IoT NEWS packets -1

In this ever-evolving world of IoT, the makers and developers have to keep their information log updated to stay relevant in the field. Having said that, it is not easy because of the lack of time and a one-stop site to get all the information.

Understanding this need, we have come up with a weekly post, “IoT NEWS packets,” which gives you snippets of what’s new in the field of IoT.

Here are the latest developments in the field of IoT this week:

Samsung Family Hub 2.0 at Samsung Forum 2017

The Samsung Family Hub 2.0 comes in the form of a smart refrigerator. It has a 21.5-inch LED touchscreen and is driven by a Tizen OS that manages up to five family members’ food, cooking, artistic, music, video, and memo needs. It has S Voice recognition technology and a wide range of commands to help you with so many things, from shopping lists to the weather. It is can even find recipes using what is in the fridge.

Global IoT security market is expected to grow steadily at a CAGR of 47.91% by 2021

According to a study by Market Research Hub, the global IoT security market is all set to grow at a remarkable CAGR of 47.91% during the period 2017–2021. In terms of geography, the APAC region is projected to lead the global market in the coming years; one of the major reasons for this growth is the high adoption of IoT security solutions among enterprises.

Download the report

Target’s Internet of Things Store Gets a Renovation

Target Open House is back after seven long weeks of renovation. The connected device concept store gives the guests hands-on interaction with new products and services. It also gives the entrepreneur community a place to meet and learn from one another and consumers.

Target Open House makes it easier for startups to get their products in front of thousands of guests much before they’re available for sale.

Along with Open House, Target is launching a new tool called Mission Control. This software will help startups submit products to be showcased at the Open House, and it also offers a real-time dashboard for exhibitors to look at guest interactions, collect feedback, and understand traffic and sales for their products.

Micro Mote: An energy-efficient computer with deep learning capabilities

David Blaauw and  Dennis Sylvester, computer scientists at the University of Michigan, have developed the “Micro Mote” computer to make smarter, energy efficient, and smaller sensors for medical devices and the Internet of Things. They have also used deep learning technologies for enhancing face and voice recognition capabilities. It incorporates a deep-learning processor that can operate a neural network while using just 288 micro watts.

IBM and Visa: Turn any connected device into a point of sale with Watson IoT

A new partnership between Visa and IBM Watson gives Visa access to as many as 6,000 IoT client companies. Visa allows them to provision Visa tokenization into their devices and effectively turn them into point-of-sale (POS) terminals that allow users to pay on-the-go.

For example, a pair of smart shoes might monitor a user’s running distance and after a certain number of miles remind him to buy a new pair, which he or she could do on the spot through an activity tracker or an app.  

Azure IoT comes with new Azure Stream Analytics features

IoT solutions must monitor real-time data coming from various devices and take action when troubling patterns are found. This capability is referred to as “stream processing.” At the scale of IoT, customers need a robust and scalable solution.

Microsoft Azure Stream Analytics will meet these needs with the following features:

• Native support for geospatial functions
• Custom code with JavaScript
• Low-latency dashboards
• Job diagnostics logs
• Visual Studio integration

French national railway company accelerates innovation with Watson IoT

IBM announced that French Railways operator SNCF is using Watson IoT on IBM Cloud to deliver superior customer experiences, greater operational efficiency, and enhanced rail safety to its 13.5 million daily commuters.

Now the mass transit Parisian lines and new generation trains are equipped with 2,000 sensors, which grab 70,000 data points per month. Rather than having to manually examine each train, SNCF engineers can remotely monitor up to 200 trains at a time for potential issues including door failures or air conditioning, all the while they are in transit.

Qualcomm announced 802.11ax WiFi technology for IoT gadgets

The technology called 802.11ax is the next evolutionary step of the WiFi technology improvements. Qualcomm is the first company to announce 802.11ax chips.

According to Qualcomm, the latest WiFi technology delivers four times more capacity than the current top WiFi routers, along with boosting speeds and wider coverage area.

Qualcomm’s 802.11ax chip employs techniques used in cellular communications to enhance WiFi efficiency without asking for more spectrum.

FluoWiFi – A Wireless Development Board for IoT

FluoWiFi has been designed to provide a powerful yet versatile IoT prototyping board that anyone can use and easily program using the Arduino IDE. It is a microcontroller board based on the ATmega644p by Atmel and the ESP32 module. ESP32 is a 2.4 GHz Wi-Fi and Bluetooth low power combo chip. It supports IPv4 and IPv6, Secure HTTP, CoAP, REST, and MQTT protocols ready to go.

50% of organizations in the US and Europe lag in IoT adoption

HCL released the findings of a first-of-its-kind survey of senior business and technology decision-makers in IoT in the major global enterprises.

A survey was conducted in 263 organisations in Europe and the U.S. and here are a few key findings:

• 50% of respondents said their organizations are already “behind the curve on IoT.”
• 49% of organizations are still struggling to get off the ground with IoT, “due to an uncoordinated and siloed approach.”
• 38% of respondents agree that the biggest barrier to IoT adoption is security concerns.
• On average, only 48 percent of data collected from the IoT is analyzed, while IoT adapters take five days to turn data into insight.