The following are news announcements made during the past week:
PRESS RELEASE:
Industrial IoT Solutions from FreeWave Technologies Provide Weather Data for Mount Washington Observatory
FreeWave Technologies (www.freewave.com), a leader in industrial, secure Machine to Machine (M2M) and Internet of Things (IoT) wireless networking solutions, today announced that its ruggedized industrial IoT (IIoT) data radios deliver real-time weather data at the Mount Washington Observatory (MWO), a New Hampshire-based Non-profit research facility (https://www.mountwashington.org/). MWO conducts critical weather, atmospheric and climate research that is used for national and global forecasting.
The facility also provides vital data that allows local government agencies to assess active conditions in order to protect the lives of crews during search and rescue operations. FreeWave’s family of low-power 900 MHz radios (http://www.freewave.com/products/fgr2-c-series/) are trusted to deliver the critical data while facing Mount Washington’s extreme weather and harsh conditions.
“As you can imagine, there is little-to-no room for failure when it comes to our climate monitoring efforts that double as a resource to help save lives during search operations,” said Peter Gagne, IT Manager at Mount Washington Observatory. “For more than 13 years, FreeWave’s radios have impressed us with their durability and reliability in some of the most extreme conditions on the planet. We’ve been so pleased with their performance that we will continue to deploy FreeWave as we update our Auto Road Vertical Profile this year. To top it off, we receive top-notch customer service, and the network is cost-effective and easy to deploy.”
MWO has studied the Earth’s climate since 1932. The facility sits atop the highest peak in the Northeast United States, boasting an elevation of 6,288 feet. Researchers frequently encounter 50-100 mph winds and penetrating fog in the summer, with sub-arctic temperatures, 140+ mph winds, freezing fog, and heavy glaze icing in the winter. Weather conditions change frequently and rapidly, visibility is often compromised, and researchers have seen ice accretion rates of up to 12 inches per hour.
FreeWave is known for its ability to maintain connectivity in environments where other technologies have succumbed to the elements. At Mount Washington, FreeWave’s FGR and FGR2 radios connect a network of 28 sensors and devices on five remote weather stations and have successfully delivered data in spite of Mount Washington’s year-round harsh weather.
Additionally, the weather stations are solar-powered and only receive sunlight 40 percent of the year, another reason that FreeWave’s low-power solutions were ideal for the network. These capabilities have enabled 24-hour, year-round network connectivity.
“Mount Washington Observatory has certainly put our IIoT solutions to the test,” said Kim Niederman, CEO of FreeWave. “Today, I can confidently say that we’ve received the ‘Mount Washington Tested’ stamp of approval, which is no easy feat. However, this unforgiving environment is exactly the type of deployment in which our solutions excel. It is a testament to the dedication and innovation that goes into the FreeWave R&D process in order to deliver excellence and overcome big connectivity challenges facing many IIoT networks.”
PRESS RELEASE:
Infiswift, Solar Power International Partner on IoT-based Solar PV Performance Management System
In conjunction with Solar Power International, infiswift, an enterprise Internet of Things (IoT) platform leader, announces the launch of swiftPV, which leverages IoT technology to change how the solar industry uses data to optimize the performance of photovoltaic (PV) systems. The suite of products and services allows PV power plant owners and operators to connect diverse PV assets and distill insights from the data, ultimately increasing solar plant performance.
“Solar owners and operators currently rely on third party monitoring and SCADA systems to provide data on the operation and performance of plants, but these systems are very costly, inflexible and limit data access,” said Arup Barat, Co-CEO and Chief Commercial Officer at infiswift. “With over 85 years of team experience in the industry, we understand these pain points and the need to modernize PV management solutions with storage, frequency regulation, edge analytics and more in mind. In swiftPV, we have built a cutting-edge, customizable and cost-effective data solution for the future of PV.”
The swiftPV suite of products and services includes ‘blocks’ that can be used to build a solution – each customer selects what’s right for them. The current swiftPV blocks include:
• Data ingest: This core block is built on the infiswift IoT platform, which connects and manages all field devices and cloud feeds regardless of vendor. This highly scalable platform ensures your data is properly routed from origination to destination in near real-time.
• Apps: SwiftPV apps use custom mobile and web visual interfaces for each stakeholder on the team.
• Cloud Historian: This is a private database with open data access and flexible setup to cover all data needs.
• Reports: SwiftPV produces reports with tailored recommendations and data that can be updated and customized for delivery when needed.
