How Smart City Projects Are Taking Shape Around The World

Bristol

The UK is testing the latest smart tech, too. However, there aren’t as many projects going on in British cities as other cities, and they’re mainly concept-based. Bristol is Open, which has just launched, is a good example of what’s about to come. It’s a joint partnership between the University of Bristol and the local council to turn Bristol into a test-bed for connected technologies – including a mixture of hardware, software and analytics. That’s not all, though. Working with tech giant Nokia, the project also hopes to explore 5G and the opportunities it could bring to the city.

Read More: Where are the UK’s smart cities?

Climate KIC, London

Our cities are changing dramatically, and one of the biggest issues they face is pollution. There’s so much in the air that can cause harm, but there are many smart city projects looking to tackle this. Climate-KIC is a prime example. It’s Europe’s main climate innovation initiative, and is working with cities across the continent to use tech to address climate change challenges. In the UK, it’s partnered with the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to deploy a range of smart energy management systems to combat pollution. And in the Netherlands, the organisation is working with Utrecht to reconstruct the city and make it greener.

City Digital, Chicago

Accenture is also becoming a pioneer in the smart city world. It’s teamed up with City Digital, a Chicago-based UI LABS collaboration, to develop technology for a new underground infrastructure mapping platform. The platform, when launched, will generate, organise and store 3D underground infrastructure data – saving cities and organisations from having to invest in costly construction and planning processes. It’ll be trialled in the city of Chicago by creating a 3D map of underground assets such as water pipes, fibre optic lines and legacy infrastructure.

Drayson Technologies, London

Drayson Technologies, a British IoT platform company, has placed a particular focus on smart city projects. The firm is developing a range of products and solutions to help smart cities flourish. CleanSpace demonstrates this commitment. It uses an IoT sensor network and machine learning to create a hyperlocal air pollution information. With this, citizens can see the air they breathe. Last month, the company launched an initiative called Map London, which tracks pollution levels across London.

Wayfindr, Sydney and London

Navigating around cities is extremely challenging for those with visual impairments, but the latest smart city tech has the potential to change things altogether. Wayfindr is leading this. The latter is a global standard-setting body for blind navigation using BLE beacons. It received $1 million from Google last year to help it launch and extend trials in cities like London and Sydney, and to develop standards in collaboration with transport authorities, businesses and IoT solution providers. The goal here is to let blind people navigate around their city or town easily by making use of technology. It’ll also support them in their ability to work and socialise.

Quiz: What do you know about the internet of Things?