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Geocoding location coordinates to addresses from GPS-trackers

Today we talk about geocoding. Geocoding is a very interesting art! Geocoding consist of converting addresses (e.g. streets) into geographic GPS coordinates (i.g. latitude and longitude). On the other hand, we have reverse geocoding that is the reverse process: transforming a pair of geographic GPS coordinates into an address (street with number and city).

You might be wondering what geocoding can be used for. From simple analysis to business and customer management to distribution techniques, there is a wide range of applications for which geocoding can be used. At thethings.iO we are helping companies for which is important to geocode the GPS coordinates into addresses for the fleet management, route planning, among others.

At thethings.iO we usually receive the location as geographic GPS coordinates (latitude and longitude). It is known that it is the best way if you want to represent your assets on a map. However, geographic coordinates are not meaningful if they are not represented on a map. That’s why some customers ask us for the possibility of the integration of geocoding services in thethings.iO IoT platform.

Thanks to the Cloud Code service, we help you to integrate third-party services that enable you to transform the data from your connected things into information that will be useful to your daily activities.

Here you can see an example. In the table, you can see the addresses where the devices are located in:

Geocoding services

Although there are many geocoding services, today we will talk about two of them:

OpenCage Geocoder
Google Maps Geocoding API

Both are free up to 2.500 requests per day. In the case of Google will charge us $0,5/1.000 requests up to 100k daily requests if we overlap the free limit. For OpenCage we have different plans, e.g the x-Small plan includes 10k requests per day and it cost $50 per month.

Some lines below you will find information on how to use it. The first step is to get the API key or token.

Obtaining the API key

OpenCage

OpenCage Geocode is a very simple geocoding service (as we like). You only have to sign-up and follow all the registrations steps. After that you will see your dashboard like this:

Copy and keep the API key. We will use later!

Google Maps Geocoding API

If you have decided to use the Google Maps Geocoding API you must follow these steps:

1. You have to sign in with your Google account and follow this link:

2. Click on ‘Get a Key’ button and follow the instructions.

3. You will obtain your API key. Keep it! We will need it later!

Using geocoding services at thethings.iO

Once you get your API key, you are ready to use the geocoding services on our platform. In the following link, you can find a repository with the functions and examples of how to use these services.

In the repository, you can find two folders and two files. The folders contain the code for the httpRequest with both the OpenCage and Google Maps API geocoding and inverse geocoding services.

With that code, we build two examples that could be useful for your business requirements. Anyway, do not hesitate to contact us if you have further questions regarding this topic. We can provide you with more examples!

1. Example 1. Trigger (Inverse geocoding with Open Cage API)

With this code every time you send data to the platform that contain location information, the trigger will be executed and we will transform the coordinates from the resource $settings.geo into a physical address. Then we will save it into the resource address. You just have to create a new trigger in the cloud-code. Then copy and paste the following code.

2. Example 2. Function (Inverse geocoding with Google Maps Geocoding API)

In this case, we transform all the addresses of all the things of one product just in one cloud-code execution. Create a new function, choose the product and copy and paste the code from the file. Finally, introduce “{}” in the Preview Params (Check the picture below). The function will calculate the address for all the devices that contain information in the resource $settings.geo and will be saved in the resource address of each thing.

We hope all this information will be helpful for you. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO

2018-02-14/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

IoT

Connect a thermostat with OpenMote and thethings.iO

thethings.iO + openmote

During the last months we have seen dozens of amazing projects being connected at thethings.iO. Here we are going to show you how to connect a heating system and a thermostat for your house using thethings.iO as the IoT platform and OpenMote as a hardware.

This project was made by Roberto Romero Jotel as his final Master’s project for the Universitat Oberta de Catalunya this past 2015, so we are going to make a quick review to his one.

OpenMote and OpenWSN

During the project, the maker Roberto connected a heating system with a thermostat using the OpenMote with OpenWSN (IEEE 802.15.4e) and thethings.iO. On the project there is also a Raspberry Pi with Internet and the OpenBase and OpenMote-CC2538 modules connected by USB at the Raspberry Pi. The Raspberry Pi was converting the messages from the OpenWSN(802.15.4e) to Ethernet (HTTPS) to send the data to thethings.iO

The OpenMote platform consists on:

OpenMote-CC2538: which uses SoC TI format for Cortex-M3 and CC2520. This SoC can support Contiki, OpenWSN (which is also the protocol we are going to explain later in this post) and FreeRTOS.
OpenBase: a plate with different ports such as Ethernet, USB and JTAG.
OpenBattery: also a plate with 3 digital sensors and batteries. Its operation is autonomous.

