Few people look at a vending machine or a golf cart for rent as a telecommunications device, but for many companies these and other products have one thing in common: They may have to relay transactional or inventory data to their owners.
Typically, they use analogue phone lines to transmit sales, inventory or credit card information, but eDevice, a French company that specializes in creating machine-to-machine systems, has unveiled a model for those with a need for speed.
The BridgeD130 is a PSTN to GPRS converter that connects wired modems to wired networks without a PC. “The benefits of it are quite substantial,” said Michael Freudmann, the company’s vice-president of sales and business development. “It allows you to convert a legacy device (to cellular) without changing it.”
Any equipment connected by phone line to a back-end server for remote monitoring or control can use the D130, he said, by just plugging it into the phone line. IT can also be battery powered. It does, however, also need to be plugged into a standard electrical wall outlet.
Competitors include companies such as Airlink Communications, whose products are sold through Bell and Rogers. eDevice, established in 1999, focuses on software and hardware solutions that enable equipment to remotely connect to the Internet over wired and wireless networks.
The range of products that use such transmitters is almost unlimited, and include house