Vernetzte Welt - neunetz.com

Skyhook’s Precision Location for Wearables SDK released today is designed to bring those location services directly to the wearable without the need for a location middle man. It’s reduced the size of the code dramatically to the point that it can be built directly into a wearable’s firmware and placed on the tiny chip inside the gadget, David Bairstow, VP of product at Skyhook told TechCrunch.

The software transmits the location information back to Skyhook’s servers and you can track it through an app or web page.

In terms of how this will play out, think about a fitness tracker you use that generally relies on the smartphone to track where you ran. With this technology, it should be capable of tracking your location itself. You can log on to your account and get that information directly from the device now.

"Health-Tracking Startup Fails to Deliver on Its Ambitions"

Technology Review:

Measuring biological signals at the wrist is convenient, but even just gathering heart-rate data is a “non-trivial” problem, says Emil Jovanov, an associate professor at the University of Alabama at Huntsville who studies real-time physiological monitoring. In addition to issues like sorting out the signal you want from the noise of motion artifacts, you can’t get perfect contact with the skin, and different people’s skin can change the quality of the signal that’s collected. Temperature, he says, can play a factor, too.

"Phonvert has a plan to convert old smartphones into IoT nodes"

At SXSW 2016, I spoke with the leader of the Phonvert project, Tomo Kihara, and he pointed me to research from IDC “that more than 280 million working smartphones were replaced without being recycled last year.”

With this info in mind, Tomo, along with Keisuke Shiro, Kosuke Takahashi and Seibe Takahashi, founded Phonvert, an open-source software platform that can convert retired smartphones into usable Internet of Things nodes.

You install Phonvert onto your old smartphone and then you can make it usable and valuable again for a variety of tasks like Fridge Cam, Mailbox Cam, Video Baby Monitor to name a few.

"The Internet of dangerous, broken things"

ZDNet:

Matthew Garrett, the well-known Linux and security expert who works at CoreOS, was in a London hotel recently where the light switches had been replaced by Android tablets. Garrett, a hacker's hacker, decided to see what they were doing. A few hours later Garrett had access to the electronics in every room.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #45: Smart-Home-Security BuddyGuard aus Berlin erhält 900.00€

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 02 Mar 2016 20:17:37 GMT

Top: BuddyGuard aus Berlin erhält 900.000 Euro

WirtschaftsWoche:

Nach einer erfolgreichen Kickstarter-Kampagne vergangenes Jahr, bei der 162 000 Euro zusammen kamen, und einer Anschlussfinanzierung von 200.000 Euro durch private Investoren hat BuddyGuard damit innerhalb eines Jahres insgesamt knapp 1,3 Millionen Euro einsammeln können.

BuddyGuard hat ein Securitysystem entwickelt:

Meet BuddyGuard’s FLARE®, a small but powerful device that protects you and your home all by itself.
With its HD night vision camera and multiple sensors, FLARE® can even tell the difference between residents, friends and unwanted visitors. (...)

With its family-friendly intelligence, FLARE® understands what is going on. It can even take smart decisions to safeguard you and your family all by itself.

Tech.eu:

FLARE automatically switches on when all users have left their home, and after positive identification and authentication upon re-entry, the system automatically covers the camera lens in order to protect user privacy. The device itself is can be controlled through a mobile app that is compatible with both iOS and Android.

Analysen & Berichte

Schweizerische Post startet Ende März Test eines eigenen LoRaWAN-Netzes

Swiss IT Magazine:

Die Schweizerische Post prüft den Aufbau eines eigenen Netzwerks und damit einer eigenen Infrastruktur für das Internet der Dinge. Damit sollen die Logistik unterstützt und neue kundenfreundliche Services realisiert werden können. Ende März wird auf der Achse Bern-Biel bereits ein erstes Testnetz in Betrieb genommen, wie das Unternehmen in einer Medienmitteilung bekannt gibt. Dabei will man auf den erst vor wenigen Monaten ins Leben gerufenen LoRaWAN-Standard setzen, wobei LoRaWAN für Long Range Wide Area Network steht und entsprechende Geräte weder eine SIM-Karte noch den Anschluss an ein Stromnetz benötigen sollen. Die Reichweite entsprechender Antennen beträgt je nach Topografie angeblich zwischen fünf bis 15 Kilometer.

Huawei und NB-IoT

Golem:

Anwendungen für NB-IoT, das schmalbandige Internet der Dinge, wird es Anfang kommenden Jahres geben. Das kündigte Quan Yu, Chief Strategy Officer Wireless Product Line bei Huawei, am 21. Februar auf dem MWC 2016 in Barcelona an. Darunter seien Anwendungen im Bereich Smart Parking, die auch schon in deutschen Städten in Open Labs von Huawei getestet würden. (...)

Durch NB-IoT sollen niedrige Datenraten, lange Akkulaufzeiten und lange unbeaufsichtigte Betriebszeiten möglich sein. Auch Eric Parsons, Ericssons Head of Mobile Broadband, sprach von einer "Standardisierung in Rekordzeit von NB-IoT, die im März oder Juli dieses Jahr abgeschlossen" sein werde. Der Rollout beginne dann "Anfang nächsten Jahres".

Huawei ist im letzten Jahr zur Nummer drei im Smartphonegeschäft hinter Apple und Samsung aufgestiegen.

IDC: Marktzahlen für Wearables

The Verge:

In its first nine months selling wearables, Apple has shipped an estimated 11.6 million Apple Watches, according to a report this week from research firm IDC. That puts Apple at third place in the industry with 14.9 percent of the market, just behind Xiaomi. Fitbit is still far and away the leader, however, with 21 million shipments in 2015.

The worldwide wearable tech market, which includes fitness trackers and smartwatches, grew a staggering 172 percent last year, shipping 78.1 million units. The growth was driven by the popularity of lower-cost trackers from companies like Fitbit and the appeal of the higher-end Apple Watch, the report notes. More than one-third of all sales in 2015 happened in the fourth quarter, a 127 percent jump over the previous year's holiday season.

Smartwatches und Fitnesstracker sind natürlich nicht die gleiche Kategorie.

Dazu passend Charles Arthur über Android Wear:

My latest calculation puts the number activated at between 3.35m and 3.45m

"Passive WiFi: WLAN für das IoT"

Toms Hardware über ein MIT-Forschungsprojekt:

In Tests konnten die Forscher Daten auf 100 Fuß Entfernung (gut 30 Meter) mit bis zu 11 Mbit/s verschicken. Der Leistungsbedarf lag dabei bei maximal 60 Mikrowatt: Ein tausendstel dessen, was bei Zigbee oder Bluetooth LE für die gleiche Übertragung benötigt würde. Ein konventionelles WLAN-Verfahren wäre sogar 10.000-mal energiehungriger. Ein einziger RF-Generator würde also pro Haushalt ausreichen, um eine Unzahl von Endgeräten im Internet of Things mit dem zentralen WLAN-Router zu verknüpfen.

"Mozilla tests the waters for Firefox OS IoT apps, including a Samantha-style virtual assistant"

Project Link is described by Mozilla as “our personal user agent that understands your preferences for how you want to interact with the world of devices in your home, and automate your connected world for you.”

Originally this project was called FoxLink, and it looks like the idea here is for Link to learn from your preferences to be able to control connected devices without you getting involved, although it’s also controlled by you. The kind of intelligence Mozilla seems to be going for here reminds me more than a little of the personal assistant Samantha as envisioned in the film Her. Mozilla says that this project is still at a very early stage.

The aim of Project Sensor Web, meanwhile, is to create a network of sensors that can supply crowdsourced data that would be accessible by everyone, rather than proprietary.

Im TechCrunch-Artikel werden einige weitere Projekte vorgestellt. Mozilla hat sich einiges vorgenommen. Höchstwahrscheinlich viel zu viel.

"The Internet of Things Is Revolutionizing Patient Care in Healthcare"

Tech.co:

In fact, forecasters state that, by 2020, about 4 billion medical tracking devices will be connected to patients for purposes of monitoring blood pressure, cholesterol, blood sugar, and so forth. And the one connecting element that will provide for all of this data accumulation and monitoring will be the smart phone, linking patient data collection with the Internet.

Here is how the Internet of Things will assist health and wellness in wonderful ways:

Siehe auch „The Internet Of Medicine Is Just What The Doctor Ordered“ in Vernetzte Welt #43.

Das Internet der Dinge und Big Data

Forbes:

The use cases across industries are endless. Hospitals are providing better services at lower costs. Transportation and shipping companies are reducing maintenance costs and improving delivery service. Energy companies are producing more energy at lower cost and drastically reducing research and development costs for exploring new mining and drilling sources, and similar activities.

All these use cases are being driven by big data technologies. It is the business people, not just the IT people, who finally want big data now. We are seeing a surge in job openings for IT professionals with big data expertise, along with a huge increase in demand for data scientists and Ph.D.s. IoT is the problem that big data solutions were born to solve. We just did not know that a few years ago. Now we do.

Bosch will dieses Jahr 14.000 Hoschschulabsolventen einstellen

Pressetext:

Bosch will in diesem Jahr weltweit rund 14 000 Hochschulabsolventen einstellen, um seinen Wachstumskurs fortzusetzen. Künftig sollen immer mehr Software-Spezialisten Jobs beim internationalen Technologie- und Dienstleistungsunternehmen finden. „Die Vernetzung über das Internet der Dinge verändert das Geschäft von Bosch und damit unseren Personalbedarf stärker als je zuvor“, erklärt Christoph Kübel, Geschäftsführer und Arbeitsdirektor der Robert Bosch GmbH.

"Zukunft: Telecom-Konzerne wollen an Hightech-Spitze"

Gunnar Sohn in Der Freitag:

Die Telekom kooperiert mit dem Startup von US-Popstar will.i.am, der ein Wearable in die Partnerschaft einbringt. Für Telekom-Chef Höttges ist das disruptiv.

Deutscher Cargo-Kult.

Sicherheit im Internet der Dinge

Guter Übersichtsartikel auf TechCrunch mit einem sehr wahren Satz:

The security of a smart object is only as strong as its weakest connected link.

Und ein Ausblick:

Brands would be wise to understand that the coming influx of consumer data is a potential revenue stream that must be protected and nurtured. As such, the perception of privacy and respect are tantamount for long-term engagement with customers. So much so that it is likely that product manufacturers will start changing their business models to create data-sharing incentives and perhaps even give their products away for free.

Due to its massive potential, the Internet of Things is advancing apace, driven largely by technology companies and academic institutions. However, only through wide-scale education and collaboration outside of this group, will it truly hit full stride and make our processes, resources utilization and, ultimately, our lives, better.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #44: Die erste Braille-Smartwatch der Welt

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 24 Feb 2016 20:41:44 GMT

Erste Braille-Smartwatch der Welt kommt aus Süd-Korea

Sehr super.

JKNUS:

Dot Inc., the South Korean tech developer of the braille smartwatch, said the latest device has 30 braille dots on the face of the watch. They will be used by blind people to guide them in typing and sending messages without any form of limitation. A special module set has reduced the watch to a wearable size, making it more affordable at a selling price of $300 .

Die Macher der Smartwatch im Interview auf Tech in Asia:

Though the smartwatch will go on sale in the US and Canada first, Dot is trying out other applications for its active Braille modules in South Korea. In a push that Kim is calling “public Braille,” the company has installed modules at ATMs and in train stations. Like the smartwatch, these modules can be programmed to display information updated in real time, such as account balance information or a subway schedule.

“The Braille at ATMs currently tells you, ‘This is an ATM,’ which isn’t super helpful,” says Kim. “I think these sorts of public places, and the public sector in particular, could become our largest market in the future.”

Apple vs. FBI würde bei einer Niederlage von Apple das (US-)Internet der Dinge töten

Farhad Manjoo in der New York Times über die weitreichenden Ausmaße von "Apple vs. FBI":

Amazon, which declined to comment on how the Apple case might affect Echo users’ privacy, has said it is not constantly recording people’s voices, and that it keeps voice recordings only to help the system learn to better understand you.

But the Apple case threatens to undermine those promises. If a court can get Apple to hack into an iPhone, why couldn’t it also force Amazon to change the Echo’s security model so the Echo can record everything you say? Mr. Soghoian believes the Apple case could set that precedent.

“What we really need for the Internet of Things to not turn into the Internet of Surveillance is a clear ruling that says that the companies we’re inviting into our homes and bedrooms cannot be conscripted to turn their products into roving bugs for the F.B.I.,” he said.