Reliable Low Power Wireless OpenMote

The OpenWSN is a collection of different Internet of Things protocols. It counts on the OpenOs, which is a collaborative of OpenWSN, an OpenVisualizer, the visualization program and a Python CoAP library.

The IoT platform

thethings.iO is the IoT platform of the project. It also provides write and read methods. In the first case (ThingWrite), it allows users to collect data in JSON format with POST request at the URL through the CoAP API:

coap://coap.thethings.iO/v2/things/{{THING_TOKEN}}

In the case of the ThingRead, it allows the user to read the data from a resource (KEY) with GET request at the URL:

coap://coap.thethings.iO/v2/things/{{THING_TOKEN}}/resources/{{KEY}}

How to make things work together

The real question in here is how to connect the OpenMote with thethings.iO?

Project’s architecture

The key is the integration of thethings.iO API on the OpenMote implementation with the Raspberry Pi. Let’s explain the two basic functions of thethings.iO that enables the thermostat to read data and write sensor’s data from and to thethings.iO.

First of all, the thermostat wants to send new data from its sensors (temperature, humidity, etc). How do we do it? Remember that we have to consider that the OpenMote is connected to a Raspberry Pi through a TCP socket. That means that thethings.iO as the IoT platform receives the data through CoAP from the Raspberry Pi thread that listens the TCP socket from the OpenMote.

Once they are connected one to each other, the client sends the Raspberry Pi process the data. All this data collected is sent by the Raspberry Pi to thethings.iO IoT platform using a CoAP POST request. thethings.iO gives an answer which can be “Success” or “Error”. Finally, when the OpenMote receives the answer, the connection ends.

The reading operation from thethings.iO is similar, the OpenMote tries to establish a socket connection with the Raspberry Pi, and the Raspberry Pi sends a request of polling to thethings.iO. Once they are connected to eachother, the client sends a request to read its data to the server. All the data is requested to thethings.iO by the server using a CoAP GET request. Then, thethings.iO sends the answer to the Raspberry Pi, giving a “Success” with the JSON, which is translated in sending all the data requested, or an “Error”.

If you want to know more about Roberto Romero’s project (in catalan) and the public code on Roberto’s github account.

And if you want to start connecting things with thethings.iO you can register here.

2016-03-02/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

IoT

Analytics for Sigfox: meet thethings.iO

Analytics for Sigfox with thethings.iO

If you are an Internet of Things enthusiast, you must know Sigfox. In case you don’t, keep reading. Nevertheless, this post is not only about the incredible things you can make with Sigfox but also how you can integrate it with an IoT platform such as thethings.iO.

What’s Sigfox?

Sigfox is a cellular style telecom that enables remote devices to connect using UNB (ultra-narrow band) technology. It appeared trying to solve the network problems that Wi-Fi range may cause (for example, it is short and 3G and 4G are expensive and use too much power while working) to make the Internet of Things easier.

Using Sigfox, you can transfer small amounts of data (each message can be up to 12 bytes of payload data). Any user can send between 0 and 140 messages per day, and if they want a 24 hours distribution, they can also send a maximum of one message every 11 minutes. This means that each message you send doesn’t contain much information.

Do you want to know how to connect a thing with thethings.iO and Sigfox? Then, watch this tutorial:

When Sigfox meets thethings.iO

As you have just seen, Sigfox is perfect for very low power operations. Messages transmitted must be small, which can be seen as a problem. Any user can downlink 4 messages of 8 bytes to the device, and the uplink is up to 140 messages of 12 bytes. Depending on the use case, this is just enough information to be transmitted.

Sigfox doesn’t understand or transform your payload, so you can read the message as is, allowing developers to parse the structured payload and play with bits and bytes. That means, that you cannot see any data or analytics using just Sigfox, and at the moment neither any business logic on the top of it.

With all these limitations, we have integrated Sigfox with thethings.iO, in order to pick up all the data generated and offer it to its users. Actually, it is more than that. Paying the price of a Sigfox device plus 1€ per year to thethings.iO you can get a full customizable analytics, cloud code with triggers and crons and real-time interaction from your Sigfox-connected devices.

