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Human Centric IoT


FSTJ 2016-10 Cover Image

Vol. 52, No. 4, October 2016

This special issue describes the cutting-edge technologies, services, solutions, and cases that realize Fujitsu's Human Centric IoT concept.


Japanese version: Magazine FUJITSU (Vol. 67, No. 2, March 2016)


Preface

Special Issue on Human Centric IoT (465 KB)
Shingo Kagawa, Corporate Executive Officer, SEVP, Head of Digital Services Business and CTO, pp.1-2

Special Contribution

Leading the Way: IoT Innovation in Japan and the World (710 KB)
Hiroshi Sasaki, pp.3-7

Vision

Fujitsu's Approach to IoT Business and its Related Technologies (654 KB)
Takaaki Suga, Satoshi Okuyama, pp.8-16
The Internet of Things (IoT) is now in the spotlight. It is not an exaggeration to say that not a day passes without it being mentioned by the media. An analysis of IoT-related projects has shown that, in addition to the conventional emphasis on return on investment, enterprises are creating new value by giving people new products and raising their awareness of previously unrealized value. Fujitsu has established the concept of "Human Centric IoT" and is moving forward with various activities to realize a world where the IoT has people at the core. For example, we have developed IoT implementation models that clarify the values that can be realized by combining IoT-related products, and we use these models as the basis for co-creating business with customers and forming an ecosystem with business partners. The scope of the technologies to be covered by a system to realize this world is very wide. There are requirements specific to IoT systems that differ from those for conventional information and communications technology (ICT) systems. Therefore, Fujitsu is working on new research and development with the focus on the characteristics of IoT. This paper describes Fujitsu's approach to IoT and the related technologies it is developing.

Solutions for IoT Society

IoT Platform to Accelerate Data Utilization (568 KB)
Yasunori Terasaki, pp.17-22
The FUJITSU Cloud Service IoT Platform is one component supporting the Human Centric IoT (Internet of Things) at which Fujitsu is aiming. It is positioned as a platform as a service (PaaS) dedicated to IoT on the FUJITSU Digital Business Platform MetaArc. The Platform provides a function for collecting data from sensors and devices installed at customer sites and one for delivering instruction data to them. In addition, it can manage the data to be collected or delivered and control application programming interfaces (APIs) and accesses to make those data available from various applications. Introducing the Platform enables customers to continuously create new products and co-create products with various outside parties without anxiety. This paper presents the requirements for the Platform to achieve Human Centric IoT, outlines the product functions that embody it, and describes the enhancement plans.
Real-time Monitoring Solution to Detect Symptoms of System Anomalies (636 KB)
Toshiya Hanamori, Toshihiro Nishimura, pp.23-27
Conventionally, system anomaly detection has been based on setting thresholds and rules. Today, as systems have diversified and the targets of analysis have become increasingly numerous and complicated, the large number of parameters to monitor has made it impossible for analysts to grasp the relationships between them. In addition, resolving these issues with data analysis requires advanced expertise, which hinders data utilization. Fujitsu's symptom monitoring solution provides a model for detecting symptoms of anomalies. It uses the results of applying machine learning to operational data in normal times to automatically detect any "state different from usual" and then narrows down the target data to identify the cause of the anomaly. This enables high-accuracy and real-time detection of symptoms of anomalies at the site level without requiring advanced analysis know-how. This paper presents a solution that enables real-time monitoring to detect problem symptoms such as information and communications technology (ICT) system failures and suspension of a manufacturing line due to failure of operating equipment.
UBIQUITOUSWARE: Value Creation by Proprietary Algorithms (937 KB)
Katsuhisa Fujino, Kurato Aihara, Takahiro Koba, Takuya Kitamura, Shuichi Shiitani, pp.28-33
The Internet of Things (IoT) has great potential for creating product differentiation in business solutions and services in a wide variety of fields. However, a great deal of work would be required to individually develop devices that match each and every business and the applications that use those devices. Fujitsu has developed an IoT package called FUJITSU IoT Solution UBIQUITOUSWARE with the aim of making effective and efficient use of IoT, which offers many diverse possibilities. UBIQUITOUSWARE is composed of a core module, which can be easily incorporated into devices making up a customer's system, and algorithms for analyzing sensor-collected data, which can be straightforwardly applied to business applications. This paper describes the features of UBIQUITOUSWARE and the proprietary algorithms of Fujitsu's Human Centric Engine, which provides the basis for UBIQUITOUSWARE.
IoT Solution on Manufacturing Site for Work Support (857 KB)
Takashi Kanbayashi, Naomi Momoki, Takashi Ogami, pp.34-40
This paper introduces a solution that Fujitsu proposes as an application of the Internet of Things (IoT) on the manufacturing site. This solution has been put into practice at Shimane Fujitsu, where notebook PCs for corporate use are manufactured to order in small lots. Products manufactured in this plant are custom-made and there are 3,000 types, with each model having 100 to 250 parts. They must be supplied correctly without mix-ups and at the specified timings according to the predefined production sequence. With this situation in the background, we have developed an IoT support tool (hereafter, store picking cart) to facilitate correct and efficient picking work. The development of this solution has its focus on not having human intervention, not requiring a fixed layout (including power supply and LAN wiring) and achieving low-cost operations, and is aimed at continuously improving the manufacturing site. The data gathered using this tool can be linked with the virtual verification tool that we have been offering for some time to carry out cross-simulation. Fujitsu provides this as a solution that can increase the efficiency of manufacturing. This paper presents the MONOZUKURI (manufacturing) solution based on IoT utilization practiced by Fujitsu, together with activities for its future expansion and next-generation MONOZUKURI.