Blendwerk "Industrie 4.0"

Deutschland spielt bei diesem Paradigmenwechsel auf der Anbieterseite eine Nebenrolle. Inflationäres 4.0-Begriffsgeklingel und Konferenz-Gerede können nicht darüber hinwegtäuschen, dass wir kaum Unternehmen wahrnehmen, die international in der ersten Liga der Netzökonomie spielen. Deutschland braucht eine Digitalisierungsstrategie, die über die Förderung der produktionsbezogenen Industrie 4.0 hinausgeht und die öffentliche Verwaltung ebenso einschließt wie das Gesundheitswesen, die Bildung und die private Nutzung des Internets der Dinge. So das Credo des “Jahresgutachtens der Expertenkommission Forschung und Innovation”, das ihr Vorsitzender Dietmar Harhoff vom Münchener Max-Planck-Institut für Innovation und Wettbewerb der Regierungschefin Angela Merkel überreicht hat. Die starke Fokussierung der Bundesregierung auf einen relativ kleinen Bereich der Digitalisierung sei nicht zielführend. So werde mit Industrie 4.0 einseitig auf Effizienzsteigerungen bei der Produktionstechnik abgehoben.

"Wearables Drive The Component Technology Innovation"

TechCrunch über Payments im Smart Home:

For years, many of the key components of wearables have been drafting off the strengths of the smartphone supply chain. During the last two years, the application processors and sensors for wrist and head-worn wearable products have more or less been taken off the parts bin of low and mid-tier smartphones. (...)

In 2016 we are seeing the tide turn. Manufacturers across the entire mobile industry supply chain are introducing new products directly targeted for wearables. Processors are getting smaller and more power efficient and performance is tuned for the unique needs of the category. The entire industry of flexible electronics, batteries and displays are being driven largely by the needs of the next-generation wearables.

Bezahlsysteme im Smart Home

Several smart devices displayed at the recent CES show in Las Vegas feature the ability to replenish and pay for supplies automatically. For example, Samsung’s Family Hub refrigerator features an LCD screen that doubles as a communication center that can connect to Bluetooth wireless speakers. Three interior cameras capture images every time the fridge door closes, thereby enabling it to take stock of its contents and transmit them to the user’s smartphone.

Consumers can select their needed items from various online grocer and key integration partners. The final shopping list is secured with a four-digit pin. Items are then paid for in a simple, single checkout experience that accepts U.S.-issued credit and debit cards.

Amazon Dash embedding enables Whirlpool’s 2016 line-up of dishwashers, dryers and washers to order necessary supplies when you are running low. Amazon Dash buttons connect users with specific brands.

Und die sich daraus ergebenden Fragen:

What could go wrong, you ask? As it happens, quite a lot.

For one thing, many of today’s smart appliances (like the Samsung refrigerator and the Whirlpool dishwasher) only enable consumers to hook up with certain suppliers, limiting you to their products, payment methods and price ranges. By hooking up automatically, you are actually depriving yourself of the option to search for timely special offers or use different payment options.

Another problem is that many of these smart systems rely on Internet connection, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth to place and pay for orders. Several questions arise, like what happens if the Internet is down, your Wi-Fi is iffy or your Bluetooth isn’t working?

Wie JavaScript das Internet der Dinge eroberte

ARC:

The reason that JavaScript works for the Web is the same reason that it works on the server and will eventually work for the Internet of Things: its prime feature allows for parallel programming, letting certain features run while not inhibiting others. On the server, Node.js is event-driven, which makes it perfect for running fairly simple devices that send data to a Web client and a server. (...)

A growing variety of projects have cropped up over the last several years to combine JavaScript and Node.js to the Internet of Things. Node-RED is a visual tool for wiring the Internet of Things built by members of the IBM Technology Services team. The Things System is a system of components and protocols running Node.js. Noduino is a JavaScript and Node.js framework for Arduino controls that also uses HTML5 Web applications and Socket.io. DeviceJS from WigWag is built on top of Google’s V8 JavaScript engine with a real-time JSOn database. Cylon.js is built to control robots and things with JavaScript. The list goes on and on.

Dass Node.js beliebt ist im Internet der Dinge ist nicht neu. Ob man es mag oder nicht, das Momentum ist da.

Mobilfunkanbieter wollen ein Stück vom IoT-Kuchen

RCRWirelessNews:

AT&T and Verizon Wireless are not planning to let the end of 2G be the end of their IoT businesses. The carriers are investing in new technologies for IoT and leveraging existing partnerships.

Verizon’s IoT and telematics revenue grew 18% last year to $690 million. The company has certified low-power LTE chips made by Sequans for IoT use cases, but Verizon knows not all IoT connections will use LTE. The carrier is working to develop a proprietary IoT core network in partnership with Nokia Networks and Ericsson.

In addition, Verizon plans to open its ThingSpace platform to third-party network and technology service providers. ThingSpace is software designed to help developers create IoT applications, and Verizon said this week that 4,000 developers have started using the platform since it was launched last October.

AT&T is also looking beyond the cellular network when it comes to IoT, but at the same time the carrier is investing in LTE for machine connections.

Dazu passend The Times of India:

Swedish communication technology giant Ericsson, French telecommunications company Orange and US technology giant Intel have successfully conducted the world's first extended coverage trial for Internet of Things (IoT) using EC-GSM-IoT (Extended Coverage-GSM-IoT) technology in Paris.

Ein Gegenentwurf dazu ist das französische M2M-Funknetzwerk Sigfox. (Siehe Vernetzte Welt #1, und Vernetzte Welt #16 zum Samsung-Investment)

Ein anderer Gegenentwurf hält die Vernetzung lokal.

Smart Home ist noch ziemlich dumm

InformationWeek:

The extent to which IoT devices can be programmed is also an issue. For example, I'd hoped to be able to tie the motion sensor on my Nest thermostat into my Scout Alarm system. But Nest hasn't exposed enough device capabilities to make that easily doable. It's surprisingly hard to color outside the limited lines provided by IoT device makers. And that's really where the value of IoT lies. A home isn't smart if it can't respond to complex events and conditions.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #43: IBM und "Blockchain-as-a-Service"

Marcel Weiß — Thu, 18 Feb 2016 20:19:51 GMT

IBM, Particle, Identitätsmanagement, Apple Watch, Kopenhagen

Immer Mittwochs -aus Krankheitsgründen diese Woche am Donnerstag- erscheint auf neunetz.com eine kommentierte Übersicht zu den wichtigsten Entwicklungen und besten Analysen aus der Welt der vernetzten Geräte, dem 'Internet der Dinge'.
Vernetzte Welt kann per Email und per RSS-Feed abonniert werden.

Top: IBM bietet "Blockchain-as-a-Service", macht große Teile seines Blockchain-Codes Open Source

The Next Web:

Smart contracts are the “cutting edge” of this technology, so says the independent researcher and consultant on alternative finance Brett Scott, writing for the UN.

"Imagine a coded blockchain-based script that is activated when two parties send bitcoins to an escrow Bitcoin account that is controlled by the script, and which will release the bitcoins in the future to whoever wins a bet on the average level of rainfall over a certain period. This smart-contract is programmed to read data from weather agencies, and after a set amount of time releases the bitcoins from the escrow, sending it to a farmer who requires protection against low rainfall. This is a blockchain-based weather derivatives contract."

IBM’s clearly got a bit of a head start on this and is now also offering ‘blockchain as a service’ for developers to use within the IBM Cloud via a service called Bluemix, with API infrastructure for plugging in outside data.

It’ll also let you to plug IoT information into its blockchain suit, via the Watson platform, so you can include data from physical world activity communicated via something like RFID chips, barcode scans or mobile devices.

The Register:

Big Blue has dumped the Apache 2.0-licensed source on GitHub, providing a limited but functional dev environment to build on. The IT giant has pledged to maintain the code as others build on top of it, including big-name Hyperledger partners that include Intel, Fujitsu, Cisco, JP Morgan, Accenture and others.

Key elements in the code dump are a "consensus algorithm" which is vital for proper functioning of a decentralized system, and a contract template that helps people code agreements into the system in Java.

Das ergibt Sinn. Mittels Open Source vergrößert IBM die Reichweite seines Blockchain-IoT-Ansatzes, indem es kompatible Projekte ermöglicht, eine gewisse langfristige Sicherheit schafft, und Entwicklern den Raum gibt, mit den technischen Details vertraut zu werden. (Aus gleichen Gründen hat etwa Google sein Machinelearning-Tool TensorFlow Open Source gemacht.)

PCWorld:

Using a cloud service like IBM's, "in 12 seconds, a developer could have their own mini blockchain sandbox running," said Jerry Cuomo, vice president of blockchain technologies for the company. "A minute or so after that, they can have their first blockchain sample application up and running."

IBM's Bluemix cloud service also offers integration with other technologies that developers "can start mashing up" into their blockchain apps, he said. "You can build mobile front ends, you can build APIs to the blockchain."

Wired:

In late December, several big-name companies from across both the tech and financial industries—including IBM, JP Morgan, Wells Fargo, and the London Stock Exchange—unveiled a new open source software project based on the blockchain, the global online ledger that underpins the bitcoin digital currency. The project aims to build blockchain-like software that can more efficiently, reliably, and openly track the exchange of financial assets, including stocks, bonds, futures, houses, and car titles. And considering the names involved—particularly the Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation, or DTCC, which oversees Wall Street’s stock settlement system—it’s an enormously significant undertaking.

Unlike the blockchain itself, the Hyperledger software isn’t battle-tested. In fact, it’s still being built. But on Tuesday, IBM unveiled a new cloud computing service that lets anyone kick the proverbial tires on this fledgling technology.

Mehr Einsichten auch bei CoinDesk.

"Blockchain-as-a-Service" ist auch eine schöne Buzzwordkonvergenz. Hier die Pressemitteilung.

Daran anknüpfend: "Quarks: IBMs Open-Source-Werkzeug für das Internet der Dinge":

Quarks ist eine API und Runtime zur unmittelbaren Analyse von IoT-Daten dort, wo sie erfasst werden. Es soll bei der lokalen Aufbereitung ebenso helfen wie beim Filtern vor der Übermittlung ans Backend.

Siehe auch Thingonomics 3: Xiaomi als zentrale IoT-Plattform, Blockchain als dezentrale Lösung.

Analysen & Berichte

Particle will (u.a.) Aggregator für IoT-Datenpläne sein

Im Porträt von Particle ("Particle is a prototype-to-production platform for developing an Internet of Things product.") auf FastCompany:

The Internet of Things isn’t (yet) a big business, and the concept favors lots of small-scale devices, rather than a handful of hits. Certifying, provisioning, and managing data plans for all of these devices is a tall order for wireless carriers, who are used to selling smartphones by the million.

"There are a lot of really interesting customers out there that they would love to support," Supalla says, "but they're just not built to support smaller companies, and interestingly their definition of a smaller company can be quite large."

Naturally, Supalla hopes that carriers will be drawn to aggregators like Particle, which can negotiate one-size-fits-all data plans on behalf of many startups. If Particle ships Electrons to 10,000 companies that are building IoT devices, and those customers in turn ship thousands of Electron-based products, carriers get to scale their Internet of Things business without much extra effort.

Particle arbeitet als ein Betreiber eines virtuellen Mobilfunknetzes. (eine Art Wiederverkäufer von, in diesem Fall, Datenplänen unter eigener Marke)

Ein anderer Ansatz als jener von Sigfox, das ein eigenes auf machine2machine spezialisiertes Funknetzwerk aufbaut. (Siehe u.a. "Samsung investiert in Sigfox")

CB Insights: "The Industrial IoT: 56 Startups Transforming Factory Floors, Oil Fields, And Supply Chains"

CB Insights mit einer weiteren Branchen-Karte:

(Siehe etwa auch "Übersicht über Wearables-Startups")

The Things Network

Porträt von The Things Network auf The Verge:

The city of Amsterdam was blanketed with LoRaWAN last August using only 10 gateways at a cost of $1,200 dollars each. In just six weeks the community-owned network was funded and implemented by volunteers without the help of a telecommunications company. It’s completely free to use by anyone in the city — no subscription or logins required. And costs are about to drop dramatically in July when TTN starts shipping its $200 LoRaWAN gateway to Kickstarter backers. (..)

Build it and they will come, echoes the voice around the world as LoRaWAN networks take root in Sao Paulo, Boston, Buenos Aires, Kochi, and Sydney. 36 cities are now on the map as TTN’s community-driven campaign goes global.

Siehe auch Thingonomics 11: ‚The Things Network‘, von Amsterdam in die Welt

"Internet of Things Momentum Depends on Identity Management"

Business 2 Community:

In addition to sensors and networking capabilities, another technology needed to drive IoT forward is data management, specifically identity data management. A defining characteristic of IoT is that people, devices and apps all have digital identities, and a tremendous volume of data is generated and used by each one. Identity management is a key enabler of IoT’s data-intense relationships between people, devices and apps.

Identität ist eine große Herausforderung im Internet der Dinge. (Neue Accounts? Bestehende Accounts (FB, Google, Apple)? Datenfingerabdruck? Interoperabilität der Identitäten? etc. pp.)

ASICS übernimmt Runkeeper

"One Year In: Why A Die-Hard Mechanical Watch Lover Can’t Get The Apple Watch Off His Wrist (And Why That Matters)":

Ein Preis wurde in der Mitteilung am Freitag nicht genannt. Asics folgt damit dem Vorbild von Adidas. Der deutsche Asics-Konkurrent kaufte im vergangenen Jahr für 220 Millionen Euro die ähnliche App Runtastic. Und der amerikanische Rivale Under Armour schluckte vor einem Jahr für 85 Millionen Dollar die Anwendung Endomondo.

