Mobile infrastructure must catch up with user needs and demands. Ubiquitous mobile computing is all around us. Some time in the next six months, the number of smartphones on earth will pass the number of PCs. As the power and capability of many mobile devices increases, the increased demand on networks. We watch more videos, and listen to music on our phones. Mobile Data Traffic To Grow 300% Globally By 2017 Led By Video, Web Use. Mobile network operators would have had an easier life if it wasn’t for smartphones and the flood of data traffic they initiated, and soon there will be also very many Internet of Things devices. Businesses and consumers want more bandwidth for less money.
More and more network bandwidth is being used by video: Netflix And YouTube Account For Over 50% Of Peak Fixed Network Data In North America. Netflix remains the biggest pig in the broadband python, representing 31.6% of all downstream Internet traffic in North America during primetime. In other parts of the world, YouTube is the biggest consumer of bandwidth. In Europe, YouTube represented of 28.7% of downstream traffic.
Gartner: Top 10 Strategic Technology Trends For 2014 expects that Software Defined Anything is a new mega-trend in data centers. Software-defined anything (SDx) is defined by “improved standards for infrastructure programmability and data center interoperability driven by automation inherent to cloud computing, DevOps and fast infrastructure provisioning.” Dominant vendors in a given sector of an infrastructure-type may elect not to follow standards that increase competition and lower margins, but end-customer will benefit from simplicity, cost reduction opportunities, and the possibility for consolidation. More hype around Software-Defined-Everything will keep the marketeers and the marchitecture specialists well employed for the next twelve months but don’t expect anything radical.
Software defined technologies are coming quickly to telecom operator networks with Network Functions Virtualisation (NFV). Intel and rather a lot of telcos want networks to operate like data centres. Today’s networks are mostly based around proprietary boxes designed to do very specific jobs. It used to be that way in the server business too until cheap generic x86 boxes took most of the market. The idea in NFV is that low-cost x86 servers can successfully many of those those pricey proprietary boxes currently attached to base-stations and other parts of the network. This scents a shift in the mood of the telcos themselves. This change is one that they want, and rather a lot of them are working together to make it happen. So the future mobile network will have more and more x86 and ARM based generic computing boxes running on Linux.
With the introduction of Network Functions Virtualisation base stations will have new functions built into them. For example NSN has announced a mobile edge computing platform that enables mobile base stations to host data and run apps. Think of this as an internet cloud server that’s really close to the customer.
Hybrid Cloud and IT as Service Broker are talked about. Telecom companies and cloud service providers are selling together service packages that have both connectivity and cloud storage sold as single service. Gartner suggests that bringing together personal clouds and external private cloud services is essential.
The type of device one has will be less important, as the personal or public cloud takes over some of the role. The push for more personal cloud technologies will lead to a shift toward services and away from devices, but there are also cases where where there is a great incentive to exploit the intelligence and storage of the client device. Gartner suggests that now through 2018, a variety of devices, user contexts, and interaction paradigms will make “everything everywhere” strategies unachievable, although many would like to see this working.
“Internet of Things” gets more push. The Internet is expanding into enterprise assets and consumer items such as cars and televisions. The concept of “Internet of Things” will evolve a step toward The Internet of Everything. Gartner identifies four basic usage models that are emerging: Manage, Monetize, Operate, Extend. The Internet of Things (IoT) will evolve into the Web of Things, increasing the coordination between things in the real world and their counterparts on the Web. The Industrial Internet of Things will be talked about. IoT takes advantage of mobile devices’ and sensors’ ability to observe and monitor their environments
Car of the future is M2M-ready and has Ethernet. Many manufacturers taking an additional step to develop vehicle connectivity. One such example is the European Commission’s emergency eCall system, which is on target for installation in every new car by 2015.
Smart Home Systems Are on the Rise article tells that most automated technology is found in commercial buildings that feature automated lighting that changes in intensity depending on the amount of sunlight present. Some of these buildings have WiFi incorporated into their lighting systems. There will be new and affordable technology on the market, but people today are still reluctant to bring automation to their homes.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
The Internet of Things is creating tremendous hype, sometimes with seemingly little substance. There is real power and value to the concept, but it requires a new approach to make it work.
Traditional client-server network protocols and master-slave industrial protocols don’t scale to the IoT
Existing network infrastructures aren’t ready for the numbers of connections that are forecast
And the best kept secret of the industrial IoT, over 85% of the billions of new connections that are forecasted are devices and assets that are already deployed
Source: https://event.webcasts.com/starthere.jsp?ei=1042399
Tomi Engdahl says:
Video Insights for IoT Designs
http://www.eetimes.com/author.asp?section_id=36&doc_id=1324488&
Limited or expensive network bandwidth drives a number of considerations for video systems designed for the Internet of Things.
Video cameras are uniquely compelling sensors because vision is our dominant sense. Video is invaluable for applications such as license plate recognition, robot navigation, and quality monitoring. Unfortunately, video is also one of the most bandwidth-intensive forms of sensing, so engineers need to carefully consider three areas when designing video systems for the Internet of Things:
How to partition processing between the camera and the cloud
What quality of compressed video to upload and at what time
How to support peer-to-peer video transfers
The canonical IoT model involves a network of sensors collecting data, which is forwarded to cloud servers. The servers analyze the data, often in real-time, to extract pertinent information and initiate appropriate responses. Often no human interaction is required. But because of video’s large inherent data rate, it is important to think carefully about how the necessary data analysis should be partitioned between the camera and the cloud.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Using Router SoCs as WiFi Modules (Yet Again)
http://hackaday.com/2014/11/06/using-router-socs-as-wifi-modules-yet-again/
8-bit AVRs and 32-bit ARMs do one thing, and one thing well: controlling other electronics and sensors while sipping power. The Internet of Things is upon us and with that comes the need for connecting to WiFi networks. Already, a lot of chips are using repackaged System on Chips to provide an easy way to connect to WiFi, and the USR-WIFI232-T is the latest of the bunch. It’s yet another UART to WiFi bridge, and as [2XOD], it’s pretty easy to connect to an AVR.
The module in question can be had through the usual channels for about $11, shipped straight from China, and the only purpose of this device is to provide a bridge between a serial port and a wireless network
Tomi Engdahl says:
3 architectures dominate the Internet of Things
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/eye-on-iot-/4436960/3-Architectures-Dominate-the-Internet-of-Things?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_weekly_20141106
In many discussions, especially around standards, the Internet of Things (IoT) is treated as though it were a single technology. But one reason there are many standards and technologies vying for a role in the IoT is that a single approach will not fit all the use cases. There are at least three main architectures for IoT system design in play, each imposing different requirements and constraints on device design.
