Broadband: A Glimpse into the Future
One of the big pushes into expanding broadband coverage is its ability to unlock the future. While a fast Internet connection is great, the ability to have a platform for future technology advances is equally as important. Today we will explore a few areas in which broadband infrastructure will continue to make improvements.
Smart Homes
Wouldn’t it be great to be able to control everything in your home from a single device? Smart home technology makes this a possibility but it has not been widely used because of a lack of broadband penetration. Smart homes use small transmitters in every day devices such as your lights, thermostat, locks, etc. which can receive and send data. Using a tablet or smart phone, you can control all of these pieces from anywhere in the world. Not sure if you shut the garage door? Pull up an application that can allow you to check its status and close it remotely. Smart homes can also integrate security cameras and systems allowing you to check on your house while you are on vacation or a business trip.
Connected Healthcare
Broadband connections can be a driving force into offering better and more affordable healthcare. A major portion of healthcare costs come from using medical facilities. With broadband connections, routine checkups can be done from the comfort of your own home. A doctor, nurse, pharmacist, or other healthcare worker can set up a video conference and while you use a variety of healthcare apps to send real time information. Broadband connections also help hospitals and clinics communicate better by being able to electronically store and pull up your health records. As a patient, you can give permission to have your records shared with specific healthcare facilities so at anytime they can work together to provide the best care. Telemedicine applications also allow for specialists to assist remote and rural hospitals, cutting down the need to transport patients to special facilities. This process can help save lives by reducing the amount of time one would have to wait for treatment.
Machine to Machine Technology
M2M Technology allows business owners to take full control of their operations by turning machines, storage units, and other components into communicating pieces. If you’re a farmer, M2M is your grain bins telling you how full they are and automatically checking pricing so you always have an idea of the real time value of your crops. It’s also sensors in the soil reporting the current moisture levels, sending that signal to the pivot to turn on, and the pivot reporting to your connected device if it is working properly or not. Do you have livestock? Sensors can report conditions that might indicate an animal is sick and transmit GPS data so you know exactly where to find it. There are thousands of scenarios where M2M can help you protect and grow your business.
These are just a few examples of what broadband infrastructure is making possible. Do you have any ideas of things that will be improved with greater broadband adoption? Let us know in the comments below!
