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Artificial Intelligence at Edge: Implementing AI, the Unexpected Destination of the AI Journey

Implementing AI: Artificial Intelligence at Edge is an interesting topic. We will dwell on it a bit more.

This is when things start to get interesting. However, a few extreme situations, such as Netflix, Spotify, and Amazon, are insufficient. Not only is it difficult to learn from extreme situations, but when AI becomes more widespread, we will be able to find best practices by looking at a wider range of enterprises. What are some of the most common issues? What are the most important and effective ways of dealing with them? And, in the end, what do AI-driven businesses look like?

Here are some of the insights gathered to capture, learn from, and share from approximately 2,500 white-collar decision-makers in the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, India, and China who had all used AI in their respective firms. They were asked questions, and the responses were compiled into a study titled "Adopting AI in Organizations."

Artificial Intelligence and Edge computing

Speaking with AI pioneers and newcomers#

Surprisingly, by reaching out on a larger scale, a variety of businesses with varying levels of AI maturity were discovered. They were classified into three groups: AI leaders, AI-followers, and AI beginners, with the AI leaders having completely incorporated AI and advanced analytics in their organizations, as opposed to the AI beginners who are only starting on this road.

The road to becoming AI-powered is paved with potholes that might sabotage your development.

In sum, 99 percent of the decision-makers in this survey had encountered difficulties with AI implementation. And it appears that the longer you work at it, the more difficult it becomes. For example, 75 percent or more of individuals who launched their projects 4-5 years ago faced troubles. Even the AI leaders, who had more efforts than the other two groups and began 4-5 years ago, said that over 60% of their initiatives had encountered difficulties.

The key follow-up question is, "What types of challenges are you facing?" Do you believe it has something to do with technology? Perhaps you should brace yourself for a slight shock. The major issue was not one of technology. Rather, 91 percent of respondents stated they had faced difficulties in each of the three categories examined: technology, organization, and people and culture. Out of these categories, it becomes evident that people and culture were the most problematic. When it comes to AI and advanced analytics, it appears that many companies are having trouble getting their employees on board. Many respondents, for example, stated that staff was resistant to embracing new ways of working or that they were afraid of losing their employment.

As a result, it should come as no surprise that the most important strategies for overcoming challenges are all related to people and culture. Overall, it is clear that the transition to AI is a cultural one!

A long-term investment in change for Artificial Intelligence at Edge#

Artificial Intelligence at Edge

But where does this adventure take us? We assume that most firms embarking on an organizational transformation foresee moving from one stable state to a new stable one after a period of controlled turbulence. When we look at how these AI-adopting companies envisage the future, however, this does not appear to be the case!

Conclusion for Artificial Intelligence at Edge:#

To get a sense of what it'll be like to be entirely AI-driven, researchers looked to the AI leaders, who have gone the furthest and may have a better idea of where they're going. This group has already integrated AI into their business or plans to do so by the year 2021. You'd think that after properly implementing and delivering AI inside the organization, they'd be satisfied with their work. They're still not finished. Quite the contrary, they aim to invest much more in AI over the next 18 months and on a far larger scale than previously. The other two groups had far smaller investment plans.

Smart Stadiums: The World and the World It Can Be!

What are Smart Stadiums? Can intelligent Edge be used for Smart Stadiums and Sports in general? Find out below.

Smart Stadiums#

Fans expect high-definition, real-time streaming on their devices and computers at today's sports activities. Games can be held in an arena, in various locations, or outside. Especially outside competitions range from fixed-track contests to competitions that begin in one area and conclude hundreds of kilometers and perhaps even days back. Stations employ High-Definition (HD) equipment to live to transmit programming in these places. Huge volumes of visual data are generated by these devices. This information must be handled and examined. The worldwide video streaming business is expected to hit \$240 billion by 2030, according to estimates (Kariyawasam and Tsai, 2017). It's difficult to imagine a market wherein live broadcast streaming isn't an essential component, thanks to the entertainment and media businesses, which have been supported by an ever-increasing amount of lateral use scenarios.

Sports Live stream with Smart Edge-computing
Sports Live stream with Smart Edge-computing Frameworks

Sports Live stream with Smart Edge-computing Frameworks for Stadiums#

Edge computing, sometimes known as smart edge computer technology or just "edge," maintains graphics processing locally, low latency, and traffic while also removing the need for costly transport cables. Edge designs save substantial amounts of network transport traffic by drastically lowering video delay. As a result, onsite visitors will have a good user experience and procedures will be more effective. Many types of application scenarios are supported by the edge, including visual information sharing between both the edge and multiple clouds either between edge nodes (Bilal and Erbad, 2017). Edge allows streamers to send enhanced and processed footage to the server for extended storage. Edge technology for real-time video augments cloud capability by doing numerous visual processing activities onsite, complementing cloud capabilities.