Cutting-edge Technologies for IoT

Dynamic Resource Controller Technology to Accelerate Processing and Utilization of IoT Data (944 KB)
Makoto Kubota, Shigeki Fukuta, Yoshihide Nomura, Kenichi Abiru, pp.41-51
Recently, a concept called edge computing has been attracting attention for full-scale application of the Internet of Things (IoT) to business, and companies have started working on its use. Edge computing is intended to improve a computing system's response to terminals by distributing data processing between nodes provided near the site, rather than having all data processed in a cloud. It is hoped this will restrain the huge increase in the volume of communication traffic produced by the IoT. Fujitsu Laboratories has extended this concept and developed dynamic resource controller (DRC) technology, which utilizes computers (edge nodes) installed near the terminal on the site as if they are integrated into the cloud. This technology dynamically optimizes the locations of data processing and storage between the edge nodes and cloud according to changes in the site environment. Unlike the conventional edge computing, this not only reduces the usage of network resources but also allows for a positive increase in the usage of any surplus network bandwidth to gather raw data to the cloud that may lead to new discoveries. It can also be used to deal with addition of devices and edge node load variation by changing the location of some of the processing to edge nodes with surplus resources, which helps maintain the stability of the system. This paper describes the mechanism of the DRC technology, which allows a computing system to make a quick decision on the appropriate location of processing execution to deal with addition of devices and variation of the edge node load, and presents the results of its evaluation.
IoT Security for Utilization of Big Data: Mutual Authentication Technology and Anonymization Technology for Positional Data (669 KB)
Takashi Shinzaki, Ikuya Morikawa, Yuji Yamaoka, Yumi Sakemi, pp.52-60
As the Internet of Things (IoT), is becoming increasingly widespread and measures are being taken to utilize the collected IoT data in big data analysis and applications. There is a wide range of target IoT items such as sensors, automobiles, consumer electronics, and wearable devices, and this makes it necessary to apply security technologies according to the device and usage, while considering the types of data exchanged. This paper presents the requirements for IoT security. It also describes the following specific approaches of Fujitsu Laboratories: technology that realizes mutual authentication and encrypted communication at the same time by applying in an extended way an ID-based key sharing scheme to Transport Layer Security (TLS); and technology that allows more small-section data to be safely disclosed through the use of multiple layers of fixed mesh on a map, as anonymization technology for the more efficient utilization of positional data.
Front-end Device Technology for Human Centric IoT (1,000 KB)
Naoyuki Sawasaki, Teruo Ishihara, Makoto Mouri, Yuichi Murase, Shoichi Masui, Hiroyuki Nakamoto, pp.61-67
We are now in the age of the Internet of Things (IoT), in which all information about humans, things, and the environment is digitized and connected to networks. Front-end devices in the IoT, which are provided in places where people carry out activities, play the role of acquiring data from various things in the real world, in real time, and offering the necessary services to users in a timely manner. The trends in front-end devices show that portable devices are beginning to be used for continuously acquiring information about personal health and behavior and efficiently acquiring data useful for personalized services. Meanwhile, devices placed in the environment are beginning to be used to continuously acquire environmental information at unmanned locations and times and observe the behavior of people. In response to these trends, we are developing user interface technology that uses information and communications technology (ICT) through wearable devices and technology that controls devices without requiring maintenance. This paper presents examples of our development of a glove-style wearable device, ring-type wearable devices, and a maintenance-free beacon. They have been developed with the aim of constantly supporting people's fields of activities. This paper also describes our approach to future technologies such as a boost converter for energy harvesting.
Wireless Network Technologies to Support the Age of IoT (820 KB)
Naoji Fujino, Koji Ogawa, Morihiko Minowa, pp.68-76
It is said that the evolution of information and communications technology (ICT), such as downsizing and power saving design of sensors, diversification of networks and spread of cloud computing, will cause the number of things connected to the Internet to increase from 10 billion in 2013 to 50 billion in 2020. The Internet of Things (IoT) is expected to lead to the creation of new value in combination with big data analysis technology, and have a significant and positive influence on people's lives and the economy. To that end, it is essential to have continuous evolution and innovation of both wired and wireless network technologies, while developing input/output terminals and cloud computing. Wireless networks, in particular, have been driving progress in our lifestyles and business styles by once-a-decade technological revolution since the emergence of mobile phones. This paper first describes the state of technological studies with particular focus on the vision of the fifth-generation mobile communication system (5G), which is the next-generation technology of mobile communication networks, standardization trends, and Fujitsu's activities. It also discusses the usability of the Fujitsu Intelligent Networking and Computing Architecture (FINCA) concept for ICT virtualization and flexibility improvement proposed by Fujitsu, and themes for future network studies to realize wireless access technologies for 5G.

