Grib, a Seoul-based IoT hub and device provider, has recently completed the development of an integrated IoT hub, which helps various IoT sensor devices interoperate with one another easily and efficiently. Grib has been supplying its integrated IoT hub through LG U+, the third largest mobile carrier in South Korea.
Grib’s integrated IoT hub is a standalone physical gateway that integrates multiple networking technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee and Z-Wave, into a single hub and controls functions by monitoring the online/offline status (device state) of connected machines and devices.
Grib had already commercialized its integrated IoT hub through LG U+ in July 2015. Up until recently, Grib has been in charge of providing IoT hub services to more than 350,000 households with nearly 10 sensing devices interoperating with each other.
Thanks to Grib’s integrated IoT hub, LG U+ now has the most subscribers and is attracting subscribers at the fastest pace in the home IoT sector.
A Grib official said, “South Korea’s home IoT sector is growing faster than anywhere else in the world. China, Japan, the US and Europe are showing a keen interest in our home IoT business.”
Grib plans to focus on addressing interoperability issues among heterogeneous devices and systems in and outside South Korea in order to enable efficient interconnection of diverse sensor devices.
Jung Yeon-kyu CEO of Grib said, “We invested a total of one billion won in developing this IoT hub for a year. Our IoT hub underwent LG U+’s rigorous 6-month inspection, so we are confident about its product quality.”
<>Platforms based on oneM2M global standards and convergence of various IoT services
Spearheading the development of IoT hub technology, i.e. IoT sensor platforms, Grib has been engaged in a 3-year test bed project, in which Grib makes about 300 devices interoperable and builds IoT platforms at Hanyang University. This 3-year tested project is part of Grib’s project carried out in association with the Institute for Information & communications Technology Promotion (IITP), a South Korean government institution that manages ICT research and development (R&D) under the Ministry of Science, ICT and Future Planning.
Accordingly, Grib is thought to have secured technologies for building OneM2M-based platforms and be cable of providing various platform-based services.
CEO Jung said, “OneM2M-based open-source platforms enable convergence of various IoT services, so we are currently applying our technology to camper vans, managed by municipalities, on a pilot basis. On the national front, we expect that our technology will help rev up IoT services not only in the home IoT sector but also in the industrial and public sectors.”
Grib looks to dominate the Korean home IoT market through LG U+ and to provide hubs and devices, needed for attracting approximately 1.5 million subscribers, by next year. Last July, Grib became the only Seoul-based startup to participate in Seoul-Shanghai cooperation projects.
Meanwhile, Grib has developed Smart Gas Lock, the world’s first remote gas valve control system. Grib has been supplying its Smart Gas Lock exclusively to LG U+. Mobile app-controlled Smart Gas Lock allows people to monitor and turn on and off gas valves through their phones. Smart Gas Lock also automatically closes the gas valve when overheating conditions are detected.
