First Things First - Stories from IoT Implementers

This is it! All good things must come to an end. Listen to the First Things First series wrap-up as we highlight IoT stories from some of our favorite guests. The FTF team is very grateful for all the support and we hope that you enjoyed our show. Even though the podcast is ending, we’re happy to keep the conversation going via our different social media channels. We look forward to hearing your IoT stories.

Millions of new LPWA devices will require their own data plans, just like your cellphone. How can these all be managed at once? Telit IoT expert Alon Segal discusses exactly what features enterprises should expect from their connectivity provider in order to manage these devices.

LPWA cellular technologies will enable enterprises to connect hundreds of thousands or millions of devices in a low-cost and efficient manner. But with millions of new devices comes millions of new potentially vulnerable endpoints. Telit IoT expert Alon Segal discusses why pre-provisioned and customized cellular IoT modules at the point of manufacture are necessary to secure the ‘leading edge’ of enterprise innovation in the IoT.

Telit IoT expert Martino Turcato tell us what an intelligent module is, and why it is the next natural step for the cellular IoT industry and its customers.

In the world of virtual SIMs, onboarding can be accomplished in a completely digital, zero-touch manner. Telit IoT expert Martino Turcato discusses the implications of such potentially simple IoT operations.

As of 2019, 5G networks are already functioning in select locales. Telit IoT Expert Martino Turcato explores the surprising link between 4G LPWA networks and 5G networks, and how LPWA fits into a 5G strategy that may start deploying a few years from now.

The creation of the Firstnet public-safety dedicated LTE cellular network is certainly a step in the right direction in terms of giving emergency responders the communication priority they need to do their jobs well. Telit IoT expert Ken Bednasz discusses some innovative FirstNet enabled drone control technologies that require FAA approval before they are legal to operate.

The 3G sunset will affect millions of IoT devices. Obviously, 3G devices themselves will cease to communicate – but did you know, in some cases, 4G devices may be affected too? Telit IoT expert Ken Bednasz talks about how 4G devices released before the advent of Voice Over LTE (VoLTE) will lose their voice communication capabilities.

Since its inception, cellular IoT deployments have had to adapt to life on cellular-phone specialized 2G, 3G, and early-generation 4G networks. All that has changed with the deployment of the 4G low-power wide-area (LPWA) networks of Cat-M and Cat-NB.   Longer battery life, efficient and safe IoT communication, and more; Telit IoT expert Ken Bednasz explores what exciting new aspects enterprises can expect with cellular IoT on LPWA networks.

While cellular IoT modules might share a similar metallic cover and look, that doesn’t mean they’re all the same. Inside is a complicated network of hardware and software enabling the ‘frontline’ of your enterprise – whether that in a smart home, in a smart agriculture sensor, or smart fleet. Listen to Telit IoT Expert Ken Bednasz explain when looking at a module vendor (versus your own embedded solution or a ready-made solution) is right, and what you should be looking for if you want to be confident in your IoT deployment – and who doesn’t?

Already an expert in the development of medical software and devices, Italian company Meteda to expand its horizons to a completely unrelated industry to make a positive addition to an important industry in the hearts and minds of the residents of its coastal hometown of San Benedetto del Tronto: sailing. Using their preexisting expertise in device manufacturing, MetaSail’s connected regatta racing tracking product creates an intuitive and easy to use offering for racers and watchers alike; simply attach the cellular and GPS-connected trackers to the racer’s boats, attach another tracker to a buoy, and you are ready to go. Offered at an affordable price, MetaSail stands as testament to what great things can be accomplished when great companies with connected product expertise like Meteda use their design and production capabilities in other industries. Now Regatta is easier to view, and thus more likely to be enjoyed by an increasing number of spectators, than ever before. Want to see more? Check out this great example of MetaSail in action: over 100 boats tracked at a single event in Europe.

Cellular LP-WAN and 5G tech are the tipping point for accessible Enterprise IoT at scale. Are you ready to harness this for your own organization’s digital transformation? Listen to Telit IoT Expert Alon Segal discuss enterprise knowledge gaps, deployment problems, and ultimately the true solution for IoT-at-Scale: the Edge. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

Marc gives us insight into developing the IoT Barcelona and Munich communities. We talk to Marc about some of the patterns he has seen across the years. What IoT Startups are successful? What technologies are they looking for? Why do investors choose one startup over another in his competitions? Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

How does GNSS differ from GPS? What new regional and worldwide GNSS constellations must we plan for? What the future for GNSS? Georgia Frousiakis, VP of GNSS R&D for Telit discusses the impact of GNSS on IoT in the past, present, and future; and talk about the latest exciting use cases. If you’ve ever wanted to learn about location technologies and IoT – this is the podcast episode to listen to! Visit FirstThingsFirst.fm for show notes and more!