Im Gegensatz zu seinen Konkurrenten ist Runkeeper noch nicht in das Hardwaregeschäft eingestiegen. Siehe zu Wearables auch Thingonomics 12: Status Quo bei den Wearables.

Smartwatches: Warum die Apple Watch aktuell gewinnt

I think the Apple Watch is winning the smartwatch wars right now for several reasons: better UI is one (I struggle to find Android Wear compelling, in any form, at least so far) and its ability to keep your phone in your pocket, and your head up, is another. One of its biggest secrets, though, is this: it shows every indication of having been made by people who love and understand watches, and who know that for any kind of wearable to succeed, it has to be love at first sight. And that’s why it’s not only a threat to other smartwatches, but to mechanical watchmaking.

"Copenhagen's New Traffic Lights Recognize and Favor Cyclists"

WIRED:

To do that, the city is spending $8.9 million installing 380 “intelligent traffic signals” that will spot, and prioritize, buses and bikes.

“These systems will ensure traffic that flows better so that as many people as possible can save time in the greenest possible way,” Morten Kabell, the city’s technical and environmental mayor, told Copenhagenize. “It means that Copenhageners won’t waste time on their way to and from work and that is good business. Copenhagen will be a laboratory where we develop new solutions.”

"Ex-Mozilla Team Unveils “Sense,” An Intelligent, Secure Hub For The Smart Home"

Ex-Mozilla Team Unveils “Sense,” An Intelligent, Secure Hub For The Smart Home | TechCrunch:

Today, a company called Silk Labs, co-founded by former Mozilla CTO Andreas Gal, is launching a device that aims to address those concerns with its smart home sensor dubbed “Sense” that interoperates with your home’s connected devices, and automatically adapts to your needs over time by learning from your behavior and patterns.

At launch, Sense, now live on Kickstarter, will function as something of wqa digital brain for the connected home, in order to do things like turn on or off the lights, adjust the music or thermostat, and more. But what’s different about how this device operates, versus other smart home hubs on the market today, is that it acts on your behalf by developing an understanding of the people in the home, and their specific needs.

"The Internet Of Medicine Is Just What The Doctor Ordered"

It seems technology, driven by the Internet of Things (IoT), could well make the biggest transformation of all. In many respects, IoT is just what the doctor ordered. It holds the key to lowering medical costs, improving quality and making healthcare more personalized, accessible and affordable for average patients.

Siehe auch "What's Driving the Wearable Medical Device Market?" und "Internet of Things + Big Data = Top Healthcare".

Eine Geisterstadt für IoT-Tests

Networkworld:

Why would a company spend $1 billion to build a city where no one will live? Because, presumably, a lot of other organizations will pay to test their technology there.

Washington, DC-based telecommunications and defense equipment vendor Pegasus Systems devoted a reported $1 billion to build the Center for Innovation, Testing and Evaluation (or CITE for short) in rural New Mexico. The idea is to build the equivalent of a medium-sized city, defined as big enough for about 35,000 people, but with no actual population. That way, companies with potentially dangerous technologies can test their prototypes in an actual urban environment without worrying about inflicting injury or death on innocent bystanders. This will naturally lend itself to researching connected car technology – Wired's Jeep hack from last year comes to mind – although the project's website lists several other fields of study, many of which would involve the Internet of Things. The project's website lists federal labs and university research institutions among the kinds of customers it aims to serve, but Pegasus managing director Robert Brumley told Fortune in October "the facility is open to anybody who wants to test."

"HaLow Is The Natural Next Step In The Evolution Of IoT"

Wired: "Everyone Wants to Make Smart Rings—But No One Knows What For":

The Wi-Fi Alliance recently announced the long-awaited Wi-Fi HaLow standard for products incorporating IEEE 802.11ah wireless networking technology (HaLow is pronounced just like the title of the popular video game from Microsoft). (..)

Despite these cautions and drawbacks, the arrival of HaLow is exciting. It’s a step in a smart direction that builds on existing technologies to broaden the possibilities that anything and everything can be connected through a common world-wide standard — just like our televisions, laptops, phones and tablets are today — the importance of which cannot be understated as IoT evolves.

Meldungen:

Vernetzte Welt #42: 2/3 aller 2015 verkauften Smartwatches waren Apple Watches

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 10 Feb 2016 15:59:50 GMT

Top: Cisco übernimmt Jasper für 1,4 Mia. US-Dollar

Die bis dato größte Übernahme nach Nest (3,2 Milliarden US-Dollar), die mit dem Internet der Dinge in Verbindung gebracht werden kann. Cisco kauft das Startup Jasper für 1,4 Milliarden US-Dollar. heise online:

Jasper, das im kalifornischen Santa Clara sitzt, hat laut Cisco eine Service-Plattform entwickelt, über die Unternehmen IoT-Dienste einrichten, weltweit betreiben und Geld daraus schlagen können sollen. Das heißt, Unternehmen könnten jedes Gerät vom Auto bis zum Flugzeugantrieb vernetzen und mit Jaspers Software as a Service handhaben.

Postscapes:

Jasper’s Control Center platform ties together devices and apps by drawing on partnerships with mobile network operators in more than 100 countries. The company claims more than 3,500 enterprise-scale customers around the world, including many of the biggest names in e-commerce, retail, transportation and other industries.

Top: 2/3 aller 2015 verkauften Smartwatches waren Apple Watches

Die Marktanalysten von Canalys:

Apple dominated the smart watch market in 2015, accounting for over 12 million units and two-thirds of all shipments according to Canalys estimates. Samsung returned to second place in Q4, as the improved design of the Gear S2 saw a much better consumer reception than previous wearable efforts by the company. Pebble came third and Huawei came fourth, establishing itself as the leading Android Wear vendor. Basic bands exceeded 37 million shipments for the year. Fitbit set a quarterly shipments record as it comfortably led the category. Xiaomi held second place, shipping 12 million Mi Bands during 2015.

Analysen und Berichte

Leseliste zum Internet der Dinge

(Weiter-)empfehlenswerte Leseliste zum Internet der Dinge. Viele (ausschließlich englischsprachige) Essays.

Samsungs Smart Home Hub im Guardian-Review

Guardian:

The SmartThings sensors work well, but are quite pricey, the kit is worth buying, the system is adaptable and the cross-platform app support is a huge bonus compared to other closed systems.

This is about as good as an integrated IoT system that connects to devices from a plethora of vendors gets right now.

Pros: simple setup, cross-platform, decent app, developer community, multiple standards in one box, unites your existing kit, adaptable

Cons: not compatible with everything, workarounds for non-natively supported devices will be difficult for some, Internet of Things still very early in its lifecycle

Nach Smart Watches kommen Smart Rings

The wearable-as-notification-machine idea is a popular one—beyond fitness tracking, it’s really the only compelling use case anyone’s come up with. But how do you communicate information without a screen? Ringly, along with more traditional wrist-bound wearable companies like Misfit and even Apple to some extent, is playing with a combination of lights and buzzes. But Neyya’s Hunt doesn’t buy it. “I just can’t even remember, like, if my mom’s calling me and it’s vibrating three times and flashing pink,” Hunt says, “or my dad’s calling me and it’s vibrating five times and flashing blue.” It was too much. “My Apple Watch, it has so many apps synced up with it,” she says. “We just didn’t want to get into any of that.” Neyya purposefully doesn’t do that stuff—if there’s no way to do it well, Hunt says, don’t do it at all.

Identifizierung ist ein offensichtliches Nutzungsszenario für "smarte Ringe". Aber dafür fehlt es noch am Ökosystem. (Das Gleiche gilt leicht abgeschwächt für Smartwatches.)

"IoT Reality: Smart Devices, Dumb Defaults"

Brian Krebs:

Before purchasing an “Internet of things” (IoT) device — a thermostat, camera or appliance made to be remotely accessed and/or controlled over the Internet — consider whether you can realistically care for and feed the security needs of yet another IoT thing. After all, there is a good chance your newly adopted IoT puppy will be:

-chewing holes in your network defenses;
-gnawing open new critical security weaknesses;
-bred by a vendor that seldom and belatedly patches;
-tough to wrangle down and patch

GE, Jet-Turbinen und der Wandel zu Service-Geschäftsmodellen

Sokwoo Rhee, Associate Director beim "Cyber-Physical Systems Program" am National Institute of Standards and Technology im Interview mit "Knowledge@Wharton":

What GE is doing right now is a great example. GE, traditionally, has been selling jet engines, for example … they are big in jet engines. And the traditional model is, they sell a jet engine at a unique price. There’s typically a warranty for a few years, and after that, they offer a maintenance agreement. So if something goes wrong, they come and fix it. They’re now changing to more of a subscription model. They practically give the jet engines away for free. However, they charge a monthly or annual subscription, and it comes with a guarantee. They don’t necessarily guarantee the product, but they guarantee the trust. Meaning that if you have this subscription, then you don’t have to worry about the repairs or anything like that. If anything goes wrong, GE is going to come in and replace the engine. So whenever you turn the switch, you can have a certain trust that it’s ready and the engines will turn on. That’s the model.

Knowledge@Wharton: So it’s a rental or leasing model, in a way.

Rhee: Yes. However, here’s the interesting play. To make the model work, GE has to know exactly when its engines are going to fail. Here’s why: If you replace an engine too early, you are leaving money on the table, because the engine could have gone even longer. And if you wait too late and a disastrous situation happens, planes are going to fall. So you have to know exactly when it’s going to fail.

To determine that, GE started putting many, many hundreds of sensors around the engines for several years, and then they monitored the status and health of the engines in real time. They have 100 year’s worth of experience in the diagnostics model; they have tons of data. They can combine these IoT sensors with their big data analytics, and it tells them exactly when each engine is going to fail — and that’s how they make money.

"Internet of Things Disrupting Customer Service"

Claims Journal:

The Internet of Things is changing the customer experience, according to Kevin Daley, chief business architect at IBM. (..)

All of this results in an emergence of an individual-centered economy, he said, inspiring customer service innovation. He cited USAA as an example. The insurer is partnering with other companies to provide service to customers throughout the auto life cycle – during the purchase, finance, insurance, maintenance and selling stages.

Consumers are in the driver’s seat. Brand differentiation is more about the consumer and less about product, said Daley.

IoT offers insurers the ability to provide policyholders a connected consumer lifestyle while simultaneously detecting risks, he explained. It combines policyholder values – safety, security, economics, comfort and convenience. For example, a new IoT offering on the horizon is a geo-fence that will let parents decide the specific region teens will be allowed to be in.

Die andere Seite der Medaille ist natürlich, dass der Markt undurchsichtiger für Privatpersonen wird. (Was allerdings wiederum Bedarf für nachgelagerte (smartere) Vergleichsdienstleister schafft.)

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #41: Internet der Dinge in der Reisebranche

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 03 Feb 2016 15:24:06 GMT

Top: e-matters' "Spark-Aufkleber" ist kein "Deutscher Dash-Button"

Entwickler.de:

Amazon Dash bekommt Konkurrenz aus Deutschland: Der Hamburger E-Commerce-Dienstleister e-matters bietet ab sofort den sogenannten „Spark-Aufkleber“ für direkte Nachbestellungen an. Im Unterschied zum Dash-Button kann man Spark aber nicht einfach drücken, sondern muss den aufgedruckten QR-Code mit dem Smartphone abscannen. Ist der Code allerdings einmal gescannt, kann der Kunde Produkt, Menge, Lieferung oder Abholung festlegen und bei Bedarf die Bestellung für Wiederholungen automatisieren. Der Aufkleber ist frei konfigurierbar und kann grundsätzlich auch von jedem Händler genutzt werden.

Schönes Beispiel dafür, wie Marketing funktioniert. Ein QR-Code ist natürlich nicht mit dem Dash-Button von Amazon vergleichbar. Während der Dash-Button jede Reibung aus kleinsten, regelmäßigen Transaktionen entfernt (wie dem Kauf von Waschmittel etc.) ist ein QR-Code ein denkbar unbequemes Mittel für eine Produktauswahl in einer Shopping-App. Wobei es zumindest ein Anfang ist.

Das Problem ist natürlich, dass der Dash Button das simpelste Puzzelstück bei Amazons Dash-Strategie ist. Weitaus schwieriger replizierbar ist alles dahinter. (Welcher Händler hat Kunden, die Kleinstbestellungen kostenfrei tragbar machen, weil sie per (Prime-)Abo eine Jahresgebühr bezahlen und einen hohen Jahresumsatz erzeugen?)

e-matters:

Schnell soll es gehen und einfach, um nicht mehr dran denken zu müssen; und trotzdem schätzen Kunden hierzulande ein gewisses Maß an Selbstbestimmung. Welches Waschmittel soll es sein? Wann und wie will ich es erhalten, vielleicht sogar in regelmäßigen Abständen? Einmal den QR-Code gescannt kann der Kunde entsprechend seiner Wünsche Menge, Produkt, Lieferung oder Abholung festlegen und bei Bedarf die Bestellung für Wiederholungen automatisieren. Genauso können diese kundenspezifischen Einstellungen durch den Händler bei der Übergabe des Spark-Aufklebers in der Filiale bereits hinterlegt sein.

