The mainstream media mostly talks about the IoT in terms of the latest smart home gadgets and its future in autonomous vehicles. However, there’s more to the IoT technology then the making devices and machines run better and faster.
The Internet of Life organization teamed up with the ShadowView foundation to deploy some IoT solutions to protect the remaining Rhino populations in National Parks in Rwanda and Tanzania.
“The brutal onslaught of poaching of rhino populations across Africa has resulted in fewer than 5,000 black rhinos remaining in the wild, 1,000 of which are the Eastern black rhino subspecies. Smart Parks is a new tool in the battle against poaching.”
project leader Tim van Dam
The project deployment was powered by small Kerlink WirnetTMiBT 868 MHz sensors that were directly implanted in the horns of rhinos in the park.
Kerlink’s geolocation and solar powered LoRaWAN gateways combined with Semtech’s geolocation solver eliminated the need for energy consuming GPS systems, while also offering more security from poachers attempting to hack the animal tracking systems than traditional GPS solutions.