The hub-and-spoke model is used when the IoT device is a reduced-resource (thin client) design that links to a hub or gateway device for ultimately connecting to the Internet. The hub/gateway handles the relatively compute-intensive tasks of network security and pre-processing of data as well as all the protocols associated with communicating to the wide area network and application services.
Front-loaded IoT designs use devices more capable than the thin-client designs of the hub-and-spoke architecture. These devices are capable of handling their own wide area network interfaces and preprocessing of data using more powerful processors and radios. They often communicate to the Internet for reporting and control as individuals, either directly or through a local area network router that is acting simply as a relay point, not a control center.
Smart client designs take things one step further. These are relatively autonomous devices that devices process their own data locally and act upon that data autonomously. They are also able to exchange information and exercise control peer-to-peer within their local network. They use their wide area network connectivity primarily as a means for sending in data for deeper analysis.
Yet in the design and standards discussions about the IoT I have seldom heard things prefaced with a declaration of which architecture is being talked about. Arguments of WiFi vs. Zigbee or CoAP vs. MQTT vs. XMPP can be totally unproductive if the proponents of competing alternatives are also envisioning differing architectures. Let’s start such discussions by first declaring which IoT system architecture
Tomi Engdahl says:
Mobile giants: 4G is so yesterday. Better IT can kickstart revenue growth
Hear that, IT crowd?
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/07/mobile_giants_turn_to_it_systems_not_lte_to_kickstart_revenue_growth/
Just as operators struggle to make direct profit improvements from LTE, so the vendors have long given up on 4G upgrades being the solution to all their problems.
LTE is the most significant factor in driving revenue growth for the big five infrastructure suppliers, for sure, but the margins and differentiation in the equipment itself are in sharp decline, and trends such as virtualisation and HetNet will only worsen that trend for the OEMs.
As Nokia’s and Ericsson’s third quarter results show, the vendors are shifting more aggressively than before to the key new technologies – which will not only deliver the revenues of the future, but could do so with more attractive margins.
Now it is all about software – radical concepts like virtualisation and SDN (software defined networks) hover on the horizon, but the companies see their carrier customers already thinking about their networks in a new way, and recognising that their own future success will lie in new core and back office platforms that can squeeze maximum value out of their LTE and LTE-A investments.
Nokia Networks has been a trailblazer in many areas of network software, paving the way for a fully software-defined future with its Liquid architecture. This seeks to allocate network resources flexibly – and increasingly, dynamically – where they are needed, throughout the RAN, core and transport. With the Liquid Applications offering, it also pushes more applications, content and intelligence to the edge of the network. This draws Nokia into valuable alliances with the IT giants like IBM, alliances which are increasingly targeting carriers as networks turn into applications platforms. Last week, Nokia established an industry alliance around its edge-based architecture in the hope of driving de facto standards.
Tomi Engdahl says:
7 Colorado communities just secured the right to build their own broadband
http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/the-switch/wp/2014/11/05/7-colorado-communities-just-voted-themselves-the-right-to-build-their-own-broadband/
Voters in seven cities and counties in Colorado voted Tuesday to free their local governments to offer Internet service.
The votes marked a defeat for big, traditional Internet service providers such as Comcast that have successfully maneuvered to inject limits on municipal broadband into state regulations over the last decade. Now cities are figuring out ways to push back, including wiggling out from under laws the industry helped put in place.
Nearly two dozen states have laws limiting the ability of local governments or their partners to offer their own broadband services, often passed with the encouragement of big commercial broadband providers who complain about unfair competition.
Tomi Engdahl says:
UN takeover of internet postponed indefinitely
Two weeks of negotiations may have turned the ITU super-tanker
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/05/un_takeover_of_internet_postponed_indefinitely/
Efforts to squeeze the United Nations into the throne of the internet have been comprehensively defeated at a key meeting in South Korea.
The result raises the possibility that after more than a decade of fighting, the threat of a UN takeover is a thing of the past.
After more than two weeks of negotiations at the United Nations’ ITU Plenipotentiary meeting in South Korea, revised versions of four key internet resolutions have passed through the working group stage and will be formally approved in the next few hours by the meeting’s plenary.
In each case, proposed changes that would have given the ITU (the International Telecommunication Union) greater authority over the internet’s evolution, have been pulled out – and some additions had been made that give existing internet organizations a greater say in future discussions.
Tomi Engdahl says:
If It Ain’t Automated, You’re Doing It Wrong
http://www.thenewip.net/author.asp?section_id=289&doc_id=710937&cid=oubtrain&wc=4
In all the excitement over virtualization and the impact that NFV and SDN will have on telecom networks, one stark reality remains for every IP network operator: However you are evolving your network, if you aren’t automating the back-end processes, you’re doing it wrong.
This has been a reality for telecom network operators for years now, and most have been working very hard at this task, not only because automation leads to higher service quality and faster service delivery but because it also generally means lower costs of operation.
As those engaged in this process know all too well, introducing automation means extracting people, reducing the human error factor in the process, and enabling flow-through processes that start with the customer input.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Elon Musk’s Next Mission: Internet Satellites
http://science.slashdot.org/story/14/11/08/143248/elon-musks-next-mission-internet-satellites
According to a report in the Wall Street Journal, Elon Musk is looking at a new project: smaller, cheaper satellites that can provide internet access for people all across the world.
Elon Musk’s Next Mission: Internet Satellites
SpaceX, Tesla Founder Explores Venture to Make Lighter, Cheaper Satellites
http://online.wsj.com/articles/elon-musks-next-mission-internet-satellites-1415390062
Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk shook up the automotive and aerospace industries with electric cars and cheap rockets. Now, he is focused on satellites, looking at ways to make smaller, less-expensive models that can deliver Internet access across the globe, according to people familiar with the matter.
Mr. Musk is working with Greg Wyler, a satellite-industry veteran and former Google Inc. executive, these people said. Mr. Wyler founded WorldVu Satellites Ltd., which controls a large block of radio spectrum.
In talks with industry executives, Messrs. Musk and Wyler have discussed launching around 700 satellites, each weighing less than 250 pounds, the people said. That is about half the size of the smallest communications satellites now in commercial use. The satellite constellation would be 10 times the size of the largest current fleet, managed by Iridium Communications Inc.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart Battery Charges Up for IoT
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324532&
After several years chasing WiFi sockets in consumer gadgets, Roel Peeters got another idea. Sell a $35 smart, networked battery that consumers can plug into millions of existing smoke alarms.
