Smart City and Utility Industry News Roundup
May 15, 2024

Microsoft and Aganova have teamed up to launch a water replenishment project in Spain using advanced AI technology. This initiative, in partnership with the Mancomunidad de Aguas del Sorbe (MAS) near Madrid, aims to improve leak detection and repair in water distribution networks.

The AI-driven solutions should help identify leaks in MAS’s trunk mains, conserving water and improving drought resilience. To achieve this, the project is structured around several key components:

1. AI Technology Integration: The project utilizes AI-driven platforms, Nautilus and Nemo, developed by Aganova. These platforms assess the condition of pipes and detect leaks with high precision.
2. Leak Detection: AI algorithms analyze data collected by sensors within the water distribution network. These sensors monitor parameters such as pressure, flow rates, and acoustic signals to identify anomalies indicating leaks.
3. Data Analysis and Reporting: The data from the sensors is transmitted to a central system where AI processes it in real-time. This allows for quick identification and localization of leaks.
4. Actionable Insights: The system generates reports and alerts for the utility company, enabling prompt repair actions to minimize water loss.
5. Community Engagement: Residents can access data and receive notifications about water quality and potential issues through an app developed by JustAir Solutions, enhancing public awareness and involvement.

Leep Utilities, a British water company, has partnered with Kraken Technologies, investing £10 million to enhance water service efficiency and become the first UK water utility to fully migrate to Kraken’s advanced platform. This move aims to improve water efficiency, reduce leaks by 30%,, accelerate the rollout of smart meters and streamline operations with AI and IoT technologies.

Kraken, better known for its Octopus Energy solution, uses advanced algorithms and real-time data analytics to connect customer usage with environmental monitoring, offering tools for better water management.

The Greek Municipality of Parga, in partnership with Constrat and Sigfox Hellas, has launched an initiative to install 7,000 water meters utilizing Sigfox 0G technology. This low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) technology was acquired by Unabiz in 2022. The initiative aims to enhance water management in Greece through sustainable metering solutions. The water meters, incorporating Honeywell MERLIN 868 HB-G3 modules, support both Sigfox and WMBus protocols.

As Paris prepares for the 2024 Summer Olympics, the city has rolled out AI-powered video surveillance, debuting during Taylor Swift’s concert and soon to be utilized at two Paris metro stations. This technology, designed to detect suspicious activities such as abandoned packages and weapons, is also being tested at the Cannes Film Festival, monitoring 40,000 attendees and high-profile movie stars with 17 experimental AI cameras. Cannes, already equipped with the densest video protection network in France, boasts 884 cameras.

In preparation for the Olympics, the French Ministry of the Interior has selected back in January three companies for its smart video surveillance pilot program. Wintics secured two lots for algorithm deployment in the Île-de-France region and the transportation sector, while Videtics and Chapsvision each secured one lot. Each lot is estimated at €2 million, highlighting the significant investment in enhancing security. AI technology aims to detect predefined situations like abandoned objects or crowd movements, explicitly excluding facial recognition.

Despite concerns about potential system failures and privacy issues, local authorities are optimistic about the benefits of this advanced surveillance for major events, including the highly anticipated Olympics starting in July.

IN Greece, Vodafone Business and Osmos Hellas have secured a €95.3 million contract for the “Smart Bridges” project, funded by the Greece 2.0 Recovery Fund. Over 24 months, they will install smart systems to monitor 150 road bridges and 100 railway bridges. Utilizing IoT and 5G technology, these systems will enable real-time monitoring of bridge conditions to enhance safety. The project includes various subsystems for data collection, geospatial information, notifications, and advanced analytics. The project will include the following subsystems:

• Modeling and sensor interface subsystem that will receive the data from each bridge and store it in the platform databases with the appropriate timestamp and with their geospatial footprint.

• Geospatial information projection subsystem for the entire network of bridges.

• Dashboard which will allow the system administrator to customize the view of the data and metadata of each bridge.

• Subsystem for viewing and managing notifications and updates, where overall their system administrator will be able to see all notifications in real time.

• Reporting subsystem (BI- Bridge Intelligence), where the user will be able to dynamically design and create reports.

• Data import and export subsystem, where the qualified user will be able to import data into the Smart Bridge Monitoring platform.

• Subsystem for interfacing and execution of computational models, concerning the periodic execution of special machine learning algorithms on big data, specially designed for the extraction of indices of assessment of the “health” of bridges.

The city of Regina in Canada has introduced smart city technology on Albert Street to prevent drivers from getting stuck in floods. The $185,000 Albert Street Underpass Flood Detection Sensor System, funded by $60,000 from Saskatchewan Government Insurance (SGI) and $125,000 from the city, uses sensors to detect high-risk flooding. When triggered, the system automatically changes traffic lights to red, activates “do not enter” signs, and sends email alerts to city staff.

This initiative aims to enhance driver safety by redirecting traffic during floods and ensuring timely responses.

The City of Tallinn, Estonia, is partnering with Hayden AI to pilot its automated bus lane and bus stop enforcement platform. This initiative, part of Tallinn’s “Test in Tallinn” program, involves installing AI-powered cameras on two transit buses to detect parking violations. The pilot aims to improve transit service efficiency and safety by addressing issues caused by obstructed bus lanes and stops.

Wayne County has launched a new air quality monitoring network with 100 stationary monitors to track pollutants like particulate matter, ozone, and nitrogen dioxide in real-time. The project aims to identify pollution hotspots and inform policy decisions to hold polluters accountable.

The project, in partnership with Detroit-based startup JustAir Solutions, offers residents access to localized air quality data and alerts via an app. The second phase will provide 500 mobile clip-on monitors to vulnerable residents, including children with asthma, to study pollution-triggered health problems.

Louisiana legislators have passed a bill limiting the impact of community-led air monitoring, despite federal funding boosts. The Louisiana Environmental Action Network (LEAN) received $500,000 to deploy mobile air monitors in “Cancer Alley,” collecting data along a 300-mile route. The new law, sponsored by Senator Eddie Lambert, mandates that air quality data for regulatory use must come from state-accredited labs with EPA-approved equipment. Critics argue this protects industrial polluters and undermines community efforts.

Despite the restrictions, LEAN plans to continue its monitoring with additional funds for stationary sensors.

The city of Dos Hermanas, near Seville in Spain, has launched an traffic control system using 60 AI-powered cameras. These cameras are installed in 18 high-traffic locations and various roundabouts. Out of the 60 cameras, 42 are equipped with license plate recognition capabilities, enabling the local police to identify vehicles based on their plates, color, and type. Data collected by these smart cameras are automatically analyzed through the Smart City platform ‘In4City’ by Innovasur, which aids in managing security resources efficiently.

This system is expected to optimize police resources by automatically notifying authorities of unusual events, enhancing traffic control and safety in Dos Hermanas.

In Spain, the communities of Extremadura and Andalusia now have comprehensive LoRaWAN coverage, thanks to the deployment by Swedish multinational Netmore. This strategic investment aims to enhance IoT (Internet of Things) capabilities, particularly for water management, amidst ongoing drought concerns.
Netmore claims to have connected over one million devices globally and anticipates significant growth in Spain. This deployment should supports a wide range of applications, including remote reading of digital water and gas meters, air quality monitoring, and smart city initiatives. The exact cost of the deployment in Extremadura and Andalusia has not been disclosed.