M2M Utility Markets

M2M IN UTILITY MARKETS

Utilising Band 28, 700Mhz

In a power distribution network, it is estimated that over 80% of the network faults can be attributed to transient overvoltage and overcurrent caused by weather events and natural disasters.

Breakers which are installed in substations and reclosers deployed in the whole distribution networks are the key to prevent the substations from damage.

A 24/7, real-time connectivity solution is a must for recloser remote control. In some sparsely populated areas, the signal coverage is limited, and Band 28 (700Mhz), which broadens wireless coverage with efficient deployment, is a perfect radio spectrum for such scenario.

Robustel offers a safe, cost-effective solution for power distribution market by products with Band 28 modules. Robustel R3000 Lite (Band 28 ready) can be triggered remotely and also provides data back to the centres.

A typical topology is below:

M2M Utility Market

 

  • R3000 Lite is perfect for outdoor applications, having good resistance to high EMC and severe weather thanks to its industrial design.
  • R3000 Lite can be connected to RTU via RS232 or RS485 to ensure reliable real-time data communication by having a second TCP connection as backup.
  • Working on LTE Band 28, R3000 Lite provides fast and real-time data transmission as well as lowering power consumption and costs.

With intelligent network measurement capacity, R3000 Lite can reboot automatically in case of unavailable network access.

For more information on the R3000 Lite specifications go HERE.

M2M Utility Market

What is IoT? IoT Applications

What are IoT Applications?

If you haven’t heard of this before, be advised that you will be hearing it a lot over the next few years. IoT is the abbreviation for the “Internet of Things”.  In a nutshell IoT applications are they way for machines to talk to each other through wireless networks to deliver real-time information. It covers Machine to Machine, Mobile to Machine, or Machine to Mobile.

The Advantages of IoT

The advantages are many but the main ones included more efficient use of real-time data enabling managers to make decisions, monitor and allocate resources.  Just think, if there is something wrong in your Server room, you could find out immediately, and you can fix it.  The alternative is not finding out until much later, potentially losing data and increasing costs of employee downtime.

“Ping” is a term used more and more and is one of those behind the scenes benefits of IoT.  A Ping is a way to test that devices are still working correctly. Put simply, you send a message to another machine and expect a response within a certain amount of time. If you don’t receive your ping back then something is wrong and procedures are pre-programed for stage 2 troubleshooting to commence.  Stage 2 troubleshooting could include another ping then an automated sms sent to a manager warning of a problem. It’s a lot more complicated than this – the ping measures the time of the entire trip, and records any packet lost plus more – but that’s the general gist.

The end result of all these improvements is better customer service and hopefully a better customer experience.

IoT Applications across Industries

Every day a new IoT application is added to the list of seemly endless improvements able to be made to people lives.  The area of health and safety particularly has seen great improvements with less bodies doing dangerous work and more machines taking over materials.

Examples showing how businesses are using IoT within different industries as follows:

Medical Industry IoT

  • Handheld Equipment
  • Medical Monitoring Devices
  • Patient Tracking
  • Telemedicine

Mining Applications IoT

  • Data Transmission
  • Equipment Tracking
  • Gas/oil levels
  • Remote monitoring
  • Wireless communication

Farming IoT

  • Lifestock tracking
  • Equipment Tracking
  • Remote Monitoring
  • Wireless Communication

POS/Vending Machine IoT

  • Automatic vending and credit card/mobile payment to increase sales
  • Improved route and replenishment planning
  • Point of Sale equipment
  • Remote monitoring to have optimum stock in each machine
  • Remotely change pricing

Smart Homes/Cities IoT

  • Access Points

Parking & Public Transportation IoT

  • Smart Lighting & Smart Metering
  • Security
  • Traffic Monitoring
  • Transportation
  • Container Tracking

For an application within the real world, check out M2M manufacturer Robustel’s recent installation of their M1000-U4L LTE modem across a city-wide transport system including bus’, trams, trains and ferry’s.  Robustel was selected because of its sturdiness, network compatibility and seamless connectivity performance.

Find out more HERE.

