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of battery-powered IoT devices in hard to reach places, and are enabling enterprises to radically expand the scale of projects from Phase 1 pilots to mass deployments. Now known as ‘Massive IoT’, millions of devices and assets can
be connected and, with innovation in sensor devices, the range of use cases expands daily. Soil sensors are being used by farmers to manage scarce water resources in remote regions; sensors in concrete structures can be used post-build to measure compressive strain. From water metering to air pollution, the combination of networks, devices and big data analytics is creating the foundation for everything from smart cities to sustainable agriculture. Te SIM technology selected for all these use cases was based on a range of critical technical requirements including range, scalability, security and low power consumption.
Time Sensitive Another innovative use case field for SIM-based IoT Networks is ‘Critical IoT’, where applications such as real-time vital signs monitoring at home as an extension of healthcare require ultra-reliable data delivery and low delay in getting measurements to back-office systems. Tis application area is vibrant in its development, with technology firms delivering innovations in wearable technologies that record both vital signs and location to keep track of individuals’ location and allow care professionals to intervene quickly in a targeted way. Tis sector of the market will scale rapidly with the expansion
“There is tremendous
growth and vitality in the SIM-based IoT area, which is exciting”
of high capacity 5G networks, but given the need for reliable data transmissions, one network alone may be unlikely to deliver the quality of coverage required. Organisations will need a SIM-based technology option that can ‘roam’, i.e. work with more than one public network operator to hand off traffic seamlessly. Conversely, for super-low latency, high-volume operations in fixed
locations, such as industry automation IoT, private 5G is a preferred option, offering the chance to prioritise specific data traffic flows – something that is not currently an option across public 5G networks. Tis is compelling for factories and warehouses which have poor or contended mobile signals indoors and cannot deliver mobile data services reliably. At the end of the spectrum, SIM-based cellular IoT is far more
complex than the ‘plug and play’ experience we’ve come to rely on with our smartphones, requiring design, planning and deployment by experts.
Maximising Potential With substantial growth in IoT connectivity globally, customers are demanding simplified contracts and service models from their providers to take care of their requirements – from low power
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connections for sensors, to high bandwidth applications to connect their real estate assets to provide primary and failover Internet access. Tis is a complex challenge due to different commercial agreements and service models amongst competing carriers, as well as limitations on certain types of network access on a per-country basis (almost all countries have a 4G service, but 5G is a work in progress, and low power network coverage needs to be checked for availability). Network operators need to be flexible, but have not always proven to be so, allowing the growth and development of a new generation of network aggregators and smaller service providers that are geared to cater to customer needs. Aggregators are now playing a significant role in SIM-based mobile market development and growth, particularly if managed network operators (MNO’s) are inflexible, by negotiating directly with multiple network operators to create a tailored, multi- network solution to support each use case. Tere are several questions that should be asked to qualify your provider’s capability to supply IoT, including: Can one network operator provide the full coverage required for all mobile assets now and in the future? Can the customer benefit from access to new Low Power SIM technologies including NB-IoT, LTE-M (Cat M) or other IoT connectivity types, including non-cellular, as a blended service? Does the SIM have automated, built-in failover to a second or
third network option if the primary network fails? Using a confluence of different networks can be incredibly
powerful as a complete solution to connect all parts of a customer’s estate, but it may require a service provider who is capable of orchestrating the multiple SIM-based technologies to acquire the right networks in the asset location and provide seamless provisioning, management and changes via automation to provide a good and reliable customer experience. 5G will transform the landscape for SIM-based IoT. It will provide
a step-change in capacity, allowing 100,000s of connections per square kilometre, compared to just hundreds today. It will offer more speed, reliability and, in time, enable the market to provide real Service Level Agreements. But with so many providers jumping on the SIM-based IoT bandwagon it is necessary to ask the right questions to make the right decision for your use case. Tere is tremendous growth and vitality in the SIM-based IoT
area, which is exciting. However, in the quest for innovation, let us not forget the mature M2M SIM IoT deployments that offer huge opportunities for business transformation with confidence. Fundamentally, across the broad IoT spectrum, it is vital to understand the use cases, applications, technologies and commercials before making final decisions about suppliers and providers.
June 2022 | 19
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