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LoRa-enabled, Humpback Whale Gateway-style Intelligent Products to Empower Cold Chain Logistics

By Wang Xiaotao, China Economic Herald and China Development Network The new round of cold storage and cold chain construction coincides with the rapid development and wide application of new generation information technology such as Internet of Things (IoT) and Artificial Intelligence (AI). Among them, the rapid development of LoRa and other IoT technologies has brought a brand new opportunity for the cold chain logistics industry.

Feigurs show that the current cold chain transportation rate of aquatic products, meat, fruits and vegetables in China is 69%, 57% and 35% respectively, while the average rate of developed countries is 80%~90%. (hereinafter referred to as "Humpback Whale") is committed to embedding "positioning + communication + sensing" capability into every intelligent terminal, and providing "cloud, management and end (hereinafter referred to as "Humpback Whale") is committed to embedding "positioning + communication + sensing" capability into each intelligent terminal, and realizing its goal of being a global first-class digital production area and intelligent data operator of the whole cold chain by providing "cloud, management and end" hardware and software products and services. As a leading company in the industry, Humpback Whale combines the latest IoT technologies such as LoRa with its advanced technologies and experience in IoT smart hardware, positioning and navigation, and data analysis, and independently develops an end-to-end solution covering the whole process of the cold chain industry - "AI+ Cold Chain The "AI+Cold Chain Intelligent Control System" is an end-to-end solution covering the whole process of cold chain industry. The embedded ZTJ-LINK communication protocol is based on LoRa, which can realize automatic identification, decentralized automatic authentication and self-organizing network without human intervention among hardware devices, effectively avoiding collision of airports and interference with other communication systems within the system.

In order to meet the needs of administrative supervision and traceability in the industry, the agreement also establishes a two-way data confirmation, verification, retransmission and retransmission mechanisms to ensure that the data is real and valid.

LoRa has been widely used in the logistics industry including cold chain because of its technical features such as wide coverage, low power consumption and high deployment flexibility. Humpback Whale's LoRa-based "Whale Dart" gateway-type intelligent product consists of a main device and LoRa-based wireless probes (wireless networking sensors), which can be applied to many scenarios such as cargo transportation in refrigerated and reefer trucks, cargo storage in refrigerated warehouses, unmanned stores, convenience stores, and fruit superstores. The smart product has three advantages: excellent wireless penetration characteristics, can meet the needs of high concurrency, and the device has low power consumption and maintenance-free characteristics.

At the same time, LoRa also has the application characteristics of "self-assembly, security and control", which saves time and expenses by eliminating the work of drilling and wiring for users and realizes instant installation and use; users can also flexibly deploy built-in or external networking probes according to different scenarios to achieve multi-dimensional and all-round monitoring.

With LoRa's low power consumption, long distance and strong penetration, only one probe needs to be placed in a 100-200 square meter warehouse to accurately collect temperature and humidity; even in a cold chain vehicle, with strong penetration, data can be collected in real time in the vehicle to ensure stable transmission of information. Probe maintenance, avoiding manual inspection and equipment maintenance and reducing labor costs.

In addition, the geolocation function of LoRa also empowers the "Whale Dart" intelligent device. After the device is turned on with one key, it can not only monitor the real-time status data, temperature and humidity of the goods, but also monitor the location and path map of the goods in transportation, and upload them to the management platform of "Whale Dart", so that users can understand the status information of the goods in real time.

In addition to helping users reduce initial investment and operating costs, LoRa-based "Whale Dart" series products can also create new value for users. For example, if you find that the goods have been spilt or subcontracted during the transportation process, or that the cold chain truck has turned off the cold machine, you can correct the situation in time and export the report afterwards to help you analyze the operation effectiveness, avoid potential risks and reduce potential costs.

With the above advantages, Humpback Whale's "Whale Dart" series of intelligent terminal products and management platform have been widely used in dairy products, cold chain transportation industry, supermarkets, convenience stores and many other enterprises, and have been highly recognized by customers. At present, many enterprises, such as CP Food, Mengniu, Yakult, Lawson, Ziyanfood Chain, IKEA, Freshippo, Flowerplus and Fruit Day, have adopted "Whale Dart" intelligent products.

It is reported that Humpback Whale will use LoRa and other IoT technologies as well as artificial intelligence technology to develop a broader market in the future. In addition to continuing to promote the application of "Whale Dart" series products in warehouses, freight transportation, stores and other scenarios, it will further expand in the fields of vegetable and fruit greenhouses, aquaculture ponds, livestock farm stations, etc. to provide more customers with easy-to-use and economically efficient products.

It is Semtech's vision to use innovative technology to bring a better life, and we are pleased to work with innovative companies like Humpback Whale with a common vision to launch the LoRa-based 'Whale Dart' gateway-based smart product," said Xudong Huang, vice president of sales for Semtech China. It not only provides a powerful aid to the development of the cold chain industry, but also enhances the quality of life of end users and helps increase the efficiency of agriculture and farmers' income. China's cold chain logistics has entered a rapid development channel, and LoRa's features of low power consumption, long range, easy deployment, strong penetration and support for positioning will continue to add innovative momentum to cold chain logistics."