In less than 5 minutes you can see your things’ data at thethings.iO panel. Awesome, right?

thethings.iO and Sigfox

As we have said, with Sigfox you only get Payload data (using binary language). To make it clever, using thethings.iO, data is translated to our JSON diagram, so you can know the exact temperature or humidity (or whatever) value of your device at any time in your Sigfox dashboard with thethings.iO.

You can find libraries for a couple of prototyping shields with Sigfox Antennas at our github account as Sigfox SDK for thethings.iO.

What we do at thethings.iO

At thethings.iO we connect devices or wearables to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.

2015-10-15/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

IoT

How IoT will change Music

Welcome to the most harmonious post of thethings.iO. This is about music. We can listen to it, play or even sing it; but what about feeling and living the song you love the most? No matter if you prefer jazz, electro, indie, heavy metal, or whatever, there’s always an IoT device or wearable that suits you perfectly. And at thethings.iO, we make it even easier to connect anything to the Internet.

Your favorite music just by pushing a button

It is said that music is a powerful tool to define ourselves. It is not what you see on the outside but rather what’s on the inside that really matters. Yes, everyone of us is completely different. While I am writing this post, I am listening to Aretha Franklin, but my colleague has opted for Madonna. Different people, different preferences, but one common passion: music.

Let’s describe a situation. You arrive home, it’s been a long day, and the only thing you need is to lay down on the couch and listen to music. Nowadays, you’re probably using your smartphone or tablet (or maybe even your TV!) to listen to your favourite playlists, which you have created before. What would you say if we tell you that there’s a device that’s perfect for you because it picks songs for you according to your pleasures?

Prizm is the connected device that’s capable of choosing the perfect music to play. As if you are meeting a partner, while interacting with Prizm, it starts learning and remembering your habits, what music you like, when and in which context. In addition, it is capable to recognize who is in the room and also sense the mood in there, to adapt the music according to any situation.

Prizm

Fighting with your family or friends will surely end with the arrival of Prizm!

Best music on your wrist

It seems that wristbands are a really popular wearable among the Internet of Things in any field. Music is no exception. Let us introduce you some of the coolest wearables to play and live music.

The first one we want to mention is Soundbrenner, a wearable metronome. The torturing click-sound metronomes we have known are over, as the arrival of Soundbrenner has led it to be obsolete. This device makes you feel the beat, literally! The idea came since vibration guides a musician more naturally than a stressful click-sound, similar to if someone were to tap you on your shoulder. It also helps you develop a great inner sense of rhythm, master the most difficult sections of your songs, and simply enjoy your music! With Soundbrenner you can also create tempo maps or synchronise the vibrations via MIDI with Ableton Live, Logic Pro X, Avid Pro Tools and more.

Soundbrenner

Secondly, you need to know Lucie Labs. It defines itself as “the world’s first smart & creative LED lighting wristband that augments your music experience.” What does it do? This wearable band light up according to the rhythm.

You should also know Basslet, the bracelet that works alongside headphones and lets you feel the bass and depth of music through your body. Do you remember when we told you about being and living the music? We were imagining something like Basslet. Its main objective is to create the greatest experience for all music fans.

In a past, when you were listening to the radio and a cool song was playing, most of the time you just missed the name of it, which made you feel really upset. With apps like Shazam, the waiting for the name of a song disappeared. But, what if you do not need your phone to track a song that you love? Trak has the perfect solution to this! It is the first smart music tracker, which allows you to track a song and add it directly to your playlist. It is even easier to use than Shazam! Just touch your wrist, and you’ll “like” and save the song automatically. Yes, it’s that easy! And also you can synchronize it with your smartphone or tablet!

How does Trak work?

Hear sounds you could have never heard before

It is a well-known fact that everybody sees, smells, tastes… and obviously, hears differently. We all are born different, but Aumeo has made what may have seemed impossible as it provides a personalized audio experience with its custom-fitted product. Aumeo is a pocket-size device that corrects sound to your personal hearing sensitivity in the audio signal path from your music player (for example, your iPhone) to your ears. As it describes what it does, it “unlocks your best hearing potential so you can hear your favorite tunes the way they were meant to be heard — in all their fullness and richness.” Wouldn’t it be amazing to perfectly hear your favorite songs? To listen to “Let It Be” in a way we have never heard, exactly as The Beatles wanted to sound, would be one of the best experiences any music fan could live.

