A smart device has just been installed on Unicamp's circular buses. It captures real-time transportation location data (GPS) and sends it to a system that collects data that will be made available to the community. This means that anyone using this type of transport can know where they are at that exact moment and allows for better planning to take the bus at a specific point on campus.
[look the location of internal circulars in real time]
This new system has been running since February 26th and initially began operating on just one line: circular 1. There are two buses that run this route during the day and one on the night route. Each circular makes around 40 trips within Unicamp. In the future, this device will also be used in circular 2 that goes to the Museum and in circular 2 that goes to the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Urbanism (FEC).
The project, called SmartCampus, employs the concept of Internet of Things (IoT), which in English is called Internet of Things. IoT has been studied and implemented in areas such as wearable technologies, smart agriculture, transport, traffic and traffic, public services and smart cities. The aim is to put intelligence into objects to solve everyday issues and support decision-making and management.
Unicamp City Hall is also creating other IoT subprojects on the Smart Campus. Each device is used for a specific service that the City Hall provides. The internal circular transport service can now be accessed at City Hall website.
The user observes, on a location map, where buses are running on campus. But soon, this service will also be available on the Unicamp Serviços app, already in the testing phase for Android and para IPhone. Afterwards, a platform will be developed to also visualize how long the circular route will take to reach the destination of interest.
The transport management system was developed in the City Hall's IT department, according to systems analyst Rafael Sousa, and consists of two parts: one is available to the University and allows users access via the website (or soon via the app); and another, management, is employed by Unitransp. With this, it is able to monitor services by visualizing the expected places where the bus will pass at each stop.
The project is embryonically integrated into City Hall's Strategic Planning (Planes) and has been monitored by GEPlanes (Unicamp's strategic management project team). Studies were carried out in the area of IoT and a panel was presented at the Unicamp Professionals Symposium (Simtec) in 2016. “Based on these studies, we verified that it was possible to carry out an innovative project using this network. Then we participated in the Smart Campus competition at FEEC. Our Public Lighting project was one of the winners and we later participated in the Inova Campinas event, where the project was also very well received”, informs Rafael.
Prior to the project, there was only a table on the City Hall website with the scheduled bus times at each stop. "For traffic reasons, sometimes the bus didn't run on time. Now, knowing where and at which stop the bus is, the person will board with greater certainty, which greatly helps with day and night planning", he reports. Simone Pontes, IT manager at City Hall.
“At Unicamp we have the pillars of Sustainability and Digital University. This project came to your attention. From now on, the University will increasingly rely on IT and IoT tools”, believes Tânia Denise Almeida, from the City Hall’s Planning department.
Guilherme Salustiano, director of Unitransp, highlights that "these subprojects will primarily help the user, who will be able to monitor in real time and have accurate information about the buses when using the service. They should also offer improvements and optimize activities, always valuing the good customer service and making use of cutting-edge technology", he states.
Street lighting
Another City Hall subproject, already underway, involves public lighting. It is being carried out in collaboration with FEEC. This is a doctoral study whose advisor is professor Leandro Tiago Manera. It is a product that does not exist on the market and is being developed at Unicamp: a smart device that will be installed at public lighting points. Each post has at least one lighting point that has a device that monitors the operation of the lighting.
This device tells you when the light turned on or off; if the bulb is burned out or has another problem; if it's night and the light hasn't come on, why hasn't it come on?; If the light was on all day, why didn't it turn off? “It communicates through other devices. Each post is part of a Mesh data network, and this information travels between posts until it reaches the system”, reveals Rafael.
This subproject already has a prototype with ten devices and now the intention is to purchase material to manufacture 25 more, to be installed throughout the test area – between FEEC and City Hall, passing through the Rectory.
Tânia points out that the teaching units, when they needed to carry out some research in administration, turned to City Hall. “But this was perhaps the first time that the path was reversed. We went to the units to seek partnership so that the knowledge they produce is not only taken outside the institution. That this be applied in the institution itself”, she comments.
She also says that the City Hall team sought to learn about all the IoT initiatives that exist at the University. The Sustainable University Management Group (GGUS) was the first body they approached, because management policies are made there. They ended up indicating some expertise in relation to the topic at Unicamp. Three partnerships were then signed: with FEEC (professor Leandro Tiago Manera); with the Institute of Computing (IC) (professor Juliana Freitag Borin) and with the Faculty of Civil Engineering, Architecture and Urbanism (FEC) (professor Henrique Cândido de Oliveira).
Differentiated collection
Another subproject of the City Hall is the collection of batteries. Today, Unicamp has 48 collection boxes installed at strategic points on the campus. However, to collect batteries, for example, employees have to go from box to box to remove them, without knowing whether the box already has the desired level of material.
“Often, the box is empty and so employees take time to go there and check if there is anything to collect. Let's look at putting a smart device in these boxes. It will inform the service manager of the level of each box. This way, intelligent collection planning will be carried out, that is, only the boxes that are actually needed”, explains Rafael.
According to Tânia, "all these subprojects demonstrate financial and environmental sustainability. Furthermore, they are a milestone in terms of management, as the data arrives Online. Then it’s just up to the manager to work with them.”
Part of the team working on these subprojects are Anderson Vargas (IT technician at City Hall), Ricardo Barbosa (systems analyst), José Ucelli (network analyst), Simone Pontes (IT manager), Tânia Almeida (from the Planning), in addition to Rafael Sousa (systems analyst).
