WHERE IT ALL COMES TOGETHER: Standardization and the Internet of Things There are many visions of the future network but one of the common themes in every vision is ‘Everything Connected’ – all devices able to communicate directly with one another. The dramatic growth of connected devices is inevitable – but questions remain about their ability to interact, especially across industry sectors. A number of standardization efforts are in progress in the M2M and smart utility space. The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) has developed technical standards to support smart metering, and has partnered with other standards developing organizations (SDOs) globally through active engagement in the oneM2M partnership. TIA standards In the United States in 2012, 1 533 US electric utilities had 43 165 185 advanced (‘smart’) metering infrastructure (AMI) installations. About 89% were residential customer installations . The solution developed by TIA’s engineering committee on smart utility networks focused on developing air-interface, network, and conformance standards in support of smart utility networks. The model uses a mesh technology solution to support the industry’s goals of low latency and 99% uptime for data transfer. These standards provide solutions for two-way data transmission between devices and back- office systems of the utility provider with a focus on improving services. The TR-51 family of specifications defines the Physical (PHY), Data Link (MAC), Network, and Transport communication protocol layers required to support a range of Smart Utility Network (SUN) Applications including: Small Home Area Network (HAN) Large scale advanced metering infrastructure (AMI) Networks Distribution Automation (DA) Networks. Flexibility is provided to enable systems to be optimized for particular applications and regulatory domains. 40 The standard includes innovative network forwarding and routing protocols to support AMI mesh network configurations. The PHY and MAC support widely adopted frequency hopping approaches to AMI network implementation, with a tightly focused MAC implementation. The standard relies on widely adopted network layer and transport layer protocols. TIA is working with the Wi-SUN Alliance in an effort to expand the reach of both programs through collaborative work programs. As work continues on smart metering, TIA will further standardize to support the security concerns that arise when data exchanges occur. Work toward a global standard Simultaneously, work continues with the oneM2M partnership. oneM2M is a global standardization body for M2M and the Internet of Things (IoT). It was established through an alliance of standards organizations to develop a single horizontal platform for the exchange and sharing of data among all applications. oneM2M is creating a distributed software layer – like an operating system – which is facilitating that unification by providing a framework for interworking with different technologies. Those are the two key elements at the core of oneM2M: providing an interworking framework and enabling re-use of what is already available as much as possible. IoT is a unique phenomenon because it brings together so many previously disparate strands from technology and different industries. The challenge is that there are common requirements for connectivity, security and data handling that cut across all businesses. However, IoT must also allow for sector specific applications and solutions. Collaboration is therefore not only necessary; it is essential. In fact, convergence of telecoms, IT and consumer electronics, along with software, applications and data handling is required. The main benefits to be achieved through convergence will be easier and cheaper development of siloed applications, by reusing existing infrastructure. Such reuse unleashes the true benefit of the Internet of Things, where applications can communicate with, cooperate with and reuse one another’s data or components. The availability of big data analytics tools, combined with a growing understanding of how collective data can be used, provides an opportunity to add greater efficiency to M2M and IoT applications. In January 2015, oneM2M released the first round of many specifications supporting the vision of the IoT. These specifications define the M2M architecture, requirements, security solutions, protocols, and management enablement elements in an M2M network. They will be adopted into TIA standards by the TR-50 engineering committee. Standardization enables improved functionality-cost-quality trade-offs to be made, which will deliver faster time-to- market for new devices and applications. The promise of these important developments presents a compelling argument for others to join the party – both TIA and oneM2M encourage new members to join, participate and benefit from early adoption of these standardization initiatives. MI REFERENCES 1 - US Energy Information Administration FAQs: http://www. eia.gov/tools/faqs/faq.cfm?id=108&t=3 ABOUT THE AUTHOR: Stephanie Montgomery is acting vice-president, technology and standards at TIA with a primary focus on voluntary standards development and programs for technology. She has spent over 20 years in the information communication technology industry managing voluntary standards development and international partnerships. ABOUT THE ORGANISATION: The Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) is the leading trade association representing the global information and communications technology (ICT) industry through standards development, policy initiatives, business opportunities, market intelligence and networking events. TIA is accredited by ANSI. METERING INTERNATIONAL ISSUE – 1 | 2015