by Gary Mintchell | May 15, 2017 | Automation, Industrial Computers
While I am trying to finish a longer post on my Dell EMC experience from last week and all my Hannover experience, I’ll follow up on a conversation I had last week with Dell EMC’s Kevin Terwilliger about the embedded PC market.
He has written a blog post from his visit to Embedded World in Germany. The Embedded Computing market always seemed a little strange to me. In part because huge VME and PCI (and CompactPCI) chassis computers were alongside SOC (what I think of as “embedded”) and other chip and board level computing.
Check out his blog. I posted a comment.
His observation:
After attending Embedded World last month in Germany it was clearer to me than ever before – the embedded PC industry is not dissimilar to the desktop PC industry 30 years ago. When Dell entered the PC market back in 1984 and in the years shortly following, there were 430 PC companies who were each trying to compete based on some level of unique customization they could offer. Dell turned all this upside down with their direct configure to order model.
Good point. I would just add (again, check his blog) that part of the consolidation was technology-driven. CPUs became much more powerful and memory became more plentiful and cheaper. This meant that the PC itself could do much more without add-on cards and peripherals. Customization became firmware and software driven. You could buy one box and make it what you wanted (to a degree).
Dell’s embedded offering could be a foreboding of such a change in the embedded market. What do you think?
by Gary Mintchell | May 9, 2017 | Internet of Things, Operations Management
Dell EMC just keeps the momentum growing in its Internet of Things business with the announcement this morning (PDT) of a new partnership. I’m in Las Vegas at Dell EMC World and expect to pick up much more IoT news in addition to what was announced at Hannover.
Atos and Dell EMC announced they are joining forces to address the growing Internet of Things (IoT) and business analytics markets. This collaboration is based on best-in-class hardware and software from Dell EMC combined with the Atos Codex, a complete set of solutions and capabilities to design, build, run and secure smart data business services, data platforms and Internet of Things. The offering will initially focus on North America and Europe.
By 2020, nearly 40% of IoT-related revenue will come from services according to Markets and Markets. This number is expected to increase annually due to an increasing need for IT consulting and support. IoT professional services accounted for $57 billion in 2016 and are set to reach $158 billion by 2021, a CAGR of over 22%.
The unprecedented growth in connected devices, the data generated and the applications generating value out of these connections will need a strong offering in end-to-end service management, considering the enormous size and complexities of the networks generated by the Internet of Things.
Yuga Joshi, Practice Director at Everest Group: “Atos’ approach to enabling IoT use cases for achieving operational efficiency, customer engagement, and business transformation meets a clear market requirement. Its capabilities across the IoT stack, enhanced by strategic investments, partnerships, such as with Dell EMC, and experience in executing large-scale projects drives continuous value delivery and improved business outcomes for the customers.”
Atos and Dell EMC are working together to build an IoT service management framework to allow customers to be always in control and to be assured that all users can continuously create value from their connected devices. The service management framework will be called Atos Codex IoT Services.
The Atos Codex IoT Services framework will contain a catalogue of services including management of devices, connectivity, data and storage, change and release control, incident management, service desk and support, and the operations to increase resilience against failures or disturbances. These services will be delivered with user-defined service levels, including the necessary security measures for access management and data encryption. The framework also defines an architecture blueprint, containing hardware and software solutions from Dell EMC as well as software solutions and integration services from Atos.
The collaboration is expected to cover two areas:
- Joint development/design of the Service Delivery Framework, utilizing existing assets from both companies.
- Joint market approach, building upon the strength of each company’s brand and capabilities to build and sell solutions driven by customer demand.
The first Atos Codex IoT Services framework capabilities are available now with additional services and products will be added based on market demand.
Jay Snyder, Senior Vice President, Global Alliances, Industries & Service Providers at Dell EMC: “We are proud to help Atos enhance their IoT service offering, which will leverage our comprehensive portfolio such as Dell Edge Gateways to securely transfer and analyze important data at the edge of the network and Dell EMC hyper-converged infrastructure and scale-out storage at the core. Combining these assets with Atos’ expertise, services, hardware and their IoT capabilities in the Atos Codex end-to-end managed analytics offering, we are well positioned to help our customers successfully deliver their IoT-driven digital transformation agenda.”
