This post is here to comments links and news on intetesting IoT products I see. I plan to post mainly information on new products, but sometimes I can post also information on older but what I see still relevat IoT products. I might also post here some embedded systems products that are not directly related to IoT as well.
474 Comments
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7698-uuden-sukupolven-majakkatekniikka
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.io-tech.fi/uutinen/raspberry-pi-3-model-b-julkaistiin-piin-paivan-kunniaksi/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Solderable SOM: A Tiny Monster for Power-Hungry IoT Devices
https://blog.hackster.io/solderable-som-a-tiny-monster-for-power-hungry-iot-devices-5c260b9e95e6
Sudo Systems was forced to come up with a solution for their client. The customer wanted a powerful media player capable of running 4K videos without interruptions while still being in a small frame. Disappointed by current offerings, the Sudo engineering team devised a way to put the most sought-after features in a tiny package: a 65 x 40 x 4.3mm module.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The SCiO Food Analyzer is On the Job—In the Barn
https://spectrum.ieee.org/view-from-the-valley/consumer-electronics/portable-devices/the-scio-food-analyzer-is-on-the-job-in-the-barn
Last March, I went to Whole Foods with Consumer Physics founder Dror Sharon to test SCiO, a tiny handheld device that, used with a smartphone, can evaluate the quality and nutritional content of food. We checked out the sweetness of a few fruits and the fat content of cheese. Readers at the time thought the technology would be great if it actually works, though were a little skeptical that it could be broadly implemented.
In the past year, Sharon has plowed ahead despite such skepticism. He says Chinese smartphone maker Changhong still has plans to integrate the SCiO sensor into phones soon, though it didn’t happen last year as he had hoped. And he says he has a more significant smartphone maker interested, though not to the point of announcing a product. The company has meanwhile shipped thousands of developer kits and filled its 13,000 Kickstarter preorders for the handheld gadget.
Tomi Engdahl says:
UP Squared* Grove* IoT Development Kit
Accelerate your IoT solution prototyping and deployment with this easy to use and versatile kit built with a dual-core Intel® Celeron® processor N3350 (formerly codename Apollo Lake).
https://software.intel.com/iot/hardware/up-squared-grove-dev-kit?utm_source=Facebook&utm_medium=banner&utm_content=IoT_Enthusiasts_Broad_EMEA&utm_campaign=DRD_18_02
Tomi Engdahl says:
The New Raspberry Pi PoE HAT
https://blog.hackster.io/the-new-raspberry-pi-poe-hat-823de8a8f5f
Announced alongside the new Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+ this morning was an official Power over Ethernet (PoE) HAT to accompany the board. The HAT is not scheduled to be released until the summer, and beyond the fact it existed, there were few other details available… at least until now.
It is Class 2 device, and Power over Ethernet (PoE) 802.3af compliant, with a fully isolated Switched-Mode Power Supply (SMPS). Input voltage range can be between 36 and 56V, with an output voltage is 5V at 2.5Amps.
It is “plug-and-play” compatible with the new Raspberry Pi 3 Model B+,
Tomi Engdahl says:
Avnet Boosts IoT Starter Kit Portfolio with New 4G LTE-M Development Platform
http://news.avnet.com/press-release/avnet/avnet-boosts-iot-starter-kit-portfolio-new-4g-lte-m-development-platform
Bundle includes hardware, software development tools, application reference designs and 4G LTE-M network enablement for management, storage and analytics of connected IoT devices
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.cloudmanagementsuite.com/internet-of-things
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://weeve.network
Unlock the power of your IoT data with the weeve platform. Use our web platform to easily join marketplaces and start trading data. Want to set your own rules? Simply create your own data marketplace.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Android Sources For The Asus Tinker Board
https://hackaday.com/2018/03/10/android-sources-for-the-asus-tinker-board/
The Asus Tinker Board is one of the quiet achievers of the powerful single board computer market. A Raspberry Pi form factor with a significantly more powerful processor, more memory, faster networking, and Asus build quality. In hardware terms it leaves many of the other Pi competitors in the dust. If the Tinker Board has a problem though it is the same one that affects so many otherwise promising offerings, that its software support isn’t as strong as the fruity computer from Cambridge. When you buy a Pi it’s Raspbian that makes it a wise purchase, along with the huge community support that surrounds it.
An interesting development on that front comes courtesy of [Justin], who tells us that the sources have been released for the Tinkerboard flavour of Android.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2018/03/19/piirialusta-iot-tietojen-lahikasittelyyn/
https://www.s3semi.com/smartedge/
Tomi Engdahl says:
LG releases webOS Open Source Edition, looks to expand webOS usage
https://liliputing.com/2018/03/lg-releases-webos-open-source-edition-looks-to-expand-webos-usage.html
LG’s smart TVs ship with an operating system called webOS, which is the latest version of an operating system that was developed by Palm to run on phones, acquired by HP to use with tablets, and eventually sold to LG, which is still using it today.
But now LG wants to expand the adoption of webOS and the company is working with the South Korean government to solicit business proposals from other companies interested in using webOS.
