Fibre optics could be the answer to water loss from leaky pipes: 48.6 billion cubic meters of water are lost globally daily
vor 1 Jahr
According to the International Water Association (IWA), the main culprits for this loss are underground leaks on water mains and service pipes.
To monitor leaks in water pipeline networks, researchers at the Polytechnic University of Milan have experimented with a novel method using fibre optics — the inexpensive and commonly-used technology that allows us to have fast internet at home.
The scientists developed a distributed fibre optic sensing (DFOS) cable based on the so-called Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS) technology, which enables the processing and storage of optical information.
This is a staggering amount of water lost daily, and it's not just the drinking water itself, but for local governments it usually also means lots of lost revenue. In South Africa, we've seen the crazy situation where a city is being flooded by rains, but there is a shortage of drinking water. But the reason is simply due to problems with the delivery of water, even though dams may be full.
It is good to see research not only focusing on putting billionaires on Mars, but also trying to solve real-world challenges facing billions of humans on Earth right now. Water is our most precious and essential resource here on Earth, and although we may see much of it, only a very little is actual drinking water, and that water needs to reach people every day for them to survive.
It would be great if this fibre could be both used for this detection, and at the same time, also provide Internet access.
See Fibre optics could be the answer to water loss from leaky pipes
#technology #fibre #waterleaks
To monitor leaks in water pipeline networks, researchers at the Polytechnic University of Milan have experimented with a novel method using fibre optics — the inexpensive and commonly-used technology that allows us to have fast internet at home.
The scientists developed a distributed fibre optic sensing (DFOS) cable based on the so-called Stimulated Brillouin Scattering (SBS) technology, which enables the processing and storage of optical information.
This is a staggering amount of water lost daily, and it's not just the drinking water itself, but for local governments it usually also means lots of lost revenue. In South Africa, we've seen the crazy situation where a city is being flooded by rains, but there is a shortage of drinking water. But the reason is simply due to problems with the delivery of water, even though dams may be full.
It is good to see research not only focusing on putting billionaires on Mars, but also trying to solve real-world challenges facing billions of humans on Earth right now. Water is our most precious and essential resource here on Earth, and although we may see much of it, only a very little is actual drinking water, and that water needs to reach people every day for them to survive.
It would be great if this fibre could be both used for this detection, and at the same time, also provide Internet access.
See Fibre optics could be the answer to water loss from leaky pipes
Researchers at the Polytechnic University of Milan have developed a novel fibre optics cable to monitor water leakage in pipeline networks.
#technology #fibre #waterleaks
vor 1 Jahr
One of the main ways people can contribute to the UN's SDGs is to use less fresh water. Fixing the water loss described is a huge factor. Municipalities and counties need to use immense amounts of often unclean energy to provide clean water going into homes, offices and factories and cleaning the water coming out after use.
Danie van der Merwe
Isizwe's Fibre-to-the-shack in South Africa — uncapped 100Mbps for R5 (US$0.27) a day
vor 1 Jahr
“The brick structures have a fibre drop and a network termination unit. The tin structures receive their Wi-Fi through a pole-mounted outdoor, fibre-connected, Wi-Fi access point,” Briggs explained.
While the network operator initially wanted to use Wi-Fi hotspots to supply multiple homes to reduce costs, the metal shacks severely attenuated Wi-Fi signals. To work around the issue, the company connected fibre directly to homes to avoid connectivity interruptions due to signal interference.
Another aspect Isizwe had to overcome was Eskom load-shedding, which prevented residents in the township from buying Internet access. To allow residents to buy Internet access whenever needed, Isizwe installed one uninterrupted power supply (UPS) at each home.
Well that's not a bad cost because a month would cost about R150 for uncapped 100Mbps. Very usable and affordable. I see they use a VulaCoin wallet for top-ups, so it would be interesting to know if there are any implications around that. The stated revenue earned per day per home exceeds the income from the user, so I'm imagining there is some other generation of revenue through ads being inserted? I would also think at this cost that the 100Mbps is not a guaranteed speed, but rather one that is contended with quite a few other users (like ADSL was).
See Fibre-to-the-shack — uncapped 100Mbps for R5 a day
#technology #SouthAfrica #fibre
While the network operator initially wanted to use Wi-Fi hotspots to supply multiple homes to reduce costs, the metal shacks severely attenuated Wi-Fi signals. To work around the issue, the company connected fibre directly to homes to avoid connectivity interruptions due to signal interference.
Another aspect Isizwe had to overcome was Eskom load-shedding, which prevented residents in the township from buying Internet access. To allow residents to buy Internet access whenever needed, Isizwe installed one uninterrupted power supply (UPS) at each home.