"ein gewisses Maß an Selbstbestimmung" ist entweder ein Misstverständis des Einsatzzweckes von Dash-Buttons und vergleichbarem oder der Versuch, die eigene Lösung gut zu verkaufen.

Spannend dagegen der B2B-Einsatzzweck:

„Mir fallen noch viele Einsatzmöglichkeiten für den Spark-Aufkleber ein. Ich bin überzeugt, dass auch im B2B ein großes Potenzial herrscht, beispielsweise um das passende Ersatzteil zu finden und Verschleißprodukte nachzubestellen“, so Kevin Besthorn, Gründer und Geschäftsführer von e-matters.

Top: Wearables und IoT in der Reisebranche

David Chestler, Executive Vice President für Global Enterprise Sales und Business Development bei SiteMinder auf Tnooz:

Within the US alone, eMarketer estimates that the use of wearable technology rose over 50% last year and we will likely see more than 81.7 million users among US adults by 2018. In fact, many consumers are planning to purchase some form of wearable technology in the next 12 months, including smartwatches, fitness trackers and sleep trackers. (..)

Consider a world where a driverless Uber arrives at the airport to whisk guests away to their hotel with beacons and geolocation devices tracking their location and Tripit-like apps enabling data-sharing; where they will check-in by simply entering their room using their smartphone, watch or RFID implant; where they will find their luggage already in the room because it’s been delivered by drones.

Skift: Travel Industry Leads Internet of Things Spending :

The “Internet of Things” (or IoT), the trend of connecting various sensors and devices to company networks, gets a lot of hype in the press, but not as much analysis of how it impacts business spending. However, according to a recent report, the travel industry is leading the way in IoT implementation, with average spending per company reaching $128 million in 2015. Initiatives like smart sensors in airplane engines, smartphone beacons in theme parks and keyless hotel room entry are all helping to transform the industry.

Mehr auf eMarketer:

In a March 2015 survey of 200 airline IT executives worldwide conducted by Airline Business for IT company RSW/US SITA (Société Internationale de Télécommunications Aéronautiques), 86% of respondents believed that the IoT would deliver clear benefits in the next three years, and 37% had already allocated budget.

Auch lesenswert ist Skift über "Smart City"-Infrastruktur und die Reisebranche:

So now, when users point their devices in a specific direction, for example, the devices identify beacons in that location that initiate AR messaging in the app to deliver ancillary information designed to “augment” the travel experience. That information includes websites, so people can now just point their phone at a restaurant or hotel and access their websites without having to use search.

Likewise, the new apps track public transportation in real time, and using geolocation, they provide multiple options for interesting itineraries in the destination. Users can also access hundreds of listings for hotels, restaurants, shops, attractions, and events through the in-app search and Google Maps interface, all of which can be customized and sponsored.

We spoke with Greg Curtin, Ph.D., founder and CEO of Civic Resource Group, for an overview of how global smart city development is beginning to impact the travel experience.

Analysen & Berichte

"Smartwatches graben Fitnesstrackern nicht das Wasser ab"

Übergizmo:

Die dem Bereich der Fitnessarmbänder zukommende öffentliche Aufmerksamkeit sei zwar etwas zurückgegangen, schreibt NPD-Direktor Weston Henderek, „Fitnesstracker werden aber immer noch stark verkauft und genutzt, was auf verbleibende Wachstumschancen hinweist, während die große Aufmerksamkeit für Smartwatches noch nicht zu robustem Absatz geführt hat.“

Die NPD Group hatte zuletzt auch absolute Zahlen zum Wearables-Markt vorgelegt, die sich allerdings ausschließlich auf die USA beziehen. Demnach hatten Ende des vierten Quartals 2015 13 Millionen Amerikaner eine Apple Watch oder andere Smartwatch, aber fast 33 Millionen ein Fitnessarmband.

Das knüpft thematisch an die jüngste Episode von Thingonomics an: Thingonomics 12: Status Quo bei den Wearables.

Belgisches Energie-Monitoring-Unternehmen Smappee erhält 2,7 Millionen US-Dollar in Series A Finanzierungsrunde

Tech.eu:

Belgium’s Smappee, which develops energy monitoring solutions, has closed a $2.7 million Series A funding round led by its current CEO and COO.

Smappee’s smart traffic controller device monitors the amount of electricity consumed and generated in a building so you can keep tabs, via the smartphone app, on how much energy each of your appliances is using up in real time and what the costs are.

It has versions for businesses and for personal use in the home and startup is hoping to take advantage of the 'Internet of Things’ market.

"Transcending Borders Through Technology"

Techcrunch:

As we move forward, we need to be increasingly mindful that we are actually building out a new kind of global infrastructure in real time. Starting with some simple truths may help. First, as an agile society, we need to start seeing the world as a system, not a collection of discrete digital entities, with all that this implies for how governments and standards organizations need to work together.

Second, we have to accept that the massively organic digital world cannot be accurately predicted and controlled; rather, it must be sensed and responded to. It is temporal and alive and moving fast. This requires technological innovation inherent in sensors, machine learning and analytics.

Third, we need to foster agility in the form of open innovation and a belief that, just as in software development, iteration is the only way to both keep up with the rate of change and avoid large-scale, catastrophic failures of systems we thought were “perfect.”

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #40: Sicherheit im Smart Home lässt weiterhin zu wünschen übrig

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 27 Jan 2016 15:38:04 GMT

Top: Sony kauft Chiphersteller Altair

IT-Business:

Laut Nachrichtenagentur Reuters wird Sony das israelische Unternehmen Altair Semiconductor zu einem Preis von 212 Millionen US-Dollar kaufen. Altair ist Spezialist für die Chip-Ausstattung von Alarm-Systemen, elektronischen Verbrauchszählern und Autos, die sich dann auch mit mobilen Netzwerken verbinden.

Sony’s purchase of Altair will help it compete against other companies that are also working on cellular standards for the Internet of Things. These include Intel, Ericsson, and Nokia, which are collaborating on technology called Narrow Band-LTE (NB-LTE), which in turn competes with Narrow-Band Cellular IoT (NB-CIoT) from Huawei and Vodafone.

In a statement, Sony said it will continue to expand Altair’s business and also combine Sony technology, including its Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) and image sensors, with Altair’s modem chips to “develop a new breed of cellular-connected, sensing component devices.”

The acquisition is expected to close early next month and Sony says it will not have a material impact on the company’s financial results for 2016.

Top: Smart Home & (fehlende) Sicherheit

Shodan, eine Suchmaschine, die die fehlende Sicherheit bei Webcams ausnutzt, existiert seit 2009 und sorgte erneut für Aufsehen. Quartz:

Shodan claims to be the world’s first search engine for internet-connected devices. It allows users to see which of their devices are connected to the Internet, see where it’s located, and who is using it. (...)

Shodan now has a dedicated section that allows users to browse through unsecured webcams to gain a shocking amount of access into people’s private lives. It doesn’t require much technical know-how; users just need to create an account to get limited access into people’s webcams. (Those willing to pay can get unlimited access.)

A quick search revealed a range of screenshots, from a woman cleaning a living room to a group of people drinking in a bar in Hungary. The screenshots include information about the IP of the device—allowing you to locate the device—and the time the screenshot was taken.

Ars Technica UK:

Tentler told Ars that webcam manufacturers are in a race to bottom. Consumers do not perceive value in security and privacy. As a rule, many have not shown a willingness to pay for such things. As a result, webcam manufacturers slash costs to maximize their profit, often on narrow margins. Many webcams now sell for as little as £15 or $20.

"The consumers are saying 'we're not supposed to know anything about this stuff [cybersecurity]," he said. "The vendors don't want to lift a finger to help users because it costs them money."

Der langsame Ansatz von Apple bei HomeKit, der sehr viel Wert auf die Sicherheit der vernetzten Heimgeräte liegt, könnte sich langfristig als sehr lukrativ herausstellen. Aktuell ist der Markt ein Chaos, was die Sicherheit angeht. (Und verlorenes Vertrauen ist nur schwer wiederzugewinnen.)

Analysen & Berichte

Vernetzte Geräte in Entwicklungsländern

EurActiv:

Das Internet der Dinge verspricht nicht nur, den Alltag der Industrieländer zu verändern, sondern auch eine neue Generation der Landwirtschafts- und Gesundheitstechnologien für bessere Lebensstandards in den ärmsten Ländern hervorzubringen. EurActiv-Kooperationspartner La Tribune berichtet. (...)

Zu den Erfolgsbeispielen der Nutzung vernetzter Gegenstände in Entwicklungsprojekten zählt ein Programm, bei dem man Wasserpumpen mit Sensoren ausstattete. Diese warnten frühzeitig, wenn man die Pumpen, die vor allem in ländlichen Gegenden überlebenswichtig sind, reparieren oder ersetzen sollte.

Im Gesundheitsbereich startete die amerikanische Entwicklungsagentur USAID ein Programm gegen die Ebola-Ausbreitung. Sensoren sammelten dabei Daten zu Patienten in Risikogebieten (Körpertemperatur, Herz- und Atmungsfrequenz usw.). Datenprozessoren waren somit in der Lage vorauszusagen, wann und wo ein Ausbruch stattfinden könnte, und entsprechend die Rettungsdienste zu warnen.

White Label IoT von etablierten Marken

Gute Beobachtung von Om Malik:

This CES revealed that the attack of the white labeled devices wasn’t limited to personal computers and Android phones: everything from home devices to wearables will be coming to market, perhaps under the brand names of old guard non-technology companies that are threatened by the rise of connectedness. Of course, buggy software and security challenges are only going to degrade those brands. In short, 2016, like 2015 will be a year of incremental gains.

Hardwarehersteller müssen bessere Apps schreiben (oder sich öffnen für Drittanbieter-Apps)

ReadWrite über Apps von Geräteherstellern, die, wenig überraschend, oft zu wünschen übrig lassen:

One big reason for dissatisfaction is that consumers don't have a choice in most cases: In order to use the device, they're forced to download the manufacturer's app. This is a big argument in support of smart-home hub developers like Wink. Wink CTO Nathan Smith recently told ReadWrite that Wink is deemphasizing its physical touchscreen hub in favor of its apps that can handle many major smart-home brands, and its recently announced support for Amazon Echo. (...)
This study is a wake-up call to companies in the smart-home space: You can't think of yourself as just a hardware company anymore. You're an app developer, too.

And if you discover you're not a very good app developer? Then you'd be best off opening up an API and letting others build better apps for you.

Dass Software nicht zu den Kernkompetenzen von Geräteherstellern zählt, wird ein weiterer Grund für den Erfolg von HomeKit, Echo und co. sein. (Stichwort: Interfaceerleichterung)

"Pitney Bowes Signs, Seals, and Delivers on Smart Postage Machines"

Fortune:

Pitney Bowes, the company that makes the giant and not-so-giant postage machines for businesses, is connecting its postage meters to the Internet using technology from a startup called Electric Imp. (...)
Pilc sees more services being added in the future. “One of our strategic objectives is an increasingly digital relationship with our clients,” he says. Over time, the goal is to build services that customers might pay extra for on top of the digital platform of basic services. However, Pitney doesn’t want higher costs keeping customers from using connected postage meters

"Seebo Raises $8.5M To Help Bring Your IoT Product To Life"

Noch einmal zu Amazon, von mir auf Early Moves:

Seebo, the Tel Aviv, Israel-founded startup that offers an Internet of Things (IoT) end-to-end platform to help companies launch smart products faster, has closed $8.5 million in Series A funding. The round, which was led by Carmel Ventures with participation from existing investors, including TPY Capital, brings the total raised by the company to $14 million.

“Most product companies, outside the big ones, don’t want/can’t afford the headache, expense and commitment of building IoT capabilities from scratch,” a spokesperson for Seebo tells me. “Seebo’s platform is aimed at helping these companies build and support connected products. You can almost think of it as outsourced IoT development.”

That “outsourced IoT development” refers to the fact that Seebo offers an end-to-end solution with software that supports the design and prototyping of IoT devices (pre-production), manufacturing, and keeping those devices connected/up and running once they are launched.

Es ist zu erwarten, dass es in naher Zukunft sehr viele Dienstleister dieser Art geben wird.

LTE-M als Alternative zu Sigfox und co.