LG has also released a webOS Open Source Edition version of the operating system.
http://webosose.org/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Introducing the Ultra96 Zynq UltraScale+ Development Board
https://blog.hackster.io/introducing-the-ultra96-zynq-ultrascale-development-board-e1ceeb4a1e9b
Avnet has announced the new Ultra96 development board, compatible with the 96Boards Consumer Edition specification from Linaro. The Ultra96 board — which is based on the Xilinx Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC — adds a wide range of potential peripherals and programmable logic acceleration engines not previously available on the 96Boards platform.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Motherboards Incorporating Windows 10 IoT Core and RISC Architecture
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/eeweb/news/motherboards-incorporating-windows-10-iot-core-and-risc-architecture
AAEON is working with Microsoft to develop a motherboard that incorporates NXP processors and supports the Windows 10 IoT Core operating system.
AAEON announced the venture at the recent Embedded World trade fair in Nuremburg, Germany, and the news is likely to shake up the world of computing as Microsoft has previously focused on creating software for Intel and Qualcomm. Kevin Chiu, vice president of AAEON’s embedded computing division noted that his company’s “all-round reliability and its experience with RISC architecture makes AAEON an obvious choice for an ODM partner.”
David Lemson, Director, Windows 10 IoT, Microsoft Corp., said “Windows 10 IoT Core provides a complete platform that enables developers to focus on their own unique value instead of on bringing up the operating system. With 10 years of security updates and integration with Microsoft Azure IoT, Windows IoT devices can securely harness cloud services.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Ultra96 Development Board
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/eeweb/news/new-ultra96-development-board
Avnet announced the new Ultra96™ development board. Avnet’s Ultra96 board adds a wide range of potential peripherals and programmable logic acceleration engines not previously available on the 96Boards platform.
Avnet’s Ultra96 board, built around the Xilinx® Zynq® UltraScale+™ MPSoC, is compatible with the 96Boards Consumer Edition specification from Linaro, a not-for-profit engineering organization dedicated to developing open source software for the Arm® architecture. Designed to accelerate the delivery of low-cost hardware with the latest SoC technology, 96Boards provides a standard board layout for SoC-agnostic development platforms that can be used for applications including desktop and laptop computing, the digital home, digital signage, point of sale (POS), high-end audio, robotics and drones, artificial intelligence, virtual reality, IoT and industrial control.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Optimize Your System’s Battery Life Using the Otii Arc
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/beningo/articles/optimize-your-systems-battery-life-using-the-otii-arc
The Otii Arc is essentially a lightweight, portable, smart power supply hat can be used to analyze and optimize an embedded system for how much energy it uses.
The Otii Arc is essentially a lightweight, portable, smart power supply. It contains two banana jack plugs that can be used to power an embedded system from 0.5 to 5.0 volts. The Otii Arc can supply the system with up to 250mA of current when powered through USB, or up to 2.5A if supplied with an external 7.5 to 9.0V supply. What makes the Otii Arc interesting is that not only is the output voltage configurable, but it contains several analog and digital sensors that can be used to sample voltage and current at 4 ksps (kilocycles per second).
Tomi Engdahl says:
Swedish IAR acquired IoT security
IAR Systems is known as the embedded application development tool. Now, IAR announces that it has purchased British Secure Thingz, which is part of the embedded security of IoT devices.
IAR and Secure Thingz have previously collaborated.
Secure Thingz has provided security solutions for example on the Renesas Synergy platform.
Source: http://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=7743&via=n&datum=2018-03-22_14:56:56&mottagare=30929
Tomi Engdahl says:
Raspberry Boom Monitors Sounds We Can’t Hear
https://blog.hackster.io/raspberry-boom-kickstarter-launches-for-citizen-scientist-monitoring-of-infrasounds-20e3dd060c71
In 2016, the Raspberry Shake brought accessible seismography to citizen scientists, and now the team is back with an infrasound monitoring device, Raspberry Boom, which is now live Kickstarter.
https://raspberryshake.org/kickstarter-raspberryboom/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Project Fin, a Board from Resin.io
https://blog.hackster.io/project-fin-a-board-from-resin-io-3666ea20f73d
Resin.io is one of the few successful startups
dealing with the thorny issue of the provisioning, and updating, of the software on distributed smart devices. Along the way they’ve spun off software tools that we now use everyday, this includes Etcher, a tool most of us now use when burning SD cards when we’re setting up our Raspberry Pi boards.
In fact the company has a long history playing around with the Raspberry Pi
Meet Project Fin, a carrier board for the Raspberry Pi Compute Module.
