Connectivity Technology Blog

After years of wondering if smart devices and gadgets in home made by multiple vendors would be able to talk to each other, there is a hope. Two new protocols, Matter and Thread, are enabling devices to quickly talk to each other. The Connectivity Standards Alliance (CSA) is responsible for Matter and describes it as: Matter is the foundation for connected things. This industry–unifying standard is a promise of reliable, secure connectivity—a seal of approval that devices will work seamlessly together, today and tomorrow. Matter is creating more connections between more objects, simplifying development for manufacturers and increasing compatibility for consumers. The Thread Group explains Thread as follows: Thread is a low-power and low-latency wireless mesh networking protocol built using open and proven standards. Thread solves the complexities of the IoT, addressing challenges such as interoperability, range, security, energy, and reliability. Thread networks have no single point ...

It has long been a dream of wireless telecom technologists to create a technology where devices can even connect to the network even if there is no direct coverage. In 3G days we used to call it Opportunity Driven Multiple Access ( ODMA ) but it was never standardised. Then we also have similar concept with multihop cellular network ( MCN ). Then you also have generic terms Ad-Hoc networks and Relays . There has been no shortage of repackaging the concept to create a network of networks . So what exactly is Sidewalk? Quoting from this Light Reading article : The Sidewalk network – which relies on Bluetooth Low Energy for short-range communication, 900MHz LoRa or frequency-shift keyring over longer distances – is set to max out at 80 Kbit/s on any Amazon device operating as a Sidewalk "bridge." And Amazon caps Sidewalk's per-customer data usage at 500MB a month. Amazon did notify customers about Sidewalk and it gave them opt-out instructions. But the shared network servic...

Back in summer, Telecom Infra Project (TIP) published a Playbook for Smart Cities. For people who may not understand, you can think of a Playbook as a case study but playbook is much more than case study. A case study shows how a company did something but it may not be relevant for anyone else or any scenario. If a scenario is repeatable then a playbook can be created with a complete process, workflows, procedures, communication needs, strategies, etc. Other companies can then follow the playbook to provide similar results and outputs. The Executive summary of the playbook states : This playbook is an output of the Smart City Connectivity sub-group within the Telecom Infra Project (TIP) mmWave Networks Project Group. It’s the result of a collaboration between TIP Members —operators, infrastructure providers, system integrators, and equipment vendors—to provide guidance to key audiences (especially municipalities) about the deployment of communication services at the street level. Coll...