Forbes über Alternativen zu Sigfox und co.:

LTE-M is one option and is designed to work with existing equipment installed in LTE networks. In other words, a cellular carrier like AT&T T -0.37% only has to upload new baseband software onto its base stations to turn on LTE-M, and it won’t have to spend any money on new antennas. LTE-M has a little higher data rate than the other options, NarrowBand IoT (NB-IoT), but LTE-M is able to transmit fairly large chunks of data, making it applicable to more of the projected IoT applications.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #39: Amazon ist jetzt auch ein Chiphersteller für vernetzte Geräte

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 20 Jan 2016 15:32:03 GMT

Top: Amazon Dash Replenishment Service startet

Fortune:

On Tuesday Amazon kicked the program up several notches. In addition to launching the first three products supporting Dash Replenishment Services (the Brother printers, the GE washer and the Gmate SMART blood glucose monitor for diabetics); it expanded the number of participants to Purell so hand sanitizers around the country could now ping Amazon to get more gel. The company also opened access for its Dash Replenishment Service to consumers.

That last move is the big one. Amazon will now let anyone, from a huge company like Procter & Gamble to everyday hobbyists, connect to its Dash Replenishment Service. Like the Amazon Echo—the Internet-connected speaker and personal assistant, which has become a stealth home automation platform—Dash Replenishment Service stands to become another platform for the Internet of things. And unlike other efforts on the market, Amazon’s platform could become an essential one, because it’s attached to a viable business model.

Siehe auch meine Zusammenfassung bei Early Moves und meine Analyse auf neunetz.com vom letzten Jahr: "Ein Dash, sie ewig zu binden".

Top: Amazon steigt ins Halbleitergeschäft ein - mit Blick auf das Smart Home

A year ago, in January of 2015, Amazon bought chipmaker Annapurna Labs for around $350 to $370 million.

Some people back then thought (understandably so) that it was a move to bolster Amazon Web Services. Amazon might start going deeper into building its own servers. (Similar to Facebook.)
> But instead Annapurna Labs introduced chips for connected devices a few days ago. (press release) (...)
Amazon is adamant to become a key player in the smart home sector. For this to happen Amazon is working at several fronts at not only pushing its products (Echo/Alexa, Dash button, Dash) but also to be a partner for startups and other companies. There is AWS (now with dedicated IoT-APIs), the Alexa fund for investing in smart home companies and Launchpad, a portal to help startups sell their gadgets. Amazon is working hard to be there if a startup needs distribution and more.

Why not throw dedicated chips into the mix, maybe even optimized to Alexa’s voice interface in the future?

International Business Times:

Another big name with plans to work with Amazon is hardware manufacturer Asus. The company describes Annapurna as having “one of the most advanced and flexible silicon solutions in the marketplace,” highlighting the growing need for increased flexibility and computing power as consumers demand more from home Wi-Fi routers.

Beyond collaboration with hardware partners, Annapurna plans to release a hardware development kit so manufacturers can craft their own designs based on the Alpine platform.

Top: Beacon-Unternehmen Estimote erhält 10,7 Mio. $

Estimote, a beacon company whose small, wireless sensors and accompanying software provide indoor location technology to some of the largest retailers as well as 65 percent of the Fortune 100, has now closed on $10.7 million in Series A funding. The round will help the business scale to meet the needs of its current customer base, around half of which is retail, as well as fund R&D efforts related to what’s next.

Estimote ("Stick our tiny beacons in any location or to any object
to create new, contextually rich mobile experiences.") gehört zu den bekannteren Playern im Beacon-Sektor. Was angesichts des sehr frühen Status des Marktes nicht viel zu sagen hat.

Analysen & Berichte

"Smart Farming: Wie die Digitalisierung die Landwirtschaft revolutioniert"

WirtschaftsWoche:

Doch der Fortschritt hat einen Preis: Auch Vorreiter wie Palme und Schulze Rötering sind sich darin einig, dass der Einsatz von Hightechmaschinen größere Betriebe erzwingt. Nur wenn die Maschinen viele Hundert Hektar bearbeiten, rechnet sich die teure Technik. Die ohnehin stark unter Druck stehenden Kleinbetriebe werden es künftig noch schwerer haben. Sie können es sich kaum leisten, einen der Hochleistungstraktoren von Claas, John Deere und Co., die heute schon um die 400.000 Euro kosten, für weitere 40.000 Euro mit Autopiloten, Datenerfassung und Sensoren aufzurüsten. Oder 100.000 Euro für einen Melkroboter auszugeben. So treibt die Digitalisierung den Strukturwandel gnadenlos voran.

Das ist kein Zustand, der so bleiben wird. Wir stehen am Anfang eines neuen technologischen Zyklus. Am Anfang der Entwicklung ist die neue Technologie immer teuer und wird im Laufe der Zeit aus diversen Gründen günstiger und günstiger. (Skaleneffekte bei Masse der Produktion und über die Zeit (Lerneffekte), allgemeine technologische Weiterentwicklung (Evolution der Zulieferersysteme), und Modularisierung auf dem Markt (Kommodifizierung und größerer Wettbewerb))

Gerade der beschriebene Zustand zeigt enormes Marktpotenzial für (neue) Hersteller.

Songdo, "Smart City" vom Reißbrett

Zusammenfassung von Songdo in Tech in Asia (in einem sponsored post):

Songdo, in South Korea, is a smart city built from the ground up. It is grand in both scale and ambition, and in many ways is an experiment that is being closely watched by most other countries in Asia and around the world. The city features some of the most cutting edge technology in urban development and planning, including:

The city is built around the airport, to reduce travel times (it is 15 minutes from Seoul’s Incheon airport, closer than Seoul itself).
Built-in sensors on streets and buildings to monitor and manage human traffic.
Up to 40 percent of the city will be green space.
Pipes connecting offices and apartments which manage and recycle waste.

The city itself is expected to be finished by 2018, but the cost? An estimated US$35 billion. The 10-year project is expected to be one of the most expensive development projects ever undertaken.

Similar to this is the zero-carbon Masdar City project, being built close to Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates.

weiter:

Songdo and Masdar City are two examples of governments trying to build a smart city from scratch, at great cost. They don’t exactly make for easily applicable and replicable answers to questions that require robust solutions.

Even if both cities are fully built and functional, they will be home to less than a million people each, and very limited in their reach.

Teure, spannende Experimente im großen Stil.

Wearable IoT World erhält 4,5 Millionen US-Dollar, startet Accelerator in Hong Kong

San Francisco-based accelerator Wearable IoT World announced today the launch of the U.S.-Pan Asia IoT Superhighway, an IoT (Internet of Things) and “emerging technologies” accelerator in Hong Kong. The official launch came after a $4.5 million funding round led by China-based investor Radiant Venture Capital.

Superhighway, WIoTW said, will help early-stage Asian startups develop wearable and IoT technologies.

Sigfox bringt sein IoT-Netzwerk in die Antarktika

France’s Sigfox, which operates a low-powered communications network for smart devices, announced today that it will be expanding its network to the Belgian polar-exploration station. The goal is to: “strengthen safety and security during research operations at the Antarctica expedition, which is underway now,” according a press release.

If this sounds like the least commercial use of a network possible, well, that’s because it is. The plan was announced as part of a broader effort by the new Sigfox Foundation, a nonprofit that will work toward using the benefits of IoT (Internet of Things) to “protect people and the environment, improve health care and social ties,” according to the press release.

Nebenbei ein guter Weg, Forscher dazu zu bringen, Geräte zu benutzen, die das Netzwerk einsetzen. Siehe zu Sigfox auch Vernetzte Welt #1 ("Das französische Sigfox hat für sein IoT-Netzwerk 115 Millionen Euro eingesammelt") und Vernetzte Welt #16 ("Samsung investiert in Sigfox").

"The Age Of Autonomy Is Coming"

ReadWrite:

However quietly it begins to arrive, The Age of Autonomy marks a giant step beyond the world of connected devices and the Internet of Things. With 50 billion devices and a trillion sensors coming on line, simple practicality would suggest autonomy will become a necessity. In fact, autonomy is almost here already. Every device and even some of the things we don’t generally regard as devices are essentially becoming robots of one type or another. And with that, autonomy is starting to appear.

Auch ein Weg, über die Frage "Cloud oder nicht Cloud" nachzudenken.

"Smart Glasses helfen Sehbehinderten"

Ein Wissenschaftlerteam am California Institute of Technology (Caltech) hat eine Brille entwickelt, die Sehbehinderten mehr Bewegungsfreiheit verschaffen soll, berichtet Technology Review in seiner Online-Ausgabe ("Echolot-Brille für Blinde").

Das Gerät enthält eine Minikamera, deren Aufnahmen an einen kleinen Computer weitergeleitet werden. Dieser setzt über eine spezielle Software die Bilder in Tonsignale um, die der Träger wiederum über Kopfhörer ins Ohr übertragen bekommt.

Cassia Hub vergrößert die Reichweite von Bluetooth

Springwise:

The wifi-connected Cassia Hub acts like a router, boosting Bluetooth signal from the standard open-air range of 30 ft to 1000 ft, making the signal detectable through three concrete walls.

Die offizielle Website von Cassia Networks. Das hat offensichtlich als eigenständiges zusätzliches Gerät nur geringes Marktpotenzial. Sprich, eine solche Funktion sollte, wenn schon, dann im Router oder einem allgemeinen Smart-Home-Hub stecken. Also 'nur' eine Brückentechnologie?

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #38: CES 2016 zusammengefasst

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 13 Jan 2016 20:50:36 GMT

Top: Alles wichtige zur diesjährigen CES

Amazon Alexa war der heimliche Hit der CES 2016

Sowohl The Verge als auch ZDNet berichten von der Dominanz von Amazon Alexa bei auf der CES vorgestellten Smart-Home-Geräten.

The Verge:

But the most important name in the smart home is the one you’re least likely to find plastered inside the cavernous halls of the Las Vegas Convention Center: Alexa.

The name corresponds to Amazon’s cloud-based voice assistant, which began as the personal assistant inside the online shopping company’s Echo speaker that went on sale to the public in June. Over the course of a few months, however, Alexa has moved beyond Echo and into a host of third-party devices, in part thanks to Amazon’s $100 million Alexa Fund, which helps other companies incorporate the software into their products.

Now those investments are bearing fruit. At CES 2016, Amazon is a stealth attendee. Without a booth or logo in sight, Alexa is weaving its way into third-party products here as varied as home security cameras, lighting systems, and Ford vehicles.

ZDNet zum Hintergrund, warum eine Alexa-Integration so attraktiv ist:

Why the sudden the movement for third-party Alexa adoption? Simply put, Amazon is providing all of the tools to make it easy and free for developers and device makers.

It doesn’t hurt that Alexa is quite good at hearing and responding to requests, either. There’s no need for a company to spend tons of R&D to develop its own speech-recognition system that taps into the cloud when Amazon provides a more than serviceable option.

And while we’re hearing all about gesture controls as well as AR and VR as interfaces at CES, speech – when done right – may be the best interface of all when it comes to the smarthome.

Gerüchten zufolge wird Amazon in den nächsten Wochen eine portable und günstigere Version des zugehörigen Amazon Echo vorstellen. (Echo ist das sprachgesteuerte Smart-Home-Gerät von Amazon, Alexa die Sprachinterface-Plattform dahinter.)

Autos, VR, Wearables

Die Autoindustrie war auf der CES dick im Geschäft: Keynotes kamen von von Diess und General-Motors-Chefin Mary Barra, Audi, BMW, Daimler, VW sowie die US-Hersteller stellten aus. (..)
Zu den heißen CES-Themen gehörten in diesem Jahr darüber hinaus Virtual Reality und Wearables. Letztere zählen zu den dynamisch wachsenden Produktkategorien, in welche die Branchenverbände ihre Hoffnungen setzen. Wearables, Action Cams und Bluetooth-Soundsysteme sollen ausgleichen, dass das Geschäft mit klassischer Unterhaltungselektronik stagniert.

Fitness at CES

Marktanalyst Jan Dawson auf Techpinions (Paywall):

There were announcements from a couple of the bigger names in the fitness device space at CES, but they were received fairly differently. Fitbit announced a smartwatch – the Blaze – and its stock promptly tanked as investors took this as a sign Fitbit was leaving its areas of strength and going into direct competition with smartwatch makers like Apple, Samsung, and others. Withings, meanwhile, announced a connected thermometer, much more in its wheelhouse as a connected health and fitness device manufacturer, that seemed to be much better received. It’s debatable whether the product itself is a winner – it’s a very expensive entrant in a category which already has plenty of cheaper alternatives – but it is at least consistent with Withings’ strengths and focus as a company. The other major trend in evidence in the health and fitness space was a move towards starting to not just track fitness and health conditions but to begin to treat them. I got pitches from quite a few companies selling devices intended to help alleviate various acute and chronic ailments and this feels like a big area of expansion over the next couple of years. This side of the market comes with significant additional barriers to entry in the form of FDA regulation and has therefore been slower to get started, but promises to have more stickiness with consumers than pure fitness trackers which have notoriously high abandonment rates.

