CIOTechOutlook >> Magazine >> April - 2015 issue

Smart Cities Need Smart Networks

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Billions of people live in booming cities. They want optimum living conditions. One way to achieve this goal is through Smart Cities featuring the intelligent networking of information and things. Sturdy cabling is needed to transmit the information quickly and reliably. Urbanization is progressing at a rapid pace. By 2050 the urban population will account for 70 percent of the total according to UN statistics and forecasts. Yet planning the future of cities entails more than energy reduction and climate protection. In the future, cities will welcome every sensible technology that contributes to optimum living conditions, efficient information processing, cooperative communal life and better communication and education.
Many “City of the Future” concepts say that broadband Internet access will have to become just as much a resource as power, water and clean air. The vision is this: Smart City a learning city that is intelligent, sustainable and thoroughly networked. That is why investments in Smart City projects are skyrocketing. Market researchers from IHS Technology predict that worldwide investments will grow from US$ 1 billion in 2013 to US$ 12 billion in 2025. In a market study, Navigant Research determined that the number of network nodes newly installed for Smart City networks every year will more than triple – from 16.3 million in 2014 to 54.8 million in 2020.

Smart Energy Supply
The options of a Smart City can be vividly illustrated by the issue of energy supply:

Smart Metering
Using full-coverage ICT networking and symmetric, digital information transmission parallel to the power network, energy requirements could be recorded at the most remote places in real time.

Smart Management
Energy-hungry machines could be remote controlled to a waiting position over the data network to reduce peak loads on the power grid.
Smart Services: Customers could remotely monitor the energy consumption in their homes and control it more precisely over the Internet or by means of mobile communications. They could communicate with public utilities automatically.
Networks as the foundation: The ICT infrastructure is a vital prerequisite for implementing these scenarios. The Smart Cities Committee of the FTTH Council Europe stresses this: “A Smart City is based on a strong, reliable communication network. It is the foundation for applications and services”. The FTTH Council believes communities should rely consistently on fiber optic cabling on their way to becoming Smart Cities. Fiber optic networks offer the most prospects for the future, the greatest performance and nearly inexhaustible potential. So they form the backbone for the future.

Criteria for planning
The transmission infrastructures should offer the greatest possible functionality. The object is not just to connect computers. For example, cameras, sensors and measuring equipment inside and outside buildings also have to be seamlessly integrated and must be able to communicate with each other over the Internet. Adaptable, application-neutral cabling is the prerequisite for this capability. There are no standards for the networking of a Smart City. The obvious thing to do would be to consistently continue the trend toward Ethernet / IP-based communication and to apply this globally uniform industry standard wherever it is practicable.
Open access will be important for the fiber optic connection of apartments to create fair market conditions for providers. In principle, every possible type of connection for machines, sensors and other users should have an open access design. Standardized, compatible and commercially available connectivity is a must for Smart Cities. Every individual wish for networking should be able to be integrated into a Smart City in a smooth and customized fashion. Easy scalability is also an issue in this context. Cabling must not be allowed to create obstacles. The platforms and connections should be able to be installed and operated intuitively so mistakes can be minimized in installation and especially in maintenance. The cabling systems should have a logical, clearly-structured design. Quick mounting technology should simplify each movement.
The convergence of the networks is an essential aspect of a Smart City. Flexibility will be a key issue. The networks must be able to be integrated into organically evolved settlement structures. Network sections varying in age and structure must be able to be joined together. Aesthetic aspects also play a role. Connections and lines should be able to be integrated intelligently in the surroundings.
Unprofitable and uncoordinated parallel trends in network expansion can be avoided if the stakeholders in a city cooperate and remain aware of their goals.

Conclusion
To conclude, a Smart City is based on a strong, reliable communication network which is the foundation for applications and services. A Smart City will increase efficiency, productivity, ecological awareness; it will reduce pollution and improve quality of life in a world of increasing urban complexity.


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