Mobile & Wearable Technology’s Impact On The Manufacturing Industry (VIDEO)

The perception of a noisy, dark manufacturing floor is quickly quickly fading, and what's coming to light is the vision of a thriving innovative environment centered around cloud, big data, wearables and mobility.  In this TedX event talk Plex VP of Development Jason Prater discusses how the plant floor of the future actually exists today ... along with giving a glimpse into what's next for manufacturing technology.

Shhh - Not In Front Of The Television

A recent advertising campaign from Samsung promises: "TV has never been this smart." We may soon wonder how smart a TV can get before it is too smart for our own good.

"Smart TVs" can display Web content by directly accessing a home's Internet connection. Many of the high-end versions, including Samsung's, offer voice-recognition technology, allowing users to change channels, search for programs or adjust the TV volume by verbal command.

Samsung is not the first company to introduce voice controls for smart TVs, but it is the focus of a privacy group's current concern. The Electronic Privacy Information Center has asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate after a close reading of the company's privacy policy revealed that third parties might be able to listen in using the TV's built-in microphone. The policy warns users that "if your spoken words include personal or other sensitive information, that information will be among the data captured and transmitted to a third party through your use of voice recognition." (1)

While we probably don't have to worry about Skynet rising in our living rooms, Americans are rightfully wary of sweeping electronic intrusions. After the revelations about National Security Agency programs and privacy breakdowns at companies as diverse as Anthem and Target, it is understandable if some consumers are unsettled by the idea of an unnamed person listening in on conversations that happen to take place while the TV is on. And smart TVs are not the only culprit: Some video game consoles can be controlled by voice too, and Apple and Android mobile devices have made voice search an everyday part of many people's lives.

Nearly all of these devices let you turn the microphone off or disable voice recognition software. You can also disconnect your smart TV from the network so it won't transmit anything, though this means losing most of the benefits of owning a smart TV. And most devices that use voice controls require an initiating command before they start recording what you say at all, at least in theory.

For TV owners who choose not to disable voice controls, the Samsung policy still may not be cause for undue alarm. A Samsung spokeswoman, speaking to Chris Matyszczyk at CNET, explained that the third parties the policy indicates are contacted only during a requested voice command search; no voice data is retained or sold, she stressed. (1) But while this is reassuring, it requires customers to trust the company not to retain or sell collected data in the future.

TV buyers may be wary, especially if they are aware of the investigation LG triggered a few years ago when it came to light that viewing data from LG's smart TVs was collected even if the related setting was toggled to "off." (LG later released an update to fix the issue.) There has also been concern that Samsung's data, when transmitted, is not properly encrypted. Companies need not be malicious to compromise consumer privacy; they need only be sloppy.

Apple and Google have been careful to specify that data from smartphone voice search or services like Siri is anonymized, so the companies cannot trace a given query back to any particular user - in Google's case, ever, and in Apple's case, after six months connected to a randomly generated number. (2) But even without personal information attached, sensitive data sitting on a company's servers could be a problem. For instance, a dictation might contain legally regulated information, such as the precise time a company plans to file for an initial public offering. Scrubbing the name of the person who input the data may not be enough when the data itself needs protection.

There are a few ways the privacy concerns might eventually be resolved. A device maker may find itself held financially responsible if it obtains a certain sort of sensitive information - for instance, information about planned criminal activity - and fails to take responsible action. If and when this happens, that manufacturer is likely to promptly disable or eliminate voice data gathering capabilities. Wary competitors would likely follow suit rather than risk ending up in the same legal hot water.

It may not come to that, of course. Device makers may voluntarily limit where our data goes, or legislators may force them to do so. After all, gathering information as such is not the problem. Obviously, we realize that when we ask our smartphones for directions and traffic information, the phone must communicate the request to an outside server; voice recognition simply acts as a fingerless keyboard for inputting search queries. The phone itself doesn't "know" the answer. It relays your request to an app or a search engine and returns the answer to you.

Similarly, if I ask my smart TV to display a channel guide or play a particular program, I know it is obtaining the content from elsewhere. That is not a problem. In fact, it is probably why I purchased a smart TV in the first place. The problem is that consumers are not necessarily agreeing to let the TV maker store that data, ostensibly for product-improvement purposes, or share that data with third parties for marketing purposes.