So today’s introduction of Project Fin is a direct appeal to Resin’s core industrial market, and potentially can be seen as Resin ‘growing up’ as a company.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Comparing Cellular Hardware
MARCH 20, 2018 / WRITTEN BY CHRIS GAMMELL
https://hologram.io/comparing-cellular-hardware/
Tomi Engdahl says:
webOS ready to move beyond TVs, says LG
Here we go again
https://www.theverge.com/2018/3/19/17138246/free-webos-open-source-download
LG just released an open-sourced version of webOS that’s freely available to anyone that wants to download and poke around the code. The release of webOS Open Source Edition is meant to act as a catalyst to drive further adoption of webOS beyond LG televisions, smart refrigerators, and the occasional never-to-be-released smartwatch.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.techrepublic.com/article/linux-foundation-unveils-open-source-hypervisor-for-iot-products/
Tomi Engdahl says:
New brain for the Arduino, and…PICkit 4
https://www.edn.com/electronics-products/electronic-product-reviews/other/4460386/New-brain-for-the-Arduino–and-PICkit-4?utm_source=Aspencore&utm_medium=EDN&utm_campaign=social
First off is the ATmega4809, of clan AVR. Heir apparent to the Arduino throne, it shares the basic characteristics of the somewhat-stuck-in-time AVR family. Not that this is necessarily a bad thing.
What sets the 4809 apart, if not the CPU (or memory complement for that matter (20MHz, 48k, 6k)), is the panoply of peripherals, including what Microchip calls core-independent peripherals, which can accomplish many functions without pesky CPU intervention.
The CCL is basically a teeny-tiny FPGA that can be connected to internal peripherals and external pins. I’m not sure it’s the answer to all of life’s problems, but it could certainly be useful, and seems to impinge on Cypress’ PSoC space a bit.
Onto Microchip’s most-loved child, the PIC. The new PIC16F18446 is another overachiever when it comes to peripherals. Still based on the 8-bit PIC core, it sports a 12-bit ADC
Tomi Engdahl says:
MintBox Mini 2
https://blog.linuxmint.com/?p=3528
Based on the Compulab Fitlet2, the new Mini is just as small as the original MintBox Mini and the MintBox Mini Pro but with much better specifications, better performance and a few more features.
The top heatsink is slightly taller than before for the all-metal black housing to provide better passive cooling for the upgraded specs. The small size of the unit is still very impressive. Here it is next to a cup of coffee:
Just as before, the unit is completely silent and it has no fans or moveable parts. It’s also dust and humidity resistant and designed to operate at the full industrial temperature range of -40°C to 85°C. The warranty from Compulab is the same as before: an unconditional 5 years.
The two Ethernet ports are side by side now. That’s a plus if you’re connected to two LAN networks or if you use the unit as a router or a network appliance. No more CAT5 cables connecting on the side.
Inside the unit, an Intel 8260 chipset provides WiFi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.2.
Inside the unit, an Intel 8260 chipset provides WiFi 802.11ac and Bluetooth 4.2.
The RAM is upgradeable to 16GB. Similar to previous MintBox and Compulab devices, it’s really easy to open the unit.
The CPU is a quad-core Apollo-Lake Intel Celeron J3455 with embedded Intel HD Graphics 500.
Linux Mint 19 Cinnamon 64-bit
Tomi Engdahl says:
Comcast extends Internet-of-Things service, machineQ, based on LPWAN, LoRaWAN technologies
http://www.cablinginstall.com/articles/2018/03/comcast-iot-service.html?cmpid=enl_cim_cim_data_center_newsletter_2018-03-26&pwhid=6b9badc08db25d04d04ee00b499089ffc280910702f8ef99951bdbdad3175f54dcae8b7ad9fa2c1f5697ffa19d05535df56b8dc1e6f75b7b6f6f8c7461ce0b24&eid=289644432&bid=2045271
Comcast has announced new business customers, ranging from Fortune 1000 enterprises to emerging start-ups, for its enterprise Internet of Things (IoT) service, machineQ. MachineQ is billed as a scalable IoT network service and platform that uses Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) technology to build enterprise-grade solutions for businesses and municipal organizations. The service is deployed using the globally adopted LoRaWAN protocol.
“IoT solution providers are seeking secure, reliable and highly scalable network connectivity, device management capabilities, and new IoT microservices, like geo-location, to speed their time-to-market — and our new customers have chosen machineQ because it can be deployed across a wide range of different enterprise use cases,” said Alex Khorram, general manager of machineQ. “We want IoT solution providers to know that we can handle their network needs, so they can focus on bringing their innovative solutions to market to the benefit of their end users.”
According to a press release, using Comcast’s machineQ as their LoRaWAN-based wireless connectivity platform, the following IoT solution providers are now enabling their end users to make better-informed, data-based decisions:
Adveez – IoT hardware and software solutions provider that monitors businesses’ critical assets at airports, seaports and in cities with the goal of providing actionable data to locate and manage assets dynamically, reducing costs.
CareBand – Wearables manufacturer dedicated to reducing injuries to seniors due to dementia-related wandering by providing real-time, precise location tracking.
Neptune – Software and hardware provider to the water industry, serving more than 4,000 utilities across North America. Neptune’s new, LoRa-enabled L900 series of water endpoints provides a wide range of capabilities for water meter reading and sensor applications that demand low-power consumption and long-range connectivity
Pansofik – Developer of cost-effective, digital solutions to help SMBs and building owners integrate IoT and data analytics within their organizations.