The concept is simple. The battery lets any existing smoke alarm connect to a home WiFi network so it can alert the owner’s smartphone if the alarm goes off. Its smart power management will also eliminate 3am wake up calls from an alarm with a dying battery.
If consumers snap up the batteries, Peeters aims to parley their support into a round of venture capital to build out the startup. He already snagged $1 million in seed funds from the group that owns China’s Lenovo and DCM, a Silicon Valley VC firm.
Roost will source a custom rechargeable lithium ion battery with a five-year life. It will be strategically smaller than today’s 10-year versions that come in the form factor of a 9V alkaline battery and cost about $8. With the extra space Roost will pack in one or more merchant chips to provide WiFi, MCU, and sensor functions.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Internet Began 35 Years Ago at UCLA
with First Message Ever Sent Between Two Computers
Forum to Mark Anniversary Set for October 29
http://web.archive.org/web/20080308120314/http://www.engineer.ucla.edu/stories/2004/Internet35.htm
This year marks the 35th anniversary of the birth of the Internet at UCLA.
UCLA will celebrate this historic event with an exciting, insightful day-long forum on Friday, October 29. Many of the Internet’s early pioneers, as well as some of today’s most thought-provoking and influential industry leaders and rising stars will offer their perspective on how the Internet came to be what it is today, and what it will be like tomorrow.
“The Internet’s founding fathers, its current heavy hitters and its young visionaries will all be in one room together to talk about this technology’s impact on society,” said Leonard Kleinrock, a computer scientist in the UCLA Henry Samueli School of Engineering and Applied Science.
UCLA became the first node of what was then known as the ARPANET on September 2, 1969 when Kleinrock led a team of engineers in establishing the first network connection between two computers, ushering in a new method of global communications that has forever changed the course of business, politics, entertainment, education and social interaction.
The UCLA researchers set up a telephone connection in addition to the data network connection so that the programmers at each end could talk to each other and report what they were each seeing at their end of the connection.
The UCLA team began by sending the ‘L’ and asked, “Did you get the L?” The reply from SRI: “Yes.”
They then sent the ‘O’ and asked, “Did you get the O?” Again came the reply from the Stanford programmer: “Yes.”
However, when the UCLA engineers attempted to send the letter ‘G’ the host computer at Stanford crashed.
“As a result, history now records how clever we were to send such a prophetic first message, namely ‘lo,’” said Kleinrock.
-Chris Sutton
09/2/04
Tomi Engdahl says:
Report: Elon Musk eyeing partnership to launch 700 internet satellites
https://gigaom.com/2014/11/07/report-elon-musk-eyeing-partnership-to-launch-700-internet-satellites/
Sources told the Wall Street Journal that Musk is working with Google’s former satellite executive to build a factory that could pump out small satellites.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Pica8 adds ‘transitional’ SDN capabilities
Mix L2, L3 and OpenFlow on one switch
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/10/pica8_adds_transitional_sdn_capabilities/
Pica8 wants to make the software-defined networking (SDN) transition easier for data centres that have to cope with an installed base, letting its software work simultaneously with SDN environments and traditional Layer 2/3 networking kit.
The idea, according to the company’s Steve Garrison in conversation with Vulture South, comes from the straightforward realisation that nobody’s going to yank all their existing networking kit in a weekend – or, perhaps, a year – just so they can put in all-new bare-metal switches.
At the same time, however, the problems that SDN is trying to address remain: configuring a data centre network to support a new Web app can take a lot longer than rolling out the app itself.
“Layer 2 and 3 networking is really good at topology,” Garrison told El Reg. “What OpenFlow is good at is point-to-point.
“So if you’re defining a network for SQL Web services, in OpenFlow you can create a policy that says ‘send any SQL packet here’. You don’t need to re-engineer the network to do that.”
By running both L2/L3 protocols (like spanning tree, OSPF and BGP) on the same bare metal switches that are running OpenFlow, Pica8 is trying to bridge the two worlds: a switch can run L2/L3 protocols on some ports, while putting other ports under control of Open VSwitch commands either locally or via an SDN controller.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Switching and Networking Software Enables Hardware-Independent NFV
http://electronicdesign.com/communications/switching-and-networking-software-enables-hardware-independent-nfv
The Virtual Accelerator software from 6WIND provides accelerated virtual switching and networking features for virtual infrastructures to enable network function virtualization (NFV), data center virtualization, and network appliance virtualization. The software runs within the hypervisor domain with a hardware-independent architecture to allow new and existing virtual machines (VMs) to be quickly integrated onto x86-based servers. It offers flexible virtual switching support for Open vSwitch and Linux bridge with no modifications and a complete infrastructure with VLAN, VXLAN, Virtual Routing, IP Forwarding, Filtering and NAT. Transparent orchestration for OpenStack is also supported.
Tomi Engdahl says:
What Is the MicroTCA.4 Open Standard Architecture?
http://electronicdesign.com/engineering-essentials/what-microtca4-open-standard-architecture
The MicroTCA (MTCA) open-standard architecture has been around for more than eight years, and it has seen a resurgence of design wins in a wide range of applications. The specification provides a dense, high-speed, managed technology with built-in high-availability options.
MicroTCA.4 is a newer sub-specification that was ratified in 2011. Originally designed for the high-energy physics (HEPP) community, it adds functionality in the provision of micro-rear-transition modules (µRTMs) for signal conditioning and I/O.
A µTCA.4 chassis platform can utilize the elements of existing MicroTCA systems, including a choice of dozens of standard Advanced Mezzanine Cards or (AdvancedMCs or AMCs), power modules, and MicroTCA Carrier Hubs (MCHs). The types of AMCs include analog-to-digital converters (ADCs) and digital-to-analog converters (DACs), data processing modules, Intel-based processors, FPGA Mezzanine Card (FMC) carriers, and up- and down-frequency converters.
The key functional difference between µTCA.0 (the core specification of MicroTCA) and µTCA.4 is the addition of RTM provisions, including a rear connector on the double modules. The front module is standard and fully compatible with µTCA.0. A connector on the rear connects with the RTM (Fig. 1). The RTMs are application-specific and need pinouts that are compatible with the front board they are plugged into.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Net Neutrality: President Obama’s Plan for a Free and Open Internet
http://www.whitehouse.gov/net-neutrality
More than any other invention of our time, the Internet has unlocked possibilities we could just barely imagine a generation ago. And here’s a big reason we’ve seen such incredible growth and innovation: Most Internet providers have treated Internet traffic equally. That’s a principle known as “net neutrality” — and it says that an entrepreneur’s fledgling company should have the same chance to succeed as established corporations, and that access to a high school student’s blog shouldn’t be unfairly slowed down to make way for advertisers with more money.
