The following are news announcements made during the past week:
PRESS RELEASE:
Florida City Improves Flood-Prevention Capabilities with Sensus IoT Technology
For scientists at the City of Lakeland, Florida, manually monitoring lake levels to prevent flooding is a time-consuming, resource-draining task, especially during the nearly four-month rainy season.
“Maintaining balanced water levels is critical to avoid flooding in residential areas and conserve enough water for the dry season,” said Laurie Smith, manager of the City of Lakeland’s Lakes and Stormwater Division. “Our technician has to drive back and forth between 11 lakes and make sure the levels don’t get too high.”
The city’s staff knew they needed a better way to monitor water levels, and turned to Sensus, a Xylem brand, to make this goal a reality using innovative Internet-of-Things (IoT) technology. Offering unprecedented capabilities for advanced connectivity, IoT has municipalities and communities rethinking the potential for using existing and future investments in technology–such as the FlexNet communication network–to improve the lives of the citizens they serve.
A long-time Sensus customer, the Lakeland team leveraged their investment in the FlexNet system to create remote water monitoring stations at two lakes using the Sensus Smart Gateway sensor interface.
“Our FlexNet system had all we needed to build a remote monitoring solution, allowing us to reap tremendous cost savings from not having to implement new infrastructure,” said Smith.
With Smart Gateway and the FlexNet system, the City of Lakeland’s scientists are now able to collect water level data remotely in real time. Technicians can identify when lakes are at risk for flooding and drive directly to the affected lakes to open or close the installed flood control structures, saving time and operational costs.
“Initially, we weren’t sure if the solution was going to be accurate enough, but it exceeded our expectations,” said Smith. “We also appreciate how easy it was to use. We’re lake scientists, not technology people, and we’ve been able to quickly and seamlessly use the technology to improve our monitoring capabilities.”
With the successful pilot of the solution at two of the city’s lakes, the team now looks forward to deploying remote monitoring at the remaining nine lakes.
“The monitoring process used to take up the majority of our technician’s time during the work week, but now that time has been reduced dramatically,” said Smith. “We’re extremely pleased with the results of the pilot and are looking forward to having this system installed at all our lakes.”
PRESS RELEASE:
Taoglas Launches Low-Profile, Compact Multi-Antenna Connected Car Reference Design
Taoglas, a leading provider of automotive, IoT and GNSS antenna products, today announced the launch of Axiom, a reference design for a low-profile, compact multiple-antenna solution for the next generation of Connected Cars. The reference design will help automobile manufacturers overcome one of the biggest challenges of the Connected Car: where and how to place the multitude of antennas needed for maximum performance.
As many as 18 antennas are needed to power the next-generation Connected Car. This includes multiple cellular antennas for network connectivity; Wi-Fi for hotspot connectivity; GNSS for navigation, emergency call systems and other location-based technologies; satellite radio; AM/FM antennas; radar antennas for object detection; Bluetooth antennas for smartphones and other devices, and dedicated short-range communications (DSRC) antennas for vehicle-to-vehicle/infrastructure applications.
Locating these antennas in a vehicle in close proximity to each other and additional electronics systems while minimizing interference and maximizing performance is extremely challenging from a design and RF performance perspective.
Manufacturers also need to take into consideration both ease of installation and assembly, and antenna size to determine how they would best work with the vehicle’s aesthetics. Taoglas has worked with the automotive industry for more than a decade, providing antenna solutions to many of the major tier 1 automobile OEMs across the globe. The Axiom reference design incorporates Taoglas’ wealth of knowledge and expertise gained over the years into a roadmap to help automobile manufacturers more quickly advance antenna configurations that work for their particular make and model.
“Getting that many antennas to work efficiently in a small space at a competitive cost is the number one challenge for the RF teams of automobile manufacturers,” said Dermot O’Shea, co-CEO of Taoglas. “While every car manufacturer will require a slightly different solution, having a multi-antenna reference design to work from allows them to see what they can do in terms of placement and size, and how that impacts performance—all without waiting months for a custom solution to test.
They can take the prototype and test it in the field to prove out concepts. Using Taoglas’ Axiom reference design allows them move more quickly to market with solutions that work. We can also work with Tier 1 OEMs to integrate the elements of the Axiom antenna reference design quickly and efficiently directly onto the board of their telematic control units, achieving highest radiated power and sensitivity, while minimizing project time, cost and size, all in one single package.”
