Sigma Designs Releases Z-Wave Interoperability Spec to Industry
Sigma Designs, a provider of system-on-chip (SoC) solutions for Connected Smart TV platforms and the Internet of Things, is releasing the interoperability specification of the Z-Wave wireless mesh-networking standard into the public domain. The Z-Wave Public Spec gives developers, gateway manufacturers and other stakeholders, including hobbyists, free access to the Z-Wave interoperability layer, which they can use to create smart home IoT applications. Sigma Designs is also making public application programming interfaces (APIs) for two of its software products, as well as the full specification of the new Z-Wave S2 security application framework. The company released the design of its radio to the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) more than four years ago, and the ITU has adopted it as the public G.9959 radio standard.
In 2008, Sigma Designs purchased Zensys, which developed Z-Wave technology and created the Z-Wave Alliance. Previously, the Z-Wave interoperability specification was available only to members of the Z-Wave Alliance, or holders of a Z-Wave Development Kit from Sigma Designs. However, any manufacturer interested in selling Z-Wave-certified products will need to join the Alliance and have their products tested for compliance with the specification. Sigma Designs says there are more than 1,500 certified interoperable Z-Wave products worldwide.
The Z-Wave Alliance is one of many standards organizations, including AllJoyn, the Open Interconnection Consortium, the Thread Group and the ZigBee Alliance, that are looking to become the de facto smart-home communications and interoperability standard. A few of these groups have also released various specifications and forged partnerships in efforts to become more inclusive and widely adopted. This week, in fact, the Thread Group announced a partnership with the EEBus Initiative e.V, which has developed the Smart Premises Interoperable Neutral-message Exchange (SPINE) model to enable devices and services to interoperate via their application layers, regardless of network protocols used. Through the collaboration, the two groups will design an interface between SPINE and the Thread networking protocol.
Novatel Eyes Retail Connectivity Needs With Ignite Product
Novatel Wireless, a provider of broadband services for IoT applications, has announced a new bundled connectivity solution, called Ignite, designed to enable retailers to add Internet connectivity to digital signage, kiosks, vending machines and point-of-sale systems inside their stores. Novatel Wireless provides the hardware, cloud-based device-management platform and support, while T-Mobile provides the cellular service with up to 3 gigabytes of data, for a $40 flat monthly rate per unit.
Samsara Adds New Software Features to Fleet-Management Platform
Samsara, a startup that provides IoT solutions for fleet management (vehicle tracking, as well as environmental monitoring for cargo), has announced a number of new software features for its VG33 vehicle gateway, a cellular GPS tracker that collects data from a range of wireless sensors installed inside a vehicle’s cargo hold, as well as vehicle diagnostics (through an OBD II port or, in heavy duty trucks, a J1939 interface).
The new software suite leverages the VG33’s wireless connectivity to create, through a partnership with AT&T, a Wi-Fi hotspot. It includes a mobile app for iOS and Android devices that drivers can use to log their work hours to comply with the U.S. Department of Transportation‘s upcoming electronic logging device mandate, as well as support for vehicle inspection reporting, a system enabling dispatchers to send new stops and routes to drivers, and a means for drivers to manage their routes with turn-by-turn directions.
These new software features, including the Wi-Fi hotspot, are available to existing customers via a free over-the-air update. The Samsara Driver App is available for free to Samsara fleet customers at the Apple App Store and Google Play Store. The VG33 device costs $99, plus a $33 monthly license fee that includes cellular data, maintenance and support, and cloud-based software. With a three-year contract, the monthly fee is $27.
Sen.se Announces New Smart-Home Product Line
Sen.se, a French provider of IoT products for the home, is rolling out a new range of low-cost sensors called SensePeanuts, designed to help consumers perform everyday tasks, such as taking medicine, or improve their well-being. The first product in the series, ThermoPeanut, is a wireless thermometer in a small form factor (1.77 inches by 0.98 inch) that runs on a CR2032 lithium battery and communicates via a Bluetooth connection with the SensePeanut mobile phone application (so there’s no need for a hub or gateway device). The ThermoPeanut, mounted to a wall via an adhesive, can be used to track the temperatures of specific rooms or areas within a home. If multiple ThermoPeanuts are installed in a house, each can be labeled to its respective room or space. Users can reference the app to view the current temperature for each ThermoPeanut at a glance, or access its temperature history.
Each ThermoPeanut can be assigned an acceptable temperature range, and if the thermometer falls above or below that range, the user receives an alert via the mobile app. The ThermoPeanut also includes a small speaker and can be set to create an alarm if the temperature falls outside the set zone.
By using IFTTT, a program that allows a person to integrate disparate devices or programs through the use of software recipes based on simple “if [this] then [that]” code, a consumer could configure the ThermoPeanut to trigger some action via another IFTTT-compatible device based on temperature readings. Users who utilize the Nest thermostat can integrate ThermoPeanut into the Nest platform so that the home’s temperature is adjusted in response to a ThermoPeanut alert. The ThermoPeanut costs $29 and is available now. The SensePeanut app is available for either iOS or Android mobile devices.
