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Blues teams with RAKwireless to streamline global IIoT connectivity, prototyping
Industrial internet of things technology provider partners with industrial-focused connectivity and hardware manufacturer to streamline product development
Looking to simplify user-friendly global cellular connectivity, streamline industrial internet of things (IIoT) product development and accelerate prototyping while ensuring uninterrupted connectivity, IIoT services provider Blues has forged a technology partnership with industrial-focused connectivity and hardware manufacturer RAKwireless.
Explaining the reasons for their collaboration, the companies said IIoT products were often stalled by complex physical design features and incompatibility between connectivity options. By contrast, they added, interchangeable components make it easy to adjust, tailor and refine IIoT services and connectivity options, even for less technical users.
Together, Blues and RAKwireless said they will provide global customers with a simple and pre-configured cellular IIoT offering, Blues.ONE, and a composable WisBlock interface board, RAK13102.
The partnership will fundamentally see Blues’ Notecard made available across the RAKwireless portfolio of WisBlock modules, sensors and enclosures, reducing complexity in global cellular connectivity for IIoT offerings. Blues Notecard and Notehub are said to be designed to solve the biggest challenges associated with IIoT connectivity, making it easy to securely cloud-connect any physical product.
Potential business benefits include streamlined prototyping, modular customisation, simplified deployment and global connectivity. The partners envisage offering faster time-to-market with simplified programming and interchangeable device components, making it easier to adjust and tailor IIoT services. They also said that by eliminating complex design features that cause incompatibility and affect device use, and harmonising wireless communications, they can deliver to customers in over 140 countries uninterrupted worldwide coverage.
Moreover, they said their simplified IIoT development process will allow customers to quickly deploy devices for individual use cases including industrial equipment monitoring and asset tracking. These capabilities are attributed with allowing businesses to use the power of information based on wireless harmonisation and positively impact operations, customers and the environment.
Specific use cases suggested by the firms encompass predictive maintenance whereby downtime is reduced, and productivity increased by enabling early detection and diagnosis of equipment failures. Another is remote diagnostics to enhance customer service and reduce expenses and smart energy management, as well as optimise energy consumption, lower costs and reduce carbon footprints.
Read more about IIoT
- Industrial gateways gain as global satellite IoT subscriber base gains higher orbit: Studies reveal growing importance of satellite platforms in propelling growth in uptake of IoT technology for which essential devices in industry are steadily growing in number.
- CBRS network infrastructure set to be $1.5bn opportunity by 2026: Study calculates that annual spending on LTE and 5G NR-based CBRS network infrastructure – which includes RAN, mobile core and transport network equipment – will boom over next three years.
- IIoT brings business opportunities and security concerns: IoT is now a part of many industrial sectors to help optimise operations and support digital workflows. But companies must be aware of security issues IIoT can pose.
Within intelligent automation, the firm proposes the combined IIoT offering could be used to monitor soil moisture and temperature, and ambient light and temperature, to improve the effectiveness of environments and greenhouses, with data analytics providing insights into business operations, enabling data-driven services.
“Our partnership with RAKwireless is revolutionary for IIoT advancement, bringing together Blues’ scalability, security and simplicity, and the unique modularity of the WisBlock ecosystem,” said Brandon Satrom, vice-president of developer experience and product at Blues.
“With Blues’ Notecard, RAKwireless’s Blues.ONE and RAK13102 will simplify programming for engineers, allowing them to streamline IIoT product deployment. It’s now easier than ever to build cellular IIoT solutions using bundled coverage and data in over 139 countries.”
Ken Yu, CEO at RAKwireless, added: “Blues’ Notecard and RAKwireless’ WisBlock solutions offer a simplified and seamless IIoT connectivity solution that bypasses traditional complexities. This partnership accelerates prototyping and provides users with a holistic solution that enables smooth transitions across regions. The adaptability of Blues’ technology and the assurance of backup connectivity ensures that our users can experience uninterrupted IIoT connectivity.”
