The following are news announcements made during the past week:
PRESS RELEASE:
Auckland Airport’s Disruptive Tech Changing Passenger Experience
Ever-increasing international travel volume is having a serious impact on airports like New Zealand’s Auckland International, which saw over 19 million passengers last year. The airport is taking the increased passenger flow and logistics issues seriously, using a unique combination of traffic and passenger flow measurement technology. The result? Faster travel times, acceptable wait times, less passenger stress and a wealth of information that helps the airports and the city to plan resources more effectively.
Auckland Airport expects to host over 40 million passengers annually by the year 2044. To cope with this increase in passenger load, the airport embarked on a wide-ranging and world first combined passenger-flow and road-traffic measurement project, with the goal of obtaining real-time cohesive view of people movement patterns, to guide daily and long-term operational decisions, maximise capacity and improve flow.
In its build, the airport has opted to aim for sustainability, while ensuring that they will not only have the capacity to handle the extra people, but also the capability to make the passenger journey as smooth and stress-free as possible.
Smooth passenger flow, both in the arrival and departure terminals, and the concession and transit waiting areas, as well as on the roads surrounding the airport, is critical to the successful operation of an airport. Issues with traffic flows can result in delays for passengers, airport staff and airline crew, resulting in disruptions to airport and airline operations.
To manage both passenger and traffic flow, Auckland Airport realised they needed to have a bird’s-eye view of the entire system, as well as detailed, up-close analysis of ongoing issues. They also needed a way to quickly act when things start to bottleneck.
The airport already had a mass of intelligence on passenger movement inside the terminals, thanks to their BlipTrack solution; however, they had no real-time intelligence on the road network to and from the airport.
With several traffic monitoring projects in New Zealand, using the same technology, infrastructure consultants Beca was commissioned to extend the solution across the airport’s road infrastructure. This now provides the airport with a seamless picture of traffic flow information between the airport and Auckland CBD (Central Business District, also called the city centre).
Outside the airport, the solution measures traffic flow between the CBD and the airport, providing real-time data on reliability, vehicle counts and travel time. It provides data about the mix of staff and passengers using the Park and Ride facility, enabling the airport to better understand the performance and regularly review how they can improve their facilities. This information is also analysed to help planning decisions for road network maintenance and infrastructure projects.
The insights, collected using a range of technologies, including radar and WiFi sensors, also helps the New Zealand Traffic Agency (NZTA) to make informed traffic management decisions, and has allowed for the implementation of a number of initiatives to improve the traffic flow to the airport. This includes optimising traffic signal timings, and combined with the recent opening of the new constructed Waterview connection, has resulted in significant travel time cuts to and from the airport from the CBD and West Auckland.
In addition, the real-time and historic BlipTrack data enables NZTA, via their new app RideMate (https://nzta.govt.nz/traffic-and-travel-information/mobility-as-a-service/ridemate-app/) and online (http://www.drivelive.nz/AKL), to display live travel times between the CBD and airport, as well as informing about days with high risk of congestion. This enable road users to plan ahead, reducing both the risk of travellers missing their flight and airport employees coming in late for work.
Besides the benefits of real-time reporting, the historical data is used to detect driving time anomalies. Effectively, this means that the solution can pinpoint road sections and intersections where driving times deviate from the norm as a result of construction projects, incidents, roadwork, faulty traffic lights and other factors. With this information at hand, real-time traffic management can take place.
Richard Young, Senior Associate at Beca, says: “The intelligence that BlipTrack is delivering has already proved its value, by providing automated alerts on delays on vulnerable corridors, real-time counts on traffic flows and delays, and intelligence on the origin and destination of vehicle movements into the airport and to terminals and car parks.”
Inside the airport, the solution provides metrics on passenger queue times and volume, as well as insight into passenger movement patterns throughout the international and domestic terminals´ departure and arrival processes.
This helps the airport better manage and support resources by focusing on high-demand locations and periods. Likewise, the data directly benefits passengers by displaying wait times at security checkpoints, managing passenger expectations and reducing queue-related stress.
Mark Croudace, Manager – Operations at Auckland International Airport, says: “BlipTrack was a critical investment. The data has provided valuable insight into our operational performance across both our assets and processes. Most importantly, it has enabled us to have meaningful conversations with our key operational stakeholders and vendors, as we collectively seek to improve the passenger experience.”
Numerous other international airports, including Amsterdam Schiphol, Copenhagen, Dublin, Brussels and Bristol, are following suit. These airports have recognised that comprehensive seamless passenger flow data is indispensable in guiding physical expansion plans, and for streamlining operations to accommodate rapid passenger volume growth, without compromising the passenger experience.