Enjoy music & have fun playing music

If you are a music lover, you probably know the name Berklee (or at least you have heard anything about it). Berklee is one of the most important modern music schools in the world. It started as a jazz school, but nowadays it offers any kind of musical style. The question is, what is the relationship between Berklee and the Internet of Things?

Students of the Musical Technology Innovation master have created the “Sing Song Table,” which was in the Sónar+D this year (2015). Apparently, it looks like a Ping Pong table, but it places some sensors that allow you to create a melody while playing. How does it work? The contact and movement sensors send the signal to a synthesizer which records players’ movements and the ball pushes. The recording is connected to a computer to transform the match into an original and unique song. It also allows players to choose different preset styles to make this experience even more personal.

There is also a MIDI (Musical Instrument Digital Interface) controller to let a third player control the sensor route and audio parameters to mix the music during the match.

The Sing Song Table is not the only project that Berklee school introduced us at the Sónar+D. The Flex Sleeves react to the muscular movement so any singer can have the possibilities of a recording studio on their arms and hands. To sum up, it creates music with the movement of the musician’ arms, so it controls the voice, sounds, loops and visual effects (lightning) during a concert.

We will call it IoMT Clothing

Recently, while working on another thethings.iO’s project, we found some cool internet-connected clothing that can also help you make music, so we are going to introduce them to you…

The first one, is called the Electronic Rock Guitar Shirt, by ThinkGeek. The Electronic Guitar Shirt is not a toy that plays pre-canned musical riffs, it is a real musical instrument that allows you to play your favorite songs and sound great doing it. Let’s play the guitar, so it is easier now with this cool t-shirt.

And the other is the MIDI Jacket v1.0, which is a jacket that allows the user to create music through motion and touch sensors with a mobile app. A MIDI allows communication between digital music instruments, computers and other devices, so it also allows users to control and make music kinetically through body sensors and by detecting acceleration and flexion.

Midi Controller Jacket v1.0

The role of thethings.iO in here

As you see, anything can be connected to the internet, even MUSIC! At thethings.iO we connect devices or wearables such as the ones we have mentioned in this post to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.

2015-09-15/1 Comment/by Marc Pous

_Featured Posts, IoT

Welcome to children’s IoT world

Imagine sitting in your kitchen trying to find something on your iPad. For some reason you just can’t imagine where you have left whatever you are looking for, all of a sudden your 6-year-old child to your left makes a hand movement and the item starts beeping so you can find it.

To the technologically savvy, making new technology work is as easy as riding a bike but from an outside point of view it is mind-blowing the differences we have seen transpire.

The Internet of Things will change the way children understand, not only the technological world, but also how the whole world will understand. Stop looking for your kid inside that big Supermarket. All you will need is your smartphone and in a second you will know exactly the position of the little guy. The hide and seek game will end as soon as you want.

Tracking children, anywhere, anytime

In the IoT world, most children’s watches have become trackers as well, which makes it the best sold wearables for kids. Hidden within something as simple as a watch, and giving no hints to the unknown eye, the parents are able to feel calm and secure knowing when their kids try and runoff. The hereO GPS watch is equipped with WiFi, a built-in SIM card and built-in USB connector that allows parents to keep track of their children’s location at any time in real-time, just by using the hereO family app. The hereO is able to fit on any kid’s wrist. Designed to support even the heaviest of play (including water games). It notifies parents when the battery is low by sending a message to their smartphone.

hereO

What about if you want to know more about how your kid is doing and not just his location? Are they safe? Then you should consider purchasing a wearable with even more functions! For example, a FiLip. More than a GPS watch, FiLip can make and receive calls rom five different numbers that can be preprogrammed. If the child is ever in distress, he/she simply needs to hold down one button for four seconds and an emergency call is dispatched. FiLip uses a blend of GPS, GSM and WiFi for the location function, so it allows parents to know where their children are even if they are outside. Parents can see their child’s location on a map at any time. You can also choose SafeZones (virtual radius around a location), so when the child has entered or left a SafeZone, a notification is sent to his/her parents.

Otherwise, we find wearables like Trax, which works similar to FiLip but adopting another aspect. Trax is a GPS-Tracker with which you can create as many Safe Zones as you want, allowing you to know exactly where your kid is at any time. Its opportunities go from Augmented Reality to Speed Alerts, going through Geo-fences (Safe Zones), Proximity fence, History view, Scheduling and Multiple Devices & Sharing’ options. All fitted in a small square device.

