ABiT Corporation, a leading Internet of Things (IoT) device developer and solution provider, announces partnership with UnaBiz, a Massive IoT service provider and integrator, to enhance their technological offerings in the smart cities and logistics sectors in Japan and around the world.

The partnership will enable ABiT to create Sigfox-version of their IoT devices and solutions aimed at addressing the challenges facing smart cities and logistics industries. UnaBiz’s research and development team will support ABiT with expert engineering advice and essential documentation to ensure the seamless development and adaptation of devices.

The new line of Sigfox-ready solutions is targeted to be launched in Q4 2024, in markets within and beyond Japan through joint sales and marketing efforts. Existing customers of ABiT and UnaBiz will have priority access to the new solutions wherever they align with their technical requirements. UnaBiz will also promote ABIT’s made-in-Japan, high-quality IoT solutions to its network of 0G Operators present in more than 70 countries globally, supporting the adoption of market-defining Sigfox-enabled and multi-mode products and solutions.

Furthermore, both parties will engage in ongoing discussions to explore the development of Sigfox versions for bespoke products and projects, highlighting their long-term commitment to this partnership.

Takeo Hiyama, CEO of ABiT said, “UnaBiz and ABiT are complementary to each other: UnaBiz designs and markets Sigfox 0G Technology and has a strong distribution network through its Sigfox 0G Operators, while ABiT has excellent technical knowledge and experience to develop IoT devices and solutions on various LPWAN technology such as Sigfox, LoRaWAN and other cellular-based networks. We are looking forward to bringing Sigfox-enabled devices to market and promoting these products & solutions to our growing ecosystem of partners and customers.”

Alexis Susset, Group CTO of UnaBiz Group said, “UnaBiz’s approach towards LPWAN Convergence has paved the way for developing multi-connectivity devices, an area where ABiT’s capabilities shine. This partnership presents significant market potential for single-SKU, multi-mode solutions, demonstrating a strategic alignment to leverage the combined strength of both UnaBiz’s LPWAN convergence-ready Sigfox 0G Technology and ABiT’s LPWAN Products & Solutions within smart cities industries. Leveraging our global Sigfox operators footprint, the collaboration will enable both parties to expand our businesses and accelerate their go-to-market strategy in Japan and around the world.”

Together, they are also jointly designing and developing solutions at the forefront of government IoT use-cases innovation, paving the way for secure and localized implementations that address the unique challenges of the public sector.

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• Gibson deploys an industrial IoT solution powered by Telit deviceWISE® EDGE, a no-code platform, to enable operation optimization, preventive maintenance, and efficiency control for one of the world’s most important ports
• Easy-to-implement deviceWISE® EDGE collects, analyzes, and visualizes machine data into actionable KPIs

Telit, a global enabler of the Internet of Things (IoT), and its partner, Gibson Engineering, are bringing state-of-the-art technology to shipping ports used by many of the most modern industrial companies across the globe to increase productivity.

At the request of one of the world’s largest ports, Gibson deployed its industrial solution powered by Telit deviceWISE® EDGE—a leading no-code Industrial IoT (IIoT) platform that collects data from any machine and integrates with any IT system—to enable operations optimization, preventive maintenance, and efficiency control.

As a consequence of COVID, American ports are under tremendous pressure to increase productivity and reduce the waiting time for ships to deliver and offload goods. Using the platform, Gibson enables continuous real-time monitoring and data collection from essential machines such as cranes used in the port’s logistics processes.

With visibility and insight into equipment health, costly breakdowns can be avoided. A single crane disruption in the middle of the day, for example, can result in hundreds of thousands of dollars in losses to the port and to the companies that depend on it.

“We selected Telit’s deviceWISE EDGE as it is the most flexible and capable IIoT platform available,” said Kurt Evans, Business Development Engineer, Gibson.

“We developed the solution in a few weeks and implemented it in just days, which provided our customer immediate ROI during such a challenging time.”

Telit has invested decades in developing its no-code IIoT deviceWISE EDGE platform, enabling industrial enterprises to visualize machine data, create custom dashboards and health management information in only a few clicks to see trends, and make more intuitive business decisions. The data can be transformed and analyzed at the edge and integrated with any enterprise system. With machine data visibility, processes can be automated and optimized to give managers real-time visualization and predictive maintenance alerts before a problem occurs.

“Industrial companies are heavily investing in Industry 4.0 IIoT solutions, and now ports can take advantage of these disruptive, state-of-the-art technologies,” said Ricardo Buranello, Head of IoT Platforms Business Unit, Telit. “We are proud of our partnership with Gibson and this solution, which can be replicated in any port around the world to increase productivity and reduce costs.”

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Cisco, IBM and Intel have produced a report that predicts massive growth in the logistics IoT market.

The tech giants estimate that the worldwide shipping industry deploying sensors will grow at a CAGR of 35.5 per cent through to 2022.

North America will lead the charge, followed by Asia, with companies installing sensors and internet-connected devices to shipments to track them and ensure quality.

The analysis emerges from broader predictions which suggest that sensors and other remote devices are going to become dramatically more ubiquitous over the following decade. Experts predict that the world may contain more than 100 trillion sensors by 2030, tracking everything from trailer temperatures to warehouse availability.

