Telecom network maker Huawei and mobile operator Vodafone will set up NB-IoT (Narrowband Internet of Things) Open Lab to drive development and promotion of NB-IoT technology.
Using pre-standard NB-IoT technology prior to full standardization, the proposed NB-IoT Open Lab will explore network solution verification, new application innovation, device integration, business model research and product compliance certification, etc.
“As the technology moves towards commercial deployment in early 2017, it’s essential that we start building an ecosystem with developers and solution providers,” said Luke Ibbetson, Vodafone Group R&D Director and Chairman of the NB-IoT Forum.
NB-IoT technology will extend the utilization of Internet of Things (IoT) by making it more efficient to connect objects requiring a long battery life. The first devices connected by NB-IoT technology are expected in late 2016 or early 2017.
Vodafone and Huawei integrated the technology into the operator’s existing mobile network in Spain and then sent the first pre-standard NB-IoT message to a u-blox module installed in a water meter.
The lab will be incorporated into the federation of NB-IoT Open Labs being planned within the GSMA’s NB-IoT Forum at a later stage.
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