Paul Albada Jelgersma, Head of IoT Solutions at Atos: “We are proud to partner with Dell EMC to provide our clients with the services, technology and capabilities they need to effectively manage their assets and generate value from them, by leveraging our combined strength in IoT products and services. This will offer businesses the tools to utilize their data and assets to provide continuous value and improved business outcomes, wherever they are.”
by Gary Mintchell | Apr 27, 2017 | Internet of Things, Operations Management
If enthusiasm means anything there will shortly be what could be described as an Internet of Things operating system. I reported Monday about a press release I received from the Linux Foundation about a “unification platform for interoperability of protocols for the Internet of Things.” As you may have guessed, I was less than impressed with the press release. This is the EdgeX Foundry.
So, I devoted an hour to Jason Shepherd, the Dell EMC director who is the driver putting this all together in Hannover on Wednesday. He brought me to an architecture diagram. I wish they had sent that with the release.
Internet of Things Loosely Coupled
By way of preface for the geeks in the readership, I refer you to a book, Loosely Coupled, by Doug Kaye. This architecture is an example of what Kaye thought was the future of IT and computing—namely loosely coupled applications.
The architecture is a loosely coupled system of data inputs in a variety of protocols, almost an endless variety, if you will, and a loosely coupled system of applications (gray) brought together by a set of services (purple)—which are open source.
In other words, EdgeX describes the Internet of Things ecosystem bringing in data sources from a variety of protocols, storing the data, performing analytics, and serving out for visualization and action. This action is performed within a gateway device, let’s say for argument’s sake, a Dell Gateway product.
And as a side note, it is capable of also doing control. Now don’t get all excited about that, yet, but you and I both know engineers who like to try out new things that may give them some sort of advantage.
Let’s Contextualize
To place this in a context, this is close to what Siemens is doing with Mindsphere. Siemens is trying to be open. This project is also open source, taking it one step further. Except that there is no company of Siemens’ stature on board, yet.
I interviewed a company called Exosite at Hannover, which is the technology behind the Parker Voice of the Machine (to be described later). This company is trying to do a similar thing, but all within its system. That is its competitive edge—debases and analytics.
Similarly, SAP brings data from lots of sources into its cloud where it can perform all the work with its system.
Then there is Cisco. It controls all the data flow on most networks. Tapping into that data source, it also is building a proprietary system that can do much of this.
Rockwell Automation can do some of this, but again, pretty much within its own ecosystem.
Meanwhile, GE Digital has Predix.
All of those have open connectors into their systems, but the systems remain closed within their own walls.
Thinking Radically
Let’s step outside the box for a second and consider what ExxonMobil is trying to do with its attempt to build an open DCS. There are many similarities to what Dell is doing here. I think ExxonMobil would have been further along partnering with Dell rather than Lockheed Martin who is taking it into the big company direction.
Shepherd and team have already amassed 50 companies committed to the effort. He thinks another 25 are close. Consider that, ExxonMobil.
Shepherd also thinks this is finally the ideal opportunity for smaller companies to disrupt the big company hold on the control market.
by Gary Mintchell | Apr 24, 2017 | Internet of Things
The Linux Foundation announced launch of EdgeX Foundry, an open source software project to build a common open framework for Internet of Things (IoT) edge computing and an ecosystem of interoperable components that will unify the marketplace and accelerate enterprise and Industrial IoT. The goal is the simplification and standardization of Industrial IoT edge computing, while still allowing the ecosystem to add significant value.
Looks like the big news is that Dell has joined and turned its Project Fuse set of IoT building blocks over to the open source project.
The press release, like most that deal with software, was long on buzz words and short on specifics that we all love to see. I have meetings this week in Hannover and expect to learn more. Watch for end-of-the-week updates.
Project Fuse? I did some research.
Back in December, 2015, Dell’s IoT director of strategy and partnerships Jason Shepherd told me that things were too complex trying to tie all the different ways to communicate through, for example, and IoT Gateway edge device. He also added these predictions for 2016. They seem to fit with the announcement.