Victor – A world leader in rodent control and a trusted brand name since 1898. Victor, a Woodstream Corporation brand, revolutionized the rodent control market over 100 years ago with the invention of the spring-based Victor Mouse Trap. Using LoRaWAN-based sensor technology operating on the machineQ network
https://machineq.com/
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/72-ecf/7759-valmis-alusta-naytolliselle-iot-laitteelle
Display-Enabled IoT Design with ARIS EDGE S3
https://www.arrow.com/en/campaigns/arrow-arisedges3
A development board built to maximize efficiencies from the ground up
Take advantage of ultra-low power efficiencies in your design with the ARIS EDGE S3. The optimized Synergy S3 series ARM® Cortex®MCUs allow developers to prototype portable sensor and control applications connected to an LCD display with long battery life, a versatile user interface, and robust wireless communication capabilities.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Thingsee expands into NB-IoT and LTE-M networks
Haltian has presented the Thingsee NB-1 / M1 version supporting the NB-IoT and LTE-M networks and the appropriate IoT sensors. They can speed up the development of new products and services using the new Narrowband IoT mobile technology.
Finnish Haltian’s new Thingsee Mobile NB-1 / M1 Gateway allows you to create new products that are not only cost-effective to use, but also lower power consumption than previous mobile technologies.
The NB-1 / M1 Gateway has been experimented with by many business customers. In addition to the new Thingsee device, Haltian has upgraded its Distance and Presence sensors to the new system. They will also support various Bluetooth technologies, such as iBeaco and Eddystone.
The Thingsee platform is also expanding to the three-dimensional positioning of goods and commodities.
Source: https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2018/03/28/thingsee-laajenee-nb-iot-ja-lte-m-verkkoihin/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Eight Dev Kits for Amazon Alexa Voice Service (AVS)
http://www.electronicdesign.com/embedded-revolution/eight-dev-kits-amazon-alexa-voice-service-avs
Check out this detailed comparison of popular development kits for AVS designed to help you jumpstart your voice-enabled applications.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wiring The Internet of Things With NODE RED
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9H3t3l1En0
The Internet of Things is not a single choice of technology, approach or philosophy. It brings together multiple platforms, products and protocols, where the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. One of the challenges of IoT is to make it as easy as possible to allow developers to create things, for play or profit, serious or whimsical, professional or hobbyist. Node-RED is an open-source visual tool for wiring the Internet of Things. Built on top of node.js, it provides a light-weight, browser-based editor that makes it easy to integrate different streams of both physical and digital events. This session explores what Node-RED can do, showcases how it has been used to great success across a range of industries and looks to the future of the project.
How to Node-RED!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GeN7g4bdHiM
This video shows shows how to configure Node-RED on the Raspberry Pi and how to start creating home automation projects using MQTT and Node-RED. Some practical IoT examples are show.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Osram debuts Lightelligence IoT platform architecture at L+B
http://www.ledsmagazine.com/articles/2018/03/osram-debuts-lightelligence-iot-platform-architecture-at-l-b.html?eid=293591077&bid=2050245
A layered approach to connected-SSL-enabled IoT applications that spans a local application layer through standard services to the cloud holds the promise of allowing a developer community to more quickly deliver new application functionality.
Light+Building (L+B) featured some sort of smart lighting or Internet of Things (IoT) demonstration in seemingly every booth, but Osram stood apart with its new solid-state lighting (SSL)-focused Lightelligence announcement. The platform is intended to be enabled by networked LED-based lighting infrastructure while delivering a variety of applications that range from energy savings to office space utilization to emergency services in nature. The architecture is unique in that shared services are sandwiched between the applications and cloud access for storage and analytics.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Alibaba IoT Platform Partners with NXP for Automotive
https://www.eetimes.com/document.asp?doc_id=1333135
AliOS, the operating system for IoT solutions developed by China’s Alibaba Group, has entered into a partnership with NXP to install the AliOS system and NXP’s automotive infotainment solution in “millions of vehicles” in China by 2020.
The collaboration will help build a smart cockpit enhanced by multi-screen display, artificial-intelligence-driven interaction and secure over-the-air (OTA) updates, according to the companies.
Alibaba is said to be aiming to connect 10 billion devices by 2023 on its IoT network, and it appears to be creating the ecosystem to develop this, with partnerships announced in recent months with STMicroelectronics, MediaTek and others.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Optane™ – The New Smart System Accelerator by Intel
Zip into a responsive computing experience with the power of Optane™.
https://www.arrow.com/en/campaigns/emea-intel-q1-2018-optane
Its speed is just the beginning. As a performance and productivity accelerator, Intel Optane™ uses 3D XPoint™ memory media, Intel Memory and Storage Controllers, Intel Interconnect IP, and Intel software to bridge the gap between storage and the DRAM for an incredibly responsive experience.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Intel® BMP Smart Building Management Solutions
https://www.arrow.com/en/research-and-events/articles/intel-bmp-smart-building-management-solutions-iot
Arrow’s offering of Intel® Building Management Platform (Intel BMP) pre-integrated commercial grade platform accelerates time-to-revenue for manageable smart building solutions.
