reelyActive

Abstract — Until recently, cases of independently operated radio frequency identification (RFID) deployments occupying a common space could be considered rare. However, the recent emergence of the RAIN Alliance and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) is resulting in the proliferation of fixed and mobile infrastructure for the radio-identification of both things and people through standardised passive and active RFID technologies, respectively. Consequently, today, there are everyday situations where independently operated RFID systems are likely to co-exist, both ephemerally and indefinitely. In this paper, we present a mechanism for mutual discovery and the subsequent exchange of structured data among such colocated, and often heterogeneous, systems. The resulting machine-readable real-time representation of the real-world on a human scale is what we call hyperlocal context, an open, standards-based language for the Internet of Things. We argue that hyperlocal context and the presented mechanisms foster efficient crowd-sensing which combines the complementary characteristics of both active and UHF passive RFID systems. The underlying framework has been successfully implemented in open source software with BLE supported and UHF passive RFID integration in progress. Collaboration among the scientific and industrial communities to advance standards for collective context will only become more critical as the proliferation of RFID infrastructure accelerates.

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3rd IEEE Conference on Internet of People (IoP 2017) | Fremont, CA. August 4-8, 2017.

10th IEEE International Conference on RFID | Orlando, FL. May 3-5, 2016.

Abstract — Bluetooth Smart is emerging as arguably the first global low-power wireless standard for the Internet of Things, bringing with it billions of devices, or "Things", capable of spontaneously broadcasting short messages to any potential receiving devices in range. If a widespread infrastructure of such receiving devices were to exist, these broadcast messages could be reliably captured, parsed, and forwarded in IP packets via the Internet to any and all concerned parties, enabling connectionless, distributed low-power M2M networks. In this paper we present advlib, a software library for parsing low-power wireless broadcast (also known as advertising) packets, with this objective. Experimental results indicate that, coupled with the necessary receiver infrastructure, in many cases at least the device vendor can be identified, validating the potential for M2M forwarding. Moreover, results suggest that sufficient semantically-meaningful information may be extracted by the library to support contextual IoT applications even at a local scale. Development continues on extending the support of known protocols and establishing the necessary relationships with device vendors.

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2nd IEEE World Forum on Internet of Things (WF-IoT) | Milan, Italy. December 16, 2015.

Abstract — Existing wireless M2M infrastructure based on cellular and WiFi networks is often unsuitable for the growing number of simple, inexpensive, low-power connected devices. Low-power wireless technologies are examined in order to identify the considerations for a suitable low-power wireless M2M area network infrastructure. A novel design with the versatility to support multiple technologies and to easily extend coverage is presented and its implementation detailed. Results, including real-time location capability, are promising and development continues to support emerging applications and wireless technologies.

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1st IEEE Workshop on Machine to Machine Communications Interfaces and Platforms (M2MCIP) | Sydney, Australia. October 24, 2013.

Abstract — Existing wireless M2M infrastructure based on cellular and WiFi networks is often unsuitable for the growing number of simple, inexpensive, low-power connected devices. We demonstrate an infrastructure architecture capable of simultaneously supporting a variety of low-power wireless technologies, with plug-and-play extensibility of coverage. The demonstration highlights the simplicity and versatility of the architecture, which we call a reel. Real-time connectivity with the Internet and realtime location capability are presented. We conclude with a brief discussion of the potential for and advantages of crowdsourced deployments.

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38th IEEE Conference on Local Computer Networks (LCN) | Sydney, Australia. October 22, 2013.

Abstract — The Internet of Things (IoT) holds the promise for computers to understand our world by means of technology. Today, computers observe and identify the world, but unless they interact to optimally share all relevant information, their understanding remains incomplete. We argue that location-based device discovery is a prerequisite for the required IoT interactions. Based on this, we introduce the concept of hyperlocal context, a combination of device identity, location and information resources, which represents a digital understanding of the world at a human scale. The considerations for the implementation of hyperlocal context as well as current and future applications are presented.

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International Workshop on Identification, Information and Knowledge in the Internet of Things (IIKI) | Beijing, China. October 18-20, 2013.