Taoglas’ Axiom reference design has integrated nine antennas, including:
• LTE Antennas: Four LTE antennas, each operating from 698MHz to 6GHz to fully cover LTE worldwide application bands
• Wi-Fi Antennas: Two Wi-Fi elements, supporting both 2.4GHz and 5.8GHz bands for Wireless Local Area Network
• GNSS Antenna: An active GNSS element to support GPS, Glonass and Beidou navigation systems. L1/L2 options available.
• SDARS Antenna: One SDARS element to support satellite radio applications.
• DSRC Antenna: One DSRC element, which supports V2V/V2X dedicated short range communication.
Taoglas’ advantage is its ability to integrate all of the antennas required for the Connected Car in a confined space and maintain maximum performance. The Axiom reference design uses a compact PCB all with SMT-mounted components, and also incorporates a unique board-to-board connector option, allowing the antennas and electronics systems to coexist in a single space inside the vehicle, with no RF cables or additional connectors required.
The Axiom reference design also helps auto manufacturers simplify manufacturing and assembly, with surface-mount solutions that feature the temperature and vibration resistance with the quality standards that manufacturers require. Installation is simply clipping the PCB into the telematics board.
PRESS RELEASE:
Avnet Announces Distribution Agreement with UbiquiOS Technology Ltd.
Avnet, a leading global technology distributor, and UbiquiOS™ Technology Limited, a leading provider of hardware-agnostic, wireless connectivity software, today announced a new distribution agreement that expands Avnet’s franchise rights with UbiquiOS to include the Americas. Effective immediately, Avnet willoffer UbiquiOS’s integrated stack to customers in the Americas as well as Europe, accelerating the development of IoT-enabled devices and systems.
Built on open standards/protocols to support end-to-end IoT applications across a wide array of functions and applications, UbiquiOS is a compact and secure embedded software platform that provides a complete connectivity solution from device driver to application layer. UbiquiOS provides powerful APIs for common system functionalities such as memory management, device configuration and provisioning, and network protocol implementations.
“IoT development occurs across a wide base of engineers from entrepreneurs to established corporations. The combination of UbiquiOS accelerating wireless product development and Avnet’s unique ability to overcome issues of scale and time-to-market pressures faced by customers will improve IoT project success,” said Martin Riegel, CEO, UbiquiOS.
UbiquiOS recently teamed with Trusted Objects and Avnet Silica to design a Transport Layer Security (TLS) solution that provides end-to-end sensor-to-server security to billions of sensors. Adding support for the Trusted Objects’ microcontroller-based TO136 Secure Element and Avnet Silica’s server APIs for gateway/sensor provisioning gives developers using the UbiquiOS low-resource stack the ability to interface wirelessly to IoT devices with confidence that their systems are protected against system, network or data cyber intrusion.
“Security has been the top priority, and greatest challenge, for developers of IoT-enabled systems. The UbiquiOS stack offers customers a powerful, integrated security solution, without limiting designers’ choice of MCU, wireless chipset, cloud platform or development environment,” said Alex Iuorio, senior vice president, supplier development, Avnet. “Avnet’s Silica group has had great success with this line in Europe, and we look forward to the opportunity to help our customers in the Americas achieve faster time to revenue with this flexible connectivity platform.”
PRESS RELEASE:
Pernod Ricard Appoints Global Internet of Things Agency
Pernod Ricard has announced SharpEnd, the world’s first agency dedicated to helping consumer brands embrace the Internet of Things, as a global agency partner. This is the first time an FMCG company has appointed an Internet of Things agency.
The new appointment will see SharpEnd tasked with helping to direct the group’s focus with a series of more centrally-developed initiatives. From implementing IoT in activation processes, to initiating global IoT product partnerships and overseeing some of the platforms and services.
The move helps to cement Pernod Ricard’s position as a drinks brand owner leading the way in technology innovation to enhance consumer experiences. The partnership also represents how far SharpEnd has come in carving out a new segment within the marketing industry.
SharpEnd began working with Pernod Ricard via The Absolut Company, delivering projects such as the largest global trial of NFC (Near-field communication) with Malibu, before also supporting Irish Distillers on their Limited Edition Jameson bottle for 2017. A key goal for the partnership with SharpEnd is to scale the processes, partnerships and learning’s that emerge from innovative new trials of technology.
