Opto 22, a Temecula, Calif. developer and manufacturer of hardware and software for industrial automation, remote monitoring, enterprise data acquisition and machine-to-machine (M2M) applications, is integrating the GT48 control terminal from London-based Sony Ericsson with its OptoGSM input/output (I/O) hardware, resulting in a lower-cost and more flexible wireless system for M2M applications.
“We fully anticipate our first offering, the enhanced OptoGSM I/O, to become available in the second quarter of this year,” says Corporate Executive Vice President Anders Franzen, head of Sony Ericsson's Machine-to-Machine division.
Applications for M2M systems can include monitoring, alarming, and messaging of temperature, pressure, tank levels, and other variables, as well as status and on/off control for lights, motors, generators and other remote equipment.
OptoGSM I/O originally debuted in May 2003 as part of the Opto 22 machine-to-machine product family. Using a combination of industry standard, G4-footprint, plug-in digital I/O modules, together with built-in analog I/O functionality and an embedded wireless communications radio, OptoGSM I/O provides connectivity to physical business assets and transmits machine or environmental data over any Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) cellular network.
The Sony Ericsson GT48 is a GSM/GPRS control terminal designed to provide wireless connectivity for M2M applications. However, unlike most wireless telemetry modules, radios, modems, and other components that merely provide a means of communicating over cellular networks, the GT48 is an intelligent device that can be configured to independently perform control and alarming functions using a built-in scripting engine. This means the GT48 can be programmed to, among other things, execute business logic and communicate with the connected asset intuitively, thus enabling users to add monitoring, messaging, and local control functions as needed. The result is a more customized, efficient, and cost-effective M2M application.
“Opto 22 has been developing world-class input/output systems for decades, so we were quick to recognize the value of the embedded intelligence and other capabilities of the GT48 control terminal,” states Mark Engman, vice president of engineering at Opto 22. “With its robust and re-configurable industrial I/O interface, the GT48 has proved to be excellent choice for integration with our OptoGSM I/O hardware for low-cost, wireless machine-to-machine applications.”
Meanwhile, the company has also announced the integration of San Diego cellular device company Kyocera Wireless Corp.'s model 200 telemetry module with Opto 22 SNAP I/O hardware, resulting in M2M communications for remote asset monitoring, management, and data acquisition over Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) networks.
The Kyocera 200 module is a wireless telemetry device for communicating data over CDMA-based 1xRTT cellular networks. Customer applications can include remote equipment and facilities monitoring and management, supply chain optimization, energy management, regulatory compliance, discrete manufacturing, and process control for a number of diverse industries.
The integration of the Kyocera 200 module with Opto 22’s SNAP I/O provides additional coverage and new communications options for customers seeking to remotely manage and acquire operational data from their extended enterprise and incorporate it into existing business applications and databases. CDMA is the most widely deployed cellular network in North America.
"We're pleased to partner with Opto 22 on the integration of the Kyocera 200 module with their field-proven hardware to deliver M2M solutions over CDMA networks,” states Dean Fledderjohn, general manager for Kyocera Wireless Corp.'s M2M business.
“Kyocera's 200 module performed exceptionally well during testing, actually providing some of the lowest rates of data packet loss for any radio technology we’ve encountered,” attests Opto 22’s Engman. “As a result, Opto 22 was very confident in moving forward with Kyocera Wireless to diversify our M2M product line with CDMA-based technologies and thus reaffirm our commitment to providing customers with comprehensive, reliable and easily-sourced M2M technologies at a lower cost.”