If I search for a certain website on my MacBook, I don't expect Apple to be informed. I have no reason to expect this on my iPhone either, whether I use voice technology or my fingers to enter the site name. Companies need research to improve products, of course - but they can conduct this research in house, or use beta testers who know their usage is being monitored. There is no reason to turn the entire customer base into unpaid research assistants, even though such practices are now common.

The solution may eventually come from technological progress itself. One day, machines may have the storage and processing capacity to handle all voice commands locally, eliminating any need to transmit the spoken commands (or transcriptions of spoken commands) elsewhere. The more that can be wired into the hardware, the less need to move data or to involve third parties.

In the meantime, devices' programming should limit transmitted information to phrases that are recognized as some part of the unit's functionality. There is no need to record or transmit phrases such as "my husband is a pompous idiot." Our gizmos should be smart enough to tell the difference.

By Larry M. Elkin

What Is The Future For Industry 4.0 In The Post COVID-19 Paradigm?

Industry 4.0 is not only as relevant as it was before the global COVID-19 emergency, it's actually far more relevant moving forward.  The COVID-19 crises woke us up, as it should have.  What we thought Industry 4.0 was before, will likely have a different role from today onward...and one that is much more agile, impactful, and successful for all concerned.

What Is The Future For Industry 4.0 In The Post COVID-19 Paradigm?

Keep in mind that a critical foundational piece to the success of Industry 4.0 is your IoT ecosystem and it’s network connectivity. That said, there’s a free resource uniquely positioned to source the right IoT connectivity solution for any IoT application whatever it may be....wired or wireless. They can even help with the network design and security effort. All at ZERO cost to you. Simply ask at the link below, providing details on what you need accomplished, and they’ll take it from there.  It’s as easy as 1, 2, 3.

IoT Connectivity

Blockchain In Cybersecurity...10 Possible Use Cases

While there are no foolproof methods to stymie hackers, there are steps that can be taken to reduce the chances that our devices and information falls into the wrong hands. Considering how the blockchain can help fortify the cyber security industry is one of the most basic steps toward insulating data from the ever-cunning hackers who will stop at nothing to obtain and leverage our most sensitive data against us.

Read this article for valuable insights and practical use illustrations for deploying blockchain in your cybersecurity strategy....

Blockchain In Cybersecurity...10 Possible Use Cases

Industry 4.0 Will More Than Anything Else Be A “Data Revolution”

Fundamental performance indicators of the manufacturing environment such as total equipment effectiveness, unit costs, operational expenses still don’t get the deserved attention in the industry which has gone through three well defined revolutions. Among all the effort put forth to achieve daily production targets, managers find it hard to reserve some time to look at manufacturing systems from a vantage point. Widely used industrial idioms like “saving the day”, “production pressure” and “operational blindness” are indeed expressions of reproach aimed at insufficient managerial styles which fail to locate data at the center. Industry 4.0 or Industrial Internet of Things defining the fourth industrial revolution steps up to cure exactly these types of flaws and place management on data centric and scientific foundations. Thus it can be said that Industry 4.0 will more than anything else be a “data revolution”.

Read this article for some eye opening insights and timely advice on the subject....

Industry 4.0 Will More Than Anything Else Be A “Data Revolution”

Giving Human Relevance To Digital Transformation

Digital transformation does not start with technology, but with the people and processes it enables. Envision the enormous possibilities and high impact that digital transformation can have in the production process by enabling you and your workforce. Giving human relevance to digital transformation allows technology to be successfully adopted and fully realize the benefits.

There are plenty of reasons for manufacturing operations to get started in the digital transformation journey. The times to stay in the nostalgia of what it was are over unless there is a decision to perish for not getting on the “bullet train” of progress.

There is no space or time for continued wait and see skepticism or the “we’ve tried this before” mentality. There is no room for not embracing the new, or for no willingness to prototype small and rapidly to experiment and fail. There is a competitive advantage for the early adopters and risk takers.

Make the decision and commitment to lead the digital transformation. It may be the only strategy you have to focus on to make the difference.

Read this article for more hard hitting in-depth insight.....

Giving Human Relevance To Digital Transformation

Industry4.0 is a set of technologies that enable transparency, connectivity, and faster decision making to free up time for employees to focus on core competencies and value-add activities. Digital transformation is the skeletal framework through which Industry 4.0 builds it's success....or failure. 

