Intelizon has developed such a platform to set the standards for smart cities globally.

SMART CITY

A Wireless Smart City System

Dr. Kushant Uppal, Intelizon Energy Pvt Ltd

Over the past couple of decades, technology has impacted human life significantlywith the advent of the internet and smart phones. Cities are relying on century old infrastructure built during the industrial revolution and are in need for an upgrade with the advent of internet based technology. The change from conventional lights to LED and addition of CCTV systems for surveillance and security are some of the changes which have been taking place globally. However, smart city conceptsare an opportunity with endless possibilities and a reflection of the way we will live in the near future.

Grid outdoor systems like streetlights, surveillance cameras rely on cabling for power. Underground cables are expensive to install and maintain while overhead cabling creates a mish mash of wires and spoils the city aesthetics. Overhead cables are also subject to damage due to wind and birds and are expensive to maintain.Solar as a source of power has gained prominence over the past decade not only as a green source of energy but also for its ability to provide standalone wireless systems.

Solar streetlights with inbuilt lithium ion batteries when designed properly have proven to work reliably in the field over 5 years. Intelligent algorithms with self autonomy feature has shown remarkable performance in conditions where it is cloudy for many days at a stretch. Zonstreet from Intelizon has over 25000 installations globally and has set the benchmark for reliable solar streetlighting with self autonomy.

Picture1: The above pictures are for solar streetlights before (left) and after (right) a storm. The lights worked perfectly even with half the pole immersed under water

It is common to see cities install poles separately from streetlights just for the cameras. This is the same concept as having the phone and a camera separately similar to the advent of the smartphone. Zonstreet with its inbuilt camera and wifi/4G communication card is set to introduce a revolutionary solution for city administrators.

Picture2: separate lights and cameras are widely used and can be replaced with an integrated solution as shown on the right

Imagine a smart pole with no wiring providing city lighting and surveillance and having its own remote health monitoring system. Citizens of such cities will experience an environmentally friendly solution combined with aesthetics and foolproof security. The system can be expanded with additional features such as weather monitoring, EV charging and artificial intelligence to collect and monitor data for various purposes.

Figure3: Smart pole will have features as shown above changing the way we think of streetlight poles today

Smart poles installed in every part of the citywith a centralized monitoring system will be able to identify any person or vehicle instantly providing unparalleled security to citizens. Traffic information would be a lot more accurate and other services like advertisement or parking information can be added as per the local demographics.

The landscape of outdoor lighting and surveillance is set to see a dramatic change with the introduction of IOT and AI technologies being introduced combined with energy efficient LED, cameras, electronics, batteries and green solar power. The wireless smart city will create a smart interconnected and environmentally friendly world for everyone.