Das Beste der CES laut Wired

Wired unter anderem über Carl Zeiss:

Remember Google Glass? Nah, best not to. In case you're still having trouble letting go, Carl Zeiss has smart glasses that may let you finally let go. Its new system functions like Glass, but looks like, well, just plain old glasses. That is, ultimately, the dream. The Zeiss lenses on display at CES weren't totally seamless; you can see lines there. But they're not any more aggressive or disruptive than a pair of bifocals. And in exchange for that minimal invasion you get augmented reality capabilities without the discomfort of looking like a techno-goon. The lenses work with a variety of frame styles, meaning applications can be either

Top-Trends der CES

That set me up for this post on the top trends of the tech industry’s biggest North American trade show. These are the trends that affect more than one company, or send a signal that a new category or sub-industry is rising around this trend. Revolutionary products, of course, may be one of a kind. And we didn’t really see anything obvious on that front. But trends indicate that something that has been talked about for a while may finally be at the point where they’re becoming real. Many of these trends develop over multiple years, starting as ridiculous or too expensive, and eventually graduating to smart and useful.

So what did we find? Forget about TVs and smartphones. There’s more innovation happening in previously dumb objects, thanks to the Internet of Things, and in virtual reality devices.

Frankreich auf der CES

The Rude Baguette:

As a result, the CES Innovation Awards show that the quality matches the quantity of projects that came to CES this year: 20+ IoT companies based in France were honored by the jury of experts in different categories, among whom there were the French industry leaders such as Parrot, Netatmo or Withings.

Segway stellte Robotik-Version vor

Mobile Geeks:

Im Rahmen der CES 2016 päsentierte das Unternehmen seine zukünftige Ausrichtung, inklusive einer kleinen Überraschung. Die nächste Generation des Segway mutiert - wenn man ihn nicht fährt - zu einem kleinen Roboter für's Smart Home! Das Modell ist z.B. mit "Armen" erweiterbar und soll über verschiedene Kamera- und Umgebungssensoren in der Lage sein, selbstständig durch Räume zu navigieren oder seinem Besitzer zu folgen. Verantwortlich für diesen Punkt ist Intel, die zu dem Projekt u.a. ihre RealSense-Kameratechnologie beisteuern und dem Segway Robot so eine dreidimensionale Erfassung von Objekten ermöglichen.

Bosch Connected Car Concept

CNet hat einige Fotos des Autokonzepts von Bosch veröffentlicht.

Samsung Gear S2 Smartwatch wird iPhone-kompatibel

Pocket-lint:

During its CES 2016 press conference, Samsung announced that it will be bringing iOS compatibility to its Gear S2 smartwatch.

CES 2016—Observations for Product People

Steven Sinofsky (Ex-Microsoft, jetzt a16z) in einer langen Zusammenfassung der CES aus seiner Sicht:

The big challenge is no surprise. Software development is unable to keep up with the hardware. What is going to separate one device from another or one company from another will be the software execution, not just the choice of chipset or specs for a peripheral/sensor. It would be hard to overstate the clear opportunity to build winning products using stronger software relative to competitors. Said another way, spending too many cycles on hardware pits you against the supply chain for most products.
Some of the devices that include most of these include a rubber duck (speaker, remote control), knit cap (music player), light bulb (speaker, camera, climate), walkie-talkies (location, camera), power strip (remote control, telemetry, power usage report), flower pot (soil water level, camera). The list goes on and on!

Samsung Family Hub refrigerator - Der smarte Kühlschrank ist zurück

Erfolgreiche Kickstarterkampagne (1.618.869 € eingesammelt) der Woche:

The idea is to enrich family life using the fridge as the center of the kitchen. You can see if you left your oven or burners on via a smartphone app. You can put your kids’ art work on the 21.5-inch high-definition screen, or you can view the objects in the fridge from your smartphone. That’s because there are cameras in the fridge that take pictures of what is inside the fridge every time you close the door. (..)

The Family Hub also lets you access Samsung Smart Things, the platform for the Internet of Things in the home. Using the fridge, you can turn off the lights at bedtime and lock your doors. Home automation and control can be fully integrated into the hub. You can stream music or television from the Samsung TV to the Family Hub.

Ein sehr samsungiges Produkt.

Siehe auch dieses Video von Wired.

Parce One: Wlan-Steckdose mit Homekit aus Deutschland

Housecontrollers:

Das Münchner Startup Unternehmen Parce hat auf der Elektronikmesse CES in Las Vegas seine WLAN-Steckdose Parce One vorgestellt.

Der Zwischenstecker ist mit Apples Smart Home System HomeKit kompatibel und ermöglicht es, ein eingestecktes elektronisches Gerät via App und der Sprachsteuerung Siri zu bedienen und zu kontrollieren.

Podcasts

Die Analysten bei Techpinions als auch die Macher von Techdirt haben in ihren Podcasts auf die CES zurückgeschaut.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #37: Kapital pro Jahr für Internet der Dinge hat sich in 6 Jahren verdoppelt

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 09 Dec 2015 21:09:16 GMT

Immer Mittwochs erscheint auf neunetz.com eine kommentierte Übersicht zu den wichtigsten Entwicklungen und besten Analysen aus der Welt der vernetzten Geräte, dem 'Internet der Dinge'. Vernetzte Welt kann per Email und per RSS-Feed abonniert werden. Hinweis: Vernetzte Welt geht in die Winterpause und ist im Januar wieder zurück.

Top: Finanzierung in IoT-Startups hat sich mehr als verdoppelt in sechs Jahren

CB Insights:

Funding to IoT startups has grown at a steady clip, more than doubling in 5 years from $768M in 2010 to over $1.9B in 2014. Yearly deal count soared from 91 in 2010, to 221 in 2014. And, at the current run-rate, 2015 is on track to eclipse last year’s record-breaking funding year, despite the deal count being down significantly from last year.

Analysen & Berichte

Übersicht über Wearables-Startups

Noch einmal CB Insights:

The selected 42 companies raised a combined $1.9B in investment over 105 deals. And more than one quarter of the chosen startups are still early-stage companies.

"How People Are Actually Using the Internet of Things"

Harvard Business Review:

In these early days of the Internet of Things (IoT), much of the focus has been on industrial applications, such as improving operations with autonomous machines, or standalone consumer products, like a Fitbit. But from our research, we’re seeing a more human-centric category of IoT activity starting to emerge. It’s less about automation and more about personal augmentation; less about individual devices and more about “living services” that let people program and connect smart devices however they want. (..)

The data show that the most heavily used IoT programs are ones that make home life easier, more distinctive, and more pleasant. Respondents also show a big preference for services that don’t require them to go out of their way to make something work. People using the Internet of Things increasingly prefer interfaces that are more natural and less visible (and attention-sapping) than screens.

Ulo

Ulo is a cute surveillance camera, a pet owl interacting with you through eye expressions.

"IoT Changes Hardware Companies into Software Companies"

EE Times:

Connectivity and pay-per-use software lets companies monetize creativity—traditionally unconnected devices can offer new experiences. An intelligent guitar, for example, can download tunes and share recordings across social networks. Expensive equipment such as like routers, MRI machines, or test and measurement hardware that was once out of reach for smaller customers because of high up-front costs now offer pay-as-you-go pricing enabled by usage-tracking and internet connectivity, allowing manufacturers to tap into previously inaccessible markets.

Siehe auch Thingonomics 10 zum Thema.

"Half a year later, the Apple Watch feels like a stalled platform"

Seven months later, my Apple Watch is still the second thing I put on every morning. (Glasses first.) But while I still enjoy using it and recommend buying it, I’m starting to feel the limitations of what the first version of the watch can do.

The main issue: I’m still only using it for a few tasks, and those haven’t changed at all. (..)

Beyond faster hardware, quicker network access, and a thinner case, I’m most eager to see what Apple does with the high-level concept.

"This Connected Kitchen Scale Shows Cooks the Weigh Ahead"

Wired:

The Drop scale and its attendant app could get you to change your ways. It connects to an iPhone or iPad via Bluetooth LE. The iPad app offers nearly 300 recipes. It weighs each ingredient onscreen as you add it and gives step-by-step recipe guidance—from flour in a bowl to cookies in the oven. (The iPhone app has been updated recently to include recipes.) It’s not perfect; the scale itself lacks a display, so you need your phone or iPad to weigh out your morning coffee. But if you want to improve your kitchen-fu, get the drop on Drop.

"Ford's plan for making self-driving cars sounds a whole lot like Google's"

Wired:

The automaker hasn’t said much about its plans for the autonomous age, but is starting to tip its hand. It is road-testing a fleet of self-driving Ford Fusion Hybrids in Dearborn, Michigan, and hopes to expand beyond its hometown. What’s more, the company wants to offer a no-kidding, it’s-fully-autonomous car in five years. No middle ground, not half measures, just a headlong leap into robo-vehicles. (..)

Ford wants to skip Level 3 because it presents the one of the biggest challenges with this technology: How to safely transfer control from the computer to the driver, particularly in an emergency. It’s a balancing act, one that requires providing drivers with the benefits of autonomy—like not having to pay attention—while ensuring they are ready to grab the wheel if the car encounters something it can’t handle.

"Qube is the $19 smart bulb that's taking aim at Philips Hue"

Wareable:

Of course, the most interesting aspect of the Qube is its price. If you pledge to the company's Indiegogo campaign within the first 72 hours, you can grab a bulb for just $16 each. Even the standard preorder price of $19, represents a bit of a bargain, although Philips Hue inventor George Yianni might have something to say about that.

The company is looking to raise $50,000 to mass-produce the Qube. You'll have to wait a bit, mind. Shipping is set for April 2016.

"How the SoC is Displacing the CPU"

System on a chip (SoC) ist die Revolution unter der Haube bei Smartphones und vernetzten Geräten. Medium:

In just five years, SoC technology has catapulted from enabling basic computation/connectivity on a feature phone to being at the heart of all smartphones, tablets and Chromebooks, capable of a wide range of functions including audio/video, gaming, communication and productivity. (..)

In the post-PC world, the computing paradigm has shifted in such a way that overall user experience is now a critical benchmark independent of the raw performance of the underlying technology. The Apple iPhone and iPad are great examples of this paradigm shift. Even the early versions of the iPhone provided a highly satisfactory user experience — not because they featured the fastest computing speed with the most advanced silicon but because they enabled rich features at reasonable computing speed and reasonable price points.

"BioSerenity raises €3 Million to bring wearable epilepsy detection to the masses"

Rude Baguette:

In line with the wave of medical-tech fusion, BioSerenity, a French startup founded by Pierre Fouin, is revolutionizing early epilepsy detection. Founded in January of 2014, the Paris-based startup has raised over €3 million from Kurma Diagnostics and Idinvest Partners to propel its research and development.

"Herstellerneutrale Plattform für Industrie"

silicon.de:

Labs Network Industrie 4.0 soll den Einsatz von Industrie-4.0-Technologien verstärken. Dafür haben sich Siemens, SAP, HPE, Giesecke & Devrient, Deutsche Telekom und Festo mit den Verbänden Bitkom, VDMA und ZVEI in einem Verein zusammengefunden. Ziel ist es, eine eine Struktur für Praxistests bereitzustellen.

Das firmenneutrale Netzwerk soll die staatlich geförderte Plattform Industrie 4.0 ergänzen und erweitern. Weitere Mitgliedsunternehmen werden den Gründungsmitgliedern gleichgestellt sein. Der Verein hat seinen Sitz in Berlin und wird noch in diesem Jahr seine Arbeit aufnehmen.

Vernetzte Welt #36: Bosch gründet Tochterunternehmen für Smart Home

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 02 Dec 2015 20:19:23 GMT

Top: Bosch gründet 2016 Tochterunternehmen "Robert Bosch Smart Home GmbH"

Bosch, bereits als Zulieferer, der intensiv an der Zukunft arbeitet, einer der großen potenziellen Gewinner des vernetzten Autos, gründet 2016 ein Tochterunternehmen für den Smart-Home-Sektor. Erste Produkte sollen bereits im Januar 2016 auf den Markt kommen.

Golem:

Der Elektronikhersteller Bosch erweitert seine Palette an Smart-Home-Produkten: Neben Waschmaschinen und Trocknern sollen ab Januar 2016 auch Energiesparkomponenten und Fenstersensoren erhältlich sein. Dafür wurde extra eine Tochterfirma gegründet. (..)

Die Beschäftigtenzahl der neuen Firma Robert Bosch Smart Home GmbH soll im Laufe des Jahres 2016 ausgebaut werden und letztlich im unteren dreistelligen Bereich liegen. An Produkten soll es Energiespar-Automatiken, Einbruchsmelder und Fenstersensoren geben. Alle Smart-Home-Komponenten sollen auch per Smartphone steuerbar sein. Welcher Standard benutzt wird, ist nicht bekannt.

Das ergibt zumindest mittelfristig organisatorisch sehr viel Sinn.

Bosch scheint allerdings nicht daran interessiert zu sein, mehr als ein Hardwarehersteller zu werden:

When it comes to connectivity, Bosch believes open standards and open platforms will make the technology as user-friendly as possible. For this reason, Bosch has chosen to make its smart-home system modular and expandable.