SAFE Family wearables has designed Paxie, a tracking band for children. It is similar to HereO and FiLip, but looks like a bracelet, it tracks your kid’s movements and location… and more! It also monitors in real time the ambient temperature, daily activity, heart rate, etc. All with a cool and interchangeable design to fit to any kid’s style.

Paxie by SAFE Family

Healthy children

Safety is as important as health is. That’s why the IoT devices have delved into this world as well. Kinsa Smart Thermometer, is a new concept of thermometer that sends data to your smartphone. It is very easy to use (kids can also use it by themselves). You just need to put the Kinsa in your mouth and your smartphone will do the rest. Which symptoms do you have? Kinsa helps you to discover what is happening to you in real-time. This can be useful to track your illness progression and then, to keep a record for you and your doctor.

Kinsa Smart Thermometer

On the other hand, Fever Smart is a disposable patch that monitors body temperature and transmits data in real-time to your smartphone. You are able to receive alerts when the patient’s temperature begins to rise or actually reaches unsafe levels. It is normally used by parents to control their kids temperature, but it has other uses. It can be used to take care of patients in a post-operative situation, or to track an Ebola outbreak!

The Role of thethings.iO

At thethings.iO, we connect devices or wearables such as the ones we have mentioned in this post to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.

2015-08-17/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

_Featured Posts, IoT

To All First-Time Mothers: Your Troubles Solved by IoT

To all desperate first-time mothers, the Internet of Things is going to save your lives, or at least, it will try to. Say goodbye to all the crying without knowing what is actually happening. In the very near future, to take care of a baby will be, maybe, one of the easiest things of your life. Do you want to know how? Know the latests IoT wearables and devices in this post!

Track Your Baby’s Vitals

Fitbit was for sports, Fitbark for dogs and Revolar for women. Which is the wearable for babies then? Lately, lots of companies have seen a space in which they can develop their businesses for the house’s youngest. The baby world has been an attractive field to get into since it not only helps couples in their first years of being parents, but also because it has a lot to offer. From the simplest toys to baby buggies, bottles or carriages, couples (and also singles) need to buy it when they decide to expand the family.

It is 2AM and the baby is up, crying, we do not know why, or we did not know why? Mimo is a baby monitor tracker that sends all the information about your baby’s vitals to your smartphone. It takes the shape of a turtle, which is what sends the information about your baby’s breathing, body position, sleep activity and skin temperature. All that data generated is streamed to the cloud to let you know real-time insights about your baby on your smartphone. Mimo makes the understanding between parents and babies easier.

Similar to Mimo, we find other companies such as Sensible Baby, which also monitors the baby’s position, temperature, and movement on your smartphone while he/she is sleeping.

And what about Teddy The Guardian? The typical Teddy Bear crosses the line and becomes smarter. Just by touching or holding its paw, which holds sensors, enables parents to measure their child’s vitals and see it using the app. Your child’s first best friend will be more than a mere toy, it will be an IoT device to also play with.

Teddy the Guardian

Owlet describes itself as an Smart Sock that monitors your baby’s vitals. Owlet alerts parents if their baby’s heart rate and oxygen levels are outside the norm. Alerts are sent to a primary alarm (with a green and red light sensor) and your smartphone too, allowing you to know everything about your baby in real-time.

Owlet

On the band side, we find products such as Sproutling, which will fit around your baby’s ankle. It includes a sensor that measures heart rate, skin temperature, motion and position, and sends all the information to your smartphone.

While these devices track a lot of variables, there are some that can be used just for one specifically. TempTraq is described as the first and only 24-hour intelligent thermometer that senses, records, and sends alerts of your children’s temperature to your smartphone. It is a patch, so it is both soft and flexible, which will make your baby feel more comfortable. Parents can receive information from more than just one child, as the app makes it possible to track information for multiple children.

And what about filming your baby? The webcam located strategically to spy on the babysitter will be left behind with the arrival of devices such as Withings Home, which places a 135º camera inside to record both night and day events. When you are not at home, you are able to see what happens to your baby, but also in your house too. It includes infrared LEDs to guarantee a high quality night vision, as well as noise (for example when the baby is crying out loud) and motion sensors. The device also tracks indoor air pollution to make sure your family lives in a well-being environment. To sum up, Withings Home is not only used for babies, but for all the members of the family.

