The Facebook of Things?
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RedBite Solutions was spun out of the Cambridge Auto-ID Centre in 2006. Since then RedBite’s RFID technologies have been deployed around the world and we have proven that we can transform the way in which global deployments of RFID are managed.
RedBite a technology company that turns physical objects into smart objects by connecting them to the cloud. Any object can have it’s own digital profile – just like people do on social networks, which means you can connect with the things that you own, manage and use in a much more intelligent way.
Amid the hyperbole that surrounds discussions on the future of cloud connectivity and the Internet of Things, such claims as this are common but it is easy to overlook some of the ways in which this connectivity is manifesting itself. Indeed, if you are a regular visitor to the IfM you will be able to see a perfect example of this being put into place over the coming weeks for the IfM will be one of the UK’s first installations of our RedStore asset tracking solution.
Like thousands of other organisations, the IfM contains a huge number of valuable physical assets that need to be maintained, accounted for and – quite simply – not “lost”. These range from glamorous high value items like 3-D printers and the audio-visual equipment to mundane but no less valuable things like air conditioners, tables, catering equipment and everything else that means the place can function. Managing this inventory, keeping it all working, safe and in-place is a very real challenge.
So, what if every asset in the IfM was to become a Smart Asset? During the coming weeks RFID tags and QR codes will begin appearing all over the IfM signifying that everything that they are attached to now has its very own unique online profile, or – if you like – its own “Facebook” page. Simply by scanning the QR code with a smart phone or tablet anyone (staff, student or visitor) can access important information about that object. A PDF of the user manual perhaps; the date on which its consumables were last refreshed or its next service due date. Furthermore, as with any social media page, people will be able to share comments about that object. The “this is what you do when the red light comes on” knowledge that gets shared daily between perplexed people gathered around photocopiers can find its digital expression. Faults can be reported immediately with a few smartphone button presses and an e-mail will arrive in the in-box of the member of staff that knows what must be done to fix it. What is more significant than this however is that the asset will be empowered to speak for itself. The asset itself will remind staff that its lease is coming to an end and that it is due for a service.
And so the age of Smart Assets is upon us but why stop there? QR codes are a simple ubiquitous technology that’s available to everyone and so why should any object that we interact with and share on a daily basis not also have this functionality?
For further information about RedBite Solutions contact:
Adrian Segens
