Intel Developer Forum: 10 Internet of Things Applications Bringing In The Money

Internet of Things Takes Center Stage At IDF

At the Intel Developer Forum, which kicked off this week in San Francisco, the Internet of Things was at the forefront in a conference typically devoted to desktop processors.

"The Internet of Things need needs computing at the end, in the middle and in the cloud – and we believe Intel technology will make all of this possible," said CEO Brian Krzanich during his keynote.

Intel's investment in IoT was most apparent on its product show floor, which was dominated by OEM partners, system integrators and solution providers who were showing off how they have successfully deployed Internet of Things solutions using Intel technology and working with other vendors. Following are 10 cool Internet of Things applications.

HCL Surgical Kit Tracking Solution

System integrator HCL leveraged various technologies to develop a surgical kit tracking solution for a leading multinational medical devices player.

HCL used connected devices to help hospitals track the location and status of their kits, so they could keep better records on their inventory and eliminate the risk of unsterilized instruments. This solution uses a sensor that can withstand high temperature while sterilizing, wireless and sensor-based instrument and platform, GPS-based kit tracking technology.

During the process of implementing the IoT solution , HCL facilitated an informed and collaborative approach that was closely aligned to customer goals -- defining the end-to-end solution by sitting down with the customer and addressing the key pain points.

Zones Smart Building

Solution provider Zones is partnering with vendors including Cisco to help property management firms create energy-efficient smart buildings.

Zones has helped customers such as property management firm Transwestern and Metropolis Investment overcome challenges such as how to attract tenants in a competitive real estate market, lower energy costs and increase staff efficiency with IoT solutions.

The solution provider connected building systems, installed Cisco video surveillance physical access control, unified communications and digital signage solutions. This increased building efficiency by centrally monitoring 95,000 network-connected building points and improved tenant experiences by responding to requests in real time.

As a first step in the process of approaching this solution, Zones engaged Cisco for its Smart and Connected project, which connects people, process, data and things to the buildingwide IP network.

Ubicquia Smart Citites

Ubicquia is a solution provider that works with distributor Avnet to integrate smart city Internet of Things solutions.

The company in February launched a smart connected lighting platform, Kairo, that is says will revolutionize the way municipalities interact with and deploy sensors to collect big data. Kairo derives power with a photoelectric switch on a light pole Cobra Head, and that switch has an unlimited number of points of presence that provide power. It contains the computing components to provide networking, storage, communications and video surveillance capabilities.

Kairo integrates seamlessly into Ubicquia's Mesh Network architecture as a gateway that manages Ubicquia node devices, which connect to Kairo utilizing a proprietary nRF 2.4GHz wireless protocol.

Wachter Virtual Patient Observation Solution

Solution provider Wachter works with Intel, Cisco and ISV Davra Networks to deploy Internet of Things solutions in the health-care space.

The company showcased its Virtual Patient Observation solution at Intel Developer Forum, which helps nurses in hospitals keep track of, observe, and respond to patients in multiple locations in real time, addressing challenges that hospitals have in tracking patients and making workflow more efficient.

The solution uses Davra Networks' Internet of Things software Application Enablement Platform, which combines telemetry and telematics data management with enterprise networking and video management. Wachter also provides sensors, monitors, cameras and access control for a variety of other applications in the Internet of Things space.

IBM Smart Teddy Bear

IBM showcased an application for IoT that is a little more fun – an Internet of Things-enabled teddy bear. This bear has the capabilities to prompt a child to say how they feel, keeping track of the child's emotions over time and sending a text message to their parents with the data.

The parent then has the option to reply back to the message containing this data, which is displayed on the toy's Grove LCD screen. For instance, if a child is feeling sad while his parent is traveling, the parent can send a message of consolation back to the teddy bear.

This connected toy uses a Node-RED application, the IBM Watson Internet of things platform for the cloud, and Twilio technology for VoIP and text messaging.

Cloud-Connected Bolt Bike

A startup called Bolt Motorbikes displayed a cloud-connected bike, which is a battery-powered bike and motorcycle hybrid. The bike is connected through Intel's Wind River Helix device cloud to capture and track data, and then analyze that data.

With these tracking capabilities, bikers can then be notified when their bike tires are low, what their battery life is, or be alerted to traffic patterns. Bolt is also currently testing a feature that only allows bikes to ride in areas where the driver permits them to – so if a bike gets stolen, it will not be able to operate outside certain locations.

Adlink Smart Factory

Adlink showed off its smart factory Internet of Things capabilities, which are enabled through its EtherCAT solutions to support multiple topologies and deliver network performance.

The company addresses a big challenge for industrial automation, which is that process plants may contain a large number of distributed slave systems and I/O points with different standard protocols. Amid these challenges, deployments of time-deterministic control systems and monitoring module statistics is important for discovering problems and preventing system failure.

Adlink's EtherCAT solution provides intelligent system monitoring to remotely monitor module status, including inner temperature, usage cycle of relay switching, and motion control status for general-purpose motor drive control. This information can be retrieved for review through software, and customers can utilize PMGi predictive maintenance tools to make business intelligence decisions.

Intel Connected Firefighters

Intel during a technical session showed how it was utilizing its Internet of Things platform to help deploy connected solutions for firefighters.

As part of this solution, Intel connected a Quark processor to the firefighters' self-contained breathing apparatus, so that while they are in dangerous areas others can track how much oxygen they have left in their tank – and ultimately make critical life decisions based on that information.

Firefighters are also equipped with a pulse gesture device and activity detector, so that operators can receive that sensory information through Wind River Helix software and track whether they are signaling for help or are in a crawling position.

V5 Systems Security Unit

Solution provider V5 Systems approaches the Internet of Things from a security standpoint, with outdoor security solutions and platforms for the industrial IoT.

For example, its potable security unit is an intelligent device with wireless, multisensor, portable capabilities. This edge computing IoT device features advanced on-board analytics, proprietary power management system, on-board storage and communications.

Its products, such as V5 PSU-AC, enables streaming video over Wi-Fi and can extend security systems outdoors – so customers can track buildings for surveillance purposes and analyze that data.

WiPro Smart Fleet And Asset Management Solution

WiPro showcased its smart fleet and asset management Internet of Things solution at Intel Developer Forum.

Wipro recently completed a pilot project with a major sea port company using this solution, which is powered by Intel gateways and LoRaWAN. The solution enables end users to track valuable assets, fleets and employees working in remote and hazardous locations. It also tracks real-time conditions of assets by monitoring parameters, including temperature, pressure, and vibrations – and users can then keep predictive maintenance of asset theft and leakage monitoring.

According to WiPro, its partnership with Intel helps bring an industrial mobile gateway to the solution that captures real-time data of different types of machine parameters through various industrial protocols including CAN, Modbus and more.