- Enterprise will become the largest market for IoT adoption—While the Internet of Things hype reached its peak in the consumer markets this past year, 2016 will be the year of IoT in the enterprise market. Currently, we are seeing a slump in sales for the once buzzworthy, consumer IoT devices, such as fitness trackers, whereas just the opposite is happening for commercial IoT products. As companies begin understanding the value of IoT (return on investments, efficiency, productivity, etc.), commercial IoT solutions will gain traction and the enterprise will emerge as the largest market for IoT adoption.
- Standardization and interoperability of IoT technology will become a focal point—As IoT solutions become a mainstay for enterprises and consumers alike, the industry will face growing pressure for standardization and interoperability. As a result, an increasing number of industry players will begin uniting under the common goal of establishing a set of standards for IoT. These standards bodies and consortiums will make solid progress in 2016 but it is unlikely they will decide upon a finalized set of standards in the coming year. Rather, 2016 will be a year for critical industry-wide conversation that will help to drive the awareness of and need for standardization and interoperability.
Then I found this blog by Stacey Higginbotham, Dell plans an open source IoT stack, from last October.
I met with Jason Shepherd, director of IoT strategy and partnerships with Dell, who told me about its efforts to bring a modular set of building blocks to the industrial internet. It’s called Project Fuse, and Dell plans to make the effort open source.
Dell is working with 30 other “big name” companies that Shepherd didn’t name to create a layer of technologies that will sit between the many different messaging protocols used by today’s sensor networks and the cloud and analytics layer (see photo).
To me, this looks like it could cause problems for some of the middleware software vendors that currently do a lot of the heavy lifting for clients trying to integrate various systems, but Shepherd says some of them are on board because a platform like Project Fuse means they don’t have to build each client’s integration from scratch.
Leaders of this initiative believe there is too much fragmentation and the lack of a common IoT solution framework. This complexity hinders broad adoption and stalling market growth.
“Success in Internet of Things is dependent on having a healthy ecosystem that can deliver interoperability and drive digital transformation,” said Jim Zemlin, Executive Director of The Linux Foundation. “EdgeX Foundry is aligning market leaders around a common framework, which will drive IoT adoption and enable businesses to focus on developing innovative use cases that impact the bottom line.”
Unifying the IoT Market
EdgeX Foundry is designed to unify the marketplace around a common open framework and build an ecosystem of companies offering interoperable plug-and-play components. “Designed to run on any hardware or operating system and with any combination of application environments, EdgeX can quickly and easily deliver interoperability between connected devices, applications, and services, across a wide range of use cases,” states the release. Interoperability between community-developed software will be maintained through a certification program.
Dell is seeding EdgeX Foundry with its FUSE source code base under Apache 2.0. The contribution consists of more than a dozen microservices and over 125,000 lines of code and was architected with feedback from hundreds of technology providers and end users to facilitate interoperability between existing connectivity standards and commercial value-add such as edge analytics, security, system management and services. This is complemented by the recent merger of the IoTX project into the EdgeX effort, which was previously supported by EdgeX Foundry members including Two Bulls and Beechwoods Software, among others. Additional supporting code contributions by EdgeX members are already underway.
“One of the key factors holding back IoT designs in the enterprise is that there are too many choices to safely and easily implement a system that will provide a return on investment in a reasonable timeframe,” said Mike Krell, Lead IoT Analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy. “EdgeX Foundry will fundamentally change the market dynamic by allowing enterprise IoT applications to choose from a myriad of best-in-class software, hardware and services providers based on their specific needs.”
Founding members include: Advanced Micro Devices (AMD), Alleantia, Analog Devices, Bayshore Networks, Beechwoods Software, Canonical, ClearBlade, CloudPlugs, Cloud of Things, Cumulocity, Davra Networks, Dell, Eigen Innovations, EpiSensor, FogHorn Systems, ForgeRock, Great Bay Software, IMS Evolve, IOTech, IoTium, KMC Controls, Kodaro, Linaro, MachineShop, Mobiliya, Mocana, Modius, NetFoundry, Neustar, Opto 22, relayr, RevTwo, RFMicron, Sight Machine, SoloInsight, Striim, Switch Automation, Two Bulls, V5 Systems, Vantiq and ZingBox. Industry affiliate members include: Cloud Foundry Foundation, EnOcean Alliance, Mainflux, Object Management Group, Project Haystack and ULE Alliance.