Intel BMP integrated with CANDI PowerTools includes platform security and manageability that make it easy to create smart building management solutions for small and mid-size buildings. Intel BMP provides a pre-integrated, commercial- grade, secure embedded Linux offering from Wind River; IoT middleware that handles connections and data access from things; cloud-based device provisioning from CANDI Controls and cybersecurity essentials from Intel® Security.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Honeywell’s New MicroPressure Sensor Enhances Functionality of Consumer Appliances and Medical Devices
https://www.arrow.com/en/research-and-events/articles/honeywells-new-micropressure-sensor-enhances-functionality
Honeywell MicroPressure sensors provide robust single-connection solutions in the tiniest package on the market. This 5mm x 5mm sensor is ideal for consumer medical devices such as non-invasive blood pressure monitors, and consumer devices such as coffee makers and high-volume appliances. The MicroPressure sensor is cost-effective, application-specific and offers configurable options in IoT.
Tomi Engdahl says:
New Arrow ARIS-EDGE-S3 kit simplifies development of battery-powered applications with compact TFT display
https://www.arrow.com/en/research-and-events/articles/new-arrow-aris-edge-s3-kit-simplifies-development
Arm® Cortex®-M4-based Renesas Synergy ™ microcontroller and new GUI support enable richer features on resource-constrained devices
Arrow Electronics has extended its convenient and flexible ARIS (Arrow Renesas IoT Synergy) platform for developing Internet of Things (IoT) devices by introducing the ARIS-EDGE-S3, which packs extra compute performance and the opportunity to add a compact user interface for richer interactions.
The on-board sensors include the Bosch Sensortec BNO055 9-degrees-of-freedom (9-DOF) application specific sensor node (ASSN)absolute orientation sensor, which contains a MEMS accelerometer and gyroscope, a geo-magnetic sensor, and a 32-bit microcontroller running Bosch Sensortec BSX3.0 FusionLib software.
The radio module comes with built-in Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE 4.1/4.2), Thread, and ZigBee stacks, giving easy access to the most popular connectivity standards for use cases such as home automation, smart meters, smart lighting, wearable electronics, medical monitors, industrial sensing, and others.
https://www.arrow.com/en/campaigns/arrow-arisedges3
Tomi Engdahl says:
Introducing the New Arduino Yún Rev 2
A Second Life for the Arduino Yún
https://blog.hackster.io/introducing-the-new-arduino-yún-rev-2-3b5de45b8cec
The original Arduino Yún was announced at Maker Faire Bay Area back in the middle of 2013, and released later the same year at World Maker Faire in New York. However the board became one of the first casualties of the Arduino War
The original board was the first Linux-based Arduino board, which placed it in unique position in the Arduino lineup. It combined an ATmega32U4-based “classic” Arduino on to the same board as a 400MHz Atheros AR9331 MIPS processor running Linino — a MIPS Linux distribution based on OpenWRT.
The new Yún has a similar configuration to the original board, and uses the same two processors, making it backwards compatible with its predecessor.
Announced today the new board is not expected to hit the market until the second half of April, with estimated availability on April 23rd. The board will cost $59 (€49)
Tomi Engdahl says:
Arduino Yùn Rev.2 is here!
https://blog.arduino.cc/2018/03/29/arduino-yun-rev-2-is-here/
Since its launch in 2013, the Yùn–a small Linux machine and a microcontroller in a small Arduino form factor–found its way into hundreds of thousands of projects and professional applications. Last year, we decided that it was time for a refresh and began working hard to develop a true open-source design, with more compelling features and better overall software support.
The new board
What’s New in Rev.2
Hardware:
Much better, more robust power supply
New Ethernet connector with a clever mounting solution that enables the use of all possible shields with no risk for accidental short circuits
Horizontal USB connector to save vertical space
Improved USB hub
Software:
Software stack updated to OpenWRT latest version, including all patches
SSL support on the bridge Arduino / Linux bridge
Tomi Engdahl says:
Meet CuteCircuit: The British Fashion Tech Brand Loved By Fergie And Katy Perry
https://www.forbes.com/sites/kittyknowles/2018/03/29/cutecircuits-fantastic-fashion-tech-world-firsts/#75d4f5c91ee6
Nineties pop was all about baggy cargo pants, butterfly hair clips, and chokers.
Now though, stars wear internet-connected clothes.
Katy Perry caught the world’s attention in the first LED lit dress to hit the red carpet, while former Pussycat Doll Nicole Scherzinger wowed fans in the world’s first ‘Twitter dress’.
Tomi Engdahl says:
STMicroelectronics announces that Alexa’s voice service (AVS, Alexa Voice Service) now operates with the company’s STM32 series microcontrollers. This is achieved through the free X-CUBE-AVS software package.
X-CUBE-AVS includes ready-made libraries and open routines that can turn the AVS development platform into a microcontroller. There are application examples that do not require developers to know the complex software layers required by the use of voice commands with microcontrollers.