Erstaunlich bei den Marktpotenzialen aber vielleicht auch eine berechtigte Frage von Schuster und Leisten.

Tech Insider:

The company will create a single mobile application that can connect to and control the smart home appliances and sensors Bosch offers. It will also be able to connect to compatible devices from other smart home device manufacturers.

Podcast

Thingonomics 11: ‚The Things Network‘, von Amsterdam in die Welt:

Martin Spindler und Marcel Weiß sprechen über The Things Network. Ein „global, crowdsourced, open, free and decentralized internet of things network“, das bereits in Amsterdam stadtweit verfügbar ist und nun unter anderem mit Hilfe von Kickstarter Verbreitung darüber hinaus finden soll.

Analysen & Berichte:

"British Airways führt Apple Watch Scanner ein"

Das Ökosystem um Smartwatches wächst langsam aber sicher. Macnotes:

Zwischen Juni und Oktober 2015 konnte British Airways eine Vervierfachung der Nutzung der Apple Watch unter den eigenen Reisenden feststellen, wie die Fluggesellschaft nun mitteilt. Aus diesem Grund will man spezielle Scanner für die Apple Watch und andere Gadgets einführen, mit denen sogar die eigenständige Gepäckabfertigung in London Heathrow möglich sein soll.

"Solving The Persistent Security Threats For The Internet Of Things"

Simpel, relativ low tech, nützlich:

Taking lessons from past experiences, the tech community is scrambling to plug the leaks before the situation spins out of control, and many startups and established companies in the tech industry are using this window of opportunity to mitigate the threats and decide the fate of this fast-growing phenomenon.

From solutions for connectivity threats to data protection and the quarantine of potentially compromised devices, startups and tech giants are developing solutions for the problem areas in IoT security.

"A Smarter Light Bulb For Home Security"

Forbes über neue, neuartig vernetzte Glühbirnen von BeON Home:

The bulbs use Bluetooth wireless rather than Wi-Fi technology, and does not need a sort of hub as you might use for your Wi-Fi laptops, computers and other devices. This also means that you can configure the devices with your smartphone only if you are within range of the bulbs (up to 240 feet away). The bulbs also cannot be operated—turned on, off, or dimmed–remotely from the app over the Internet, or longer ranges beyond that.

For technical folks, BeON Home’s bulbs are one of the first uses of lowe-power advanced Bluetooth Smart together with Qualcomm QCOM’s CSRmesh technology, which allows devices to securely network and configure themselves. Because it is a mesh network, each additional device extends the range, and there is no need for a hub.

Zuli SmartPlug

Der SmartPlug ist eine kleine unauffällige, weiße Box, die zwischen Steckdose und dem gewünschten Gerät angebracht wird. Dies reguliert den Stromverbrauch, da dieser kleiner Steckerzusatz die Stromzufuhr deaktiviert, wenn Sie nicht in der Nähe sind, und schaltet Geräte immer dann ein, wenn Sie den Raum betreten. Besonders nützlich ist dies natürlich bei Lampen.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #35: 60 Mio. € für IoT-Forschung in Sachsen

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 25 Nov 2015 16:09:01 GMT

Top: ECSEL - 60 Mio. Euro für u.a. IoT-Forschung in Sachsen

Thingonomics 10: Wenn Sachgüter und Immaterialgüterrecht kollidieren:

Geldspritze für die Mikroelektronik-Branche: 21 sächsische Projektpartner werden für ihre Beiträge zu internationalen Projekten gefördert. Sachsen und der Bund steuern jeweils 6 Millionen Euro, die EU 12 Millionen Euro bei, wie das Wirtschaftsministerium am Montag mitteilte. Insgesamt werde damit ein Volumen von mehr als 60 Millionen Euro in Sachsen angeschoben. (..)

Am meisten Geld fließt in das Projekt "Prime": Fünf Partner um den Chiphersteller Globalfoundries entwickeln unter anderem mit dem belgischen Forschungszentrum für Nano- und Mikroelektronik eine Plattform für das Internet der Dinge.

Oiger:

Zu den geförderten Projekten mit Sachsen-Anteil gehört „PRIME“, in dessen Zuge die „22 Nanometer-FD-SOI-Technologie“ von Globalfoundries weiterentwickelt werden soll. „Fünf sächsische Konsortialmitglieder um Globalfoundries erforschen und entwickeln in Zusammenarbeit unter anderem mit dem belgischen Forschungszentrum für Nano- und Mikroelektronik IMEC eine Ultra Low Power Technologiepattform für das ,Internet der Dinge’“, kündigte das Ministerium an.

Ein weiteres unterstütztes Forschungsprojekt ist IoSense, das an Sensoren arbeitet.

Internationaler Kontext via Oiger:

Im vergangenen Jahr hatte Sachsen aber auch nur ein Projektvolumen von insgesamt 60 Millionen Euro bewilligt bekommen. Solche Beträge sind keine Petitessen, aber doch eher wenig im Vergleich zu den Milliardenbeträgen, die in die wichtigen Halbleiter-Standorte zum Beispiel in Taiwan, Korea und den USA fließen.

Podcast

Martin Spindler und Marcel Weiß sprechen (noch einmal) über den VW-Skandal. Hauptthema ist der Landtechnik-Hersteller John Deere, der Preisdisrkiminierung bei seinen Produkten mittels Software umsetzt und für die Durchsetzung diese Preisdifferenzierung auf DRM setzt und -daraus folgend- den Kunden abspricht, mit ihren gekauften Produkten zu machen, was sie wollen.

Zum Abschluss ist der Plattformvorsprung von Apple Thema. Apple ist unter anderem der größte Einkäufer/Partner in vielen Bereichen der mobile supply chain, was in Verbindung mit einer überlaufenden Kriegskasse enorme Marktmacht bedeutet.

Analysen & Berichte

Nichts smartes im Smart TV von Samsung

Volker Weber über die schlechte Qualität integrierter Smart TVs am Beispiel von Samsung:

Wenn ich in den "Smart Hub" gehe, dann kommt unweigerlich alle paar Wochen ein "Smart Hub must update". Und dann installiert mir diese Dreckssoftware 29 Apps, die ich nicht haben will, die ich nicht aufrufe und die ich einzeln löschen darf. Dauert etwa 15 Sekunden pro App. (..)

Fast das gesamte User Interface des 2012er Smart Hub besteht aus Werbung, die sich zum allergrößten Teil nicht mal löschen lässt.

Die Smartness liegt in entkoppelten Geräten vom Bildschirm, die schneller erneuert werden können. Das ist seit einigen Jahren offensichtlich.

Delgato vs. Devolo

Golem:

Mit Elgato und Devolo versuchen zwei bekannte deutsche Firmen, im Smart-Home-Markt Fuß zu fassen. Die Ansätze könnten nicht unterschiedlicher sein: Devolo setzt auf Z-Wave-Funk, Elgato bindet sich an Apple mit Homekit und Bluetooth Low Energy alias Bluetooth Smart. Wir haben uns beide Systeme angesehen.

Pivotal Living Tracker: Wearable im Abomodell für $1 pro Monat

WT VOX:

Their new fitness band will come with the same subscription package the company used with its first activity tracker, the Pivotal Living Tracker 1. It works like this: If you spend $12 to buy the band, you’ll get a full year of free access to the company’s Android and iOS app.

Now you see why it is called the “new fitness model”. The Pivotal Living band is a subscription-based fitness band at just $1 a month.

Warum IBM The Weather Company übernommen hat

Business Insider über den einige Zeit zurückliegenden Kauf von The Weather Company durch IBM:

The team at IBM envisions a platform that is innovative "not only for business-to-business, but for every day society, with the potential of solving a whole set of problems," Suh explains. (..)

"The [Weather Company] has built a platform that pulls in 4GB of data per second. So it has this massive ingestion machine and it runs a lot of analytics. All of that data sits on a cloud and when you click on a forecast for your location it immediately gives you that data. All of that activity generates about 30 billion interactions a day," Schroeter says.

"So this is a platform that has an incredible amount of scale that's good for weather and really good for a lot of other things. The way this system was designed you have to think of end-points — right now the end-points are weather-based. But the end-point could be a smartwatch or it could be your refrigerator," he adds.

Biometrische Tattoos

WT VOX:

As sensors shrink, wearables will shrink too until they disappear inside our bodies. (..)

There are intermediary stages, of course, and the wearable tattoos are one of them. Chaotic Moon is a firm based in Austin, Texas, best known for its fire-breathing drones and fitness trackers that let you earn bitcoins.

lBut now, the “digital tattoo” is another expertise they have. These “biometric tattoos” are in fact conductive paint and components. Together, they assemble into simple devices able to collect data from your body.

Meldungen

Vernetzte Welt #34: Fossil übernimmt Misfit für 260 Mio. $

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 18 Nov 2015 19:23:02 GMT

Top: Bluetooth bekommt neue Version nächstes Jahr

Größere Reichweite
Höhere Geschwindigkeit
und Mesh-Networking

Alles wichtig für das Internet der Dinge.

The Verge

The ever-growing number of connected gadgets on the market is putting a strain on our Bluetooth connections. To keep up with the increased burden, the Bluetooth standard is getting an upgrade, with longer range, faster speeds, and mesh networking all in the works for 2016. The incorporation of these new features is being overseen by the Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG), an industry body that counts companies such as Apple, Intel, Microsoft, and Lenovo among its backers.

Furthermore, a “100% increase in speed” has been promised — without the need for more energy to power the increase. This could have major ramifications for applications across many use cases that require low latency, such as home health care.

But perhaps one of the most interesting developments in the pipeline is support for mesh networking.

Top: Uhrenhersteller Fossil übernimmt Fitnesstracker-Hersteller Misfit für 260 Millionen US-Dollar

Pressemitteilung hier.

Die Technologie solle im kommenden Jahr in Uhren von Fossil, Skagen und einiger anderer Marken integriert werden, erklärte das Unternehmen. Fossil produziert auch Uhren der Marken Adidas, Diesel, Michael Kors oder DKNY.

Fossil ist einer der großen Hersteller für den Massenmarkt erschwinglicher Armbanduhren. Misfit ist hinter Jawbone und Fitbit eher ein kleines Licht, hat aber ein sehr viel größeres Produktportfolio als beide.

Im Oktober hat Fossil erste eigene Android-Wear-Geräte vorgestellt, die noch dieses Jahr erscheinen sollen.

Fossil arbeitet außerdem mit Intel zusammen an "wearable tech".

Top: Smart-Clothing-Hersteller Athos erhält 35,5 Millionen US-Dollar

Überblick über Investoren in Hardware-Startups auf TechCrunch:

The startup faces some nominal competition from wearable fitness clothing startups Hexoskin and OmSignal, as well as Heddoko, which makes 3D movement tracking suits, but it’s still early days here. Most of these types of companies launched their products in just the last year. The first Athos products started shipping six months ago, according to the startup.

Re/Code:

Professional athletes can be worth millions of dollars to their teams, and there’s a slew of tech companies working to protect those athletes from injury using a somewhat surprising shield: Data.

As Lauren Goode reported here in March when she tried out the product, Athos offers workout shirts and pants laced with sensors that monitor body activity and movement that is then transferred wirelessly to a smartphone. They are used by some professional athletes, including Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Mathews, according to Palihapitiya, but at almost $400 retail for the shirt and sensors, it’s probably too expensive for most casual athletes.

Siehe auch die Website von Athos.

Analysen und Berichte

Überblick über den Wearables-Markt

CB Insights:

The wearables industry has cooled off in 2015, with deals and funding down from last year, but a few dozen startups have carved out a place for themselves in certain industries and are taking on established players. We used CB Insights data to identify 42 startups attacking fitness, apparel, healthcare, to name just a few of the areas. (..)
The selected 42 companies raised a combined $1.9B in investment over 105 deals.

MagicStick: HDMI-Stick + Ubuntu Core

Im Ubuntu-Blog:

The PC on stick has been increasingly popular for those looking to transform their TV into a smart TV. Plugging the PC on stick into the HDMI port and transforms a normal TV into a smart device! You can enjoy anything a PC powered experience offers: media center, web browser, games. MagicStick™ is offering a powerful 8G RAM PC on stick that brings a fast experience to your screen.

However MagiStick™ is looking to change the PC on stick experience more radically! TV users want to lean back and enjoy their sofa time! They do not need to click their way through complex menus just to start watching their favourite show or Youtube video! They do not need a desktop on which to place the files. They want simple slimmed down interfaces!

By offering Ubuntu Core in the PC on stick form factor, MagicStick™ is bringing a simple appstore experience to the TV. Find an app, tap on it to launch it or to download it and you have your home entertainment system, your game, your home control system or your browser on your TV screen. Every app is just a few taps away on your TV. The powerful PC on stick gives you speedy and reactive interfaces and a variety of compatible applications; Ubuntu Core gives you a simple experience and a store to manage your applications.

