We all know that the line between the technology being used in the office environment and the field or at least the control system infrastructure / backhaul is getting thinner every day AND that the time between when an innovation gets used in one place before it becomes established in the other is also getting shorter. For nearly 145 years the ITU – International Telecommunication Union, has been responsible for information and communication technology issues, and the global focal point for governments and the private sector in developing networks and services. The ITU has coordinated the shared global use of the radio spectrum, satellite orbits, and established the worldwide standards that foster seamless interconnection of a vast range of communications systems. Some of the technologies affected as a result of this scope include the following technologies; broadband Internet to latest-generation wireless technologies, from aeronautical and maritime navigation to radio astronomy and satellite-based meteorology, from convergence in fixed-mobile phone, Internet access, data, voice and TV broadcasting to next-generation networks, and cybersecurity.
A good way to get a feel for what is happening is via the regular ITU Technology Watch briefs http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-T/techwatch/Pages/default.aspx. Click on the right to get a full index of available Reports and Alerts. Here is a sampling of some of the publications that might be of interest:
Batteries for Portable ICT Devices
The Future Internet
Standardization Activities for Intelligent Transport Systems
NGN’s (Next Generation Network) and Energy Efficiency
and Ubiquitous Sensor Networks to name a few.
While on the site you may want to troll around a bit and have a look at some of the other documents including free standards that create the roadmap for the future technology of telephony including what is being proposed and the requirements for the wireless network(s) beyond 4G systems that some are arguing are starting to be deployed now.