• PV Performance Services (PVPS): Professional engineering support is available to monitor, analyze and interpret complex data.
“Connecting several different inverter brands, a weather forecast feed and grid pricing in one place and presenting it in an accessible, usable way is a challenge that hasn’t been properly solved until now,” said Sarva Thulasingam, Co-CEO and CTO at infiswift. “Our hybrid IoT architecture makes this approach to performance solutions unique and ensures we’re delivering a truly interoperable infrastructure that will serve OEMs, operators and other stakeholders into the future. SwiftPV can connect any device from any manufacturer, bring in third party data feeds and perform analyses before ever reaching the cloud, allowing customers to centralize data for a full PV portfolio.”
Infiswift is currently working with several customers to roll out full scale implementations. One way swiftPV will be implemented is with an owner-operator of a portfolio of utility-scale PV systems who may want to bring data from each site together with data from a Financial Asset Management suite and WOMS system. SCADA systems can’t support this very cost-effectively, so there’s generally a more fragmented approach to gathering data for each plant. By using the data ingest, apps, reports and historian blocks from swiftPV, the owner-operator can visualize and access data in a central location from multiple inverter vendors, streamline analysis and make significant operational improvements.
For another plant, the swiftPV team was engaged for a PVPS project to validate and analyze inverter and other plant data for a multi-MW site. Without any site visits, the team identified misaligned sensors and underperforming strings. With more accurate data, the customer was able to improve system performance without hiring several additional analysts.
Infiswift will be demonstrating swiftPV and the underlying IoT technology at booth 6610 at Solar Power International in Las Vegas on September 10-13.
PRESS RELEASE:
Kerlink, Stream Technologies Combine IoT Solutions for Rapid Ramp-Up of LoRaWAN Connectivity
Kerlink, a specialist and global leader in network solutions dedicated to the Internet of Things (IoT), and StreamTechnologies, the company behind IoT-X – the world’s most advanced IoT (Internet of Things) connectivity management platform, today announced the integration of their solutions to provide simple, end-to-end LoRaWAN connectivity solutions for their expanding international customer bases.
The two companies, which established their partnership in August 2015, have integrated IoT-X and Kerlink’s complete portfolio of gateways, ranging from indoor Wirnet iFemtoCell, to carrier-grade outdoor Wirnet Stations, and geolocation-ready Wirnet iBTS Compact. These solutions are designed not only for private or public operators and smart-city network deployments, but also for small private networks, like buildings or industrial sites. Stream’s IoT-X connectivity management platform is fully integrated with the company’s LoRaWAN Network Server, and allows enterprises to thoroughly manage the IoT connectivity lifecycle, as well as subscriber provisioning, and offers rating and billing. It also enables users to benefit from a unique mix of IoT connectivity combining cellular, satellite and low-power wide-area (LPWA) LoRaWAN networks worldwide.
Kerlink, a fast-growing global provider of IoT infrastructure and applications for services, has already installed more than 70,000 IoT gateways, base stations and wireless connectivity products for IoT networks, and is currently supporting TaTa Communications to deploy the largest LoRaWAN network in the world. Kerlink’s application layers like LoRaWAN network-based geolocation solver and device management, and its expert services like reference design for connected devices, complete Stream’s IoT-X platform by providing value-added services that enable innovative use cases.
Stéphane Dejean, chief marketing officer at Kerlink, said the integrated package provides a turnkey solution that allows enterprises, public networks and existing network operators to quickly benefit from unlicensed LPWA solutions, as a complementary solution to broadband cellular networks.
“Stream Technologies has always been a market shaker in the IoT space,” Dejean said. “The IoT-X platform is a successful example of this pioneering spirit: it combines several types of connectivity to adapt to numerous customer use cases and delivers unprecedented experience in operating IoT connections. Accelerating our existing collaboration is a natural move for Kerlink to help customers in various verticals to quickly and efficiently bring their connected solution to market to generate new revenue opportunities and streamline their operations.
“The comprehensive, combined features the two companies offer will help Kerlink accelerate our international expansion, including our growing operations in the U.S., South America and Asia, in an open ecosystem,” Dejean added.
Mohsen Shakoor, strategic partnerships at Stream Technologies, said, “Stream is pleased to give a new dimension to its partnership with LoRaWAN gateways market leader, Kerlink. Our joint efforts already made it simpler for enterprises to flexibly add LoRaWAN as another cost-efficient and business-relevant option to connect their IoT devices. Adding Kerlink’s solutions’ proven reliability, performance and quality to our solutions will accelerate the development of new applications and services that require the combination of long battery life, long-range coverage, deep indoor penetration, and lower design costfor connecting billions of devices to the IoT”.