C3 IoT Raises $70 Million, Led by TPG
C3 IoT (formerly C3 Energy), an IoT platform provider that provides sensor data management and integration services for customers in the manufacturing, oil and gas, health-care, retail, aerospace, transportation and telecommunications industries, has raised $70 million in Series D equity financing. Enterprises and system integrators also use the C3 IoT platform-as-a-service (PaaS) to rapidly build and deploy custom big-data and IoT applications. TPG Growth, the growth equity investment platform of private investment firm TPG, contributed $60 million to the round. Sutter Hill Ventures, InterWest Partners and C3 IoT founder Thomas Siebel contributed the remainder. This round brings the funds C3 IoT has raised to $185 million.
This summer, C3 IoT announced that it had landed a $25 million contract with the U.S. Department of State to provide the agency with its machine-learning-based platform and software application suite to conserve energy across 22,000 State Department facilities around the world. It also said ENGIE, a Fortune 500 global energy company, has selected the C3 IoT platform for a three-year minimum licensing deal.
Kontakt.io Adds Location-Tracking Products to Its Bluetooth Beacon Portfolio
Beacon hardware provider Kontakt.io has announced several new Bluetooth beacon products to bring real-time location system (RTLS) tracking to a variety of industries.
According to the company, the new Card Beacon comes with a built-in Near Field Communication (NFC) tag, or some other type of RFID tag, to enable new applications such as beacon-enabled employee badges, loyalty cards and two-step payment verification that were not previously possible. The Card Beacon is ultra-thin, measuring just 2 millimeters (0.08 inch) in thickness, enabling it to fit where other beacons cannot.
Designed for tracking the locations of moving assets, it features a built-in motion sensor so it knows how much data it should transmit, and when, enabling users to decrease the volume of data to store and analyze and increase battery life. It can run for up to about 14 months on standard settings with power-saving mode enabled, the company reports, and can also be switched off when it is not moving—a feature that Kontakt.io says can significantly extend battery life. A development kit with three Card Beacons costs $87, is available now and will be shipped to customers within about four weeks.
The Beacon Pro is designed for the enterprise and heavy industry, Kontakt.io reports, and features a built-in NFC tag for easy configuration. By simply bringing an NFC-enabled smartphone close to the beacon, the company adds, a user can identify and program the beacon within seconds. The beacon can also automatically trigger different actions when it detects a particular level of light or movement with its built-in motion and light sensors. The Beacon Pro has a USB connection for charging and programming. A Beacon Pro development kit costs $87, is available for preorder now and will be shipped to customers within eight to 10 weeks.
The Gateway Beta, combined with Kontakt.io’s Location Engine, is designed to make it easier to deploy, locate, monitor and manage the beacons, according to Kontakt.io. Bluetooth-enabled tracking systems typically require three elements, the company explains: beacons, a smartphone, and someone to physically visit a monitored space and obtain data about that space. The Gateway, however, automates the tracking and management of items in real time from anywhere in the world, without the need for smartphones or users onsite, the company says.
The Gateway can automatically push data, including important beacon health information, to beacons affixed to moving objects in real time. A trigger feature lets users and objects trigger certain actions based on their proximity to the Gateway, such as sending emails and notifications, as well as posting tweets, when certain conditions are met. The Gateway Beta is available for pre-order now for $89, and will be shipped to customers within the next eight weeks.
Next Up in Autonomous Vehicles: Driverless Ships?
The Wall Street Journal reports that the shipping industry is moving toward autonomous operation in order to reduce labor costs and save energy. According to the article, Rolls-Royce Holdings is leading a consortium of commercial and academic partners that are looking to learn from both companies that have developed unmanned aerial vehicles (drones) and automakers that are developing driverless cars. The group has launched a project called Advanced Autonomous Waterborne Applications, and estimates that it could cut transportation costs by up to 22 percent through autonomously operated ships.
Connectivity and safety regulations are the biggest hurdles to this concept. The vessels will be far outside cellular range and will need to reliably send and receive large streams of data. What’s more, the International Maritime Organization (the United Nations arm that oversees shipping) and the International Convention for the Safety of Life at Sea both currently require that ships have human crews.
On the communications front, the article notes that Inmarsat has recently launched high-bandwidth satellites with the aim of helping maritime businesses monitor engine health and other operations remotely. This could be the first step toward creating a communications infrastructure to support crewless ships.
Qualcomm, Phillips Creating Connected Inhaler for Boehringer Ingelheim
Qualcomm Life, a subsidiary of Qualcomm, and technology provider Royal Philips are collaborating to integrate IoT connectivity into Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals‘ RESPIMAT inhaler, a treatment device for patients suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD). The firms say their goal is to develop a means of helping COPD patients stick to their treatment plan by enabling them, their doctors and other caregivers to track and monitor how often the inhaler is used.
Qualcomm Life and Philips, via the latter’s HealthSuite cloud-enabled ecosystem of devices, apps and digital tools, are developing a prototype of a low-power, disposable module that would be integrated into the inhaler device and send usage data to Qualcomm Life’s 2net Platform. But the companies say it is too early to share specifics, including the types of communication protocols and information architecture that the connected product will use, or when it is likely to be available to patients.