IBM Corp. said its MessageSight appliance will help organizations better manage communications between mobile devices and other machines connected to the corporate network.
Unveiling MessageSight at the Impact 2012 conference here, Big Blue said the product will be a critical part of its vision of the “Internet of things.”
Built on Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT) technology, MessageSight enables IT departments to streamline communications while managing their mobile devices and sensors.
The question now, according to Vijai Sandaran, director of application development at Ford Motor Co., is “where do we go from here. The vehicle is a platform with which we can connect with the consumer.”
Mobile devices, in the Internet of things realm, no longer refer to just phones and tablets. Think automobiles, traffic management systems, smart buildings, light fixtures and household appliances.
Essentially, anything that might be able to gather data on something of interest to your organization. MQTT provides a lightweight message transmission for machine-to-machine (M2M) communications.
The sensors are often tiny, have low power demands and usually low communication bandwidth capabilities.
IMS Research predicts we will have over 22 billion web-connected mobile devices worldwide by 2020.
Mobile device and sensor solutions are already used in industries such as automotive. The latest automobiles have computers on board, but consider future possibilities.
For instance, Ford showcased at the conference, a Ford Fusion with voice-activated technology, speech communications, 911-vehicle assistance, a voice-based GPS, amongst other features.
These advancements and features emerged out of partnerships with Ford’s design team, its IT department, IBM, and partners such as JIT.
MessageSight is designed to complement IBM’s MobileFirst offerings. It gives IT departments the opportunity to extend MobileFirst’s capabilities, to create mobile solutions and manage and monitor the devices in real time, according to IBM.
MobileFirst launched in February. It is a collection of mobile enterprise software, services, cloud and analytics to help IT departments design, deploy and manage mobile strategies and applications.
MobileFirst enables IT departments and organizations to integrate analytics into the devices. It provides a window into understanding how users use the apps, including dwell time, gestures and navigation. Recently updated, it now provides developers with geo-location services, to enable applications contextual action based upon a user’s location.
The ability to collect and interpret data from various sources will help organizations deliver timely, appropriate and insightful customer service, as well as new products and services.
MessageSight and MobileFirst, according to IBM, can help IT departments gather this information.
