Last year, approximately 20 billion SMS text messages and 31 million image messages were sent in Germany alone, and these figures are on the rise. Compared with the future amount of data to be transmitted between machines, this figure will seem small.
According to estimates from the market research firm Forrester Research, by 2005, wireless communications from machine to machine (M2M) can be expected to surpass the number of messages sent by humans, and in the years that follow, machines will generate 30 times more messages than humans will. This will happen, because the combination of telecommunications and information technology enables versatile wireless applications that open new doors in industrial automation: with wireless M2M, it is possible, for example, to read measuring equipment, monitor installations, perform system maintenance or guide transport equipment remotely.
In a narrower sense, wireless M2M already includes such technologies as Bluetooth and WLAN 802.11g, which enable machines to communicate wirelessly at distances of up to 100 m. Nevertheless, the use of radio frequencies is extending that range: For instance, the wireless signal transmission system from electronica 2004 exhibitor, Phoenix Contact of Germany, makes it possible to register the fluid level and the control commands for pumps in tank storage facilities or sewage treatment plants and to transmit this data to a control system that is located up to 3 km away using the licence-exempt ISM Band. The Wavenis technology of French company, Coronis Systems, who will also present at electronica 2004, makes it possible to read water meters, gas meters, or electricity meters remotely. The data is transmitted to central computers per radio for distances of up to 1000 m or per GSM connection for unlimited distances.
Here, and in logistics applications in particular, a trend is emerging towards using cellular networks for M2M. This makes it possible, for instance, for railroad freight cars to report cooling problems per SMS across hundreds of kilometres or for passenger cars that have broken down to report their exact coordinates to the roadside assistance service.
Beyond this, GSM offers data rates of 9,6 Kbps; in the third generation (3GSM), it now also permits the transmission of videos and images and the linking of network subscribers based on TCP/IP. GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) provides 64 Kbps. UMTS (3G) features download rates of 384 Kbps. In the future, EDGE (enhanced data rates for GSM evolution) with 160,8 Kbps, or even 4G - the fourth generation of mobile communication networks with a theoretical speed of 100 Mbps - could also play a role in the M2M area.
Regardless of the type of cellular (radio) technology that will be employed for M2M, the electronics that this requires - from the amplifiers and frequency converters, to passive components and transmission modules, all the way to complete wireless solutions - will be presented by various companies at electronica in Munich this November. This year there will be a new user forum dedicated to 'wireless communications'. In conjunction with electronics, a congress entitled 'Wireless: systems and applications' digs deeper into the matter. Here the focus is on wireless applications in industry, logistics and other areas, on the basics of wireless technologies and on current standards, wireless security and market opportunities for wireless systems.
Wireless technology mini-primer
* The abbreviation M2M (machine-to-machine) relates to (wireless) communication between machines and computers - as well as goods and products - without the involvement of human beings.
* The short message service (SMS) is one of the most popular cellphone functions. However, such text messages are now not only sent manually; they can also be sent back and forth automatically between machines and computers.
* Although GSM (global system for mobile communication) was originally a European standard for digital cellular telephony, it is now available in approximately 190 countries. GSM offers a data throughput rate of 9,6 Kbps. The current generation of GSM equipment is referred to as 3GSM.
* TCP/IP (Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol) makes it possible for network subscribers to reliably exchange data packages through the use of functions such as connection management, flow control and error handling.
* The General Packet Radio Service, GPRS, is a cellular telephone standard that can be used to transfer data (packets) or to access the Internet on the move. GPRS is operated on the existing GSM networks, but uses the Internet Protocol (IP) for transmissions.
* EDGE (enhanced data rates for GSM evolution) is a mobile communications system that builds on the existing GSM infrastructure. Thanks to high data transmission speeds, it is suited for bandwidth-intensive applications, such as video telephony or Internet telephony.
* UMTS (universal mobile telecommunications system, also referred to as 3G: the third generation of cellular telephone networks) technically supports data transfer rates of up to 2 Mbps, but upload speeds of 128 Kbps and download speeds of 384 Kbps are realistic in real-world use. The successor standard - which is expected to arrive in 2010 - will be the fourth generation, 4G, with a theoretical transmission rate of 100 Mbps.
For more information see www.electronica.de
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