Libelium, a company that claims to provide a modular, easy way to program open-source sensor platform for the Internet of Things, recently integrated Bluetooth 4.0, also known as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Bluetooth Smart, in the company’s Waspmote sensors. As a result, the Waspmote sensors can now be connected to smartphones, tablets and all other BLE-compatible iOS and Android (News - Alert) devices for seamless broadcast of data advertisements, or iBeacons, as well as transmission of sensor data without a pairing process.
There are more than 60 sensors available to connect to Waspmote: CO, CO2, soil moisture, presence, humidity, temperature, vehicle detection, radiation, current, liquid, luminosity, etc. The sensor boards allow developers to easily use them in Waspmote. In addition to Bluetooth Low Energy module, Waspmote can also switch to any of six other radio protocols—including Wi-Fi, ZigBee (News - Alert), 802.15.4, NFC, 3G and GPRS. With Bluetooth 4.0, the sensor devices can easily function as real-time location systems with encrypted data transactions.
David Gascón, CTO at Libelium, said in a statement, “We see Bluetooth Low Energy and Bluetooth Smart connectivity as an efficient, energy-saving option for everyday objects and new IoT applications in categories such as home automation, healthcare, retail mobile tracking, and security.”
Libelium also recently launched a smart water wireless sensor platform to simplify remote water quality monitoring. Equipped with multiple sensors that measure a dozen of the most relevant water quality parameters, Waspmote Smart Water features autonomous nodes that connect to the cloud for real-time water control.
Waspmote Smart Water is suitable for potable water monitoring, chemical leakage detection in rivers, remote measurement of swimming pools and spas, and levels of seawater pollution. The water quality parameters measured include pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) conductivity (salinity), temperature, and dissolved ions such as Ca+, Cl-, K+. The Waspmote Smart Water platform is an ultra low-power sensor node designed for use in rugged environments and deployment in Smart Cities in hard-to-access locations to detect changes and potential risk to public health in real-time.
Edited by Rachel Ramsey