Amazone’s own AVS software is designed for more efficient and more efficient processors. The X-CUBE version is tailored to the less demanding drivers.
The software takes care of lower-level communication and connections to AVS servers, provides application-specific services, and makes AVS access to the device as easy as possible. Connection management includes, for example, restoring a connection automatically without re-authenticating the user.
According to AT, AVS speech commands can be run with any ST controller, whose performance and memory are sufficient for functions. This is for example the STM32F7 series.
Source: http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7792-amazonin-alexa-auttaa-pian-monissa-laitteissa
Tomi Engdahl says:
Real Time Logic’s Web-Based IDE for Secure IoT FreeRTOS/lwIP ESP8266 Development
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/max-maxfield/articles/real-time-logics-web-based-ide-for-secure-iot-freertos-lwip-esp8266-development
“You want to Internet Enable your Embedded device, but where to start?”
That is a good question. It makes you want to learn more. I doff my cap to whoever decided to employ this as the site’s opening gambit.
Wilfred went on to say: “I just wanted to let you know that Real Time Logic has released a web-based IDE for rapid development of secure IoT products for the ESP8266. This IDE includes the TLS stack SharkSSL, FreeRTOS, and the lwIP TCP/IP stack.” He also invited me to check out this video.
Well, call me curious, but — having just visited the Real Time Logic website — this did pique my interest, so I asked Wilfred to tell me more, and he responded as follows:
Hi again Max, the SSL stack, SharkSSL, includes the Minnow Server, a super-small embedded HTTPS and secure WebSocket server. The Minnow Server is ideal for devices that are too small for standard web server technology. This super-small server enables small microcontrollers with no external memory to act as a real-time device management web server.
As an example, the ESP8266 is a low-cost WiFi SoC built around a Tensilica Xtensa LX3 processor. This class of device would not generally provide sufficient resources to run a secure HTTP server; however, the Minnow Server is a perfect match for this low-end chip. Real Time Logic has released a web-based IDE for the ESP8266, and this IDE includes the Minnow Server and a web-based Single Page Web Application.
A Single-Page Application, or SPA for short, is a web application that initially loads as a single static HTML page and then dynamically updates that page (using JavaScript) as the user interacts with the app. A single-page HTML5 application can do anything that a normal website can do, and so much more.
https://youtu.be/9_0l0uiVcYw
Tomi Engdahl says:
Use a Data-Centric Publish/Subscribe Framework for IoT Applications
http://www.electronicdesign.com/automotive/use-data-centric-publishsubscribe-framework-iot-applications?NL=ED-004&Issue=ED-004_20180403_ED-004_353&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=16367&utm_medium=email&elq2=bbb608a23534444f8214eb8be4971954
With a data-centric connectivity framework, developers and system architects can more effectively build and enable IIoT applications.
These distributed systems can be categorized into two types of applications: One type is where each deployed system has just one or a few devices that periodically push their data up to the cloud. This is prevalent in consumer-based IoT applications, such as smart thermostats or sprinkler systems. The second type of application is more industrial in nature, where several devices and sensors work in unison to complete a localized control application of some kind. In this case, there’s just too much data to push up to the cloud and have any kind of real-time response to changing conditions. These more complex systems are typical in IIoT applications.
These IIoT systems require more localized processing elements that can provide the real-time control that’s needed, and then push lower-volume processed data up to the cloud for long-term analytics. Traditional communication protocols do not suffice here. The need is really for a data-connectivity framework with the performance, scalability, reliability, and resilience required by this more complex industrial system. A connectivity framework will provide more complete data-communication capabilities and greatly reduce the corresponding need to implement these capabilities in the application software.
Typical design details that need to be implemented in a complex distributed system include:
Data filtering (How can I limit data transfer to only the data of interest?)
Data encoding (How is data serialized and sent over the network? XML? JSON? Binary?)
Initialization (How do I get the system booted up correctly?)
Addressing (How do I know where to send or get data?)
Congestion (What happens when messages take too long?)
Failures (How do I know when a communication link or a device fails?)
What if there was an easy way of creating high-performance peer-to-peer communication in a distributed system in only 35 lines of code? There is if you use a connectivity framework.
Defining the Pub/Sub Pattern
You’re probably already familiar with the publish/subscribe (pub/sub) communication pattern, whether you know it or not. For example, did you know that you use a pub/sub communication pattern with Facebook, Twitter, or any other social-media channel? On these platforms, you’re subscribing to people or organizations (otherwise known as “following”) that publish their current status or update. You then receive the status or update as it’s posted, and there’s no need to continually ask them how they’re doing or what’s new.
The same pattern can be applied to industrial systems with applications subscribing to sensor updates, or alarms, or system commands. This is implemented by the Data Distribution Service (DDS), a connectivity standard, managed by the Object Management Group (OMG), which is based on pub/sub. It’s easy to map your different modules or tasks as publishers of data, subscribers to data, or both. The main difference between DDS and lower-level pub/sub IoT protocols, like MQTT or AMQP for example, is that DDS is a data-centric pub/sub framework. Data-centricity means that the data becomes the application interface, without artificial wrappers like messages and objects. With a data-centric framework, applications are freed from the burden of managing the complexities of data exchange and data lifetimes.
