Just in:
Global Audience to Witness Thrill of Dubai World Cup // Emirates Post Speeds Up Deliveries for GCC with Special Day // Experts come together to support updating the city’s nature conservation masterplan // Emirati Aid Reaches Ukraine as Food Shortages Bite // Superland Announced Annual Results for 2023, 2023 Net Profit Increased approximately 39.5% to approximately HK$22.2 million as Compared to the 2022 Adjusted One // Arvind Kejriwal Was Used By BJP In 2011 Movement To Take On The Congress // US reiterates concern over Kejriwal arrest, Cong accounts // Ingdan Announces 2023 Annual Results // German Job Market Resilience Bodes Well for Economic Recovery // Sharjah Chamber Breaks Ground on Final Expansion with New HQ Pact // No running of govt from jail, says Delhi Lt Governor // Court Sides with Coinbase on Wallet Service, But Staking Program Remains in Limbo // U.S. Compliance Takes Center Stage at OKX Following Industry Jitters // Renewables Surge Sets Record, But Global Equity Lags // AIA Hong Kong Wins More Than 20 Accolades at MPF Ratings MPF Awards, BENCHMARK MPF of The Year Awards and Bloomberg Businessweek Top Fund Awards // First-Ever Fortune Innovation Forum Draws Top Global Leaders to Hong Kong, Promoting Agendas On Collective Cross-Sector Advancement // Sharpening the Focus: Sharjah Health Department Refines Evaluation Criteria for “Healthy Schools Programme” // Konica Minolta is named ASEAN 2023 Market Leader in Colour Light and Mid Digital Production Printers // Lisboeta Macau’s world first LINE FRIENDS PRESENTS CASA DE AMIGO and BROWN & FRIENDS CAFE & BISTRO has officially opened // AI Boost for Galaxy Devices: Samsung Expands One UI 6.1 Update //
HomeBiz TechThis peer-to-peer mesh network allows smartphones to talk without Wi-Fi or cell coverage

This peer-to-peer mesh network allows smartphones to talk without Wi-Fi or cell coverage

1487256756 meshnetworkalerts3floodalert

meshnetworkalerts3floodalert.png

The alerts are designed to warn people about impending severe weather events such as flooding.


Image: IBM

Research scientists are building a new form of networking technology designed to provide billions of people with potentially lifesaving weather alerts, even if they don’t have internet connectivity.

Developed by IBM Research and The Weather Company, Mesh Network Alerts is a peer-to-peer mesh networking technology that allows Android devices to communicate with each other without the need for Wi-Fi or cellular connectivity.

ADVERTISEMENT

The technology is set to be rolled out in India first, before spreading to countries across Africa, Asia, and Latin America. It is aimed at areas where networks are congested and connectivity is limited, and will use and The Weather Channel app to provide alerts during disasters or impending severe weather, such as flooding.

At only 3.2 MB — in order to cater for the smaller amount of storage on Android devices in emerging markets — the app can store weather data offline for up to 24 hours, and offers user-selected options of whether to update on Wi-Fi, cellular, or on request.

Using pre-installed software such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi radios, the Mesh Network Alert software is capable of communicating between devices up to a few hundred feet from one another.

special feature


Harnessing IoT in the Enterprise

The tech revolution is spreading to every corner of the earth with the Internet of Things, and it’s enabling data analytics and automation in ways never before imagined in business.

By travelling in this way, the messages can transfer across multiple devices and spread the weather alerts much further than the initial few hundred feet, eventually alerting people across whole cities, regions, or even countries.

Perhaps most importantly, the mesh network can provide alerts to other devices, even if one which receives an alert isn’t currently being used.

“This is essential, because an alert may arrive at any time and, on receiving it, each device must forward the alert to a neighbouring device to ensure that everyone gets the message in time. In this way, mesh networking exemplifies the power of communities,” says Dr. Nirmit Desai, one of the IBM researchers behind the project.

The first alerts will come directly from The Weather Company, and both it and IBM understand the importance of ensuring the network is secure — a fake news alert about a made-up weather disaster could be catastrophic.

“We can protect both the confidentiality and the integrity of the messages. In doing so, we are bringing together IBM’s security expertise and The Weather Company’s experience in delivering highly usable apps to millions of users,” says Dr Desai.

“We employ state of the art cryptography techniques to ensure that users are only shown alerts that verifiably come from The Weather Company”.

The weather alerts represent only the first potential application for Mesh Alert Networks; the nature of the technology means it’d be useful in congested areas like sports arenas, concerts, and even cruise ships, where network bandwidth can become quickly overloaded.

While cellular connectivity struggles in areas like this, mesh networks thrive in these high density environments.

Read more on connectivity

(via PCMag)

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT
Just in:
Experience Ultimate Shopping Freedom at 4.4 Shopee Spree: Don’t Worry, Shop Shopee! // Universal Language for Healthcare: General Authority Embraces Global Coding System // Lisboeta Macau’s world first LINE FRIENDS PRESENTS CASA DE AMIGO and BROWN & FRIENDS CAFE & BISTRO has officially opened // Court Sides with Coinbase on Wallet Service, But Staking Program Remains in Limbo // German Job Market Resilience Bodes Well for Economic Recovery // Ajman Celebrates Conclusion of Ramadan Activities with Grand Ceremony // Emirates Post Speeds Up Deliveries for GCC with Special Day // Meta Earth Official Website Launch: The Pioneer Explorer in the Modular Public Blockchain Domain // Andertoons by Mark Anderson for Thu, 28 Mar 2024 // AIA Hong Kong Wins More Than 20 Accolades at MPF Ratings MPF Awards, BENCHMARK MPF of The Year Awards and Bloomberg Businessweek Top Fund Awards // Sharpening the Focus: Sharjah Health Department Refines Evaluation Criteria for “Healthy Schools Programme” // Superland Announced Annual Results for 2023, 2023 Net Profit Increased approximately 39.5% to approximately HK$22.2 million as Compared to the 2022 Adjusted One // US reiterates concern over Kejriwal arrest, Cong accounts // Global Audience to Witness Thrill of Dubai World Cup // Arvind Kejriwal Was Used By BJP In 2011 Movement To Take On The Congress // Renewables Surge Sets Record, But Global Equity Lags // Hope for Respite as UAE Endorses UN Plea for Gaza Truce // Sharjah Chamber Breaks Ground on Final Expansion with New HQ Pact // Konica Minolta is named ASEAN 2023 Market Leader in Colour Light and Mid Digital Production Printers // Infineon and HD Korea Shipbuilding & Offshore Engineering jointly develop ship electrification technology //