That’s what President Obama believes, and what he means when he says there should be no gatekeepers between you and your favorite online sites and services.
Tomi Engdahl says:
President Obama calls on FCC to keep Internet ‘free and open’
The President says that all Internet Service Providers should agree to not block or throttle Internet traffic.
http://www.cnet.com/au/news/president-obama-calls-on-fcc-to-keep-internet-free-and-open/
In a statement released on Monday, President Obama called on the Federal Communications Commission to maintain Net Neutrality and ensure that Internet Service Providers (ISPs” are not allowed “to restrict the best access or to pick winners and losers in the online marketplace for services and ideas.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
IEEE turns crank on new wired Ethernet standards
Following NBase-T trailblazers down the 2.5/5 Gbps track
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/11/ieee_turns_crank_on_new_wired_ethernet_standards/
Industry interest in faster enterprise Ethernet on twisted pair cables is driving a new standardisation effort in the IEEE, the chair of the Ethernet says, with a new study group formed last week to kick things along.
D’Ambrosia told The Register that the industry consensus is so strong it’s feasible that a task force could come into being in Q1 of 2015, and while it’s far too early to commit to a timeframe, standardisation could take place quite quickly.
As evidenced by the emergence of groups like the NBase-T Alliance in late October, it’s clear that enterprises are going to need higher performance out of their wired Ethernet networks.
The driver for this is 802.11ac, since it’s silly to have multi-gigabit wireless access points served by blue cables that can only limp along at 1 Gbps.
D’Ambrosia said the biggest challenge in kicking wired Ethernet’s speeds along is going to be handling the crosstalk in cable bundles.
A second challenge will be to develop modulation techniques that can maintain 2.5 Gbps and 5 Gbps transmissions over the full hundred metres of Ethernet cables. For that, D’Ambrosia told Vulture South, “people are looking at basing it on a slowed-down 10 Gbps Ethernet technology – that had a lot of discussion last week.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
How VXLAN-based Ethernet IP Solves Cloud Computing Network bottlenecks
http://www.techonline.com/electrical-engineers/education-training/tech-papers/4432479/How-VXLAN-based-Ethernet-IP-Solves-Cloud-Computing-Network-bottlenecks?_mc=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20141110&cid=NL_EDN_EDT_EDN_today_20141110&elq=34627a68dbef4c9fada862a68fb6d78d&elqCampaignId=20109
Network virtualization technologies running over optimized Ethernet IP are enabling cloud computing data centers to expand and support the growing amount of internet traffic. Hyperscale cloud data centers are driving requirements for new network overlay protocols such as Virtual Extensible LAN (VXLAN) running over Ethernet.
Tomi Engdahl says:
LoRa IoT wireless network to be deployed at Electronica
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/-electronica/4437053/LoRa-IoT-wireless-network-to-be-deployed-at-Electronica
Semtech Corp is partnering with IBM Research, Microchip, and their distribution partners at Electronica 2014 in deploying live its LoRa low-power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) over a majority of the Munich area.
With the LPWAN, the analog and mixed-signal semiconductor supplier aims to demonstrate its advanced technology for IoT (Internet of Things) and M2M (Machine-to-Machine) at the massive event in Germany next week.
Semtech is also promoting its broader partner ecosystem of end-node modules, gateways/concentrators, and network controller solutions for private networks at the show by giving away 1,000 IoT demonstration end-nodes to select clients by the ecosystem participants. The end-node modules will connect to the Munich IoT wireless network set up for Electronica so potential customers can evaluate the range, coverage, and potential of the LoRa technology.
LoRa, itself, is a long-range RF technology aiming to fill the gap between IoT and cellular coverage. Semtech designed the LoRa gateway chipset and partnered with IBM Research, Actility, and Microchip to develop the LoRaMAC protocol as a long-range star network architecture with a high network capacity.
One of the key features of LoRaMAC and the network server is adaptive data rate, which scales the network capacity and battery lifetime. In most network deployments today, a single data rate is utilized.
To build a hosted controller network, a developer would first select a LoRaMAC-compliant module from Microchip or IMST to create their end node application. The LoRaMAC protocol is embedded inside of the module so the developer only needs to manage the interface to the application.
According to IMS Research, the demand for long-range RF connectivity is expected to grow dramatically. By 2020, the number of web-connected devices is expected to reach 22 billion, with more than 50% of these applications predicted to be LPWAN and requiring a long battery lifetime.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A primer to Wi-Fi provisioning for IoT applications
http://www.techonline.com/electrical-engineers/education-training/tech-papers/4432825/A-primer-to-Wi-Fi-provisioning-for-IoT-applications
Wi-Fi is the most ubiquitous wireless connectivity technology today. After becoming a standard feature in all laptops, smartphones and tablets, Wi-Fi is being added to simpler products like home appliances, thermostats and many other home and building automation products that are feeding the exploding Internet of Things (IoT). Provisioning IoT products, that do not have a keyboard and display as a user interface, in a simple and robust way is a significant challenge.
Tomi Engdahl says:
7 weird IoT applications
http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/eye-on-iot-/4437039/7-weird-applications-for-the-Internet-of-Things
The Internet of Things (IoT) involves a lot of technologies that provide it with immense potential. This also forces manufacturers to be creative and innovative, because that is one of the ways for them to make sure their application, product, or service succeeds. With all that potential and creativity in play, perhaps it is not surprising that every now and then you will come across an application that is simply weird.
Here are some of the weirdest Internet of Things products I have seen recently.
1. SteadyServ tells you when you are running out of beer.
2. The Random Hall Bathroom Server tells you where the nearest vacant bathroom is.
3. Telegarden. Ah, the joys of gardening.
4. No more hot dogs. Rethink Toronto has come up with a system that includes a thermistor sensor, a SIM card, and a chip that monitors your pooch’s temperature.
5. Happy satisfied cats. Just hope that Cisco’s Internet-enabled cat feeder pushes through.
6. Heart monitor. Corventis has a heart monitor that you can place on your chest. This will help hospitals, healthcare providers, and other authorities get alerted if you have a heart attack or if you suffered from arrhythmia and fell down.
7. No more diaper rashes. If you could use sensors to monitor the heart, you could also use it to monitor diapers. 24eight, a startup company, is doing just that, putting chips into diapers that sends a SMS message to parents when they need to change their baby’s diapers.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Development Board for Rapid Prototyping
http://www.eeweb.com/news/development-board-for-rapid-prototyping
Cardinal Components announced the release of a new board-level product line for the Internet of Things (IOT. The Electro-Set™ is Cardinal’s new IOT board-level offering which focuses on connecting everything to everything such as objects, people, processes, data, and machines.
