The Mr. Beacon Ambient IoT Podcast

From sporting goods to luxury items to cosmetics, there a massive problem with counterfeiting. This 1.7 billion dollar problem is a weighty pain point in most verticals. The health and safety consequences are serious, and misrepresentation of the brand image and quality is just the tip of the iceberg in terms of negative ramifications. On this week’s episode, we talk to Ross Mandel, CEO of VerifyItNow, about the business he built around finding a solution to this problem. We discuss the growth of VerifyitNow from brand protection to asset tracking to a lost and found platform, and the opportunities and limitations of the technology behind it - NFC, Bluetooth, and Google Nearby. Watch as Ross illustrates how you can “product your brand, reduce loss, increase customer confidence, and build brand loyalty” with their anti-counterfeit and verification system.    Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

A UK based nonprofit has created the first internationally recognized standard for accessible audio navigation - helping visually impaired people travel independently, removing barriers to employment and interacting with friends and family. With the number of visually impaired estimated to be 295 million and increasing, Wayfindr saw a lack of accessibility solutions and a lack of consistency which was impacting young people in particular. In order to fix the fragmentation created by different offerings, they created an open standard for indoor navigation (ITU-T F.921). This enables venues, such as a metro station, to create detailed audio navigation instruction with help from Bluetooth Low Energy Beacons. We talk to Tiernan Kenny, Head of Communications, Public Affairs, and Standards at Wayfindr about the advantages and limitations of different indoor location metrics, how their standard can help the visually impaired and beyond, and why all venues should be implementing audio wayfinding today.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This week on Mr. Beacon we are talking to a pioneer in the beacon space, Nathan Dunn, CEO of BlueCats. BlueCats has seen the progression of the real time location services industry first hand, starting with Ultra Wide Band technology followed by a integration of Bluetooth beacons and then the advent of iBeacon. The value of real time visibility was first realized in retail, focusing on how people were led to purchase decisions. BlueCat’s solutions have since spread over many verticals such as sports, industrial warehousing and outdoor asset tracking, as well as hospitality. Backed with years of experience, Nathan discusses the challenges RTLS has faced as it evolved as well as giving us insight into what qualifies a project to be better suited for UWB or for beacons.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Grizzly Analytics is recognized as one of the world’s leading analysts focused on location technologies and IoT, based on their technical expertise and hands on approach to evaluating vendor claims.On this episode of Mr. Beacon, we talk with Bruce Krulwich, Grizzly’s founder, about the current landscape of location technologies, how the different offerings are evolving, and expectations of the future. We talk Bluetooth beacons, Ultra Wide Band, Ultrasound, SLAM, Machine Vision, and more.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Gavin Neate has made several careers out of helping others. After ten years of service in The Royal Air Force, he spent 18 years as a Guide Dog Mobility Instructor. Then he founded Neatebox, building on his knowledge and experience of working with those who are visually impaired. Since starting Neatebox, he has launched two products using beacon technology, ‘Button’ and ‘Welcome’. Both aim to help in the day to day life of the 13 million people with disabilities”. In this episode, we talk to Gavin, see the apps in action, find out about their impact, how they work, how to get involved … and as always, what kind of music he likes. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

With the European Union’s new data protection law going into effect imminently, it's driving a flurry of changes from businesses based inside and outside the EU, racing to comply and avoid new levels of financial penalties. Jarno Vanto, a cybersecurity lawyer and partner at the law firm Polsinelli, gives us insight on what The General Data Protection Regulation entails, who it applies to, and the implications of not complying. Here is what you need to know before May 25, 2018.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Connecthings is in the business of enabling public transport solutions for Smart Cities using a combination of Beacons, NFC and QR Code technologies. We talk to their CEO, Laetitia Gazel Anthoine, about how her company has achieved success in an area where few have survived.For more interviews and articles from the author of Beacon Technologies see https://www.mister-beacon.com/interviews Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

If your pipes could speak, what would they tell you? If your bottle of whiskey could ask questions, what would it ask you? FeelIt’s advancements in sensor technology are enabling objects to become “smarter” - reaching new levels of self-awareness. CEO and co-founder, Gady Konvalina describes the Nanotechnology-based sensors they have created with the ability to sense structural formation, movement, and weight. With the help of beacons and cloud services, these sensors can give pipes the ability to tell manufacturers when they are going to leak or can send a smartphone alert when the whiskey is low, asking if you would like to reorder. Catch a full discussion about this disruptive technology and a demo of the sensors on this week’s episode of Mr. Beacon. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Most people these days are familiar with the Internet of Things, at least in concept – but when we speak of the web of things, we are speaking of an entirely different, though related issue. On this episode of Mr. Beacon, Stephen talks with Dominique Guinard, CTO of Evrythng, a company that helps brands create and establish digital links with their products. There are many reasons for this kind of technological integration into physical products and the two of them discuss the issues behind a unique identifier approach to product development and distribution. This is a fascinating conversation about where the world of products is headed, so make sure you listen. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

RFID vs Bluetooth - It's a debate that will go on for some time as the technologies continue to improve and change. In this conversation with Mike Kastner we dive into the controversy to discover if there are any ways that we can understand the two technologies comparatively without feeling that we have to jettison either one. It's a lively conversation that focuses on the pros and cons of each technology and the wide range of applications that can be considered for each one. If you or your company is looking for the right technology to meet a new situation you're facing, this episode should be very helpful for you. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.