Antonia McCahon – Global Digital Acceleration Director, Pernod Ricard, speaking on the announcement: “Pernod Ricard wants to be a catalyst for great moments of conviviality and we are seeing how new technologies, such as the Internet of Things, can be key here. Our partnership with SharpEnd is focused on looking at how we augment these moments for consumers, and ensure our brands stay ahead of the curve through great consumer experience.”
Cameron Worth, founder of SharpEnd, the UK’s first Internet of Things agency, comments: “The escalation to becoming a global innovation partner focused on the IoT further validates the need for brands to work with specialist agencies in this field. Demonstrating our value proposition firstly with The Absolut Company, and then gradually working across more projects, brands and markets to now working at a global level is a real success for us here at SharpEnd.
“Much like when digital, social and mobile all landed there was a defined need for specialist agencies and this first of its kind partnership between an IoT agency and a leading consumer brand owner is a sign of things to come.”
PRESS RELEASE:
Northern Apex Releases Internet of Things Hardware Platform Family
Northern Apex has released a family of Internet of Things (IoT) hardware platforms. “The IoT Tech Control Platforms are designed to give control of IoT networks at the edge, which follows a trending shift in IoT system design. This allows real-time data processing and saves on overall bandwidth,” Said Kevin Knuth, Business Development Manager for Northern Apex. “Industry 4.0 is a game changer for companies that need quick access to information to make critical business decisions daily. A well deployed IoT system allows companies to reduce waste and increase efficiency and profits.”
Northern Apex also offers Industry 4.0/IoT system design, sensors, and custom software for IoT solutions “Northern Apex specializes not only in new solutions but in updating legacy equipment to work in the IoT landscape-often referred to as ‘Brownfield IoT’. Our approach adds IoT capabilities to existing equipment, so you leverage your previous investments, and still take advantage of new technology,” said Knuth.
The IoT Tech Control Platforms comes in three different configurations to allow for flexibility. The IoT Tech 200, 300 and 500 have unique features depending on your needs. For information about these platforms please visit http://www.northernapex.com/industry-4.0-internet-of-things-control-platforms.htm
Northern Apex, based in Fort Wayne, Indiana, has been offering solutions to companies across North America since 1998 helping companies take advantage of Industry 4.0 technology.
PRESS RELEASE:
Notion Raises $10 Million to Take Smart-Home Awareness Mainstream
Notion, the complete home awareness solution powered by an all-in-one IoT smart home sensor, today announced that it has secured $10 million in Series A funding. Led by Draper Nexus and TransLink Capital, with additional participation from existing investors XL Innovate, Mesh VC and others, the latest round brings Notion’s total funding to approximately $15 million since its launch in 2013.
Notion, which has partnered with three of the top five home insurance providers in the country to offer a cost-effective loss mitigation system and home telematics solution, will use the new funding to expand those existing partnerships, as well as pursue new relationships with leading property insurers. The capital will also support product development and manufacturing, increased marketing efforts, and critical hires across the company’s engineering, data science and marketing departments.
“At Notion, it’s our mission to build products and services that give homeowners peace of mind and ultimately empower them to live better, more present lives. That’s what complete home awareness means to us,” said Brett Jurgens, Co-Founder and CEO of Notion. “This additional funding will allow us to amplify our relationships with insurance companies, and we’re excited to work alongside these partners to build more positive connections with homeowners and reward them with reduced insurance costs.”
Homeowners have plenty of options when it comes to home monitoring solutions, but most of them fall into two categories: traditional, expensive security companies that require a hefty monthly fee and contract, or more affordable, complicated DIY solutions that are limited to a single use.
Notion’s low-cost and easy-to-install sensors pack eight capabilities into a single device. Each sensor is identical and multi-functional, which means homeowners can place them in different spots around their home depending on what they care about. From doors opening and closing, to monitoring temperature, to detecting water leaks or a sounding alarm, Notion enables homeowners to customize notifications sent to their Android or Apple smartphone for peace of mind across their whole home. In the last year alone, Notion has sent more than 4 million notifications to homeowners across the country.
In addition to leading the round, Mitch Kitamura, Managing Director at Draper Nexus, and Toshi Otani, Co-Founder and Managing Director at TransLink Capital, will join the Notion board of directors.
“By putting Notion into homes across the country, insurance companies have unlocked an opportunity to positively engage with mainstream consumers via smart home technology,” Kitamura said. “In return, Notion offers insurance companies unmatched access into the behaviors and activities happening inside the home. From defining the characteristics of a safe property owner to informing underwriting practices, Notion’s wealth of data has the potential to materially change the way the insurance industry operates.”