M2M : Machine 2 Machine

Came across this article that talks about the coming age where the most spoken language will e MachineTalk (XML)

Quote -
Have Your Machine Talk to My Machine

Steady growth in the range of devices that include some form of connectivity may catalyze growth in the volume of machine-to-machine (M2M) conversations. This could generate an industry worth over $200 billion by 2010 (compared to less than $50 billion today).

By 2010, tens of millions of vehicles may feature an integrated cellular mobile connection, allowing for applications ranging from remote maintenance to vehicle tracking.

Cars, televisions, and even groceries will be talking to computers.
Five percent of the world’s televisions may be connected, directly or indirectly, to broadband networks, allowing remote programming, maintenance and even the insertion of personalized advertising.

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags may have become cheap enough for their mainstream use within supply chains – allowing automated systems to interrogate stock levels, check on the status of orders and deliveries, record environmental conditions and track individual items as they move from the factory to the customer.

M2M has a lot of potential. One of the advantages of M2M is the capability of forming an autonomous self healing system where the machines are independently able to react to changes in the environment and take corrective action or notify the support group for a service request. A group of researchers in Greece are planning to build a house that can self heal - using a combination of wireless sensor networks and new building materials. The house walls will be built from novel load bearing steel frames and high-strength gypsum board. But they will be unique for another reason too - they’ll contain wireless, battery-less sensors and Leeds-designed radio frequency identity tags that collect vast amounts of data about the building over time, such as any stresses and vibrations, temperature, humidity and gas levels.

“If there are any problems, the intelligent sensor network will alert residents straightaway so they have time to escape,” added Professor Wilkins.

The Leeds team also includes Dr Roger Gregory, chairman of University spinout company Instrumentel Ltd, who said: “Leeds are world leaders in designing wireless networks for extreme environments and hard-to-access places. Even if the building totally collapsed, the sensors would still let you pinpoint the source of the fault.

When will M2M technology become widespread in homes and offices. Came accross this article that very summarizes the qualities that are a hallmark of a successful M2M platform for home automation

A technology must possess many attributes to be successful in a consumer market such as home automation. These features include:

* Affordability: The technology must provide enough benefits with a low enough price that consumers become willing to invest in it.
* Ease of use: The technology should be simple enough to install that the average consumer can use it out of the box.
* Reliability: Once consumers install it, the technology should work as they expect without interruption and without their attention.
* Flexibility: Consumers expect to use technology where and how they wish without significant restrictions.
* Long operating life: Consumers expect their investment to pay dividends over months or years without fail. In the case of battery-operated devices, long battery life is essential for consumer satisfaction.
* Interoperability: Consumers expect to be able to purchase technology components from a variety of competing sources and have the components work together without effort.
* Capability: Consumers have come to expect that a newly adopted technology will provide several important benefits and useful features and that the technology’s capability and features will steadily increase over time.