InterDigital Inc (IDCC)

[Gamco]

Smart street lighting system gets LTE connection

August 31, 2017 // By Julien Happich

Romanian startup Flashnet has integrated u-blox' SARA-N2 series of NB-IoT (LTE Cat NB1) modules to enable the world’s first Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) connected smart street lighting control system for its inteliLIGHT remote management solution.

With hundreds of existing projects deployed worldwide, InteliLIGHT is a proven concept employing a range of communication protocols. Having identified NB-IoT as strategically important, Flashnet chose to partner with u-blox on the development of its FRE-220-NB range of NB-IoT compatible luminaire controllers.

The new family of controllers can be embedded into most luminaire designs and enables the individual remote control (on/off, dimming) of LED street lights with electronic ballasts up to 400W. The smart control offered extends to monitoring a wide range of electrical parameters, the ability for Over The Air (OTA) updates and support for autonomous operation.

The NB-IoT protocol targets IoT applications that have low bandwidth requirements, as such it is ideal for smart lighting. As part of the LTE family of standards, NB-IoT can be supported within existing LTE infrastructure, offering carrier-grade reliability and security, as well as excellent penetration and stability.

“The connected street lighting industry already uses a wide range of communication protocols,” commented Lorand Mozes, CEO at Flashnet. “We believe the industry is ready to adopt NB-IoT and thanks to our work with u-blox we are the first supplier able to offer a robust and fully featured product line-up. By selecting the SARA-N2 modules from u-blox we have been able to bring our FRE-220NB range of NB-IoT connected luminaires to market in a very short period of time, to complement our existing range and offer our customers even greater choice.”

Current Flashnet pilot projects are underway worldwide to prove the reliability of NB-IoT technology with plans to turn them into large scale street lighting control implementations. Considering the market potential and the evolution of connected street lighting, Flashnet is expecting to sell a few hundred thousand controllers within 3-5 years.

http://www.eenewseurope.com/news/smart-street-lighting-system-gets-lte-connection