Security at naval ports to get a boost with IoT tracking solution
NewsDecember 03, 2020
CAMARILLO, Calif. and BELLEVUE, Wash. Analog and mixed-signal semiconductor maker Semtech has joined forces with internet protocol (IP) networking company Ripl Networks to deploy an IP mesh, 3D tracking solution for foreign guest and fleet assets at naval ports under a contract with the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD).
According to a joint statement from the companies, Semtech’s LoRa [long-range] devices provide low-bandwidth connectivity for Ripl’s MLMesh system, which conducts IP over low-power device messaging; Ripl’s software enables what it calls Tiny Edge computing in which low-cost, machine-learning emitters can live inside the enterprise IP network. Taken together, the technologies enable low-power devices to talk IP at long distances while accurately tracking 3D locations without the use of GPS or cellular towers. Company information reveals that Ripl Networks is tasked with acting as the systems integrator with other key technologies, including Avnet’s IoT Connect platform, which will serve as the back-end system for data storage and monitoring.
The DoD had been on the hunt for a system to perform 3D tracking of assets in a private, IP network that would support low-power sensors. The port of Hueneme, California -- the only deep-water harbor between Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay area -- will be the initial DoD deployment of the asset-tracking solution.