“By having Auckland Airport and Beca working together, and by sharing data between multiple solutions, BlipTrack provides a solution that no other product in the industry can currently reproduce – large-scale, seamless, door-to-door movement management between different modes of transport. And because it´s not only limited to certain areas, it can be considered as one of the first real, tangible steps to true multimodal traffic management,” ends Peter Knudsen, CEO of BLIP Systems.
Besides providing airports around the world with seamless passenger flow data, the solution is employed in optimisation efforts in road traffic applications in Switzerland, Thailand, Canada, the UK, Denmark and Sweden. In recent years, it has been rolled out in ports, train stations, ski resorts, amusement parks, and at events around the world.
PRESS RELEASE:
Gopher Protocol Unveils Solution for Internet of Things, AI
Gopher Protocol Inc. (OTCQB: GOPH) (“Gopher”), a development-stage company which specializes in the creation of Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI) enabled mobile technologies, provides developing status for the official launch of its Indiegogo campaign for its proprietary pet tracking device – https://igg.me/at/guardianorb
As announced on December 21, 2017, Gopher’s manufacturer VQ GLOBAL USA, Inc. commenced design of three models which include the Orb Sphere shape – Mobile Unit, Portable Gateway and the Static Gateway Unit – Single Channel. Construction drawings including schematic diagram of the three models, as well as the specification of the products, features and accessory with packing underway.
This begins Gopher’s efforts toward Horizon 2020. Horizon 2020 is a Gopher initiative to enable the communication industry with GopherInsight, a proprietary self-learning private and secure network.
Subject to raising the appropriate level of capital and engaging additional personnel, the first step includes the launch of the Guardian Orb, initially through presales on Indiegogo, followed by Internet sales. Once the initial production is complete, Gopher intends to begin selling the Guardian Orb through its 15,000+/- convenience store locations operating under the Gopher’s wholly owned subsidiary, UGopherServices. UGopherServices, a wholly owned subsidiary of Gopher, has established UGO HUB, a network of 15,000+/- locations that provide top prepaid and traditional financial services as well as products and accessories to consumers. With average weekly foot traffic estimated at 2,000 per week (http://distributech.net/Demographics.aspx)
In addition, it is the goal of Gopher is to install base station in these locations to create significant coverage in the southeastern part of the United States. UGO HUB products include: prepaid financial services (credit card, phone card, gift card, etc.), financial services (bill pay, ATM, payday loans, check cashing, Bitcoin, etc.), products and accessories (SIM Card, cellphone chargers, cases, headphones, etc.)
The crowdfunding campaign commenced on Tuesday, January 30, 2018.
PRESS RELEASE:
Cisco Invests in Smart-City Solutions for Integration of Autonomous Vehicles
Cisco has announced that it is investing $1M in world-first Smart City technology for Adelaide to help reduce traffic congestion and create the foundations for the deployment of autonomous vehicles on busy roads.
The pilot in partnership with the Government of South Australia and the City of Adelaide measures the dwell time and queue length of vehicles as they wait at an intersection; a key element for congestion monitoring. It also calculates rolling averages across the day via a customised dashboard and a suite of metrics that show how well the traffic light sequences are operating at that intersection.
Built on Cisco Kinetic for Cities, a first of its kind IoT (Internet of Things) operations platform designed to unlock the power of data from billions of connected devices, the pilot will be split into two phases. In the first phase, six sensors will be set up at the busy intersection of Grenfell and Pulteney.
These sensors will gather intersection-approach traffic information, such as location and speed of vehicles as well as pedestrians. With this information, tailored algorithms to recommend traffic light intervals can be recommended to improve traffic and pedestrian-crossing flow.
The second phase involves an assessment of whether the same infrastructure can be applied to quickly and accurately determine the location and movements of autonomous vehicles, which is critical to being able to manage, direct and control autonomous vehicles.
The pilot will run for a week from 29 January to 3 February 2018. Following the successful trial, other intersections in Adelaide will be selected to potentially test and scale the solution city-wide followed by a national roll-out.
Other technology companies including QuantumIT, SQLstream, Quanergy, Astrata, Data#3, and MVIS Australia have also played an integral part in the pilot.
Kevin Bloch, Chief Technology Officer, Cisco Australia & New Zealand, said, “Traffic congestion in Australia’s cities is getting worse, and we need to act now before autonomous vehicles join our already busy roads.
We’re very excited to partner with the City of Adelaide and the SA Government and analyse the results of this pilot. We believe this technology could have a real impact on drivers, cyclists and pedestrians in Adelaide, and other cities, because its traffic light network will be able to make real-time decisions.”
“We are pleased that Cisco has chosen Adelaide to develop and trial its smart city technology. It’s a vote of confidence in our growing innovation ecosystem and boosts our reputation as a global leader in adopting smart technologies and smart solutions,” said Science and Information Economy Minister Kyam Maher.
“The South Australian Government remains focused on establishing Adelaide as a dynamic and liveable smart city underpinned by robust innovation initiatives, digital infrastructure and support programs to help local business and entrepreneurs thrive.”
