Amazon Web Services Launches AWS IoT Core Device Location for Low-Power Internet of Things Tracking
Partnering with a range of companies, AWS now offers low-power alternatives to GNSS-based location tracking.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) has announced a partnership with Semtech, HERE, MaxMind, and more to offer low-power geolocation track-and-trace capabilities in the AWS IoT Core — taking aim at low-power Internet of Things devices.
AWS IoT Core Device Location, as the new feature is imaginatively named, is designed for tracking and management of IoT devices — and while it can use traditional high-power global navigation satellite system (GNSS) hardware, including GPS, for tracking hardware down, it also taps into lower-power alternatives to help boost battery life.
"With the new Device Location feature, customers can choose the appropriate location technology that works within their business and engineering constraints, without relying on the high-power consuming GPS hardware," the company explains of the new feature. "AWS IoT Core Device Location is integrated with solutions offered by AWS partners such as Semtech, HERE, and MaxMind, enabling customers to use cloud-assisted GNSS, Wi-Fi scan, cellular triangulation, and reverse IP lookup techniques to determine geo-coordinates for a device."
Once the location is calculated, it can be published to the AWS IoT Device Shadow system — "or any topic of their choice," the company notes. The new tracking system also ties in to the AWS IoT Core Rules Engine's Location Action feature, launched in October this year, and the Amazon Location Service system.
"We are excited about the opportunities created with the integration of LoRa Cloud geolocation services into the AWS IoT Core platform," says Mohan Maheswaran, Semtech president and chief executive, of the collaboration between the two companies. "This greatly expands the availability of LoRa Cloud geolocation services across the globe, making it easier for developers to build world class asset tracking and monitoring solutions to connect and enable new IoT solutions. Delivering seamless and reliable LoRaWAN connectivity at scale is critical in developing a smarter, more sustainable and connected planet.”
More information on AWS IoT Core Device Location is available in the service's documentation.