In producing Electro-Set™, Cardinal is addressing a large and somewhat fragmented IOT design- development community with a clear opportunity for growth. Cardinal’s interface Electro-Set™ boards differentiate themselves from other manufacturers’ boards by providing a standard unified 6 Pin connector including I2C interconnect, allowing for rapid proof of concept design and prototyping.
Initially this includes an Arduino UNO interface board and a MicroChip PIC processor board with USB. Future processor interface platforms will include Intel Galileo, NXP, Raspberry Pi, TI, and Renesas.
IOT Connectivity can be performed in many ways: 802.11, Bluetooth, Zigbee, GSM, USB etc. New products feature a line of Bluetooth modules, including Bluetooth LE version 4.0
Tomi Engdahl says:
Aruba’s 802.11ac wireless LAN products certified by NSA for use in federal agencies
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2014/10/aruba-ac-nsa-certified.html?cmpid=EnlCIMNovember102014
Aruba Networks (NASDAQ: ARUN) announced that its 802.11ac wireless LAN (WLAN) products are the first to receive FIPS 140-2 certification and the first to be validated under the Common Criteria Wireless LAN Access System Protection Profile. As a result, Aruba now has a fully compliant listing in the “WLAN Access System” category on the United States National Security Agency/Central Security Service’s (NSA’s) Commercial Solutions for Classified Program Components List.
The Aruba solutions receiving certification include the AP-224 and AP-225 802.11ac access points (APs), featuring Aruba’s patented ClientMatch technology, which matches mobile devices to the best possible access point each time they connect, and the company’s 7200 Series Mobility Controllers. With the new validations, Aruba notes that government agencies in the U.S. and other countries can now take advantage of the faster speeds, improved performance and enhanced security that 802.11ac delivers for both classified and unclassified networks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Researchers push 255 Tbps over multi-core fiber
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2014/11/255-tbps-multicore-fiber-push.html
researchers at Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) in the Netherlands and The College of Optics and Photonics at the University of Central Florida (CREOL) have reported in the journal Nature Photonics the successful transmission of 255 Tbps over multicore optical fiber.
The new fiber has seven different cores through which light can travel, and each core can support three different spatial modes via spatial division multiplexing (SDM). Researchers are exploring SDM as a promising way to increase the capacity and reduce the costs of transmission systems in the future — when the capacity of fibers in the ground has been exhausted.
The researchers described the innovation as “going from a one-way road to a seven-lane highway,” adding that the use of multiple spatial modes is “as if three cars can drive on top of each other in the same lane.” Combining those two methods increases the transmission capacity of the fiber by a factor of 21 compared to standard optical fibers that have only one singlemode core.
Tomi Engdahl says:
European mobile infrastructure provider: ‘DAS solutions are static’
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2014/11/das-solutions-static.html
Found at the website of the DAS Congress, a new article by the German mobile communications infrastructure provider KATHREIN-Werke KG (Kathrein) makes a provocative charge: “DAS solutions are static.’
“DAS solutions have…a significant disadvantage,” states Kathrein, via the article, which is unbylined. “They are static and provide no capacity to adapt network capacity to match changing requirements quickly and affordably.”
In explanation and justification of this claim, the article contends, “Since a complex coaxial cable structure with splitters and antennas needs to be installed, [a distributed antenna system] requires capacity requirements to be forecast and hotspots to be determined two or three years in advance. The entire system has to be manually reconfigured, calibrated and adjusted if building utilization changes because, for example, a business moves from one floor to another or because higher bandwidth is required for mobile communications in the management board’s offices.”
“This results in a time-consuming and costly process that also demands a high level of expertise,” maintains Kathrein.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Rethinking Big Data
http://semiengineering.com/rethinking-big-data/
Being able to mine data accurately with billions upon billions of sensors will require a different approach for processing that data.
You have to marvel at the sheer genius of what modern day, edge-of-the envelope marketing schemes can accomplish. For example, terms such as the Internet of Things [KC], (also referred to as the Cloud of Things, or the Internet of Everything, or even Internet of Interconnect) have become sexy, interesting, exciting camouflage layers over the rather dull M2M industry.
The same is about to happen with analytics. It is getting a new suit, shave, and a haircut, and being called “Big Data.” According to Ian Morris, Principal Applications Engineer for RF Connectivity Solutions at NXP Semiconductors [], “big data is one of the most popular topics in our worlds.”
There is a lot of noise being made about the IoT and big data. From retail to medicine, to defense, to homeland security, travel and logistics. And that only scratches the surface. According to Morris, the IoT is of interest to a lot of vendors because of the potential to sell into it—everything from software to networking to silicon. “It is not just one vertical market, and big data represents a tremendous opportunity from a sensor perspective.”
With the sheer volume of data collection devices, and once the IoT really exists, the amount of data in the virtual universe will be astronomical – 40 zettabytes, conservatively, by the year 2020. And the number of sensors acquiring this data is just as astronomical. No one wants to venture a guess as to the number of sensors, but the numbers being tossed around for IoT devices is between 50 and 200 billion. And most devices are brimming with sensors. Smartphones alone integrate such sensors as accelerometers, compasses, GPS’, light and sound sensors, altimeters and more. If one wants to find a prototypical IoT device, this is it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
SoC wireless transceivers need little power
http://www.edn.com/electronics-products/other/4437063/SoC-wireless-transceivers-need-little-power
Based on the IEEE 802.15.4-2006 standard, the NCS3651X series of 2.4-GHz ultra-low-power wireless transceivers from ON Semiconductor supports such protocols as ZigBee, 6LoWPAN, WirelessHART, and proprietary versions to enable reliable and efficient communications for Internet of Things and smart-metering applications.
high efficiency with single-supply operation from a standard battery (1.0 V to 3.6 V).
The NCS3651x incorporates a 32-bit ARM Cortex-M3 processor
Tomi Engdahl says:
Interesting IoT plaform from Finland in Kickstarter: Thingsee One
http://www.thingsee.com/
You can monitor:
Acceleration
Speed
Location
Temperature
Humidity
Pressure
3D Orientation & Tilt
Compass directions
Light levels
Wireless connectivity:
Unlocked cellular connectivity
WiFi
Bluetooth LE 4.1
Thingsee One: The Smart Developer Device for Mobile IoT
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/haltian/thingsee-one-the-smart-developer-device-for-mobile
“Ex-Nokians Crowdfund A Device To Democratize The Internet Of Things” TechCrunch
Tomi Engdahl says:
Texas boffins put radio waves in a spin
Circulator would enable full-duplex cellphone operation on single frequency
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/11/texas_boffins_put_radio_waves_in_a_spin/
University of Texas researchers have developed an electronic “radio wave circulator” they say would enable full-duplex communications on mobile phones using a single frequency band.