Cases of Leveraging IoT

Optimization of Factory Production Activities by Utilizing IoT (872 KB)
Takeshi Jinushi, Kazuhiro Chisaki, Yusuke Kawakami, pp.77-83
The individual factories of the Fujitsu Group have conducted numerous improvement activities up to now in an attempt to improve product quality and the efficiency of operations. However, those improvement activities require quantitative measurements to be taken manually, and the automation of this process has been a challenge. We have recently constructed a system that makes use of the Internet of Things (IoT) to gather, aggregate, and visualize data relating to manufacturing lines, physical objects and the environment in a timely manner. Our aim is to have these data utilized not only to make business decisions and respond to changes on-site but also to release people from the burden of carrying out measurements in factories and to create structures for improving productivity. This paper presents the approaches taken by the Yamanashi, Aizu-Wakamatsu, and Shimane factories to visualize operations as in-house cases of IoT being utilized by the Fujitsu Group companies.
CEMS Development and Demonstration in Toyota City Verification Project (602 KB)
Masahiro Kouya, Junko Ozaki, pp.84-91
Toyota City Low-carbon Society Verification Project was a large-scale social system demonstration project that was held between 2010 and 2014 at Toyota City, Aichi, Japan. The goal of the project was to verify that the realization of a low-carbon society can be facilitated by introducing leading-edge devices and technologies such as smartphones, tablets, big data, cloud computing, machine-to-machine (M2M), and the Internet of Things (IoT). These devices and technologies made it possible to collect information on electricity usage and electrical device status from society as frequently as every minute. The collected data was stored for analysis and then the results were fed back to society in the form of behavior support information, or as control signals to control electrical devices remotely. This paper presents Fujitsu's approaches towards the development and demonstration of a community energy management system (CEMS) that utilizes the IoT, a system which is critical for the realization of sustainable low-carbon societies.
New SaaS-based Operations Management System to Realize Safe Driving Support and Improve Transport Quality: Logifit TM-NexTR (663 KB)
Toshihiro Kido, Mitsuhiro Nakamura, pp.92-97
Logifit TM-NexTR, a new operations management system based on software as a service (SaaS), is a product of Fujitsu's logistics solution "Logifit" Series and is responsible for operations management. Logifit TM-NexTR is a next-generation product developed based on Fujitsu's know-how acquired with the TRIAS Series, which has a proven track record as an operations support system that uses a digital tachograph. Operations that can be managed with Logifit TM-NexTR include arrival management from the perspective of customers such as consignor and delivery destinations, not to mention conventional operations management and movement management. Introducing Logifit TM-NexTR makes it possible to link a vehicle with various sensors through Fujitsu's Internet of Things (IoT) technology. This in turn helps to support safe driving and improve transport quality at a lower cost than the conventional digital tachographs. This paper describes the background to the development of Logifit TM-NexTR and presents examples of utilizing the IoT in Logifit TM-NexTR.