Well that's not a bad cost because a month would cost about R150 for uncapped 100Mbps. Very usable and affordable. I see they use a VulaCoin wallet for top-ups, so it would be interesting to know if there are any implications around that. The stated revenue earned per day per home exceeds the income from the user, so I'm imagining there is some other generation of revenue through ads being inserted? I would also think at this cost that the 100Mbps is not a guaranteed speed, but rather one that is contended with quite a few other users (like ADSL was).
See Fibre-to-the-shack — uncapped 100Mbps for R5 a day
#technology #SouthAfrica #fibre
Isizwe’s Kayamandi Fibre Project connects shacks directly to fibre and provides them with a UPS to guarantee uptime.
ISPs, FNOs, ONTs, WiFi, and UPSs — What terminology you should know about getting fibre for your home
vor 3 Jahren
Getting fibre-to-the-home (FTTH) Internet for your household will ensure you have the fastest and most reliable online connectivity on offer.
But there are various parties, several pieces of hardware, and some confusing terms involved in the process that might be a challenge for the less technically inclined.
Although the providers are South Africa specific, the terminology and components should be generic to any country, and it is useful to understand how it all fits together. Always shop around as often ISPs will have special deals if you switch to them, and remember you can choose any ISP that supports the fibre present in your area.
See ISPs, FNOs, ONTs, and UPSs — What you should know about getting fibre for your home
#technology #fibre #southafrica #ISP
But there are various parties, several pieces of hardware, and some confusing terms involved in the process that might be a challenge for the less technically inclined.
Although the providers are South Africa specific, the terminology and components should be generic to any country, and it is useful to understand how it all fits together. Always shop around as often ISPs will have special deals if you switch to them, and remember you can choose any ISP that supports the fibre present in your area.
See ISPs, FNOs, ONTs, and UPSs — What you should know about getting fibre for your home
#technology #fibre #southafrica #ISP
From ISPs to ONTs, this is the lingo you should come to terms with if you plan to get fibre for your home.
FiberSense: Fiber optic cable that can sense it's about to be dug up and send a warning, or measure earthquakes or even leaky pipes
vor 3 Jahren
"Vibration and sound all modulate strain in fiber," Englund explained, adding that even deeply buried fibers react to vibrations and sound. FiberSense has figured out how to measure changes in a fiber and deduce what made them.
The company can therefore detect things like passing traffic with sufficient accuracy to determine the difference between a truck and a cyclist, speed of travel, and even what lane a vehicle used. Leaky pipes can also be sensed, as can the geotechnical profile of spoil beneath fibers. Backhoes and jackhammers are easy.
At sea, FiberSense can detect an anchor dragging behind a ship – which matters when those anchors are about to pass over a submarine cable (as recently happened off the Australian city of Perth, resulting in a cable cut, a subsequent outage, and the arrest of the errant ship's skipper).
This is not just a vision thing: FiberSense is already present in several Australian cities, plus London, Dublin, San Francisco, New York, and Singapore.
See Fiber optic cables used as vibration sensors challenge IoT
#technology #fibre #fibersense #IoT #cabletheft
The company can therefore detect things like passing traffic with sufficient accuracy to determine the difference between a truck and a cyclist, speed of travel, and even what lane a vehicle used. Leaky pipes can also be sensed, as can the geotechnical profile of spoil beneath fibers. Backhoes and jackhammers are easy.
At sea, FiberSense can detect an anchor dragging behind a ship – which matters when those anchors are about to pass over a submarine cable (as recently happened off the Australian city of Perth, resulting in a cable cut, a subsequent outage, and the arrest of the errant ship's skipper).
This is not just a vision thing: FiberSense is already present in several Australian cities, plus London, Dublin, San Francisco, New York, and Singapore.
See Fiber optic cables used as vibration sensors challenge IoT
#technology #fibre #fibersense #IoT #cabletheft
Forget wiring cities with IoT devices – this could be how wide-scale sensing gets done
ExpressVPN speeds from South Africa to USA reaching 100 Mbps
vor 4 Jahren
This is not too bad as my fibre is locally 200 Mbps download and 100 Mbps upload. Obviously the latency between two continents is going to be slower but that latency is about what I get without the VPN active.
Gaming is always going to a challenge for South Africans across continents but speeds are looking up all the time and the new fibre linking coming soon to Europe will further improve throughput, especially as bandwidth gets ever more constrained with more users upgrading and with more and more IoT devices coming online.
#technology #fibre #VPN #privacy #southafrica
Gaming is always going to a challenge for South Africans across continents but speeds are looking up all the time and the new fibre linking coming soon to Europe will further improve throughput, especially as bandwidth gets ever more constrained with more users upgrading and with more and more IoT devices coming online.
#technology #fibre #VPN #privacy #southafrica