University of Texas boffins are pleased with themselves: they’ve created an active circulator that’s both small enough and efficient enough (important in terms of battery life) to be used in cell phones.
This would, the researchers say, allow full-duplex operation of a phone on a single frequency.
“Freed from a reliance on magnetic effects, the new circulator has a much smaller footprint while also using less expensive and more common materials,” the university’s announcement states.
The electronic circulator mimics the magnetic effect
Their prototype is 2 cm in size, but the researchers say that replacing discrete components with integrated manufacture, it could be shrunk down to micron sizes.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microsoft to use ‘white space’ tech for free internet in India
http://www.hindustantimes.com/business-news/microsoft-to-use-white-space-tech-for-free-internet-in-india/article1-1284325.aspx
Microsoft India is ready with a plan to provide free last-mile internet connectivity across the country.
It proposes to use the “white space” – the unused spectrum between two TV channels – to provide free connectivity to large sections of the Indian population.
“Wifi has a range of only about 100 metres, whereas the 200-300 MHz spectrum band available in the white space can reach up to 10 km,” said Bhaskar Pramanik, chairman, Microsoft India. “This spectrum belongs mainly to Doordarshan and the government and is not used at all. We have sought clearance for a pilot project in two districts.”
If the pilots are successful, the project can be quickly rolled out across the country and could give a huge boost to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Digital India initiative, which proposes to use technology to deliver governance to every citizen of India, even in remote areas.
“The challenge is the lack of digital infrastructure across India. This initiative addresses this challenge in a cost-effective manner and creates an eco-system that will benefit everyone, including manufacturers of routers and other technology devices, other technology companies, besides Microsoft,” Pramanik said.
Microsoft’s initiative also take forward the Prime Minister’s slogan of “IT + IT = IT”, which is Indian talent plus information technology equals India tomorrow and also give a push to the ‘Make in India’ campaign by encouraging the manufacture of equipment locally.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microsoft plans to bring free Internet across India using ‘white space’ TV spectrum
http://tech.firstpost.com/news-analysis/microsoft-plans-to-bring-free-internet-across-india-using-white-space-tv-spectrum-241153.html
Microsoft has announced its plans to bring Internet connectivity across the country completely free of cost.
As revealed to Hindustan Times, Microsoft has proposed to make use of the “white space” or the unused spectrum between two TV channels, to make Internet connectivity to a vast population an economically-viable solution.
This solution addresses the key hurdle in setting up Internet connectivity across remote areas in the country: the lack of digital infrastructure.
Microsoft is seeking permission to kick-start the project in two major districts as of now.
The initiative seems to have come right in time when PM Narendra Modi has announced his Digital India project. The project that would cost $1.2 billion aims to connect 250,000 gram panchayats in order to make Internet connectivity accessible to every part of the country. The project has garnered the interest of several tech giants, including Facebook and Microsoft, who have shown their willingness to offer support to make it a reality.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Are open Wi-Fi network bods liable for users’ copyright badness?
EU top court asked to make ruling
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/11/cjeu_asked_to_rule_on_copyright_liability_of_operators_of_free_and_open_wifi_networks/
The EU’s highest court has been asked to rule on whether commercial providers of free and open Wi-Fi networks can be held liable for copyright infringement carried out without their knowledge by a user of their network.
A court in Munich has asked the Court of Justice of the EU (CJEU) to provide it with guidance on how to interpret laws contained in the EU’s E-Commerce Directive which concern third party liability for unlawful activity over electronic communication networks.
“The Munich court has asked the CJEU to determine whether non-private providers of Wi-Fi hotspots can be held ‘liable for disturbance’,” Zollner said. “This is a concept of German law that equates to a breach of duty of care. A record label in Germany has argued that an entrepreneur is liable for disturbance by operating an open, free-to-use Wi-Fi network that was used, it has claimed, to infringe its copyright.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://theoatmeal.com/blog/net_neutrality
Tomi Engdahl says:
News & Analysis
Chip Industry’s IoT Facelift Comes With Security Wrinkle
Hardware security is the opportunity
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324587&
MUNICH — Brimming with excitement, and with Europe already ahead of the pack, a maturing semiconductor industry looks expectantly to the Internet of Things (IoT) for yet another facelift, while also recognizing that the IoT security wrinkle may itself provide an opportunity via hardware-based security as the backbone of the connected world. But this will require semiconductor companies to move into software to address data, cloud, and usability management issues, so concluded a panel of four presidents and CEOs plucked from the upper echelons of the industry.
Predictions of connectivity applications were wide and varied, ranging from smart cars, smart factories and smart cities to smart lives, but Gregg Lowe, president and CEO of Freescale Semiconductor summed up the possibilities. “In 2016 we will have cars that can’t crash, can preorder a parking spot at your restaurant, and communicate with your car if you have a heart attack at the table.”
It sounds good, but on the path to IoT, the issue of data and device security looms large. For Reinhard Ploss, CEO of Infineon Technologies AG, this is actually a plus. “The semiconductor industry opportunity is hardwired security to provide a backbone to which all applications can be attached.” For this to happen, however, semiconductor companies must also move into software and data security. “We need the Cloud for ubiquitous usage,” he said, a point not lost on Carlo Bozotti, president and CEO of STMicroelectronics Application Gmbh, who responded, “The opportunity [for semiconductor companies] is in the cloud.”
Europe is already ahead of the US and most of the world in building out the infrastructure for the cloud and connectivity, according to Ploss, thanks to the infrastructure it has in place from its leadership in smartphones.
Still, said Clemmer, usability is a key issue for IoT devices
Tomi Engdahl says:
Comcast: Being for net neutrality and against Title II is completely consistent — Surprise! We Agree with the President’s Principles on Net Neutrality: Reiterating Our Strong Support for the Open Internet
Nov 11, 2014
Surprise! We Agree with the President’s Principles on Net Neutrality: Reiterating Our Strong Support for the Open Internet
http://corporate.comcast.com/comcast-voices/surprise-we-agree-with-the-presidents-principles-on-net-neutrality-reiterating-our-strong-support-for-the-open-internet
Yesterday, the President outlined his plan for a free and open Internet. There has been no shortage of discussion and debate on the topic of net neutrality. A clear consensus has emerged for the FCC to adopt new rules that will strengthen the open Internet and ensure that the Internet remains a vital engine for innovation, economic growth, and free expression.