IoT in logistics is a critical component of the expected fourth industrial revolution. The idea here is to replace manual inventory management with automated digital tools that will take over much of the work. Companies will rely on computers to provide them with shipping volume estimates and tell them where goods are at any point in the supply chain. It’ll be easy to get fast LTL freight shipping quotes, instead of having to go through the slower and more cumbersome channels in the system today.

The internet of things works by connecting everyday objects to the internet, networking them together to achieve system intelligence. Sensors feed information into the network, while actuators allow people to take control of various features remotely. The primary changes over the next couple of years will be the use of sensors to feed data to head offices about the state of the supplies chains in real-time. Actuators and servos will increase as the decade wears on, providing operators with the ability to take physical actions remotely – a significant breakthrough.

In the ultimate scenario, IoT will allow logistics firms to automate their operations fully. Warehouses will use robots to pack items. And autonomous trucks will deliver them to their destinations. The hope is that it will reduce costs and improve transparency across the system. Companies could manage their operations remotely, instead of having vast numbers of people on the ground.

According to data from 2018, 25 per cent of operators are already using IoT-related technologies in their enterprises. They’re using these stems for things like route optimization and demand sensing. In the future, however, they will use more sophisticated sensors for things like monitoring temperatures on perishable goods and measuring the flow of products through factories and warehouses. Eventually, IoT technologies will allow firms to track employee performance and get a better handle on stock levels in their warehouse.

What’s exciting about IoT technologies in logistics is that many of them are ready to go right now. Companies don’t have to wait. Today, we’re very much in the fit-out stage, similar to where broadband was in the year 2000. It’s going to take around ten years for it to happen, but happen it will.

IoT will make logistics operations more biological. Companies will have sensors telling them what’s happening out there. And they’ll also have motor neurons in the form of remotely-activated servos and motors, allowing them to make real changes on the ground.

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CalAmp iOn Tags, Gateways and CalAmp Telematics Cloud Provide Granular Environmental Supply Chain Visibility and Risk Mitigation.

CalAmp is partnering with Pallet Alliance, a leading innovator in holistic pallet management programs.

This partnership will allow multi-site manufacturing companies to leverage IntelliPallet, the industry’s first turnkey, IoT-enabled platform and supply chain managed service integrated with wooden pallets. Employing CalAmp iOn Tags, gateways and the CalAmp Telematics Cloud (CTC), multinational enterprises challenged with managing hundreds of thousands of pallets will be able to integrate this subscriber-based telematics solution to enable more sustainable, secure and efficient tracking of shipments and assets.

By integrating CalAmp’s iOn Tags with wooden pallets, enterprises can now access location and environmental data on assets in transit all over the world from the point of pack to the final destination via a CalAmp telematics gateway and the CTC. Pallet Alliance and CalAmp are increasing global supply chain visibility, eliminating tracking blind spots, reducing the potential for theft while also minimizing spoilage as products travel across sea, land, and air.

Jeff Newman, vice president of supply chain visibility solutions at CalAmp, said:

“Not only will our iOn Tags and gateways help corporations monitor shipment departures and arrivals, but access to our CTC information dashboard will also provide environmental conditions and data analyses to ensure optimal shipment control.”

“In today’s connected economy, there is no reason for a company not to have point-to-point traceability about the location and conditions of their valuable assets throughout the shipment process, from the first mile to the last. Smart pallets enable more efficient business operations that help maintain product quality and maximize revenue potential.”

The IntelliPallet system employs CalAmp telematics technology and AT&T mobile connectivity enabling Pallet Alliance to provide a range of pallet tracking options that deliver precise in-transit data for point-to-point traceability and monitoring for warehouses, manufacturing facilities, retail distribution points and shipping routes. Developed through extensive laboratory and field testing as well as proven through more than a year of real-world use, the patent-pending integration is virtually undetectable when installed.

Pallet Alliance’s success integrating CalAmp’s advanced telematics technology with wooden pallets eliminates the need to convert to alternate materials. Wooden pallets are significantly more economical and sustainable than engineered alternatives, and can be easily configured for specific customer requirements. With Pallet Alliance and CalAmp’s IntelliPallet platform service, monitoring compliance, handling and environmental changes can now be more effectively managed by making more informed decisions based on real-time supply chain insights.

“The ability to integrate end-to-end IoT connectivity with customers’ existing pallet systems will transform the logistics industry,” said Mike Jones, a principal at Pallet Alliance. “Customers can implement location and data services without abandoning their wooden pallet systems, avoiding the added expense and limitations resulting from converting to plastic or composite pallets, not to mention the other required infrastructure investments.”

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Balancing cost, precision and energy efficiency, the service provides seamless outdoor & indoor tracking, particularly suitable for the supply chain and logistics sector.

Today at Connect, its big annual event dedicated to IoT, Sigfox launched Atlas WiFi, a geolocation service for massive IoT applications.

Providing seamless outdoor & indoor tracking with the right balance between cost, precision and low energy consumption, Atlas WiFi is specifically optimized to support global supply chain and logistics applications, leading an IoT logistics sector expected to reach over $1 trillion by 2022, according to HTF Market Report.

