ATEX: Make Your Radios Work Smarter With Over the Air Programming
20/09/2021
As we’ve previously established in our ATEX 12 pain points series, the right hardware in an ATEX environment is an ATEX radio. But how do you ensure your radios are programmed in the right way without having to experience downtime and delays to work on-site?
Today, we address this question by explaining how Over the Air Programming (OTAP) can keep your radios up to date in terms of software and features.
What is Over the Air Programming?
OTAP refers to methods where new software, configuration settings, and even updating encryption keys to digital devices can be made virtually - instead of having physical possession of the device to make changes.
If you think of it from the point of view of having an app on your phone. When a developer releases a software update, it will automatically appear on your device when you have the latest version of the app downloaded.
From our perspective, we have our own remote monitoring facilities, so we can perform changes or upgrades to radios via our TRBOCALL system - without the need to visit site locations and take your ATEX radios into our workshop.
We can upload changes and send them to all individual radios over the air and when they are turned on, the changes are instantly made. We can also view which radios have been upgraded, giving you peace of mind as to what what’s been fixed or improved.
Maintaining success
Like the surroundings you work in, maintenance is an important element of a radio device working efficiently – especially from a software perspective. One of the most common mistakes a business faces when they purchase ATEX radios is not knowing how to maintain them properly, or ensure digital software is up to date.
Keeping software up to date is crucial in such a digital age. With the Internet of Things transforming the capabilities of physical objects and devices, it’s important that progress isn’t hampered by a digital ATEX radio not being programmed in the right way.
Ensuring software is always up to date, has the following benefits:
- Improved performance
- Bug fixes
- Enhanced security
- Latest available features
Taking over the airwaves
Given the benefits of being able to make improvements and updates from a remote location that serves end users located elsewhere, it’s no surprise to see OTAP rising in popularity.
According to statistics from Statista, the global over-the-air market was projected to be worth £2.6 billion in 2020, and by 2027 that figure will rise to £7.5 billion. This estimated financial climb is down to the existing popularity of OTAP in telecommunications and the emerging trend of the automotive sector using it as a way of updating a car’s firmware and software to keep it in state-of-the-art condition.
Take Tesla as a prime example. They adopted the technology way back in 2012 and have used it ever since to keep their cars safer and more capable as time goes on. With the technology in their armour, Tesla have found practical use for all kinds of situations.
One of these being ‘Dog Mode’ – which is a feature that controls the climate of the car when a dog is left in the vehicle waiting for its owner. Cool in both senses of the word.
Their ability to make software and firmware updates a seamless process for the driver has resulted in a situation where the rest of the industry is playing catch-up.
By 2028, Ford plans to have 33 million OTAP-cable vehicles on the market – bringing more and more road users into the world of software applications and exciting features.
Software and customer care
Highlighting the emerging popularity of OTAP in the automotive sector wasn’t to entice you into buying a new set of wheels – it was more to showcase how powerful and practical the solution can be.
It can be used to serve pretty much any digital purpose where software, firmware and feature applications are concerned. For us, it means we can programme radios ‘from the cloud’ and our customers the advantage of access to the latest software and features for their digital ATEX radios.
By programming their radios via OTAP, customers receive real-time improvements and enhancements to their devices, and they also save money by us not having to visit site locations on a regular basis to re-programme the radios.
We have a team of experts who carry out OTAP changes – and they can advise you on the capabilities your digital ATEX radios can have.
Book a FREE demonstration
If you would like to find out more about OTAP, and all the other services we provide, then book a FREE demonstration of our ultra-smart TRBOCALL system today.
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