Kerlink is a founding board member of the LoRa Alliance, which Stream Technologies joined in early 2015.
PRESS RELEASE:
Yepzon, Orange Business Services Sign Agreement for Wearable Locator Devices
Orange Business Services is supporting Yepzon Group’s global ambition with a new three-year agreement for worldwide IoT connectivity and SIM cards for 100,000 locator devices. With headquarters in Finland, Yepzon Group develops wearable technologies and smart-clothing applications. It has quickly evolved from a bright idea to a successful international business in just three years and is now heading for the global market.
Yepzon Group’s wearable locator device uses Bluetooth, GPS and mobile network technologies to provide accurate location information through a mobile application for iOS, Android and Windows phones. The Yepzon locator is targeted at a range of different applications that boost safety and peace of mind. They include monitoring elderly relatives, locating family pets or tracking the location of various types of equipment.
The Orange IoT service provides tangible business benefits for Yepzon. They include: seamless SIM card ordering, simple activation and tracking through a dedicated portal; one price per SIM card regardless of location; and scalable connectivity reaching 220 countries and territories.
“A reliable IoT communications infrastructure, global presence and an attractive business model are key to our global expansion and further success,” says Otto Linna, CEO, Yepzon Enterprises. “Orange is our partner of choice to support our growing business because of the company’s international footprint and IoT and analytics expertise.”
“Yepzon’s intention to increase safety for millions and make the technology available for the benefit of families and loved ones around the world, as well as its ambitious growth plans, clearly call for a reliable and trustworthy global partner,” says Helmut Reisinger, executive vice president, International, Orange Business Services. “We are very happy to have been selected as their provider of choice and help enable their global ambition.”
The Orange Business Services IoT connectivity service is part of Datavenue, a modular IoT and Analytics solution. To enable advanced analysis and decision-making, the Datavenue solution encompasses the selection of actual objects, their reliable and secure connection, and management of data. A global team of more than 700 Orange data scientists and engineers design and develop these innovative services. Orange already supports over 12 million B2B objects across a variety of sectors, including Automotive and Transport, Smart Cities, Industry and Manufacturing and Daily Life (smart home, healthcare and wearables). Datavenue reaffirms the Orange commitment to supporting businesses with their digital transformation. The Yepzon wearable trackers are also sold by Orange Luxembourg.
PRESS RELEASE:
Laird Launches Small MIMO Wideband iDAS Antennas
Laird announced today its newest wideband iDAS antennas, which dramatically improve in-building wireless connectivity. They also are the telecom industry’s thinnest, smallest Low PIM MIMO ceiling mounted wideband antenna that meets the design needs of office and apartment buildings, hotels, airports, and other large coverage areas.
Laird’s new CFD Ultra Low Profile Multiple Input Multiple Output (MIMO) Low Passive Intermodulation (PIM) antenna is just seven millimeters thick, or about the thickness of a smartphone providing an ultra-low profile antenna that provides buildings with an inconspicuous yet high performance antenna for enhanced wireless connectivity.
MIMO is being used increasingly in many high data rate technologies including indoor wireless and cellular technologies to provide improved levels of coverage and data throughput. Essentially the CFD Ultra Low Profile MIMO Low PIM antenna employs multiple antennas on the receiver and transmitter to mitigate the multi-path effects that always exist to increase data throughput in the presence of interference.
The patent-pending CFD indoor antenna improves in-building wireless telecommunications and increases capacity delivering consistent, reliable Internet connectivity, further enabling the Internet of Things (IoT).
Industry experts forecast that by 2020, more than 23 billion “things” globally will be connected to the Internet, and about 40 percent of them will be used for business, industrial, healthcare, and other sectors for the Enterprise Internet of Things (EIoT).
Furthermore, the majority of EIoT mobile data traffic will be generated indoors at offices, hotels, hospitals, universities, shopping malls, and multi-tenant, multi-use buildings. The rising demand for wireless connectivity requires high performance in-building antennas that can be placed anywhere without being obtrusive.
No other antenna on the market meets the technical and aesthetic requirements better than the new CFD Ultra Low Profile Low PIM MIMO series from Laird.
The new CFD Ultra-Low Profile MIMO Low PIM antenna provides pattern coverage optimized for indoor requirements at 698-960 MHz, and 1350-4000 MHz supporting LTE, AWS-3, WCS and CBRS 3.5 GHz global frequency bands.
