ARC Rapport
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AMNYTT # 5
ARC VIEW
SEPTEMBER 27, 2012
New Technology and Acquisitions
Benefit Wireless Sensing
By Harry Forbes
Keywords
6LowPAN, Dust Networks, IEEE 802.15.4e, IPv6, WirelessHART, Wireless
Sensor Networks, WSN
Wireless Sensing i n 2012
Wireless sensing is the most important new technology in process measurement to appear in decades. For this reason alone it has attracted the
sustained attention of ARC Advisory Group and other industry analyst orDust Networks has been a leader in
industrial wireless sensor network
technology for years. Now
improved standardization enables
WSN suppliers to target both
industrial and IPv6 markets with a
common product portfolio.
ganizations. While growth of wireless measurements in
industrial applications has proven to be slower than
most forecasts, wireless continues to grow much faster
than the overall automation market.
Looking at the changes in wireless sensor networking
(WSN) during the past year, ARC is most impressed by
the greater maturity of the industry along with signifi-
cant new technical achievements. We believe that both will spur market
growth because they enable a much larger set of customers to be well
served. The events of the last year at WSN leader Dust Networks provide
an excellent example of how these developments have changed (and will
continue to change) the wireless sensing market.
Commercial Maturity
Greater WSN industry maturity has come through a steady series of acquisitions. At present, almost all the pioneering sensor networking ventures
have been acquired by much larger companies. Most of the acquirers are
well-established semiconductor suppliers. Virtually all the fabless WSN
firms have now been snapped up. Dust Networks has become one of the
most recent, acquired in late 2011 by specialist Linear Technology Corporation.
VISION, EXPERIENCE, ANSWERS FOR INDUSTRY
2012