UCaas, CCaaS, CPaaS Working As One For Today's Realities

The unusual circumstance businesses find themselves in now, with COVID-19, has everybody struggling to remain productive. As everyone has quickly come to learn, today’s reality involves loads of remote employees who have never before worked out of the office, rampant remote conferencing and video meetings with clients and partners, and adapting to customer service provided by cadres of agents working in disparate locations.  Enterprises are grabbing on to the as-a-service model, be it as UC, contact center, or communications platform pieces, to address these new realities.

UCaaS, CCaaS, CPaaS Working As One For Today's Realities

If you'd like free assistance in putting a remote work plan and strategy in place incorporating UCaaS, CCaaS, and CPaaS....simply ask us online at FreedomFire Communications and we'll take it from there.  It's as easy as 1, 2, 3.

Will Artificial Intelligence Take Your Job?

Even in China, the land of the low-paid factory worker, robots are quietly taking over from their human counterparts.

China has now overtaken Japan for having more robots than anywhere else in the world. The Chinese government is concerned about an ageing population and the rising cost of human labour making Chinese products less competitive.

It is giving over $100 Billion in subsidies for companies to replace more human workers with robots. It's hoped that the workers that will no longer work in the factories will move to the growing service sector, in part to help look after the ageing population.

Countries In the west have already lost large numbers of manufacturing jobs to china but we shouldn’t get too smug about our white-collar jobs in high tech, administration, clerical and production being safe from A.I. systems in the future.

A report from the Bank of England has warned that up to 50% of the workforce in the UK and US could be at risk of been replaced by Artificial Intelligence of some form over the next 10 to 20 years.

Even highly skilled jobs such as doctors and lawyers are at risk as A.I. becomes increasing sophisticated.

IBM’s Watson, the A.I computer that beat the human champions at Jeopardy in 2011 is one such system. In research carried out by the University of North Carolina School of Medicine using IBM’s Watson Artificial Intelligence system, it was found that in a test based on 1000 cancer diagnoses, Watson recommended the same treatment as highly trained oncologists 99% of the time.

In fact, due to Watsons ability to read and digest thousands of documents in minutes and have access to all the latest research papers and clinical trials, it found treatment options for 30% of the cases that were missed by the human doctors.

Whilst this seen as a helper for Doctors now, in the future these types of systems will be taking up more and more of the work that a human would take many years to train for. Not to mention that it works 24/7 365 days a year, doesn’t get ill, take holidays or complain about the stress and workload.

It’s predicted that the first wave of this new A.I. will have the biggest impact on sectors like transportation, logistics, office administration and labour in production.

In transport now, there is at least one human per vehicle, be that large articulated lorries, trucks, taxis, limos, trains etc. These will be some of the jobs which will be taken by autonomous vehicles.

Human drivers are prone to stress, tiredness and distraction and often limited by law to a maximum number of hours per day they can drive, this is not the case for autonomous vehicles, they can drive all day and night so the efficiencies in using such systems will be something that companies will be keenly looking into, after all a parked up truck makes no money.

Trials are already taking place with driverless cars on public roads and on October 20th, 2016 a self-driving truck developed by the Uber owned startup Otto, made the first autonomous commercial delivery of 2000 cases of Budweiser over a 120 mile about 200Km journey across Colorado.

Elsewhere, eBay has just bought up the computer-vision company, Corrigon. The A.I. here is recognising and understanding images and then categorising them, something that would normally take a human to do.

Ebay are also using A.I. to settle buyer & seller disputes at the rate of 60 million a year and similar technology is being used in the Netherlands, England and Canada to handle divorces, landlord-tenant disputes, and other legal conflicts, without hiring lawyers or going to court.

Another example could blend the speech recognition of Apples Siri virtual assistant with IBM’s Watson. This could replace call centres with intelligent, question-answering, automated systems that would more effective and cut out the human in the same way as we have grown accustomed the automated phone systems, although hopefully a whole lot better and less annoying.

New technologies have changed industries for hundreds of years and we have adapted and moved on and in the great number of cases, it’s created more jobs.

A.I technologies may not be taking over tomorrow but it is a creeping, inexorable change that will come as companies and governments strive for ever increasing efficiencies in the face competition and money saving.

