Future Scope – A Networked World
By Stephan De Maria and Eleanor Mallory, SAP AG – May 28, 2003
Discovering new ways to think about and approach SAP's own product development, as well as stimulating discussion and the active exchange of innovative ideas. These are the goals of a new SAP-internal lecture series called "Future Scope." This event series is a mix of presentations, demonstrations, and workshops designed to give SAP employees the opportunity to experience the compelling technology and business innovations currently being developed by prestigious global research institutes – and discover what these new ideas could mean for SAP, its product portfolio, and software tools of tomorrow.
In the second lecture of the "Future Scope" series, Professor Friedemann Mattern, of the Institute for Pervasive Computing at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich, and Professor Elgar Fleisch, of the Institute for Technology Management at the University of St. Gallen (HSG), were guest speakers in SAP University's Audimax auditorium. In two lively presentations, they demonstrated the direct impact that the realization of future computer technology goals will have on our daily lives.
Figure 1: Prof. Friedemann Mattern (left)
Lutz Heuser, vice president of the SAP research institute Corporate Research (which helped organize the event), gave the welcoming address. "The future is now," commented Heuser, in reference to the introduction of "smart items" in the form of RFID technology in the Future Store supermarket, located in Rheinberg, Germany. The introduction of radio frequency technology for instantly transmitting data is considered the key to ubiquitous computing.
While Friedemann Mattern offered an introductory overview of the development of computers until today and detailed the current stages of computer development and research, Elgar Fleisch discussed the potential applications of the latest technologies in business and everyday life. And, indeed, there seemed to be no shortage of these.
Figure 2: Professor Friedemann Mattern
According to Mattern, "the trend toward networking everything" is gaining ground. The technical obstacles have been overcome. Computers can now respond and react to information automatically. Thanks to ever increasing wireless transmission capabilities, ever smaller storage facilities, and ever improving sensor technology, mobile networks can already distribute information in real time – nonstop and to all corners of the world. "We used to think of space stations when we talked about visions for the future," commented Mattern. Today the technical revolution is taking place in our everyday lives. Together with his assistant Matthias Lampe, Mattern used the example of a medicine cabinet to illustrate his point. All medicines intended for the cabinet are outfitted with RFID tags. When the medicines are placed in the cabinet, the information stored in the RFID tags is read by sensors and then transmitted to a computer. The computer then provides information regarding expiry dates and instructions for use.
The two professors also used the example of a credit card that operates in conjunction with a wristwatch. The idea behind this example is surprisingly simple: All that it takes to activate communication between the two objects is movement. The simultaneous movement of both objects establishes the communication link. Should they become separated, either the card is disabled or an alarm message is sent via SMS.
Fleisch described how products with the capability to automatically and constantly update and transmit data can help companies optimize their business processes, and, indeed, how they have already begun to do so. "The high cost of integrating reality with virtual reality is the root of many economic problems." Stolen and out-of-stock goods cost companies tens of billions of dollars every year. These costs are a direct result of problems in obtaining accurate and current data. Inexpensive links between goods and data administration could solve this problem. And for small products, RFID chips provide the perfect link. These chips enable companies, for example, to test quality during every stage of the production process, to weigh the exact amount of garbage being emptied during the garbage collection process, and to ensure that customers are billed accurately. And according to Fleisch, the possibilities are endless. Ubiquitous data production and data acquisition have the potential to improve efficiency, reduce costs, and increase transparency in supply chain management, product data management, and customer relationships.
Figure 3: Prof. Dr. Elgar Fleisch
There is a flipside to this coin, however, and the experts don't deny it. If our everyday world were to be completely outfitted with data transfer devices, people would leave tracks everywhere. And this would be a threat to privacy. The professors agreed that "people must have the choice of whether or not to grant access to the information," and they recognized a number of related issues that have yet to be resolved. A lively question-round followed the lecture. Questions related both to technical problems and to the controversial ethical issues surrounding the topic.
Professor Fleisch emphasized that SAP must help shape this development. Considering the huge turnout at this event, SAP employees seem to agree.
See also Future Scope – Tangible Information
and CHI 2002 – Changing the World, Changing
Ourselves
References
- Homepage of M-Lab: The
Mobile and Ubiquitous Computing Lab
A Joint Initiative of HSG and ETH Zürich - St. Gallen/Zürich
In cooperation with the Auto-ID Center at the MIT (closed - the university labs of the former Auto-ID Center will now be referred to as Auto-ID Labs (www.autoidlabs.org).