What is remarkable is that if you compare the President’s articulation of his vision for net neutrality as set forth in the White House talking points released yesterday afternoon, we are on the record as agreeing with every point:
Free and open Internet. We agree – and that is our practice.
No blocking. We agree – and that is our practice.
No throttling. We agree – and that is our practice.
Increased transparency. We agree – and that is our practice.
No paid prioritization. We agree – and that is our practice.
We have publicly supported the FCC adopting new, strong Open Internet rules
Tomi Engdahl says:
The Net Neutrality Debate Is About Companies & Politicians Own Posturing
http://blog.streamingmedia.com/2014/11/net-neutrality-politicians-posturing.html
This net neutrality debate is getting ugly, political and only going to get worse. Cutting through all the garbage arguments and posturing by companies and politicians makes it clear that they want what’s best for their bottom line and politicians just want to stay popular.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Ben Popper / The Verge:
Quirky and GE announce Norm $80 smart thermostat, Outlink smart power outlet, Tripper door and window sensor, custom sensor kit micro-factory in SF, more — Quirky just announced seven new products, a micro-factory, custom sensor kits, and the death of the thermostat
Quirky just announced seven new products, a micro-factory, custom sensor kits, and the death of the thermostat
http://www.theverge.com/2014/11/11/7193765/quirky-ge-wink-uniq-spotter-norm-factory
Did we mention the national marketing campaign about how creepy robot butlers would be?
Quirky, the New York City startup focused on crowdsourcing innovation, has also been working in partnership with GE to create a full-bodied ecosystem of connected devices and services for the smart home. Earlier this year, it spun out a whole new company, Wink, focused on building the app, hub, and control panels for the smart home. The problem is that studies show many people are still afraid to experiment with a smart home. “Most Americans still don’t think the smart home is affordable,” said Beth Comstock, GE’s chief marketing officer. “Quirky today will turn that on its head. This morning it launched a bevy of new connected devices, along with a couple of other initiatives all aimed at driving mainstream consumer adoption of the smart home.
Finally there was Norm, which Quirky CEO Ben Kaufman grandly introduced with the line, “Today we’re announcing the death of the thermostat.” It’s not really clear why replacing one box with another equals the end of the thermostat, but Norm is much simpler and cheaper, at $80, than most smart thermostats. It monitors temperature in whatever room you install it, can be controlled with the Wink app, and can be easily connected to low-cost temperature sensors in any room. The Norm allows you to set and adjust temperature for an average of all your rooms or apply more finely tuned room-by-room temperatures if you have an HVAC system installed.
Tomi Engdahl says:
NETWORKED SOCIETY CITY INDEX 2014
http://www.ericsson.com/res/docs/2014/networked-society-city-index-2014.pdf
To prepare the Networked Society City Index each year, we review the leading research literature
and case studies exploring the connection between ICT and sustainable urban development
This year, we noted a clear shift in research emphasis, away from proving the case for ICT benefits to
a focus on how city governments can maximize those benefits As ICT is accepted as a natural springboard for growth and development, the 2014 City Index will follow that same focus
Tomi Engdahl says:
Smart battery connected to the fire alarm system
The Internet of Things refers to the – albeit still a little vaguely – to millions, even billions of different devices connected to the network. Sometimes, the device is connected to the network afterwards. This can be done, for example, a battery with integrated WLAN radio.
But there is a company called Roost, the battery is now being sought funding for a number of financial campaign. Hundred dollars, you get four lithium-ion batteries that provide a Wi-Fi connection to any of the smoke alarm. Batteries are otherwise ordinary 9-volt batteries.
If the fire alarm goes off, the alarm is automatically also a mobile phone application. Power management is so smart, that smoke detectors alarm battery-draining and including three time in the morning.
Need for smart battery can be found in the market. In the USA alone is 350 million a fire alarm, which Roost could connect to your home WLAN.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2058:paristo-liittaa-palovaroittimen-verkkoon&catid=13&Itemid=101
Tomi Engdahl says:
Microsoft’s Lync becomes ‘Skype for Business’
Skype on the desktop for all Office users: what could go wrong with that?
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/12/microsofts_lync_becomes_skype_for_business/
Microsoft Lync is dead, replaced by Skype for Business.
Lync is/was Microsoft’s unified communications product and offers voice, video, instant messaging and videoconferences, all delivered from a single client. Integration with Microsoft Office means lots of click-to-talk-or-chat action.
As of next year, however, Lync will become known as “Skype for Business”. The Lync server will become “Skype for Business Server”.
Microsoft says the big change is that Lync’s client will get Skype’s look and feel. None of Lync’s features will go, but some of Skype’s will appear including a user’s Skype contacts being available to Lync.
Microsoft promises that adopting Skype for Business will be a simple matter of updating one’s client software and Lync server.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Z-Wave Wireless Communications for Smart Devices and IoT
http://www.techonline.com/electrical-engineers/education-training/tech-papers/4436809/Z-Wave-Wireless-Communications-for-Smart-Devices-and-IoT?_mc=NL_TOL_EDT_TOL_featuredtechpapers_20141112&cid=NL_TOL_EDT_TOL_featuredtechpapers_20141112
Z-Wave is a low-power wireless mesh network standard that is widely used for M2M and smart devices in the Internet of Things (IoT), home automation and security markets. Z-Wave is a complete communications solution, encompassing everything from the physical or hardware layer all the way up to the applications layer.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Investors in Cable Deal Fret Over Talk of Broadband Regulation
Share Prices Fall Following Obama’s Call for New Rules
http://online.wsj.com/news/article_email/investors-in-cable-deal-fret-over-talk-of-broadband-regulation-1415662986-lMyQjAxMTI0NzA0OTkwNjk5Wj
Tomi Engdahl says:
France KICKS UK into THIRD PLACE for public Wi-Fi hotspots
US takes second spot, and Asian giants loom
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/03/france_knocks_uk_into_third_place_for_public_hotspots/
The UK is ranked third in the world for publicly available Wi-Fi, with one hotspot per 11 people, according to research released on Monday, but France leads the way, while the US steals second place.
The number of global hotspots will explode by 2018 to over 340m (or one hotspot for every 20 people), from the current 47.7m (or one hotspot for every 150 people).
This is in part due to the growth in residential hotspots
Europe has the highest concentration of Wi-Fi networks, with 50 per cent of global coverage. However, over the next four years Asia will overtake it to become the continent with the densest coverage. By 2018, the UK will get bumped to seventh place for coverage, as China, Japan, and South Korea are expected to overtake it.
Currently, China has five times more commercial Wi-Fi hotspots than any other country.