Edge-Based Deployment#

Video data is transferred to a cloud data centre in a cloud-only architecture. This might result in increased delay, making it even harder for transmitters to provide pleasant television quality to paying customers. Conventional cloud-based options need a substantial expenditure in backhaul hardware, fibre lines, and satellite connectivity, among other things. Edge computing implements a decentralized and multi-layered framework for successfully constructing live video systems. Edge nodes may combine all of the capabilities of a centralized server regionally, resulting in increased organizational effectiveness. Additional capabilities, which include image processing and information security, may be hosted on the very same architecture with no need to create a distinct connection to maintain (Wang and Binstin, 2020). Compatibility is a basic architectural principle of edge networks, making it much easier to introduce additional applications to the very same system. The edge platform's multi-tenancy feature allows multiple parties' contract to execute their respective applications on the very same network edge.

Edge-Delivered streaming sequence#

The procedure for producing live stream broadcasts uses an edge that includes:

  • Technology for streaming video is rapidly advancing, and HD equipment is now in use at every sports event all over the globe.
  • To gather and combine information from numerous cameras, local edge-based multimedia processors could be placed all along the path.
  • Whenever a smartphone or tablet asks for video streaming or live stream, the edge node establishes a communication link with the end devices.
  • People who are at sporting events may keep an eye on the competitors and then use their smartphones and tablets to view live video streaming of the sport from beginning to end.
  • Huge volumes of data are generated by the Camera system. This information must be transported to the cloud for graphics processing under a cloud services approach. As a result, backhaul capacity is quite costly. Traffic will impair the quality of the video if capacity is inadequate. It may also have an impact on other programs that use the backhaul network (Dautov and Distefano, 2020).

Intelligent Edge at Sports Streaming Enables the Following Features#

Connectivity, communications, and interfacing requirements are all provided by the smart edge computing method, allowing for real-time, streaming video during sporting events.

  • Security: With computation to networking transfer, the intelligent edge safeguards visual data at all logical layers.
  • Scalability: Edge can shift memory and computing capabilities among inactive and active nodes for scalability.
  • Open: Various carriers' edge node architecture and streaming platforms from different suppliers will collaborate.
  • Autonomy: Edge-based live stream solutions are self-contained and may function without the use of the cloud (Abeysiriwardhana, Wijekoon and Nishi, 2020).
  • Reliability: In higher edge nodes, framework administration can be set and provide management solutions.
  • Agility: Without using cloud services, live stream video is analyzed and transmitted between edge nodes.

Streaming Contracts#

The licenses to live-streamed sporting events are controlled by numerous teams and leagues, who license such assets to different Television stations and, progressively, streaming sites. However, in addition to financial price and conditions of the contracts, broadcast rights transactions must typically specify the breadth of the materials being licensed, yet if the license is exclusionary, the relevant area, and, in many cases, the rights holder's advertising prospects (Secular, 2018). In the case of streaming services, each has its system of defined issues to address.

Exclusivity and Range of Streaming Contracts#

There have rarely existed greater options for sports to engage viewers, whether, through broadcasting, television, or online means of displaying programming, and they are motivated to use them all. Stations that have their streaming platforms are attempting to widen the range of licenses as often as feasible to protect any remaining television income while attracting new digital customers. Streaming services have the chance to accelerate the change in how people follow by having sports entirely available online.

Conclusion for Smart Stadiums#

[Edge technology] for streaming sports video enhances cloud capacity by doing a variety of visual data processing on-site. As streaming companies continue to demonstrate that sports can be viewed completely online, more industry heavyweights may decide to enter the fray (Mathews, 2018). The corporation hoping to have control over sports streaming rights should carefully assess the breadth of the rights they are licensing, balancing financial concerns with exclusivity. Lastly, as streaming platforms innovate and change how people watch sports, they should ensure that their Terms and Conditions are thorough and compatible with the terms & conditions of streaming contracts.

Artificial Intelligence - AI in the Workforce

Learn more about Artificial Intelligence - AI in the workforce in this article.