The economist John Maynard Keynes predicted decades ago that there would be a period of technological unemployment as society finds new ways of making labour more efficient, faster than the displaced jobs can be taken up elsewhere.

There is no economic law that says there will always be a job created in other sectors for those who lose theirs to new technology.

How Close Are We To Artificial Intelligence? (VIDEO)

Building a sentient mind is one of the highest aspirations of the human species. And, with current breakthroughs in technology, the goal may be more attainable than ever before. But what will this machine consciousness be like? How close are we to making it a reality?

How Smart Is Today's Artificial Intelligence? (VIDEO)

Artificial intelligence is creeping into our everyday lives through technology like check-scanning machines and GPS navigation. How far away are we from making intelligent machines that actually have minds of their own? Hari Sreenivasan reports on the ethical considerations of artificial intelligence as part of our Breakthroughs series.

How To Source The Right UCaaS And CCaaS Solution For YOUR Business

A major piece critical to the success of Industry 4.0 and digital transformation initiatives of every business is sourcing and selecting the best fit UCaaS (Unified Communications as a Service) and CCaaS (Contact Center as a Service) solutions for your enterprise applications. 

2020 Supplier Overview: UCaaS

Back in 2018 and 2019, we used to always talk about integrations (Open APIs) being the key driver.  “Does your phone system talk to your CRM?” This was a question we always encouraged businesses to start with, but today that is shifting more towards video conferencing, team messaging, and contact center functionality.  This seems to be the trend as we look at the chart below. Open APIs, something that was so important a year ago, is now in fourth place. Meanwhile, video conferencing has taken over the UCaaS world.

UCaaS providers are not created equal, so what are some key factors in selecting a UCaaS vendor?

• Video Conferencing Capability
• Teams
• Contact Center Functionality
• APIs (Clouds talking to other Clouds)
• Contact Center Platform Integration
• SMS Capability (Ability to interact with Millennials)
• Physical Path of Traffic (International)
• Overseas Deployment Capability
• International Call Volume
• White-Glove Installation (On-Site vs. Drop-Ship)
• Call Volume/Call Duration
• Built-in CRM
• Term/Commitment

FreedomFire Communications offers free assistance (via our patented tools and significant supplier connections) you can use when selecting a vendor. Don’t use a tool that is a “Choose Your Adventure,” instead take advantage of our free assistance to select the exact criteria that are critical to your business success.

Are you looking to make the shift from prem to cloud? Many vendors are getting creative on the move from prem to cloud; some are offering discounts, credits, and free months. FreedomFire Communications is uniquely positioned to source from a litany of special incentives to migrate pre users. Take a look below to see the changes that have occurred in our UCaaS Portfolio over the past three years.

2020 Supplier Overview: CCaaS

Like UCaaS, the contact center landscape is also changing. Improving adoption of CCaaS can lead to higher customer satisfaction and increased loyalty, increased loyalty leads to repeat business and improved customer advocacy, thereby reducing customer churn. CCaaS can lead to improved agent utilization and efficiency, ultimately driving cost savings. So, what are the greatest benefits of adopting CCaaS?

While the benefits of CCaaS are substancial, the risks of not implementing CCaaS are perilous. Inconsistent customer experiences can lead to higher levels of customer churn; this creates operational inefficiency. The largest potential risk associated with not adopting CCaaS is increased IT budgets driven by high IT infrastructure costs.

So, what are some key factors in selecting a CCaaS vendor?

• Chat Capability (Human and AI)
• Speech Recognition Apps
• IVR Functionality
• Video
• Co-Browsing
• Modular Cost (Ability to add individual elements)
• Physical Path of Traffic (International)
• Overseas Deployment Capability
• Discounts of UCaaS seats
• White-Glove Installation/Implementation
• Workforce Management Plug-ins
• Native SIP Integration
• Outage History

FreedomFire Communications provides free assistance (patented tools and significant industry connections) to help you design and engage with the right provider.

Take a look below to see the changes that have occurred in our CCaaS Portfolio over the past three years.

To learn more about all of your UCaaS and CCaaS options, including free assistance in sourcing and designing the best fit solutions to meet your specific business requirements, simply ask at Unified Communications and Contact Center Solutions.