Over nearly a 30 year-long career, Ed Kuzemchak has established himself as one of the foremost experts in the realm of embedded software design. Starting as a software engineer at Raytheon Missile systems, Ed established himself as Chief Software Architect at Texas instruments, where he developed new graphical debugger interfaces and integrated development environments. In particular, Ed championed Graphic User Interfaces as an important step for making embedded systems more user friendly. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

With the advent of quick fabrication technologies like 3D printing, small batch production, laser cutting and engraving, affordable CNC machines, and more… the creative mind truly can be unleashed in electronic design labs. Oli tells us his story of funding Plymouth College of Art’s innovative Digital Fabrication youth educational program. Visit the FirstThingsFirst show page for show notes and more!

The world of Financial Technology (Fintech) might be just as complicated as IoT. Just like IoT has multiple sensor, connection, and data analysis providers that push companies to look for “One Stop, One Shop” providers or software platforms, Fintech is ripe for standardization and platformization of the industry. Today our guest Brandon Selfors trades war stories with Chris – and they both draw Fintech and IoT parallels. Visit the FirstThingsFirst.fm episode page for show notes and more!

We hear Arturo’s nuanced view on the boat industry, and why growing industry standardizations have paved the way for affordable IoT solutions for boat owners. There’s AirBnB for homes, Uber for Cars….And now Boatrax for boats, the second or third most expensive asset one might own. Visit the First Things First episode page for show notes and more!

We dish out the interesting dual-nature of R9 technology – an IoT design house diversifying into its own scalable, productized cellular gateways - by taking a deep dive into their latest cold chain industry work with Nestlé® Toll House® Café by Chip® franchise concept, as operated by Crest Foods, Inc. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!   https://www.firstthingsfirst.fm/project/cherry-on-top-getting-the-scoop-on-cold-chain-with-john-tauch-of-r9-technology/

For the last First Things First episode of the 2018 season, I put together some of the best lessons learned from our guests this year. Hear from Dima Tokar of MachNation, Pierce Owen of ABI Research, Dan Lockney of NASA, Kim Lauridsen Hansen of TrapMe, Salvatore Castro of SAP, Shehryar Wahid of Agile, Ed Freyfogle of OpenCage, Jeffrey Schab of Protequus, and more. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

As Seth Godin said, there’s a tribe for everything. And one of the strongest, yet relatively unknown, tribes might be the #geomob. In this episode of First Things First, I sit down with Ed Freyfogle, founder of OpenCage Data, a tech company offering an API Geocoder that easily converts coordinates to and from places. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more.

This week on First Things First, I have an insightful chat with ABI Research’s Pierce Owen, a Principal Analyst at the leading analyst firm specializing in transformative technologies across multiple end markets. With no topic untouched, we talk more about his specialty of smart manufacturing – from Industrial IoT, to AR, to robotics, and everything in between! Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!  

In this episode of First Things First, I sit down with Dr. Hillel Rubinstein of Desert Mars Analog Ramon Station, or D-MARS, an analog mission center created to test how humans may be able to survive on the red planet. We discuss his mission to help better prepare – and educate – humans for their first steps on a planet other than our own. In particular, we learn how IoT is helping accomplish this mission, and the value of testing even earth-bound products in the harshest environments known to man.

This week on First Things First, I sit down to chat with Denny Suber, the founder of Robotics Within Reach, an industrial automation engineering company that specializes in Fanuc robot programming and training. Denny shares a few stories from customers who learned important lessons about robotics and IoT.

This week on First Things First, I sit down to chat with Shehryar Wahid, the Chief Technology Officer of Agile Interoperable Solutions (AIS). Agile’s CORE mobile communications hub helps emergency responders and other mission critical organizations stay connected in situations where communication can mean the difference between life and death. Inspired by the aftermath of a destructive hurricane that devastated South Florida, this hub for emergency services makes it possible for first responders to effectively communicate when it matters most. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

This week on First Things First, I sit down to chat with Dan Lockney, the Technology Transfer Program Executive at NASA to talk about one of the most important reasons why the US Government chooses to invest so much in the space program: the technological advancements that are passed down to the civilian sector.   From aluminum alloys, to Japanese ‘Kawaii’ cute-culture, to the Roomba, your daily life – no matter what country you’re from – is impacted by NASA in many more ways than you’d expect.   We talk about how many enterprises, even your own, might be able to benefit from the latest and greatest technology that hasn’t hit the market yet.   Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