M2M Routers – Vehicle Charging Points

Electrical Vehicle Charging and M2M Routers

Electrical Vehicle (EV) charging is not as common in Australia as in other parts of the world – especially Europe.  In UK this year alone sales of electric cars soared 85%.

But due to severe environment issues such as global warming and air pollution, the need to convert fuel vehicles to electric ones is becoming more and more obvious. Due to the rapid development of the electrical vehicle market, the number of charging stations and points is growing by leaps and bounds.

Business’ focusing on charging point deployment have mushroomed. Charging points are generally fixed outdoors and can endure severe environment factors, which makes management and maintenance challenging. In addition, industry players are always searching for a comprehensive solution, combining charging, positioning, remote management, advertising and other functions.

M2M routers

Robustel Solution

Robustel is providing cost effective solutions to the charging point manufacturers in the EV industry, with their industrial grade M2M routers, both with the R3000 and the R2000 models.

  • R3000/R2000 transmits operating parameters like current, voltage or power, as well as sending alarms once failure.
  • R3000/R2000 monitors real-time operating data, such as transaction details through VPN, running time of charging sites.
  • With GPS positioning, R3000/R2000 helps customers to find the nearest charging site on app, providing better customer experience.
  • With WiFi hotspot, R3000/R2000 sets captive portal. R3000/R2000 can also remotely update digital signage on the front tablet of charging point. Both functions allow new functionality to the service providers.
  • Connected to IP cameras by Ethernet port, R3000/R2000 encrypts and transmits pictures /videos to control centre, providing a security system.

With RobustLink, the Robustel centralised management cloud platform, service providers can remotely collect data and conduct analysis for sites.

The Robustel GoRugged R2000 V2 with Wi-Fi is a rugged 2G/3G/4G M2M router offering state-of-the-art mobile connectivity for machine to machine (M2M) applications. Also for those that want an industrial 3G/4G modem for an internet connection, that can handle higher temperatures and robust applications.  Find out more here: 

The Robustel R3000-Q4LA Quad is a versatile, easy-to-deploy, rugged and reliable VPN gateway designed for harsh environment, providing seamless, secure, fast wireless connectivity to M2M/IoT applications.

Find out more about the products HERE.

4GE LTE Modems for Bus Transport System

4GE LTE Modems for Intelligent Public Transport Monitoring

Västtrafik in Sweden is responsible for the public transport in all of Västra Götaland. They have 2,700 buses, trains, trams and ferries as well as 22000 stop locations.

All vehicles combined will be driven 390,000 km on average every day. This makes Västtrafik the second largest public transport company in Sweden. They also organise the transport, compile the timetables and decide upon routes and lines.

4ge lte modemsBusiness Challenge

There were legacy IT systems installed in every bus, train, tram and ferry to connect with passenger information system, driver safety system etc., and a GPRS modem was used for network connection. However, during years of running, Västtrafik was experiencing problems with narrow band and unstable GPRS connection, especially in rural areas. Due to these issues, the Swedish operators were also considering leaving the GSM/GPRS network for M2M communications.

Västtrafik realised that in order to achieve reliable, consistent 3G/4G LTE connectivity, they would need to upgrade to a more ruggedised modem. So they decided to choose a modern path with 3G/4G LTE compatible hardware.

Because of 3G/4G LTE’s instant handover time, high bandwidth, they could maximise the network availability, and provide seamless communication for in-vehicle IT systems for the future.

Solution

The LTE modem is used not only in the buses but also trams, trains and ferries across the country.   Each application has to undergo appropriate certifications to meet all the fireproofing and railway standards regulation demands.

Västtrafik tested solutions from several leading vendors and finally selected Robustel M1000-U4L LTE modem because of its sturdiness, network compatibility, and seamless connectivity performance during the trial.

Key Benefits for Customers

Robustel M1000-U4L LTE modem running provided Västtrafik in Gothenburg with the following

  • CE, EN45544-2, E-mark certified
  • 4G LTE and backwards 3G/GPRS compatible communication path
  • Ruggedized lockable power connector
  • Rugged Metal housing
  • Wide range power input 12-36VDC
  • GPS optional

For more information on Robustel modems available visit HERE.