SAP IoT Simulator: Testing Out the Internet of Things

 

 

Using a demo app and sensors, SAP is looking to capture companies’ interest in the Internet of Things. The SAP IoT Simulator uses sensory and machine data that is collected and analyzed on SAP HANA Cloud Platform.

Machines tell us when they’re not feeling too good, and give us suggestions how to help them feel better again. This is the basic idea behind the SAP Internet of Things simulator. It consists of an iPhone app and a box filled with sensors that measure temperature, moisture, movement, and light intensity.

 

Collect and Analyze Sensory and Machine Data

The environmental data is transmitted constantly into the SAP cloud, where SAP HANA Cloud Platform receives and processes it, and creates simulations according to individual needs. “We are now able to define thresholds for sensory data and use it for predictive maintenance,” explains , head of Demand Management Service Sales MEE at SAP.

If you leave the sensor-equipped box in the fridge and the temperature climbs to over 7 degrees Celsius, the app will inform the appliance owner and, “with the help of existing data, rules, and machine learning, it will generate recommended actions for the user,” explains Kai Wussow, digitalization and IoT expert from SAP Service & Support.

The principle is the same, no matter if you are using your own fridge, or a complex machine in the production hall of a manufacturing company with a wide range of sensors.

 

Well-Being Index for Machines

The app constantly calculates a “well-being index for the machine,” Wussow explains. His “Sapagotchi,” which requires care and attention like the Japanese toy Tamagotchi, also generates recommendations via simulation. Using the machine’s user data, the SAP IoT simulator can advise on repair work. By analyzing the machine’s capacity, it can also determine if the equipment requires an upgrade or an upsell. These are particularly interesting features for companies.

“Our goal is to ignite the curiosity of those people who up until this point had never considered using IoT in their company,” affirms Wussow.

The “hybrid mobile application” is available in the Apple Store and was designed for the Apple operating system iOS. “Most of the features are platform-independent, though,” says SAP consultant and Internet of Things expert Vladislav Semkin. Sensory data from connected devices is processed and analyzed centrally in the SAP cloud using SAP HANA Cloud Platform.

It is then possible, both in the Web browser and on an iPhone or other smartphones, to analyze and interpret the results shown in the SAP Fiori-like SAP U15 interface that is directly embedded in the iOS app. According to Semkin, “the hybrid mobile architecture enables us to quickly and cost-efficiently develop innovate apps for our customers.”

 

Realistic Prototypes

The main advantage of using IoT prototypes in companies is that the intelligent processing of machine data can add business value to IT and other departments. Wussow is convinced that “only when you bring people, machine data, and the core transactions and processes together, genuine added value can be seen.”

“The SAP IoT Simulator functions like a springboard on SAP HANA Cloud Platform,” Semkin says. He believes that the example scenarios in the app are a useful starting point for new ideas and development in companies.

Top image via Shutterstock

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