Cisco selected Adelaide as a Lighthouse City in January 2015 – one of nine across the world. As part of the strategic relationship with the City of Adelaide and SA Government, Cisco is committed to developing and piloting innovative solutions and this project is an example of the partnership in action. Jointly developing a solution for traffic congestion and also helping cities prepare for autonomous vehicles will be globally impactful. Further, skills developed in Adelaide can serve as a foundation for new knowledge based industries.
PRESS RELEASE:
STMicroelectronics Launches Course on IoT-Enabled Embedded Systems
STMicroelectronics (NYSE: STM), a global semiconductor leader serving customers across the spectrum of electronics applications, has announced the availability to all, including students, makers, and budding engineers and computer scientists of the “Introduction to Embedded Systems with SensorTile” course.
With a curriculum developed by Professor William Kaiser at the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), and used to teach his freshman engineering class, the online course resources provide a foundation to understand the fundamentals of a sensor-based Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled embedded system. Professors at other universities are also encouraged to adapt and contribute to the course.
The introductory course of 8 self-paced tutorials is designed around ST’s SensorTile, a unique real-time IoT-enabled embedded system on a postage-stamp-sized module. The tiny 13.5mm x 13.5mm module combines a high-performance, low-power STM32 Arm®-Cortex®-M-core microcontroller, 5 valuable MEMS (Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems) sensors—an inertial sensor containing an accelerometer and gyroscope, an eCompass, a pressure sensor, and a microphone—and a Bluetooth network processor. A kit with the module, cables, cradles, and a battery is available from major resellers for about $80.
“The joint effort with ST to make the 8 tutorials freely available online, with a full complement of documentation, open-source algorithms and development solutions, and unfettered access to a growing user forum is a terrific way to ensure the sustainability of a community that we hope will expand to include community colleges, other universities, and even high-school programs and self-starters,” said Professor William Kaiser, current director of Actuated Sensing & Coordinated Embedded Networked Technologies research group at UCLA’s Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science, and winner of UCLA’s 2007 Gold Shield PrizeUCLA’s Gold Shield Prize is awarded annually to a full professor with extraordinary promise and accomplishment in research of creative activity and an outstanding record in teaching, especially of undergraduates. http://engineering.ucla.edu/William-kaiser-wins-2007-ucla-gold-shield-faculty-prize/ . “In fact, while we’ve made the tutorials simple, yet powerful, we know new comers will find an obstacle somewhere and we’re counting on the passion of users in the community to help them overcome those inevitable roadblocks.”
“Professor Kaiser’s enthusiasm and commitment to the development of the ‘Introduction to Embedded Systems with SensorTile’curriculum has been critical to the success of the program, which has now been adopted as a requirement for all computer engineering students at UCLA,” said John Rossi, Americas Region Vice President of Strategic Marketing, STMicroelectronics. “For ST, this effort has been driven by our interest in creating the same level of excitement for engineering and problem solving that we have, and to emphasize our message that everywhere microelectronics are making a contribution to peoples’ lives, ST is there.”
Anyone interested in learning more about the tutorial or purchasing a SensorTile kit should visit the web site(http://www.st.com/sensortile-edu). Additional information is available, as well, on the ST blog (https://blog.st.com/introduction-embedded-systems-sensortile-online-course/).
PRESS RELEASE:
Acuity Brands’ IoT Services Provide Indoor Positioning Solution
Acuity Brands, Inc. (NYSE: AYI) has announced a complete, end-to-end indoor positioning services (IPS) solution comprised of two Atrius Internet of Things (IoT) platform services: Atrius Navigator software development kit (SDK), leveraging cloud-based services and administrative tools, and Atrius Insights spatial analytics web application. The Atrius indoor positioning solution (IPS) helpsbusinesses develop applications that redefine how customers interact with their space and enhance business operations.
The Atrius Navigator SDK enables the development of mobile applications that provide IPS and location-based services (LBS), such as point of interest search, wayfinding (blue dot navigation), proximity marketing and geo-fencing. Atrius Navigator services acquire data from luminaires enabled with Atrius. These luminaires, which are embedded with Bluetooth Low Energy and/or Visible Light Communication technologies, create a dense Atrius Sensory Network that canvasses indoor and adjacent outdoor environments to provide highly precise location accuracy.
“Most IPS systems require installing and maintaining beacons, but with our Atrius Sensory Network, the hardware is embedded into our luminaires so you get an adaptable solution with superior coverage and ubiquity, plus cost savings from energy efficiency,” said Acuity Technology Group Senior Vice President – Software Products, Greg Carter.
Atrius Insights transforms IPS and LBS data, acquired from Atrius or third-party indoor positioning systems, into spatial analytics using map-based visualization. Insights delivers real-time and historical intelligence on where and when visitors spend their time in a space, including traffic flow, dwell times, number of first time and return visits, visit volume by time of day and congestion.
