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Workshop on using Wi-SUN Technology

A hands-on workshop on Wi-SUN organized by Smart City Living Lab IIIT Hyderabad and Silicon Labs took place in IIIT Hyderabad on 5th August 2024. The workshop was conducted to impart practical knowledge on Wi-SUN Technology to the top 10 finalists of the Smart City Challenge.
The Smart City Living Lab Wi-SUN Challenge aims to support hardware innovators/ Start ups/ Academic Institutions to develop workable prototypes utilizing the Wi-SUN RF mesh. This challenge is proposed to encourage students, hardware startups and MSME’s to make
best utilization of the Wi-SUN network. The Final winners will be awarded Prize money worth Rs.8 Lakhs. Grant Challenge thus enables young entrepreneurs to initiate technology start-up companies for commercial exploitation of technologies they developed.

Challenge Themes
Domains:

• Smart Energy Solutions
• Battery powered Smart Utility (Water/Gas) solutions
• Smart Agriculture
• Environment and Clean Energy Solutions
• Mobility and Transport
Technologies:
• Edge Intelligence
• Network Security
• Long Battery Life
• Predictive Maintenance

Ms. Anuradha Vattem, Chief Technology Architect, gave the welcome address by introducing the top 10 finalists and explaining how difficult it was to finalize the top ten teams from more than 250 applications received.

The top 10 finalists are:
1. Eco-Sense (VIT-AP University)
2. Vayu (IIIT Hyderabad)
3. Radiance (St.Vincent Pallotti College Of Engineering & Technology)
4. Horus (Nitte Meenakshi Institute of Technology)
5. ANTAR IOT (ANTAR IoT Private Limited)
6 Yantram Electronics (Yantram Electornics)
7. WareBOT (Carey Joehln International Private Limited)
8. DBR Innovative Tech Team (DBR Innovative Tech)
9. Hydrowverse (Hydrowverse)
10. Nudron (Nudron IoT Solutions LLP)

Mr. N Venkatesh from Silicon Labs distributed the Wi-SUN kits to all the top 10 finalists and announced that the prize amount of 25K was sent to the respective accounts. Dr. Aftab Hussain has set the context for the workshop and reiterated on the use of Wi-SUN technology for utility networks.

An introductory talk provided by Mr. Srinivasa Rao Dukkipati gave an overview of WiSUN technology, focusing on how this network is used in real-world scenarios.

The workshop primarily was focused to provide the teams with the skills and information necessary to gear up for the Proof-of-Concept (PoC) deployment at campus using Wi-SUN technology. At the end of the day, participants were expected to understand Wi-SUN technology and its possible applications in smart city solutions.
Mr. Vaibhav Naware, Research Engineer, and Mr. Surya Suhaas, Research Intern, conducted the Hands-on session on Wi-SUN. The workshop initially dealt with the theoretical concepts related to Wi-SUN.
During the hands-on session, participants learned how to establish a basic Wi-SUN network to transmit the data and interface of the sensors and send the data to the cloud through the border router, which acts as a gateway. This invaluable practical exposure allowed the finalists to engage directly with the technology and understand its workings.

The Key Topics Covered were:
• Wi-SUN architecture
• Setting up a SOC and Linux Border Router
• Node Monitoring Applications with LFN Functionality
• Integrating sensors for real-world applications
• Utilizing development tools and software for efficient implementation Feedback and Future Engagements: The workshop received overwhelmingly positive feedback from attendees, who expressed their appreciation for the comprehensive content and expert guidance.

Post-workshop, participants were conducted on a lab tour by Ms. Anuradha Vattem, showcasing diverse Smart City Living Lab project demonstrations.

Ms. Anuradha mentioned that the training in the upcoming technologies like Wi-SUN is the need of the hour to get interesting and innovative solutions out of the technical enthusiasts.

August 2024