An open source, unified IoT data model from the uCIFI Alliance supports interoperability of devices from different vendors in Smart City applications
The uCIFI Alliance has released the first unified data model for interoperability and interchangeability between connected devices in smart city applications.
The open-source model targets key smart-city applications such as streetlighting, water metering and distribution monitoring, waste management, parking, traffic monitoring, air-quality monitoring, smart buildings, as well as safety and security. It also supports common and more complex services, including multicast grouping, sensor-to-actuator dynamic control and a calendar-based control program to standardize edge computing for IoT sensors.
Launched in 2018, the uCIFI Alliance brings coponent and system vendors, cities and utilities together via a unified data model that enables a native communication format between connected sensors on cellular, NB-IoT and LoRaWAN networks, as well as an open source reference implementation on Wi-SUN mesh to be released as another cornerstone of the alliance’s vision.
With the unified data model, a series of 30 connected sensors and devices used for smart-city projects are described on the Open Mobile Alliance’s Light Weight M2M (LwM2M) registry. These reference objects and associated attributes are modelized using the LwM2M format and can be used on any constrained IoT network. They also can be implemented freely by any vendor in any product to meet cities’ tender requirements for openness and interoperability. Vendors may join the alliance to benefit from the certification program, access test tools and other software resources and to contribute to more interoperable object models.
With this release, uCIFI aims to fill the interoperability gap and become an IoT standard that offers smart city managers and utilities full interoperability with other protocols from organisations such as Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) and Internet Protocol for Smart Object (IPSO).