Robert M Blog: IoTWF 2014 Chicago

Cisco Systems Inc, presented the second, annual Internet of Things World Forum which took place on October 14-16 in Chicago at Hyatt Regency Hotel. More than 1500 customers attended. One of the key features from the forum was the Smart City Walking Tour. The tour presented a variety of smart solutions deployed in the city of Chicago. The Cisco division from Chicago planned to construct a Dream Team of students to work with Cisco Engineers in order to create the best experience for the Walking Tour. I was honored to be a part of the City Colleges of Chicago - Wright College team. We had to go through the application process on which we have been chosen to participate in the event! Cisco Engineers invited us to their Chicago headquarters located in Rosemont, Illinois. We went over the project and responsibilities of the team which included assistance in manning the Operation Center and monitoring the wireless network infrastructure along with data center infrastructure. It also included attending and monitoring connectivity during walking demonstration tours. Among us, they also choose the Cisco Academy students from Moraine Valley CC and Robert Morris University. We also met a day before the event to perform a dry run of a tour to prepare us for the big day. Engineers showed us where the access points were located on the street, the stops of the tour and what we should expect during the event. The whole Walking Tour experience started off with a keynote inside the Hyatt Hotel. Then attendees were instructed to download a special application for their smart devices in order to follow the tour. Everyone received headsets and they went to the first stop. Here is the overview of the tour:

The first stop consisted of a smart intersection, connected traffic signals, the Cisco NERV Vehicle and the Chicago Police Command Vehicle. At the smart intersection we could see the air-quality and traffic sensors which provided a real-time data analysis. Connected traffic signals offered remote monitoring and control of the active signal phases of the intersections. Next was the Cisco NERV Vehicle which enables restoration of communication after emergencies. It is capable of providing high quality video communication with other emergency and city service agencies and vehicles. Next to the Cisco vehicle we could see the Chicago Police Command Vehicle which serves as a mobile command and control post that is integrated with existing city public safety technologies.

Cisco NERV Vehicle

The list of deployments for NERV Vehicle

US Amateur Radio Bands

The inside of NERV Vehicle

The inside of Chicago Police Command Vehicle

At the second step, attendees could experience Chicago Landmarks and views including the Tribute Plaza, the Wrigley Building, three layers of Wacker Drive, the Jardine Water Filtration Plant and of course the Chicago skyline.

At the third stop attendees were introduced to the City Wi-Fi. City Wi-Fi is a city ICT (information and communications technology) network that connects all the sensors and actuators with a central operations center, city personnel and optionally with the general public. We could also see street lights that were connected to the whole smart infrastructure. The lights had LED light fixtures that reduce the energy consumption.

One of many Cisco Access Point (white box on the light pole)

Cisco AP along with LED street light

Stop number four presented the connected buses and shelters. Each bus is sending its positional information to allow Chicago Transit Authority to predict arrival times at each station and show that information to travelers who are at the bus shelter at that time. This is not a new technology, everyone from Chicago saw this at various bus stops around the city, mostly downtown area. One of the Divvy Bike Stations was introduced at the same stop. Divvy Bike Stations provides bicycle rentals to Chicago residents and travelers. The stations communicate with the Divvy Service Center so bikes can be redistributed as needed to higher-demand areas. We could also see the solar-powered trash compactors located at every intersection on Michigan Avenue. When they are full, the cans signal the Sanitation Department in order to be disposed.

Stop number five was very similar to stop two which showed Chicago Landmarks and views of Millenium Park, Maggie Daley Park, and Grant Park.

At the end of the third day we were exhausted, but very happy since we were told that we are going to meet John Chambers, the CEO of Cisco Systems Inc. We took a group picture with Mr. Chambers, Cisco Engineers and the members of the Dream Team. Mr. Chambers thanked us for our help in this event and wished us all the best and for the most part this was the end of the Internet of Things World Forum. It was a great experience working for the worldwide leader in networking.