Let's start by getting some terminology out of the way. In the context of this article, M2M (Machine to Machine) is used for applications that mobilize assets like vehicles and goods, i.e., they track and manage them. Unfortunately, the term is something of a misnomer because the first "M" is normally a device such as a wireless modem or RFID chip and the second is a computer system that runs the application.
An alternative term is "The Internet of Things". It has a nice marketing ring but what are those "Things"? PCs connect to the Net, however, they are not part of M2M's value chain.
Ultimately, what's in a name? All that really matters are the applications.
M2M apps represent a relatively small but growing sector of the global telecommunications market, despite the recession. And they are working well in a wide range of vertical markets: e.g. automotive; buildings; smart energy; home and consumer; healthcare; industrial; transportation; retail; networks and security.
Right now there is a disconnect between the vertical, semi-proprietary architecture these apps employ and the horizontal topology of an enterprise's ICT environment. However, the remarkable success of this sector reflects the value of the information that M2M apps generate, which in turn indicates that the business case for integration with mainstream business processes is based on a solid foundation.
Business Process Integration
Consider this example. A typical M2M vehicle tracking solution would employ wireless modems that use GPS to give precise location information, and telematics functionality can also be built into the systems to monitor the performance of both the driver and the vehicle. This real-time information would be displayed on a graphical map, and a transportation manager would use it to check status and issue pick-up instructions.
These and other M2M applications can have very short ROI times. The processes aren't broke and don’t need fixing, but the value of the information can be leveraged. For example, trucks will typically carry manufactured products, and these tangible assets would have been tracked and managed in the factory by ERP. Integration with this process would therefore identify which trucks were carrying which products: that's the value add.
In turn, integration with CRM would allow the enterprise to answer via the Web when customers have inquiries about the status of their order. And instead of a plain vanilla reply such as "being shipped", the solution could give an ETA. This second value-add represents a meaningful customer service as well as a marketing differentiator.
That's the Logic; Now the Issues
M2M started life on the factory floor, and in this case embedding or adding a short-range wireless capability enabled communications between machines over a LAN. Adding a wide-area capability was an obvious step to take, and GSM-enabled models advanced the concept and took the technology into those B2B vertical markets.
Most M2M applications require wide area data connectivity. And although various mainstream standards were employed--e.g. GSM, fixed IP addresses, and VPNs--the applications ran on proprietary platforms developed by a variety of service providers, the biggest group being specialist Mobile Virtual Network Operators (MVNOs), not vendors of ICT systems.
Despite the early success, the industry has recognized the need for platforms based on open standards. Standards generate economies of scale, so prices go down: they create bigger markets, so more and more applications are developed. And, when relevant, the information provided by these apps is easier to integrate into mainstream business processes.
In addition, there is a clear need to replace the current vertical approach with a horizontal one that has a common system architecture that shares system elements. And that is where the Cloud enters the picture.
M2M In the Cloud
Numerex published a paper on this subject in 2008. It was a short, forward-looking 4-pager, titled "Harnessing the Power of Cloud Computing for M2M" written by the CTO, Dr Jeff Smith. There was a very clear description of the cloud computing model as well as the exciting M2M opportunities it would enable. For example, "with increased processing power at their disposal, M2M innovators should no longer be intimidated by the challenges posed by capturing and analyzing the massive amount of data available in all kind of smart devices."
OK. That was in 2008 so where are we now? What are the key issues? The biggest barrier--and it is big--is standards. However, lots of standards bodies are active in this area, e.g. the ITU, ATIS, ETSI, TIA and more (maybe too many more). But the various tasks are going to be allocated and we can expect to see real progress in Q1 2011.
That may not set the pulse racing, but the emergence of the requisite standards, i.e. those that would allow M2M to become a seamless ICT component of enterprise environments, would in turn lead to an accelerated flow of innovative applications and services. The timeline for this development is around 12 to 18 months. Meanwhile M2M continues to grow at a very respectable rate.
In the Meantime
Rather than wait for standards to be nailed down, various vendors have been moving towards open platforms. Numerex, for example, has developed an open, customizable middleware development platform. Known as FAST (Foundation Application Software Technology), it's basically an application stack that has all the building blocks necessary for the rapid development of an M2M solution.
As illustrated in Figure 1 below, the platform is device- and network-agnostic. It can communicate with any device from any hardware manufacturer through any wireless network. In order to adapt to different business needs, the device interface has custom functionality built in. And since the design is based on middleware, FAST can be upgraded to reflect changes in the market, e.g. new devices and new networks like LTE.
(For larger image, click here)
So far so good.
As indicated earlier, the architecture is that of an applications stack. At the lowest layer there is a virtual machine that resides on a fault-tolerant server in the Numerex data center. This is the cloud model, which features scalable server capability and memory allocation.
A device gateway--software that sits on the VM--can use different protocols, and a key function is the ability to translate M2M device data into something usable by the single, Web-optimized applications database as well as one or more device-optimized database(s). MySQL is the open source database platform of choice, and this indicates the relative ease with which the information can be integrated with business processes, e.g. SAP, as shown in the figure above.
FAST would therefore appear to be very close to the kind of open, standards-based platforms that will enable M2M applications to become a seamless component of an enterprise's cloud-centric environment.
Conclusion
Right now M2M is not perceived as being part of the mainstream ICT environment, but in future the business case for leveraging the information that M2M apps like vehicle tracking generate will be a given and we can expect many more to emerge.
These apps have their own "standalone" ROI, as do the business processes like ERP and CRM, which means that the business case is predicated on the ease with which they can be integrated. And we arrive at that scenario when the information is generated in a standards-based format.
SIDEBAR: M2M Definitions
The acronym doesn't do justice to the breadth and depth of the communications concept it represents.
One definition goes like this: M2M connects people, devices, and systems and turns machine data into actionable information. Leave out "machine" and it works just as well.
Figure 2. The premise is simple. Capture data, transmit the data, and then analyze the data.
Here's another definition: M2M uses a device to capture an "event", which is relayed through an IP network to an application that translates the captured event into meaningful information, as shown in the figure.
Bob Emmerson is a freelance writer who lives in The Netherlands. Email: [email protected]. Web: www.electric-words.org.
