ARM to bring the Internet of Things to life at its Cambridge Campus

25 July 2013, Cambridge, U.K.: ARM announces work is underway to transform its headquarters into a hub for its partners’ Internet of Things (IoT) technologies. ARM and its partners won £800,000 in a competitive funding call from the Technology Strategy Board, the U.K.’s innovation agency, to deploy network technology and over 600 connected sensors across its premises in Cambridge. All of these connected sensors are controlled by smart ARM-technology–based chips. The project will provide information and finer-grained control of the site and its 75 car park lights, 40 meeting rooms, heating, and water management systems. The company believes that making connected assets across the ARM campus work together will demonstrate tangible business benefits and help it achieve a reduction in energy use. Based on open Internet standards and designed to help application developers mobilize connected assets of all kinds, the API specification will be made public to achieve broader deployment and to benefit businesses and individuals around the world.

ARM partners involved in the project include AlertMe, EnLight, and IntelliSense.io. The collaboration will create an environment that enables ARM employees to work even smarter by reducing energy consumption and reducing inefficiencies. This collaboration between some of the UK’s most advanced technology companies will also provide the technology industry with key lessons on how a new generation of intelligent, connected products and services can be fully implemented, with the potential for worldwide adoption.

“The IoT is a world where ‘things’ such as devices, data, and locations are interconnected with applications and users over the Internet,” says Bill Morelli, an analyst of electronics and media at IHS. “It is set to transform how people and systems control, interact with and experience the world around them, sparking new products, services and job opportunities. It is an extremely exciting new market that has been predicted to grow to 29.5 billion devices by 2020.”

“ARM is delighted that, together with our partners, we have won the backing of the Technology Strategy Board to deploy IoT devices to improve the efficiency of our buildings in Cambridge,” says Graham Budd, chief operating officer, ARM. “To create a smart efficient building you need a great many sensors distributed throughout the system, all sharing information to improve decision-making. ARM technology and its ecosystem create the bedrock of this smart intelligence that will enable others to build unique services and applications to help the IoT flourish.”

“The Technology Strategy Board is committed to accelerating economic growth by stimulating business-led innovation,” says Andrew Tyrer, lead technologist, Internet of Things, Technology Strategy Board. “The projects we are supporting through this programme are helping to create the smart, connected future that holds such enormous opportunities for business in the UK and globally.”

AlertMe is providing smart solutions to detect occupancy of ARM meeting rooms. This technology will show employees when rooms are in use via an online booking system, enabling more efficient use of office space. AlertMe is also providing 75 kits for ARM employees that will enable them to monitor their own homes’ temperatures, energy consumption patterns and occupancy levels. AlertMe website: http://www.alertme.com/

EnLight is upgrading ARM’s outdoor lighting in car parks and around building exteriors with a lighting management solution that will reduce energy consumption and enable ARM to intelligently control the lighting. The technology will enable ARM to remotely monitor data such as operating temperature, lamp status and energy consumption, plus lamps can be controlled and light levels adjusted during periods of low use to make additional savings. EnLight website: http://www.enlight.co.uk/

Intellisense.io are providing solutions to measure pressure and flow in ARM’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems. This technology will enable building temperatures to be read, zone-by-zone and will also enable the tracking of real-time maintenance needs, plus rates of water consumption and ARM’s overall carbon performance. Intellisense.io website: http://intellisense.io/