’ problems and creating the platforms and integration capabilities required to address them. The wireless protocol, he says, remains as transparent as possible. UnaBiz maintains more than 70 networks, Chatterley notes, with some global customers who could expand their deployments into North America. Although IoT networks are being used throughout the United States, Sigfox has limited presence in that country.
Primarily, Chatterley says, LoRaWAN is the technology of choice, and Senet serves that audience. A ubiquitous solution and device that can leverage both Sigfox and LoRaWAN would require a couple of features, he adds. The first is interoperability with a cloud-based software platform from UnaBiz that would be integrated with Senet’s network. UnaBiz’s software platform manages all data for its customers, while Senet’s clients will use Senet’s platform.
When devices are registered and activated for one platform, they can flow through to the other. That means the same device could be used within range of Sigfox or LoRaWAN networks, and it would automatically connect with the gateway that is present. UnaBiz offers a device with a Sigfox chip and a Semtech LoRaWAN integrated circuit, which has the ability to automatically activate based on where the device is located. The device could leverage satellite-based LoRaWAN connectivity as well.
Senet recently announced a satellite partnership with Eutelsat Communications, which has been building a network of satellites that can transmit signals to terrestrial devices via LoRaWAN. In addition, Senet has partnered with TrakAssure and Wyld Networks, which provide firmware that, according to Chatterley, “allows you to basically switch between terrestrial and satellite, depending on network availability,” whether users employ satellites or land-based gateways.
Utilities, Asset Management and Marinas
There are several applications that Senet and UnaBiz plan to initially target. These include sensor devices for energy management at utilities, the tracking of high-value mobile assets, and marina management. In the case of utilities, some companies are seeking a solution by which an IoT-based sensor device would hang between two electric poles on an electric line. The sensor would detect the electromagnetic field going down the line, as well as when that energy stopped. Such a sensor could potentially detect if a pole tilted. Either incident could trigger the device to transmit an alert to the server, warning utility operators.
Bruce Chatterley
Chatterley says there are 180 million utility poles in the United States alone, many located in rural areas where most wireless networks would be unavailable. With the UnaBiz-Senet solution, he says, the device could detect whether there was a terrestrial, gateway-based LoRaWAN network or satellites present, then transmit accordingly. Another application for which the technology is expected to be deployed is asset tracking. Mobile high-value assets could be located wherever they travel, using whatever network is available.
A third application, which could be deployed in the coming months, addresses marina management. In this scenario, devices with sensors could detect which boats are in a marina, as well as when they leave, and track environmental conditions such as humidity, the presence of smoke, or if someone has opened a door, for security purposes. Most such deployments, Chatterley says, would either be new opportunities originating in the United States or expanding into the country from elsewhere.
Senet’s platform provides device management within a local network, while offering lifecycle management as well. With a typical deployment, an application provider would be able to register devices in one part of the world, whether they serve a Senet customer going internationally (where Sigfox is predominant) or a Sigfox customer working domestically in the United States.
Building the Hybrid Solution
Senet can support provisioning, activation and management of UnaBiz devices when they are used within LoRaWAN networks. That hybrid capability will be important for some international customers looking to expand solutions into the United States or North America, Chatterley says. “There are now multiple opportunities coming in because of this announcement,” he explains, “where people are saying ‘Oh, I didn’t know I could have had a network in the U.S.'”
For IoT companies, Chatterley adds, the partnership makes expansion easier for customers, while for Senet, he says, “The best way to scale a new application is to find one that’s already been deployed elsewhere,” such as in Europe or Asia (through UnaBiz). “You don’t have to go through the development and operational cycle,” which would be required with a new solution and could take months or years to complete. “One of the benefits to us is that they’re bringing tried and true applications that have been deployed elsewhere than the U.S., and there’s really no startup time.”
Another benefit, Chatterley notes, is that the Senet platform will be able to expand into other countries more seamlessly where Sigfox technology is used. Devices could also be deployed in a hybrid fashion, using a LoRaWAN public network in some areas and possibly private LoRaWAN or Sigfox gateways in others. With the Senet-UnaBiz solution, connectivity and device management could be enabled on Senet’s platform, but if a device were registered through the UnaBiz-Sigfox platform, that functionality would also be integrated, without requiring a different interface.
“You have a transparent experience from the UnaBiz side all the way through to the Senet side,” Chatterley states. Senet is currently conducting internal technical testing and engaging with potential customers, especially in the three key applications. Later this summer, the companies expect to see deployments within those categories. Ultimately, Bong says, there are financial gains for customers. “The long game,” he states, “is to offer better solutions to our customers at even lower prices.”
Senet recently announced a partnership with IoT technology company Heath Consultants to develop a LoRaWAN based solution for methane gas leak detection for utility service providers. Health Consultants and Senet have partnered with New Cosmos Electric to provide the technology in its residential gas alarms. The solution for in-building and outside environments is now being tested in field trials.
Key Takeaways:
- The partnership of UnaBiz and Senet will bring Sigfox and LoRaWAN connectivity together into a single sensor device so that data can be collected using either protocol.
- The applications initially being targeted include electricity tracking, asset management and marina sensor-based data.