“The growth in community hotspots is taking public Wi-Fi from the cities to the suburbs,”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Sixteen shades of grey survive Viennese quantum optics test
‘Twisted light’ test transcends turbulence, suggesting secure comms tool
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2014/11/12/sixteen_shades_of_grey_survive_viennese_freespace_quantum_optics_test/
Viennese researchers have taken another important step in the development of communications systems using optical angular momentum (OAM), a.k.a. “twisted light”, as the basis of the modulation.
What’s different in the latest work is that the group, from the University of Vienna and the Institute for Quantum Optics and Quantum Communication, managed to maintain a relatively low error rate over a distance of three kilometres, in spite of turbulence.
OAM is a handy technique in both quantum and classical optical communications, since it offers many more possible encoding states than polarisation. However, in lab experiments, it’s proven highly susceptible to turbulence.
The Viennese researchers say they focussed on developing neural network techniques to remove the effects of turbulence, allowing them to detect the 16 angular states of light they used to modulate their grey-scale images of Mozart, Ludwig Boltzmann and Erwin Schrödinger.
Getting OAM-based communications to work in free-space transmissions avoids some of the problems encountered in trying to preserve OAM information in optical fibres, the paper says.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Will Google’s Thread Become Threat?
Freescale to launch Thread beta development program
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324592&
Freescale Semiconductor is turning up the heat on Thread, a new low-power wireless protocol designed by a Google-led industry alliance to bring the Internet of Things into the home.
Freescale, one of the seven founding members of Thread Group, unveiled on Tuesday, Nov. 11, its own Thread beta development program. The company, which provides select developers with its Thread software and evaluation platform, is demonstrating the new development board at Electronica this week in Munich.
While the industry still awaits the release of the final Thread standard, Freescale’s move marks a milestone for Thread supporters, as the new wireless mesh protocol has now become something tangible for developers to wrap their hands around, rather than a spec on a PowerPoint presentation.
“Thread will augment WiFi by allowing connected devices at home to use a low-bandwidth, secure, wireless mesh network protocol,” Sujata Neidig, business development manager responsible for consumer markets at Freescale, told EE Times.
Thread interoperability on the network-level is now stable enough for Freescale to build its own implementation of the Thread protocol stack on top of the company’s MCUs and standalone radio chips, says Neidig.
Clean sheet of paper
By natively carrying IP from the cloud to the end device, Thread is built on proven technologies such as IPv6 and 6LoWPAN. Its low-power wireless mesh network protocol runs on 802.15.4.
Michael Wolf, founder and chief analyst of NextMarket Insights, says Thread has the advantage of starting out as “a clean sheet of paper,” when compared to ZigBee, which many in the industry view “as a mess,” or Z-Wave, which is “practically controlled by one company.”
But the reality is that Thread is still “way behind,” he notes. Thread hasn’t even shipped any products yet.
Tomi Engdahl says:
TI Industrial Control MCUs Debut at Electronica
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324602&
The new wireless devices from TI, the WiLink 8 combo connectivity modules, also handle industrial temperatures, rated for operation between -40°C and +85°C. Pin-compatible modules are available with varying combinations of 2.4 and 5GHz WiFi, Bluetooth 4.0, and MRC (maximal ratio combining) and MIMO (multiple-input and multiple-output) technology to support coexistence among WiFi, Bluetooth, and ZigBee systems operating in the same area.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Alca-Lu Puts Edge Router on X86
Virtual routers runs on Alcatel-Lucent’s OS
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324565&
By the end of next year, Alcatel-Lucent will deliver on x86 servers all the functions of its custom-built edge routers. The news is part of an industry trend toward virtualized networks that don’t require specialized silicon such as the ASICs.
The telecom’s Virtual Services Router (VSR) does not require its FP3 ASICs or other merchant comms chips used in its custom-built routers. However, it still uses the company’s proprietary software environment, not emerging open applications programming interfaces on Linux.
Alcatel-Lucent claims VSR provides 4-8 times greater performance than its closest competitor in a control-plane task of converging route reflector data between two systems. VSR can forward packets in one direction at up to 320 Gbit/s on an Intel Haswell two-socket server and up to 2 Tbit/s in one specific app, it said.
The performance levels, though significant, remain below the mutli-terabit/s peak data rates of its custom routers. In addition, server throughput will decline as more features are added to the server-based systems.
Control-plane functions such as route reflectors “make perfect sense for the x86,” he said. However, more complex work handled on subscriber management systems will stay on custom hardware when quality-of-service requirements are high.
Reddy expects the company to continue devoting about 10-15% of its engineering resources to custom chip and board design. About 85% of its engineers focus on software development, “and that’s been the case since day one.” His startup, TiMetra, was acquired by Alcatel-Lucent in 2013, forming a group whose revenue now approaches $3 billion.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Trillion-Sensor Vision, Results Shared
UCSD researchers show latest efforts
http://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1324603&
Saving the planet one sensor at a time, the backers of the Trillion Sensor Summit here shared their visions and some research working toward a fully instrumented world.
“I believe in a world with abundance — a world without hunger, with medical care for all, with clean energy for all, no pollution,” said Janusz Bryzek, chairmen and CEO of the event. “One of the components creating this world is a sensor at the bottom of the pyramid for mobile health, the Internet of Things, and wearable applications. In order to get there, we need to completely transform the economy.”
Abundance will require another 45 trillion sensors, many of which haven’t been developed, Bryzek said. Wearable medical sensors pose enormous potential, speakers said.
Proof-of-concepts from UCSD’s Center for Wearable Sensors included small, inexpensive sensors for a variety of medical uses.
“The biggest challenges are the amount of data, processing this [data], and supporting infrastructure,” Bryzek said. Global health monitoring will require the cost of sensors to drop to less than 50 cents each.
Tomi Engdahl says:
‘Proximity’ is Samsung’s equivalent of Apple’s iBeacon, coming to a mall near you
http://www.engadget.com/2014/11/12/samsung-proximity/
Tired of only seeing adverts 99 percent of the time? While Apple’s already announced intentions to take over the final one percent with iBeacon, Samsung’s just today getting in on the action. The Korean electronics giant has a website introducing Samsung “Proximity,” a “mobile marketing platform that connects consumers with places via cutting-edge Samsung location and context-aware technology.” As nakedly awful as that sounds, the “marketing platform” described sounds a lot like Apple’s iBeacon — technology that enables communication between your mobile device and the places you go.
That information could be helpful (clothing match suggestions), it could be nonsense (“spend over $1,000, get 15 percent off!”), and it could be somewhere in-between.
The difference between Apple’s iBeacon and Samsung’s Proximity is how the service functions on your mobile device. With Apple, iBeacon is enabled through the App Store software; with Proximity, it functions on a system level.