In this episode of First Things First, I chat with Mark Easley from Texas Instruments to talk about the TI University program.   We explore the latest university topics to come up in ioT, why a singular organization can’t ‘own’ everything in IoT, and the value of self-paced learning opportunities.   Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

In this episode of First Things First, I chat with Jakob Blomberg of Blink Services about a unique LoRa project you wouldn’t normally find synonymous with low-power, wide-area networks – cameras! Equipped with MultiTech-designed (and Telit cellular module backhauled) LoRaWAN bay stations, Jakob lets us in on the development process of a camera-based LoRa solution with billion-dollar (or krona!) Swedish security solutions provider Axis. Blink and its municipal customers stay agile and team up with Axis to update an already-established camera network with the newest LoRa technology. Visit the FirstThingsFirst episode page for show notes and more!

What any IoT implementer can learn from some the most expensive manufacturing in the world. Stuart Perry gives us the story behind why the semiconductor is always the first to innovate with IoT – and why those same competitive and market forces will necessitate IoT-enabled digital transformation in every single industry – including your own. Until Elon invents a time machine, the semiconductor industry might be the best way to look into the future of IoT – so take a look (or listen) with Chris!

John tells us a story about a multi-national household brand that wants to build a commercial-grade connected water filtration system – enabled by the IoT.   But all the data they’d like to collect is clogging up the system, making it too costly to run the IoT solution!   This billion dollar conglomerate turns to a partner organization, which provides some key insights on IoT data management that you won’t want to miss.

Ken brings us a story about one of Telit’s customers that works in the telematics and tracking industry. As the marketplace transitions from 2G and 3G to 4G LTE, this company has to make some important decisions about their IoT solution, keeping hardware and software needs in mind. Ken shares his experience working with this customer and describes the ways that Telit helped them overcome these roadblocks.

A real-life Fortune 100 machine builder seeks increased IT/OT integration of the factory floor to collect more detailed data; and makes sure to avoid some road bumps along the way! Whether your running IoT on a factory floor or a kitchen floor, Salvatore shares key insights on how to keep your stakeholders happy. SAP is leading the way when it comes to digital transformation; you don’t want to miss one of the organization’s brightest share some of his latest (and deepest) IoT insights!

Sure, IoT allows remote monitoring of a volcano; but someone must repel into it to place the sensors there in the first place! Learn how Libelium partnered to perform an IoT mission of good; outfitting Nicaragua’s Masaya Volcano with an early-warning wireless sensor network to the benefit of the surrounding towns. Diving deep – both analytically and volcanically - David shares important insights into choosing the right hardware for your application; whether its volcanos, smart cities, manufacturing, health, or anywhere in between!

When the small things are connected – that’s when you know IoT is BIG. Kim brings us a story of an electronics company that wanted to build a better mouse trap – literally. He describes the process of discovering what pest controllers need, finding the right technology partners, and testing the product itself. Learn how TrapMe came to be and the technology behind this game-changing smart tool for rodent control. IoT is everywhere, and Kim will tell you exactly how!

Ricardo tells a laugh-out-loud story of how one major automotive manufacturer found a very surprising and human story behind their machine’s data. Using his experience working with manufacturers implementing IoT, Ricardo offers advice for organizations that are considering developing their own IoT applications. We take a deep-dive focus on the top values that an outside IoT vendor can bring to any organization; whether you’re in the industrial or industry or not, there are valuable lessons to be learned!

Jeffrey brings us a story of a biomedical engineer turned equine-entrepreneur taking the tumultuous journey of developing a connected product to save some of the world’s most treasured companions: our horses. Learn about the passing of Jeffrey’s horse Snoop, the inspiration that caused him to develop the equine-health focused startup Protequus. This development journey faced significant challenges: cellular certification, small-footprint but long battery life design, and a decision to process data on the edge or in the cloud. Jeffrey teaches us some invaluable IoT lessons learned; you won’t want to miss them!

In this episode, we have a great conversation with Dima Tokar from MachNation, the leading dedicated IoT-platform analyst firm, about an IoT implementation for a multibillion-dollar European vehicle manufacturer. Dima explores how enterprise businesses must decide whether to build IoT platform functionality in-house, or use an outside vendor when deploying IoT solutions. Our conversation took an interesting turn when we discussed not only technological but organizational impacts of this important IoT decision point.  This episode packs a lot of punches and dives into a myriad of aspects of the Internet of Things. You don't want to miss it!