Conectric Networks (Conectric) and Black Buffalo Corporation have entered into a strategic agreement to collaborate on delivering next-gen IoT blockchain fusion technologies. Conectric Networks is a Southern California wireless IoT start-up. Black Buffalo is a New York-based Artificial Intelligence and IoT Smart Systems firm which is a member of the Hyundai BS&C family of companies.
“This partnership allows both Conectric and Black Buffalo to provide innovative and immediately practical solutions to enhance the tech stack for IoT devices within all ecosystems,” says Michael Woods, CEO & COO for Black Buffalo Corporation. “Hyundai BS&C has made extensive progress globally with these smart solutions, and with the assistance of Conectric, we can now provide this value domestically in the US with scalable and sustainable opportunities.“
The Conectric/Black Buffalo objectives
According toConectric, the objectives include:
- securing massive real-time IoT sensor data – via ‘smart contracts’ in public-private hybrid blockchain software
- providing middleware solutions over blockchain with which to integrate IoT sensor data, operational systems and analytics platforms for defense, telecom, building operators, industrial factories and ESG reporting
- integrating smart city applications with blockchain across municipal boundaries and disparate operational and data management vendors.
It includes blockchain enabled smart systems for IoT product manufacturers.
Black Buffalo
Black Buffalo has two main business lines. These which focus upon AI solutions and blockchain research and development for:
- smart IoT blockchain-enabled systems
- smart 3D construction printing and services.
In these specialties, Black Buffalo provides a full spectrum of services and systems which assist IoT machine-to-machine transaction security, safety, functionality and transaction payment processing. Specific technology solutions focus on smart:
- cities
- homes
- factories
- offices and buildings.
Market demand, per Black Buffalo, is strong for those products particularly oriented to cities, factories, homes and apartment buildings. For Black Buffalo, Conectric’s ultra-scalable wireless sensor private networking and sensor pack devices provide the mechanism for Black Buffalo to enter highly scaled, sensor dense and security conscious business environments.
Conectric
By providing real-time wireless mesh technology, Conectric aims to connect millions, or billions, of battery powered sensors, devices, software and Artificial Intelligence to communicate autonomously. Autonomous, decentralised mesh sensor networks deliver data reliability within which Conectric’s networking technology is:
- dynamic
- designed for resilience resilient
- scalable and granular
- secure, easy to use/maintain.
The Conectric API and sensor packs use on-sensor callbacks. The relevance is that this enables rapid, low cost, low risk development of IoT apps: they can go from workbench to customer site in days. At the same time, high performance sensor packs digitise the physical world over the Conectric wireless network for:
- environmental conditions
- energy consumption
- human occupancy
- machine states (RS485) over the Conectric wireless network.
“This solution will completely change the IoT security paradox by providing a simple and practical solution for keeping business and enterprise IoT data secure,” according to Conectric CEO, Phillip Kopp. “Additionally, we see a great application for the blockchain as middleware, enabling interoperability between smart city platforms and even cloud providers. This will finally allow different municipal governments to communicate data across a standardized layer and provides citizens with seamless benefits from one block to another. We have multiple pilots planned for 2020 and expect this will be available to channels before next year, finally solving these substantial industry problems.”
Enterprise Times: what does this mean
IoT and blockchain have, for long, seemed a good potential fit. Especially as smart cities, building, businesses and vehicles increase in numbers. Thus far there has not seemed to be the depth of IoT/blockchain integration needed. The question is: will the Conectric/Black Buffalo partnership deliver the step up, and boost, which IoT/blockchain integration has been begging for?
Conectric and Black Buffalo are, apparently, performing technical integrations and testing. They plan to launch the combined solution before the end of 2020 when it will become available to global customers.