“Businesses currently have to invest a lot of time and energy into developing their own edge computing solutions, before they can even deploy IoT solutions to address business challenges,” said Philip DesAutels, PhD Senior Director of IoT at The Linux Foundation and Executive Director of EdgeX Foundry. “EdgeX will foster an ecosystem of interoperable components from a variety of vendors, so that resources can be spent on driving business value instead of combining and integrating IoT components.”
Adopting an open source edge software platform benefits the entire IoT ecosystem:
- End customers can deploy IoT edge solutions quickly and easily with the flexibility to dynamically adapt to changing business needs;
- Hardware Manufacturers can scale faster with an interoperable partner ecosystem and more robust security and system management;
- Independent Software Vendors can benefit from interoperability with 3rd party applications and hardware without reinventing connectivity;
- Sensor/Device Makers can write an application-level device driver with a selected protocol once using the SDK and get pull from all solution providers;
- System Integrators can get to market faster with plug-and-play ingredients combined with their own proprietary inventions.
The Linux Foundation will establish a governance and membership structure for EdgeX Foundry to nurture a vibrant technical community. A Governing Board will guide business decisions, marketing and ensure alignment between the technical communities and members. The technical steering committee will provide leadership on the code merge and guide the technical direction of the project.
“We think EdgeX Foundry is the key to accelerating the fragmented IoT market and are proud to have been a part of the effort from the beginning,” said Jason Shepherd, IoT Strategy and Partnerships, Dell. “We’re big believers in openness and choice, and this modular architecture is designed to help anyone easily build edge computing solutions with preferred hardware, software, standards and services while minimizing reinvention. EdgeX Foundry is not a new standard, rather a software platform to unify standards and edge applications.”
EdgeX Foundry is an open source project hosted by The Linux Foundation building a common open framework for IoT edge computing and an ecosystem of interoperable components that unifies the marketplace and accelerates the deployment of IoT solutions. Designed to run on any hardware or operating system and with any combination of application environments, the EdgeX enables developers to quickly create flexible IoT edge solutions that can easily adapt to changing business needs. To learn more, visit: www.edgexfoundry.org.
by Gary Mintchell | Mar 6, 2017 | Automation, Internet of Things, Operations Management, Security
When all things are connected, security becomes the crucial yet often overlooked component of the plan. Dell EMC as an enterprise IT supplier is long familiar with the necessity for planning security. This addition to its IoT Partner Network adds another dimension to its secure IoT offering. We have watched Dell EMC steadily building its IoT presence over the past couple of years. The gateway concept with computing at the edge is really catching on.
Asavie, the provider of next-generation enterprise mobility management and Internet of Things (IoT) connectivity solutions, announced today at the Industry of Things World it has joined the Dell IoT Solutions Partner Program as an Associate Technology Partner.
Asavie PassBridge cloud-hosted platform delivers on-demand IoT services that manage and secure connectivity across diverse networks, at scale. In combination with Dell Edge Gateways , Asavie PassBridge provides enterprises with end-to-end control of their network connectivity to ensure the commercial success of their IoT projects. It enables enterprises to rapidly rollout IoT projects, and securely capture and manage the vast amounts of data transacted between IoT devices.
Welcoming the announcement, Lars Jerkland, Vice President, OEM for Asavie, said, “We are pleased to be part of Dell’s growing network of IoT Partners. Customers are struggling with IoT network connectivity and integration challenges and our work with Dell helps address these obstacles. Together, Asavie and Dell offer industrial customers a secure, seamless, end-to-end IoT connectivity experience without any of the potential delays typically associated with rolling out a global cellular project.”
“Dell is focused on providing our customers with a comprehensive IoT solution to help them build new business models and grow,” said Jeff Brown, Dell EMC vice president, Global IoT and Embedded PC Sales, OEM Solutions. “Dell’s Edge Gateways and Asavie PassBridge, provide customers with a scalable, secure and robust IoT solution. As a result, enterprises can accelerate IoT implementation, generating increased cost savings and rapid delivery of new services to market,” continued Brown.