To build a data-centric system, you first define the data structures that represent the flow of information from machine to machine. Defining the data structure (or model) first allows for a completely modular approach to designing a system
A database is a great example of a traditional data-centric system that we’ve all used in some way in the past.
Data access is provided by INSERT, UPDATE, READ, and DELETE operations.
Just like a database, DDS is data-centric. It provides the same type of operations; however, they’re for data in motion rather than data at rest. The building of a system based on the data being exchanged enables a more modular approach than those based on lower-level networking or messaging protocols.
Getting Started: Discovery
Our proximity sensor module will be a publisher of this information. Now we just need to define a topic, basically a description of the information transferred. In this case, we will define a topic named “ProximityInfo” that has the datatype “ProximityInfoType” associated to it.
By default, discovery starts with a multicast message from the publisher announcing its topics. Available subscribers answer in unicast to the specific publisher. The DDS connectivity software automatically configures the connections between publishers and subscribers, which is really handy when deploying a distributed system.
With DDS, the publishers and subscribers will discover each other in all of these configurations and will function the same way.
there are more QoS implemented in DDS that can help with defining and managing data-flow behaviors. For example:
Time-based filter: The ability to downsample high-frequency data to a lower rate of data delivery.
Liveliness: The ability to configure a “heartbeat” signal for a publisher or subscriber of data that lets connected applications know whether that entity is still alive to send or receive its data. Loss of liveliness results in events generated by DDS that the application can then provide error handling for.
History: The ability to specify historical data to be saved in RAM on either the sending side or receiving side or both.
Lifespan: The ability to define a time period of when a particular data sample is considered “Stale Data”. In this case, DDS will remove any stale data from sending and receiving history caches when its lifespan has been expired.
Ownership: The ability to have multiple sources of the same data for fault-tolerance reasons and be able to specify a strength of who is the primary owner of that data. This gives subscribing applications an ability to hot failover to a secondary or backup source of data.
Create A P2P Distributed Application In Under 35 Lines Of C++11 Code!
July 31, 2014 by | Alex Campos
https://www.rti.com/blog/2014/08/01/create-a-p2p-distributed-application-in-under-35-lines-of-c11-code/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Larry Dignan / ZDNet:
Intel sells embedded software unit Wind River to TPG for an undisclosed sum, after acquiring the company in 2009 in a deal valued at $884M
Intel sells Wind River to TPG
http://www.zdnet.com/article/intel-sells-wind-river-to-tpg/
Terms of the deal weren’t disclosed. Wind River gets more investment and Intel gets more focus. Intel bought Wind River in 2009 in a deal valued at $884 million.
Intel’s initial rationale for acquiring Wind River was to be more involved with embedded devices. Wind River was one of Intel’s early efforts to diversify into software.
Wind River has become a key player in the industrial Internet of things, edge computing and the broader device market. Large customers include Boeing, NASA, Huawei, Siemens and Northrop Grumman. TPG partner Nehal Raj said Wind River will be independent and the plan is to “build on its strong foundation with investments in both organic and inorganic growth.”
The product portfolio for Wind River includes:
VxWorks, an operating system.
Software defined infrastructure software.
Helix device cloud;
And automotive systems.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Is This The End For The C.H.I.P.?
https://hackaday.com/2018/04/03/is-this-the-end-for-the-c-h-i-p/
There have been so many launches of very capable little single-board computers, that it is easy to forget an individual one among the crowd. You probably remember the C.H.I.P though, for its audacious claim back in 2015 to be the first $9 computer. It ran Linux, and included wireless connectivity, composite video output, and support for battery power. As is so often the case with ambitious startups, progress from the C.H.I.P’s creator Next Thing Co came in fits and starts.
In recent months there has been something of a silence, and now members of the community have discovered evidence that Next Thing CO are the subject of a Notice of General Assignment from Insolvency Services Group. This is followed up by the discovery that their office is available for rent.
A process called Assignment to the Benefit of Creditors is an alternative to bankruptcy proceedings yet still signals the end of a company as the service liquidates remaining assets.
https://bbs.nextthing.co/t/refund-experiment/19919/56
Tomi Engdahl says:
http://www.etn.fi/index.php/13-news/7800-valmis-modeemi-kaikkiin-iot-yhteyksiin
Tomi Engdahl says:
IIoT Evolution: An Approach To Reuse And Scale Your IIoT Technology Investment
https://www.mentor.com/embedded-software/resources/overview/iiot-evolution-an-approach-to-reuse-and-scale-your-iiot-technology-investment-a2f4e0d1-c168-4481-bbad-1971e23e9848?uuid=a2f4e0d1-c168-4481-bbad-1971e23e9848&contactid=1&PC=L&c=2018_04_03_esd_newsletter_update_mar_2018
The Mentor Embedded IoT Framework complements and extends the massive investments made by cloud vendors to provide comprehensive IIoT features that can be implemented down to the hardware of the edge or end node devices – and can be ported across platforms and clouds. The benefits of using a framework such as MEIF are abundantly clear: minimize learning curves, simplify implementations, increase code reuse, reduce porting costs,
and reduce testing.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Green IoT with Revolutionary Ultra-low-power Precision Real-Time-Clock
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/eeweb/news/green-iot-with-revolutionary-ultra-low-power-precision-real-time-clock
EM Microelectronic announced the release of its EM3028 Extreme low power Real-Time Clock (RTC) module, setting a new industry benchmark for accuracy and power consumption.
