Success Story Cortexia
« Our customers know that we rely on a solution that is completely sustainable. »
Emmanuel Bréton
CTO, Cortexia SA
The story in brief:
Smart City’s AI data available in real time
Cortexia offers a solution that enables cities to improve urban cleanliness, save on cleaning resources and protect the environment. Street cleanliness is measured by cameras and computing units embedded in vehicles that travel around the city (edge-to-cloud technology, i.e. a mobile unit that communicates with a service in the cloud).
Urban waste is detected by advanced artificial intelligence (AI) algorithms directly on the vehicle, without any images being transmitted. In order to communicate the cleanliness data to the customer, the computing unit is equipped with a SIM card and uses its antenna to connect to the mobile network. Swisscom has developed and implemented a secure and reliable data transmission solution, which allows a large number of units to be deployed throughout Europe.
The challenge
How to transmit large quantities of real-time data across Europe securely and reliably?
On-board AI units transmit large quantities of measured cleanliness data from European cities to the cloud. This data is transmitted in real time and must never be interrupted. It must be possible to monitor the units and to intervene remotely in the event of a problem. On-board software evolves rapidly and it must be possible to carry out several updates per week. Cortexia must therefore be capable of connecting to the units easily, as soon as they are active. Each unit’s communication must be secure, and the units must be inaccessible to any external system. This reliability and security must be guaranteed for expansion to several thousand units without performance being affected.
Cortexia SA
- Branche: IT
- Headquarters: Châtel-Saint-Denis FR
- Employees: ~ 10
The project with Swisscom
- Computer vision in real time for measuring cleanliness in cities from vehicle-mounted units.
- Secure, real-time data transmission throughout Europe.
The solution
The solution chosen by Cortexia is Swisscom's IoT (Internet of Things) technology.
The Cortexia units are equipped with private SIM cards (APN) and connected to the Internet via VPN. The implementation of a high-availability VPN between Swisscom and Microsoft Azure is the result of a collaborative pilot project between Swisscom and Cortexia teams. There can be no incoming access outside the VPN. These SIM cards are accessible via a fixed IP to diagnose the status of the GSM connection in the event that access is unavailable (e.g. SSH). Swisscom’s excellent incorporation of the LTE hardware specifications on the Cortexia side is also the result of effective collaboration. The units can be activated throughout Europe without special configuration. The tariffs are adapted to the planned quotas in Switzerland and outside Switzerland. The solution also allows management of subscription statuses, monitoring of data consumption and alerting of peaks. The solution is innovative and the result of true, dynamic collaboration between the two teams.
« Thanks to Swisscom’s IoT solution, we have a genuine growth lever that is available on a turnkey basis. »
Emmanuel Bréton, CTO, Cortexia SA
CMP Mobile
Wherever your connected devices and objects are located, connectivity management is child’s play thanks to integrated alarms and triggers. CMP Mobile can be integrated into your existing environment with minimal lead times, giving you a quick, continuous overview of all your IoT SIM cards, costs and devices.
Benefits for Cortexia
Access to a market outside Switzerland
Swisscom allows Cortexia to access all countries in Europe and North America without having to negotiate with local operators themselves.
Availability of units
Thanks to the IoT solution, the units can be accessed reliably and consistently.
Secure network
The units are connected in a private network, which is encrypted to make it fully secure.
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