“Atrius Navigator and Insights complete the IPS solution, providing full integration into a mobile app along with real-time analytics to advance the way customers experience a space, and how businesses manage real-time operations and services,” said Carter. “We’re excited by the prospect of furthering innovation in the IPS and LBS spaces with these next-generation Atrius IoT tools.”
PRESS RELEASE:
IoT Solutions World Congress Set for October 2018
IoT Solutions World Congress (IoTSWC), the world’s largest event on innovations of the industrial internet, is gearing up for its fourth edition from 16 to 18 October in the Gran Via venue of Fira de Barcelona, with the aim of drawing in 300 exhibitors and 250 international speakers. This year’s show is set to confirm the boom of IoT and its wide-scale implementation in a range of industrial and business applications, and will also demonstrate the convergence of this technology with artificial intelligence and blockchain.
Organized by Fira de Barcelona in partnership with the Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC), the IoTSWC expects growth to continue, both in the number of companies and visitors, in parallel with the massive deployment of IoT in a wide range of sectors that have seen great strides made in their efficiency, automation and earnings.
In this respect, the director the IoTSWC, Roger Bou, is convinced that the 2018 edition will prove this technology is here to stay, with its rapidly growing presence in industry: “We can see that IoT is no longer a technological revolution waiting just over the horizon; it is a reality that is being implemented ever more often and has an enormous potential to transform all types of businesses and our day-to-day lives”.
In fact, the Gartner consulting firm has predicted there will be 11.2 billion connected objects in the world in 2018—4.159 billion in industry and specific verticals alone. In other words, an upsurge of 32% in these areas compared to 2017. On the other hand, experts also foresee 2018 to be the year in which IoT makes a real impact in the market, spurring new business and service models.
In such a context of growth, Roger Bou points out the possibilities that the IoTSWC has to offer in terms of business and knowledge, “as it gathers the world’s leading companies in IoT and top experts in the field to explore real applications from the latest innovations and define what trends are setting the pace in the development of the industrial internet.”
The IoTSWC is a benchmark event on the international calendar that is equal parts congress, trade show and testbed, all in the name of promoting top-flight professional networking. The exhibition area will be occupied by leading IoT suppliers represented by their worldwide headquarters, which include IT companies, software platform developers, hardware manufacturers, security firms, telecoms, service operators, industrial automation companies, and many more. It will also feature a testbed area with live demonstrations of the latest industrial internet applications.
As for the Congress, the world’s top experts in this technology and industry reps will be exploring the impact of IoT solutions in a variety of environments. Nine core themes have been established for the 2018 edition as touchstones for the more than 125 scheduled seminars: connected transport, product manufacturing, healthcare, energy and utilities, construction and infrastructure, open industry, enabling technologies, blockchain and artificial intelligence, with these last two having their very own forums.
April is the deadline for those wanting to present their industrial IoT success stories at the Congress. The programme committee will be evaluating the proposals received and selecting the most innovative to be presented to the attendees.
The 2018 IoTSWC will also be paying tribute to the year’s most ground-breaking and influential projects with their IoT Solutions Awards, which are open to companies and entities the world over. Companies interest in submitting their entries will be able to do so from March to July.
The content and scope of the event was defined in large part thanks to the involvement of the Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC), a worldwide organization of over 250 firms and entities related to IoT whose aim is to accelerate the adoption of the industrial internet. The executive director of the IIC, Dr. Richard Soley, underscored the calibre of attendees and demonstrations of live systems of the IoTSWC:
“IoT Solutions World Congress continues to be the premiere industrial IoT event every year. It provides attendees with a chance to meet the leaders who have been in the IoT space for years, hear the experts, share success stories from specific companies and industries. It also provides them with an opportunity to see the benefits of the industrial internet in action with our focus on fully functional testbeds.” Soley pointed out that “no single company will win the IoT; however there are best practices that enable companies in each market to work together.” This is what can be found this October at Fira de Barcelona, as well as “best practices that address the challenges faced by IoT in terms of security, data analysis and convergence with artificial intelligence and blockchain.”
At the 2017 edition, the IoTSWC brought in 240 exhibitors and 13,000 visitors from 114 countries, a respective 30% and 60% higher with regard to the previous year. According to the organization’s data, 45% of the companies visiting the IoTSWC in 2017 declared their intention of investing over 1 million euros in IoT in the next 3 years.
The IoT Solutions World Congress forms part of Barcelona Industry Week, a brand that also encompasses two other trade shows, In(3D)ustry From Needs to Solutions, dedicated to additive manufacturing, and Healthio, specializing in health and healthcare technologies. All three events, which create synergies and provide a platform for commerce and knowledge in a wide range of industrial sectors, will take place from 16-18 October at Fira de Barcelona.