EM3028 leads the way for green IoT applications, with 50% extended battery life compared to its closest competitor, at double the accuracy. It extends the device life span at a reduced overall BOM cost.
The EM RTCs provide an elegant solution for increasing the autonomy of connected devices, by providing accurate sleep and wake-up timing for their power-hungry elements, thus enhancing the global user experience. The frustrating need to frequently charge or replace the batteries of a wearable device becomes a thing of the past with the EM3028 used as an ideal companion for EM’s energy harvesting solutions, this unique combination requiring, in certain applications, no charging or battery replacement throughout the complete device life span.
Tomi Engdahl says:
STM32 Software Package Brings Amazon Alexa Technology to Simple Connected Objects
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/eeweb/news/stm32-software-package-brings-amazon-alexa-technology-to-simple-connected-objects
The X-CUBE-AVS software package from STMicroelectronics enables Amazon’s Alexa Voice Service (AVS) to run on STM32* microcontrollers , allowing simple connected objects such as smart appliances, home-automation devices, and office products to support advanced conversational user interfaces with Cloud-based intelligence like automatic speech recognition and natural-language understanding.
As an expansion package for the STM32Cube software platform, X-CUBE-AVS contains ready-to-use libraries and open routines that accelerate porting the AVS SDK (Software Development Kit) to the microcontroller. With application samples also included, it abstracts developers from the complex software layers needed to host AVS on an embedded device. Being the first such package to cater specifically for microcontrollers, whereas AVS development usually targets more power-hungry and expensive microprocessors, X-CUBE-AVS makes Alexa technology accessible to a wider spectrum of developers and projects.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Real Time Logic’s Web-Based IDE for Secure IoT FreeRTOS/lwIP ESP8266 Development
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/max-maxfield/articles/real-time-logics-web-based-ide-for-secure-iot-freertos-lwip-esp8266-development
Wilfred went on to say: “I just wanted to let you know that Real Time Logic has released a web-based IDE for rapid development of secure IoT products for the ESP8266. This IDE includes the TLS stack SharkSSL, FreeRTOS, and the lwIP TCP/IP stack.”
Hi again Max, the SSL stack, SharkSSL, includes the Minnow Server, a super-small embedded HTTPS and secure WebSocket server. The Minnow Server is ideal for devices that are too small for standard web server technology. This super-small server enables small microcontrollers with no external memory to act as a real-time device management web server.
https://realtimelogic.com/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Use a Prototyping Kit to Simplify Energy Harvesting Designs
http://www.powerelectronics.com/alternative-energy/use-prototyping-kit-simplify-energy-harvesting-designs?NL=ED-003&Issue=ED-003_20180404_ED-003_663&sfvc4enews=42&cl=article_2_b&utm_rid=CPG05000002750211&utm_campaign=16371&utm_medium=email&elq2=2082c48c3d504f8db29253435ffaf3b2
Designing an energy harvesting system is not a straightforward process, and each portion of the circuit may require several iterations to perfect. You can simplify this design process with a prototyping kit.
Tomi Engdahl says:
The IoT, Linux, and System-on-Modules
https://www.eeweb.com/profile/max-maxfield/articles/the-iot-linux-and-system-on-modules
Microchip Technology is offering 32-bit MCU-based System in Package (SiPs) and System-On-Modules (SOMs) that will speed design while reducing cost and risk.
When they hear the term Internet of Things (IoT), many peoples’ knee-jerk reaction is to think of small nodes (the “things” part of the IoT) powered by 8-bit microcontrollers (MCUs) performing rudimentary sensor and actuator tasks at the edge of the Internet.
In order to address these needs, Microchip Technology is offering System in Package (SiPs) and System-On-Modules (SOMs). Let’s start with the SAMA5D2 SiP, which features a 32-bit ARM Cortex-A5 MCU combined with 128Mb, 512Mb, or 1Gb of DDR2 memory. Right from the get-go, this removes your having to source the MCU and DDR memory separately, plus the demanding MCU-to-DDR interface has already been handled for you.
SAMA5D2 SiPs are available standalone.
SAMA5D27 SOMs are industrial grade, supporting an operating environment ranging from -40 to +85°C. Developers can use these off-the-shelf SOMs as part of their systems, thereby removing hardware design complexity and reducing main PCB costs.
If you would like to experiment with this technology, Microchip offers a SAMA5D2 SOM and SIP Evaluation Kit called the ATSAMA5D27-SOM1-EK1.