Do not miss any event with Onni Smart Care Baby Monitor. In this case, it designed specially to film the baby and be able to watch how is he/she is in real-time. Onni places a camera, infrared, microphone, speaker, night light and temperature sensor. Parents are alerted when the baby wakes up, if there’s any loud noise in the child’s room, or if the room temperature is too hot or too cold, the advice is sent directly to their smartphones. By using Onni, parents can also keep track of the child’s growth, turning this device into a must have in the baby things collection.

Eat Well, Grow Well

It is said that we are what we eat, so you should start since you are a baby. That is the reasoning of most parents in the world. Milk Nanny is a connected baby’s milk maker. The app tells you when the machine is ready to operate and also statistics about the milk (quantity of water, temperature…).

Milk Nanny

As if we have the Hapi Fork (a tracker fork), here comes the Baby Glgl for babies. This is a baby’s bottle that allow parents know when the baby is eating correctly thanks to some sensors that places inside.

More IoT Things To Think About

We have talked about several baby trackers, of all shapes and sizes, and also about the eating devices you should have in your house if you are planning to have a baby. But, what about the daily and simple things such as pacifiers or diapers? Both things, are also a must have when you have a baby. Luckily, the IoT companies have designed some connected options of these objects.

Pacif-i, from Blue Maestro, is a pacifier that monitors a baby’s temperature and transmits the data to his/her parents smartphone or tablet. It is composed of a temperature sensor inside its silicon teat and a proximity sensor that allows parents to monitor its location. It is really useful to record the medication that is administered to the baby, so it is easier to share the data with medical professionals.

On the other side, we have the Smart Diapers, which started a crowdfunding campaign in Kick-Starter and that pretended to monitor the baby’s health. It would be used to detect urinary tract infection, prolonged dehydration and developing kidney problems.

To calm down a baby would have never been as easy as it will be with mamaRoo, from 4moms, a rocker to keep your baby calmed. You can choose the way you want it to move: up and down, from left to the right… The movement will be controlled by the app. But there is even more! Parents will be able to add music to their baby experience with the mamaRoo.

mamaRoo

The Role of thethings.iO

At thethings.iO, we connect devices or wearables such as the ones we have mentioned in this post to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.

2015-08-10/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

_Featured Posts, IoT

Internet of Loving Things

It seemed impossible to understand “love” in multiple ways, but like everything around us, love is ever changing and evolving with the other revolutions. No one believed in the possibility of a long distance relationship, but with the evolution in technology and the new forms of communication that have came with it, long distance relationships have become common place today. People no longer need to be in the same room to be able to express their affection to one another.

There are lots of new ways to keep in touch with the people we love, even when she/he is on the other side of the world. Texting, skyping… the possibilities become infinite, and it will be something even bigger when the Internet of Things introduces itself in the love sphere. Actually, the Internet of Things already has made an impact in how we can show our emotions to one another.
Feel the Internet of Things
It is time to go to sleep and the only thing that you want is a kiss from your significant other, but they are on the other side of the planet away on business. You can try and imagine the feeling you remember but what about the actual feeling? Would that make it better?

In one of our earlier posts about Tactile Internet we talked about the opportunity to be able to feel sensations using the Internet. We are soon realizing that everything imaginable will be possible in the near future. Feeling, emotions and even sensations will be able to be sent via the internet to the ones we love. Just a few days ago, Facebook’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, said that “One day, I believe we’ll be able to send full rich thoughts to each other directly using technology. You’ll just be able to think of something and your friends will immediately be able to experience it too if you’d like. This would be the ultimate communication technology”.

Do you not remember the Kissing Machine from The Big Bang Theory’s show a couple of years ago? Check the clip out below:

Love without limits thanks to IoT

In 2013, it was something funny and often laughed at. Now in 2015, it is more that that, hugs, kisses, and touch are possible even when your significant other is around the globe.

The main idea of Pillow Talk was to allow long distance couples to feel closer to one another when not together. Each person has a wristband they wear to bed at night while also placing a speaker inside their pillowcase. The wristband picks up your real-time heartbeat and transmits it to the others pillow so that the heartbeat of your partner can be felt by the other even when apart.

While being interviewed by StuConnect, the founder of project Pillow Talk said, “In today’s digital world, it’s easier than ever to maintain a relationship across long distances, but existing methods of communication such as email or facebook are very two-dimensional, often screen-based, and don’t capture one of the fundamental aspects of being in a relationship with someone: the other person’s presence”.