Interessante Kombination. Bleibt die Frage, wie das Interface (auf OS- und auf App-Ebene) gehandhabt wird. Oder anders gesagt: Das klingt leider nach Plattform-Chaos.

Smart-Home-Monitor Blink: Von Kickstarter zu VC

Crowdfund Insider:

On Monday, Kickstarter alum, Blink, announced it has raised an additional $5.8 million from private investors. The DIY smart home monitor surfaced on the crowdfunding platform in 2014 and secured over $1 million from nearly 7,000 backers. (..)
Blink’s system is designed for budget-minded consumers, with limited-time pre-order pricing starting at just $79 for a one-camera system. A whole-home, five-camera system is $289. The company announced that it is now entering the production phase.

Also, The security system has been named a 2016 CES Innovation Awards Honoree in the Smart Home category.

Smart-Home-IP-Cam-Markt aus Sicht von Netgear

Anandtech hat eine Marktübersicht von Netgear erhalten (Bei der wenig überraschend Netgears Arlo vorn liegt):

Within 6 months of introduction, the Arlo managed to climb up to the top of the charts with a 20% share (also helped by Dropcam making a slow transition to the new Nest Cam model). This shows that there is a tremendous market potential for battery-operated IP cameras (something we had not foreseen when the Arlo Wire-Free was launched).

"Wearables Are Missing A Crucial Aspect: Community"

Forbes über die Tatsache, dass Wearables bis dato nur einen Markt anspricht, der identisch mit den Gründern und CEOs der Unternehmen ist:

To some of these communities, introducing a new piece of technology such as a wearable can be an added strain says Saxton-Ross. “Chronic health conditions are stressful, the physical conditions that these communities live in, with subpar housing and increased violence, are all stressful,” she says. “If you don’t have food, clothes or shelter–living safely or longer are extras.”

The way wearables are designed today, creators don’t have these communities in mind. In fact, they don’t have much other than themselves in mind according to Wired. “From Silicon Valley and San Francisco to Austin and MIT, young, healthy, highly educated, mostly male entrepreneurs are developing marginally useful apps and gadgets for people just like themselves,” J.C. Herz said in an article titled “Wearables Are Totally Failing the People Who Need Them Most.” (..)
Because wearables are still largely unaffordable, Connected Health vice president Dr. Joseph C. Kvedar says “forward-thinking doctors” in underserved communities are offering free Fitbits to patients with overweight issues. “Apart from us giving those devices away, I don’t think there are as many people in that segment that are running out to buy the Nike or Fitbit or Apple Watch,” Kvedar says. The free Fitbits, however, come with the expectation of a challenge. “The doctors might be giving away activity trackers and divide the group into two teams and suggest that they compete with each other.”

Wie akkurat sind Fitnesstracker?

CBS Pittsburgh:

A study done by researchers at the University of Wisconsin looked at five popular activity trackers. When it came to steps, it found trackers predicted within 10 percent accuracy the number of steps taken.

As for calories, none of the devices were accurate for recording calories burned and researchers concluded the trackers worked best with lower intensity activities like walking.

Researchers also say people are 30-to-40 times more active when they use fitness trackers. Even if they are not 100 percent accurate, they do a good job of getting people up and moving.

Meldungen:

Vernetzte Welt #33: Kapital für Relayr (DE) und Netatmo (FR)

Marcel Weiß — Wed, 11 Nov 2015 19:24:40 GMT

Hinweis: Krankheitsbedingt mussten die Ausgaben der letzten zwei Wochen ausfallen. Künftige Ausgaben erscheinen ab nun jeweils Mittwochs.

Top: Berliner IoT-Unternehmen Relayr erhält 11 Mio. $

Kleiner Perkins und Munich Venture Partners haben in einer Series-A-Finanzierungsrunde 11 Millionen US-Dollar in Relayr investiert. Aus der Pressemitteilung:

relayr is one of the first vendors to quickly and easily connect the physical world with the virtual world. With its end-to-end development solution consisting of the relayr IoT-Cloud platform, a software development kit, and a sensor kit, relayr addressed the central challenge of the Internet of Things: to digitize physical objects. Founded in 2013, relayr already counts Bosch Siemens Hausgeräte, Cisco and the City of Paris among its customers.

The aim of this round of financing is to rapidly advance the IoT technology platform to support companies in digitally transforming their business processes. The other focus areas of relayr's management are to launch relayr's B2B business in the US market and expand their partner ecosystem.

Top: Französisches Smart-Home-Unternehmen Netatmo erhält 30 Mio. €

Netatmo, von TechCrunch 'France's answer to Nest' genannt, erhält 30 Mio. €. TechCrunch:

Legrand, the France-based multinational provider of electrical and digital building infrastructure solutions, is leading the round; and according to Matthew Broadway, Netatmo’s COO, the investment will open the door to working with them on large building projects as a smart home technology partner. Previous investors Iris Capital, Bpifrance, Pascal Cagni and Netatmo’s CEO and co-founder Fred Potter also invested, with the founders remaining majority shareholders.

Founded in 2011, Netatmo’s first product was a personal weather station and air quality sensor — hence the “atmo” of its name.

Rude Baguette:

Netatmo quickly gained fame with its weather station, which currently monitors indoor & outdoor weather in more than 170 countries in the world. While its foyer into the wearables market with June can’t exactly be called a success, where CEO & Founder Fred Potter has been most successful has been his ability to identify opportunities (or lack there of) and make quick decisions. In a crowdfunding-filled market where products are funded and then built, Netatmo takes big risks ( and reaps big rewards) by conceiving, funding, building & shipping products without asking for approval from those with disposable income who peruse KickStarter & Indiegogo at work.

Top: Apps für Apple TV

Apple TV ist erschienen und die ersten Apps für die neue TV-Plattform zeigen zaghaft, wie ein wahres Smart TV in naher Zukunft aussehen wird.
Drei Beispiele:

Siehe auch das epische Quartz-Review: The ultimate review of Apple TV and its competing streaming media players

Analysen & Berichte

The Things Network

The Things Network bringt das LoRa-Netzwerk aus Amsterdam (siehe auch Vernetzte Welt #24) in den Rest der Welt mit u.a. der Hilfe einer (bereits erfolgreichen, aber noch nicht abgeschlossenen) Kickstarter-Kampagne.

Just a few months ago we managed to cover the entire city of Amsterdam with a new type of wireless network using a technology called LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide-area network). The network was built, from the bottom up, by people like you.

When we started spreading the word about our first crowd sourced internet of things data network in Amsterdam, we got an astonishing response from the global IoT community. Within a few days, groups and companies from Sao Paulo, London, Paris, Sydney, Boston, Manchester, and many more were showing interest in the concept, actively starting open LoRaWAN projects using technology from The Things Network.

Mehr dazu auch in einer nächsten Ausgabe von Thingonomics.

Fashion trifft auf Gadgets

Lesenswerter Artikel in der New York Times über die 15-in-1 BauBax-Jacke:

And in early September, when the Kickstarter campaign ended, the BauBax jacket had raised $9.2 million from 45,000 people in 81 countries — breaking Kickstarter records as its most-funded piece of clothing and its fourth-most-funded campaign ever.

“It is good to have clothing that solves problems you face in day-to-day life,” Mr. Sanghavi said in an interview.

You could chalk up the 15-in-1 jacket to being just a fad or a niche product. Maybe it’s like the utilitarian camera vests that old-school photojournalists use in the field. Or a fisherman’s convertible pants, which can go from trousers to shorts with the slide of a zipper.

But I have a different theory: As with my kettle, consumers today want clothing that is functional, and, increasingly, that means clothing that works with all the gadgets we now lug around. That’s very different from the role of typical fashion designers, for whom it’s all about form.

Investoren in Hardware-Startups

The number of funded, connected hardware startups in the Bay Area (who have publicly raised $1 million or more) currently sits around 110 by my count. Boston and NYC (which are about equal) are one-third of that. Los Angeles and Boulder/Denver are one-third again of Boston and NYC. By aggregate dollars raised, however, San Francisco completely dominates; it was almost 5x Boston in 2014 and more than 10x NYC and Boulder. Everywhere else (including internationally) is a rounding error with a few very notable exceptions (Xiaomi, DJI and Magic Leap, in particular).

"Building Your Own Cloud Is "Table Stakes," Says Former AWS Engineer"

Orion setzt auf eine eigene Serverinfrastruktur, entgegen dem Trend, etwas das auch für andere IoT-Unternehmen aufgrund der teils speziellen Anforderungen notwendig werden könnte:

In the case of Orion, "It took us 12 people and 12 months to build and ship Onyx, and it required a lot of additional support resources," Robbins said. "We were out of our comfort zone much of the time, and now we have operational expertise."

And that's with a team that has a deep understanding of infrastructure engineering.

It would have been easier if he simply scaled up on someone else's cloud. But that option wasn't available to him, he insists. There were no shortcuts for Orion, but "the new successes will have a new set of skills," he said.

The industry has spent the last few years getting comfortable with building on others' clouds, and it looks to be heading there at full throttle now. But if Robbins is correct, at some point, we'll have to revert to operating our own infrastructure again to be competitive—and get "back to the future."

"Study of self-driving cars shows other drivers are good at hitting them"

Ars Technica:

What the analysis did find, however, was that every crash an autonomous vehicle was in was caused by a driver of a conventional car.

While 15.8 percent of crashes involving conventional cars involved a fixed object and 14 percent of crashes involving conventional cars involved a non-fixed object (like a pedestrian jay-walking), autonomous cars only ever collided with another vehicle. In addition, 3.6 percent of conventional vehicle collisions were head-on crashes, but autonomous vehicles have only thus far suffered a rear-end collision, a side-swipe, or an angled collision.

"Helping Things in the IoT speak the same language"

O'Reilly Radar über Data Interoperability statt Protokollstandards:

Why? Let's look at a simple example: a smart hotel. The hotel owner would like to digitally connect the appliances in all the rooms of the hotel. This gives guests access to a variety of services, from controlling their room (lights, air conditioning, entertainment, etc.), to booking hotel facilities, to ordering food and drinks — all from a mobile phone. This would also enable the owner to coordinate and optimize all aspects of the hotel (e.g. energy consumption) in a centralized and efficient manner, without having to use a variety of siloed applications and tools.

"The Autopilot is learning fast: Model S owners are already reporting that Tesla's Autopilot is self-improving"

electrek:

During the press conference for the release of the Autopilot, Tesla CEO Elon Musk referred to each Model S owners as an “expert trainer” – meaning that each driver will train the autonomous features of the system to feed the collective network intelligence of the fleet by simply driving the electric vehicle on Autopilot.

A Model S owner by the username Khatsalano kept a count of how many times he had to “rescue” (meaning taking control after an alert) his Model S while using the Autopilot on his daily commute. He counted 6 “rescues” on his first day, by the fourth day of using the system on his 23.5 miles commute, he only had to take control over once.

Musk said that Model S owners could add ~1 million miles of new data every day, which is helping the company create “high precision maps”

Last week, Tesla released the Autopilot in Europe and Asia. While announcing the regulatory approval in the new markets, Musk also announced that on top of the fleet learning, the company will “soon” release a 1.01 update to the Autopilot software to further improve the system’s capacity to self-improve and handle curves, as well as lane changes.

Es wird sehr viel schneller gehen als die meisten ahnen.

"The new OnHub router wants to be waved at"

Connectedly über den nächsten OnHub-Router von Google:

With this router, Google and ASUS are introducing Wave Control to the OnHub family. Wave Control allows you to boost the Wi-Fi speed for a single device by waving your hand over the router. This tells the OnHub to prioritize a device to make sure it has enough bandwidth, such as your laptop when you're downloading a large file. Google will also issue its first OnHub software update, which will introduce a new smart antenna algorithm, which will allow OnHub to select the best antenna configuration to use to get optimum signal to your device. TP-Link OnHub routers will receive this update automatically.

Meldungen:

Vernetzte Welt #32: Cisco eröffnet IoT-Zentrum 'openBerlin'

Marcel Weiß — Tue, 20 Oct 2015 18:51:04 GMT

Immer Dienstags erscheint auf neunetz.com eine kommentierte Übersicht zu den wichtigsten Entwicklungen und besten Analysen aus der Welt der vernetzten Geräte, dem 'Internet der Dinge'. Vernetzte Welt kann per Email und per RSS-Feed abonniert werden.

Top: Cisco eröffnet gemeinsam mit Bosch und Continental "Innovationszentrum openBerlin"

DVZ:

Der Netzwerkspezialist Cisco will das Internet der Dinge voranbringen und hat dafür am vergangenen Donnerstag ein Innovationszentrum in Berlin eröffnet. Dort arbeiten nun 35 Start-ups und andere Unternehmen an ersten Projekten zusammen. Zu den großen Partnern gehören die Autozulieferer Bosch und Continental.

(..)

Cisco will in den kommenden Jahren rund 26 Mio. EUR in den neuen Standort investieren.