AT&T's new 'smart city' sensors will monitor bridges to make sure they're safe
AT&T is hooking bridges up to the Internet of Things.
At CES, AT&T announced that it's testing a new "structure monitoring solution," a system of sensors to help cities, states, and private transportation companies monitor the stability of bridges, and alert officials if they become unsafe.
The battery-operated sensors can be applied to all bridges, from foot bridges to those that support roads and railways. They will then take readings every eight hours and transmit the data to the IBM cloud via AT&T's LTE network.
The sensors will monitor a number of bridge factors including crack width and temperature, joint movement, and changes in angle.
AT&T will announce customers over the next several months. Some cities and companies will buy and manage the systems, while others will buy them but let AT&T manage them.
This is just the latest step in AT&T's quest to create full "smart cities." The company launched its "digital infrastructure solution" last year to outfit cities' street lights with smart sensors and cameras. They monitor factors like pedestrian movement, traffic, air quality, and noise.
The sensors then deliver data to city officials. For example, one of AT&T's apps, Shot Spotter, alerts officials when a sensor hears a gunshot, and keeps track of gunshot decibel levels.
The company hopes that cities will work with local entrepreneurs to create apps that can share this data with citizens.
Since last year's announcement, San Diego has begun to deploy 3,200 digital infrastructure sensor nodes. Atlanta has deployed 200.
While this launch might seem boring, it's an important step toward fully connected cities. The ability to remotely monitor bridge stability, air quality, traffic, and other factors would save a lot of time and money that currently goes towards manual inspections, and make it easier for citizens to plan their transportation and stay safe.
Stay tuned to Mashable's CES 2018 coverage for more announcements from the conference.
Topics Artificial Intelligence AT&T CES
Monica wrote for Mashable's Tech section with a focus on retail, internet of things, and the intersections of technology and social justice. She holds a degree in creative writing from Brown University, and has previously written for Dow Jones Media, the New York Post, Yahoo Finance, and others. In her free time, she can be found attempting to cook Asian food, buying board games, and looking for new hobbies.
