New standard for location technologies to share UWB, RFID, 5G and GPS
Augsburg, March 12, 2020. The Augsburg-based project house for SAP logistics, SWAN GmbH, is a partner of the “omlox” initiative. As part of the large-scale project, SWAN, main initiator TRUMPF and around 60 other industry partners have developed the new “omlox” locating technology standard. The new standard allows various localization technologies such as ultra-wideband, RFID, 5G or GPS to be connected and used together for seamless supply chain monitoring. The initiative responds to the increasing use of tracking solutions in industrial manufacturing, such as automated guided vehicles and drones in production. The ultra-wideband technology is cost-effective to use via plug-and-play. The new tracking technology standard “omlox” will be on display for the first time at the Hannover Messe. The world leading mass of the industry was from April to the period July 13 to 17, 2020.
“The common standard enables the use of all common technologies with our newly developed SWAN Heatmap. Currently, minor individual adaptations of the software to the technical solution used are necessary. Standardization with omlox ensures that the tracking solution is practically ready for use via plug-and-play,” says Thorsten Lamm, Product Sales Manager at SWAN GmbH. “Experienced partners in the omlox initiative supply the hardware. We complement the software, take over the integration of location data in SAP and thus deliver additional service. omlox offers users an easy entry into location technologies and we expect to open up a larger market thanks to the low investment hurdle.” Solutions from different suppliers networked quickly and inexpensively omlox places a special focus on networking the factory as the heart of the supply chain. In order to be able to determine distances with centimeter accuracy, positioning solutions must be able to cope with metal, among other things, which deflects the radio waves. Ultra-wideband (UWB) has established itself here as a particularly robust radio technology. With the help of these radio waves, driverless transport systems or drones, for example, can more easily calculate their position in space and navigate better. Until now, solutions from different providers could not be networked with each other. Thanks to the new standard, devices from different suppliers can now be connected directly and combined with each other, as is already possible in the consumer sector with USB or Bluetooth technology via plug-and-play, for example. “The goal of the initiative is to make it easier for industrial customers to use hardware and software from different manufacturers. This saves the end customer effort and costs,” says Thomas Schneider, Managing Director of Development at TRUMPF. Until now, wireless technologies have often functioned only on their own. Now all location data should be able to be displayed in a uniform coordinate system. Industrial customers can thus integrate solutions from different suppliers much more easily.Industry partners from Europe, USA and Asia The industry partners of the new UWB standard include companies from all over Europe, Asia and the USA. They include the software providers and IT service providers GFT and T-Systems, the providers of sensor-based solutions SICK AG and Pepperl+Fuchs AG, the research institute CEA Leti, the software provider Heidelberg Mobil, and the localization provider BeSpoon. At Hannover Messe, around 15 of them are presenting the omlox initiative to the public for the first time and demonstrating how positioning solutions from different manufacturers could work together in the future. The following omlox exhibitors will be represented at the Hannover Messe:
- TRUMPF (machine tools, laser technology)
- BeSpoon (UWB localization provider)
- GFT (IT service and software provider)
- T-Systems (multi-vendor digital service provider)
- SICK AG (provider of sensor-based solutions)
- Pepperl+Fuchs AG (Explosion Protection and Industrial Sensors)
- CEA Leti (Research Institute)
- Heidelberg Mobile (software for location-based services in buildings)
- WZL Aachen GmbH – Business Unit Automation (Development and Application Support)
- bridgingIT (technology and management consulting)
- Squadrone System (industrial drone manufacturer)
- Xetics (Smart Factory Software)
- Zigpos (localization provider)
- Swan (project house for SAP logistics)
- NAiSE (indoor navigation provider for automated guided vehicles)
- Cleanfix (cleaning machine supplier)
omlox is open for further partners. Following the Hannover Messe, an independent organization is to drive forward the development of the standard so as not to favor any project partner in the future.