“Laird’s technology enables the in-building wireless world to work,” said Scott Lordo, senior vice president of Laird. “Improving indoor wireless coverage and capacity usually requires deployment of more ceiling antennas.
“One CFD Low PIM MIMO antenna, however, does the job of two single input single output (SISO) antennas because of their ability to transmit and receive cellular and data signals at the same time from a single, low-profile design all without compromising the in-building design and aesthetics cherished by building tenants, owners and management firms,” Lordo added. “The new CFD Low PIM MIMO Multi-port functionality means fewer antennas per floor which lowers the initial investment and installation costs for building owners.”
The CFD Low PIM MIMO Multi-port indoor antenna delivers superior performance, robust reliability and highly competitive market pricing with an MSRP of $73.15 per unit. The CFD is available and currently shipping.
PRESS RELEASE:
Industrial Internet Consortium, Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association Sign Memorandum of Understanding
The Industrial Internet Consortium (IIC), the world’s leading organization transforming business and society by accelerating the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT), and the Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Association (MESA) International, announced they have signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to work together to advance their shared interests. Under the agreement, the IIC and MESA, a not-for-profit organization comprised of manufacturing companies and information technology suppliers, will work together to align efforts to maximize interoperability, portability, security and privacy for the industrial Internet.
Joint activities between the IIC and the MESA will include identifying and sharing IIoT best practices; realizing interoperability by harmonizing architecture and other elements; collaborating on standardization; and collaboration in the areas of industrial analytics and asset performance management (APM).
MESA’s President, Mike Yost, said, “This partnership makes good business sense, with the Industrial Internet Consortium advocating for the broad adoption of industrial Internet technologies and with MESA educating manufacturers and solution providers of all sizes on both how and why to adopt them. Collaborating with the IIC also helps ensure MESA members and IIC members have a common vocabulary and a common understanding of business value.”
“We look forward to working with the Manufacturing Enterprise Solutions Enterprise Association,” said Wael William Diab, IIC Chair of the Liaison Working Group. “Within the manufacturing vertical, industrial analytics and asset intelligence systems enable manufacturers to realize the value of their industrial IoT systems by analyzing and acting on data to increase asset reliability and availability and reduce maintenance. Collaborating on industrial analytics and asset performance management will help to further advance industrial IoT in manufacturing environments.”
MESA and the IIC have agreed to meet regularly to exchange information and have targeted a joint workshop on industrial analytics and asset performance management for Q4.
The IIC Liaison Working Group is the gateway for formal relationships with standards and open-source organizations, consortia, alliances, certification and testing bodies and government entities/agencies. The agreement with the MESA is one of a number of agreements made by the IIC’s Liaison Working Group.
PRESS RELEASE:
Ericsson Intros Small Cell Solutions for Internet of Things
Ericsson (NASDAQ: ERIC) has launched three new scalable small cell solutions designed to help expand the small cell market and meet the growing demand for better mobile coverage and capacity while preparing networks for 5G and the Internet of Things (IoT) applications: the Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure for indoor deployments; and the Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios.
The Multi-Operator Dot solution delivers a set of Radio Dots that can be shared between multiple operators, with one operator managing the system while others provide radio frequency signals – similar to an active distributed antenna system (DAS). This new architecture allows up to four operators to broadcast over a single Dot solution; combining the multi-operator benefits of an active DAS solution with the performance, agility and cost-effective design of the Radio Dot System.
As its name suggests, the Multi-Dot Enclosure combines multiple Dots in a single enclosure. The enclosure has a minimal impact on building aesthetics, is useful for multi-operator deployments, and presents a cost-savings option in buildings that charge per box deployed.
The Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios makes it easier to install the radios on the existing grid, hung on aerial coax, fiber, or electricity cables. Aerial-strand deployments are critical for scaling outdoor small cells and can be deployed for both single and multi-operator usage. Ericsson’s new Strand-Mount Unit can support up to four micro radios, enabling multiple operators to utilize the same mount for cost-efficient deployments. The Strand-Mount Unit delivers superior outdoor coverage with zero footprint.
Nishant Batra, Head of Product Area Network Infrastructure at Ericsson, says: “We have developed scalable small cell models to meet the current demands of our customers while also preparing for requirements that will be imposed by 5G and the IoT.