“Supply chain and logistics are the foundation of our global economy – understandably, there’s significant demand for enhanced efficiency,” says Laetitia Jay, Chief Marketing Officer at Sigfox.

“By combining the global footprint of the Sigfox network and WiFi infrastructure, registered in the HERE Location Suite, Atlas WiFi is the right location enabler for tracking applications, allowing to locate assets, containers and packaging all over the logistic chain, from supplier warehouses and production facilities to end-customer sites, all over the world.”

The unique combination of both HERE and Sigfox technologies and their worldwide footprint enables customers to not only locate their assets, but also to collect useful data that will help optimize their flows, ensure better transport conditions and increase service reliability. Use cases currently in live phase include air transport, luggage/trolley management, location of stolen/missing cars, industrial asset management and location of shipping containers.

Same as the Sigfox network, the WiFi infrastructure has a global footprint, with both outdoor and indoor coverage and a high density in urban areas. Atlas WiFi combines two technologies and data sources – Sigfox network and WiFi infrastructure – to provide one single location service in all type of geographic environments (urban and rural, indoor and outdoor), without GPS.

The process happens in fractions of a second, at a fraction of the energy required for a GPS fix. Apart from significantly enhancing efficiencies in supply chain and manufacturing, the service is also expected to allow shipping and packaging companies to upsell enhanced track & trace solutions, and improve customer satisfaction in consumer goods thanks to asset recovery services.

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Bosch Connected Devices and Solutions and SpotSee Partner to Develop SpotBot BLE, Combining World-Class Bosch Hardware with SpotSee Connectivity Network and Platform.

SpotSee, a global internet of things (IoT) connectivity platform, and Bosch Connected Devices and Solutions (BCDS), a market leader in the design and development of innovative connected devices for the IoT, have teamed up to target the internet of logistics.

The companies have recently collaborated to develop the SpotBot BLE, a transport data logger that measures and transmits impact, tilt, temperature and humidity through Bluetooth communication.

“Bosch has a deep history of being a technology partner with market leaders,” said Markus Lang, CEO, BCDS. “We are delighted to collaborate with the SpotSee team to provide logistics customers with world-class IoT products and services.”

The SpotBot BLE is a cost-effective, simple and reliable way to bring transparency to the entire supply chain. The device operates using hardware and engineering support from Bosch that is connected and displayed through the SpotSee mobile application.

Alarm thresholds for each parameter measured by the SpotBot BLE (impact, tilt, temperature, and humidity) can be individually configured based on the sensitivities of the products being transported. At the end of the journey, data from the device is easily downloaded to the mobile application to quickly identify potential damage caused by threshold violations and to understand where in the supply chain they might have occurred.

“Our mission is to give unbiased, virtual eyes to logistics, quality and supply chain managers across the globe,” said Tony Fonk, CEO, SpotSee.

“Combining the Bosch innovative sensors with our unique SpotSee platform and 40 years of logistics monitoring experience is an ideal fit for both companies.”

SpotSee is an end-to-end solution that helps customers spot damage in their assets and see it in real time using best-in-class hardware, low-cost connectivity, device management and cloud-based analytics. SpotSee has over 300 distributors and resellers throughout the globe, serving thousands of customers including most of the Fortune 500.

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Trimble announced today that it has signed an agreement to acquire privately-held PeopleNet, a leading provider of integrated onboard computing and mobile communications systems for effective fleet management.

PeopleNet provides fleets with software and hardware solutions that help manage regulatory compliance, fuel costs, driver safety and customer visibility.  The acquisition is expected to be immediately accretive upon close and will be reported in Trimble’s Mobile Solutions segment.  The transaction is expected to close in the third quarter of 2011, subject to customary closing conditions and expiration of the waiting period under the Hart-Scott-Rodino Antitrust Improvements Act.

“PeopleNet is a key step in Trimble’s strategy for addressing the complex regulatory and operational demands of enterprise companies in the transportation and logistics (T&L) market,” said Steven W. Berglund, Trimble’s president and chief executive officer.  

“In combination with other recent initiatives, including the acquisitions of Punch Telematix and Tata Automotive Mobility Technologies, Trimble now offers a portfolio of proven solutions to a growing international customer base.  These new initiatives are expected to contribute strong operating margins and high customer retention.  PeopleNet’s management and employees will be the core of our Americas T&L business and we expect to provide seamless continuity to existing PeopleNet customers.”

“The PeopleNet management team is enthusiastic about joining Trimble,” said Ron Konezny, founder and chief executive officer of PeopleNet.  

“Trimble provides PeopleNet with significant additional scope that will allow us to build on our tradition of customer-driven innovation, and expand delivery of products and services by improving the performance and functionality of our existing and future offerings.  The combination of PeopleNet’s product portfolio with Trimble’s broad technology base will allow us to create unique solutions that will enable our customers to manage their most important assets.  We are confident the acquisition is a great fit, and with the continuity of our people, culture, and commitment to customer focus, we will continue to deliver best-of-class products and services.”

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