BOND was born with this same principle. This product proposed the idea of being able to transmit tactile touch. Each person has a bracelet or a pendant, and when someone touches it, it transmits a vibration to the other person’s device no matter where they are at that moment.

The role of thethings.iO in here

At thethings.iO we connect devices or wearables such as the ones we have mentioned in this post to the Internet. We are a Cloud solution for companies that decide to build new cool things that can be connected to improve our lives. If you want to know more about us, you can create an account by clicking here, sign up to receive our monthly newsletter or follow us on Twitter! Stay tuned and be the first in knowing the latest news of the IoT world and thethings.iO.

2015-08-03/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

_Featured Posts, IoT

Living in a Woman’s IoT World

As a song says, this is a man’s world, but it wouldn’t be nothing without women. Well, the world is changing and is becoming a woman’s world as well. It is changing in the social and technological field, therefore it is not strange to see the new IoT wearables designed specially for women.

Jewelry Meets Internet of Things

The Apple Watch broke borders recently, as Fitbit did some months ago. Now, it is the turn of more esthetic devices and the jewelry business has seen a huge opportunity to use the IoT technology to sell a unique product. It is not just about the beauty. It is about the functionality and new possibilities to do “something else.”

If some years ago we could not see jewelry as more than an accessory, nowadays they are able to do whatever. From notifying you of a call on your smartphone using a vibration, to advising the police of emergencies.

Lots of new functionalities may seem like fiction, but they are actually real. The past Fashions Weeks, specifically the one located in New York, showed the whole world some new wearables for women, most of them appearing as a bracelet style. The main idea of the companies is to create a kind of technology that could not be noticed by others. And they have achieved it!

Internet of Things Turns into Fashion

Ringly is, apparently, a normal ring, but what it has inside makes it a unique piece of technology. It houses an accelerometer, Bluetooth LE, tiny LEDs and a motor inside its precious gem. This ring is connected to a smartphone that alerts wearers about incoming texts or calls via vibration and flashing lights. Looking at its sophisticated and accurate design, you would never believe it is an IoT device.

Ringly – wearables for women

The noise has been created in the bracelet design area. Lots of companies (mature ones and new), have proposed designs for new possibilities of IoT bracelets. MEMI’s idea uses wireless technology to communicate with the wearer’s iPhone. It can vibrate for important calls (you can also select callers), text messages and calendar alerts. Easily usable, MEMI fits all its technology (LEDs, sensors, etc) into a fashion bracelet that will not remain indifferent to anyone.

Memi – wearables for women

Otherwise, MICA’s proposal was to see what happens when beauty meets intelligence. My Intelligent Communication Accessory, better known as MICA, is a bracelet with a touchscreen display, designed by Opening Ceremony and engineered by Intel, which allows you to easily access the notifications from your VIP contacts (messages, calendar alerts…).

Safe IoT-Fashion Devices

A bracelet, ring or necklace that incorporates technology inside should provide more than just a vibration when you are called or texted. Certainly, we want the technology to make us feel safer at anyplace and anytime. Fashion has met safety and IoT at the same time to create wearables that are unstoppable.

By having UVA and UVB sensors, JUNE by Netatmo measures precisely the wearer’s sun exposure. An app computes the data and gives you, in real time, the UV index in order to know when you should apply SPF or the level you should use, for example.

June by Netatmo

Speaking of safety, (maybe you were thinking about more dangerous situations than the sunburn ones), Revolar was created from the idea of a magic button in which you press when you are in danger. So, this is exactly how it works. When you find yourself in a dangerous situation, you press the button, which is hidden under your clothes, and an Emergency Alert message with your location information (updated every 3 minutes) is sent to a person on your emergency contact list.

Revolar – wearables for women

Similar to Revolar, Cuff is a jewellry collection (not just a little device that can be hidden) that allow women to be connected everytime, everywhere. The way it works is simple: you just press a button when you are in danger and automatically it is sent a notification to somebody else. That one, receives an alert on his/her smartphone to make the process to call the police faster.

Why do we post this? As you should know, thethings.iO is an Internet of Things Start-up. So, imagining and creating a cool device is your job, while ours is to connect it to the Internet. We can connect all those bracelets, rings, necklaces… fast and easy.
If you want to know more about the IoT world and thethings.iO stay tuned!

2015-07-31/0 Comments/by Marc Pous

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