“With the Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure, our customers can enhance the inbuilding user experience with excellent connectivity for both smartphones and IoT devices. The Strand-Mount Unit for outdoor micro radios, meanwhile, facilitates the dense deployments that will be required for 5G – enabling operators to deploy small cells in areas where they may not have been able to do so previously.”
Mark Lowenstein, Managing Director, Mobile Ecosystem, says: “The mobile industry is experiencing an evolution in the way we use our devices, the methods in which we design the networks for upcoming 5G technologies, and the way we deploy small cells. Multi-operator solutions will be critical to expanding the market for small cells and the range of possible deployments. Ericsson’s new small cell solutions address these industry changes to enable operators to deliver the needed coverage and capacity in a variety of environments.”
The Multi-Operator Dot and the Multi-Dot Enclosure will enable service providers to offer their customers an aesthetically pleasing full multi-operator solution, capable of extending coverage and capacity indoors using LTE/5G tight interworking. The Strand-Mount Unit creates new opportunities for outdoor deployments for customers such as telecom operators, cable operators and tower companies.
We have reached an inflection point at which approaches to small cells are evolving rapidly. 75% of companies either already allow employees to bring their own devices to work or plan to do so soon (Source: TechPro Research). But although 90% of our time is spent indoors, 60% of users are dissatisfied with their indoor cellular connectivity experience (Source: Ericsson ConsumerLab).
At the same time, 5G readiness requirements and IoT strategies are becoming increasingly important factors in network planning. Non-traditional players are entering the wireless marketplace and operators need to think outside the box and find more cost-effective means of deploying the number of small cells required to meet consumer demand.
Ericsson’s new small cell solutions meet the new market requirements and will be on display at the inaugural Mobile World Congress Americasfrom September 12 to14, 2017, and commercially available in 2018.
PRESS RELEASE:
Inmarsat Claims Global Skills Shortage Puts IoT Development at Risk
The latest research from global satellite communications provider Inmarsat (LSE: ISAT.L), has identified that a significant proportion of global enterprises lack IoT skills at different levels in their organisations, as well as in key technical disciplines, which risks jeopardising the success of their IoT deployments and the security of their data.
As part of Inmarsat’s ‘The Future of IoT in Enterprise – 2017’ report, market research specialist Vanson Bourne interviewed 500 senior IT decision makers from major organisations across the Americas, EMEA and APAC regions. 76 per cent of those surveyed reported that they needed additional staff at a senior, strategic level with the skills to set the objectives and priorities for IoT deployments. Additionally, 72 per cent of respondents identified a shortage of staff with management-level experience of IoT deployments, and 80 per cent lacked skills in the hands-on delivery of IoT solutions, to ensure that the solutions work as intended.
The shortage of staff with IoT-focused skills extends to specific technical disciplines. 60 per cent of respondents reported that they required additional staff experienced in cybersecurity to handle the vast quantities of data that IoT solutions generate; 46 per cent identified a deficit of staff with experience in analytics and data science; and around half (48 per cent) lacked the technical support skills needed to make their IoT projects successful.
Commenting on the findings, Paul Gudonis, President of the Inmarsat Enterprise Business Unit, said: “There is a clear recognition by organisations from all industries that IoT will play a fundamental role in their digital transformation and in their ability to achieve competitive advantage. But for that to happen businesses need to have the correct skill sets in place, and, as our research demonstrates, many currently find themselves without the skilled staff required for this transformation, and unable to take advantage of the potential that IoT solutions offer. Unless this skills deficit is properly addressed, there’s a risk that IoT projects will fail and that businesses will open themselves up to new security threats, putting an unwelcome brake on innovation.”
Identifying how enterprises can prepare themselves for the IoT revolution, Gudonis concluded. “As the potential value of IoT solutions becomes more apparent, deployment rates are expected to surge, placing yet further pressure on the pool of staff with the skills needed to make IoT projects successful. Enterprises must therefore move quickly to upskill their existing staff and fill the gaps in their internal skillsets with new hires. But longer term, the focus needs to be on establishing strategic partnerships with IoT specialists. With economies of scale on their side, specialist partners can help businesses overcome their skills bottlenecks and make their IoT deployments successful.”
IoT is changing the way that businesses operate, but it is dependent upon reliable connectivity. Many of the locations that would benefit most from IoT technologies are remote and are situated where terrestrial networks do not reach, or do not work well, all of the time. Inmarsat provides global satellite connectivity with up to 99.99% uptime, allowing IoT projects to thrive, even in the most remote and hostile environments.
You can view the research microsite and download the report here: research.inmarsat.com.