Introduction#

An increase in data usage demands a network effectiveness strategy, with a primary focus on lowering overall costs. The sophistication of networks is expanding all the time. The arrival of 5G on top of existing 2G, 3G, and 4G networks, along with customers' growing demands for a user platform comparable to fibre internet, places immense strain on telecommunication operators handling day-to-day activities (Mishra, 2018). Network operators are also facing significant financial issues as a result of declining revenue per gigabyte and market share, making maximizing the impact on network investment strategies vital for existence.

AI

How can businesses use AI to change the way businesses make network financial decisions?#

From sluggish and labor-intensive to quick, scalable, and adaptable decisions - The traditional manual planning method necessitates a significant investment of both money and time. Months of labor-intensive operations such as data gathering, aggregation of data, prediction, prompting, proportioning, and prioritizing are required for a typical medium-sized system of 10,000 nodes. Each cell is simulated separately using machine learning, depending on its special properties. Several Key performance indicators are used in multivariable modeling approaches to estimate the efficiency per unit separately. By combining diverse planning inputs into the application, operators may examine alternative possibilities due to the significant reduction in turnaround time (Raei, 2017).

Moving from a network-centric to a user-centric approach - Basic guidelines are commonly used to compare usage to bandwidth. Customer bandwidth is influenced by some parameters, including resource consumption, such as DLPRB utilization. Individual unit KPI analysis utilizing machine learning solves this inefficacy, with the major two processes involved being traffic prediction and KPI predictions. The Key performance indicator model is a useful part of cognitive planning that is specific to each cell and is trained every day using the most up-to-date data. The per-cell model's gradient and angles are governed by its unique properties, which are impacted by bandwidth, workload, broadcast strength, as well as other factors (Kibria et al., 2018). This strategy provides more granularity and precision in predicting each cell's KPI and effectiveness.

artificial-intelligence-for-business

From one-dimensional to two-dimensional to three-dimensional - Availability and efficiency are frequently studied in a one-dimensional manner, with one-to-one mappings of assets such as PRB to quality and productivity. Nevertheless, additional crucial elements such as broadcast frequency or workload have a significant impact on cell quality and productivity. Optimal TCO necessitates a new method of capacity evaluation that guarantees the correct solution is implemented for each challenge (Pahlavan, 2021).

Candidate selection for improvement - Units with poor wireless reliability and effectiveness are highlighted as candidates for improvement rather than growth using additional parameters such as radio quality (CQI) and spectrum efficiency in cognitive planning. As a first resort, optimization operations can be used to solve low radio-quality cells to increase network capacity and performance. Instead of investing CAPEX in hardware expansion, cognitive planning finds low radio-quality cells where capacity may be enhanced through optimization (Athanasiadou et al., 2019).

Candidate selection for load-balancing#

Before advocating capacity increase, cognitive planning tools will always model load-balancing among co-sector operators. This is done to eliminate any potential for load-balancing-related benefits before investing. The load-balancing impact is modeled using the machine-learning-trained KPI model by assuming traffic shifts from one operator to another and then forecasting the efficiency of all operators even in the same section (He et al., 2016). If the expected performance after the test does not satisfy the defined experience requirements, an extension is suggested; alternatively, the program generates a list of suggested units for load-balancing.

Prioritization's worth for AI in the workforce#

When network operators are hesitant to spend CAPEX, a strong prioritizing technique is vital to maximizing the return on investment (ROI) while guaranteeing that even the most relevant aspects are handled. This goal is jeopardized by outdated approaches, which struggle to determine the appropriate response and have the versatility to gather all important indicators. In the case of network modeling, load corresponds to the number of consumers, utilization (DLPRB utilization) to the space occupancy levels, and quality (CQI) to the size (Maksymyuk, Brych and Masyuk, 2015). The amount of RRC users, which is near to demand as a priority measure, is put into the prioritizing procedure, taking into account the leftover areas. Further priority levels are adjusted based on cell bandwidth, resulting in a more realistic order.

Developers give ideal suggestions and growth flow (e.g. efficiency and load rebalancing ahead of growth) and generate actual value by combining all of these elements, as opposed to the conventional way, which involves a full examination of months of field data:

  • Optimization activities are used as a first option wherever possible, resulting in a 25% reduction in carrier and site expansions.
  • When compared to crowded cells detected by operators, congested cells found by cognitive planning had a greater user and traffic density, with an average of 21% more RRC users per cell and 19% more data volume per cell. As a result, the return on investment from the capacity increase is maximized (Pahlavan, 2021).
  • Three months before the experience objective was missed, >75 percent of the field-verified accuracy in determining which cells to grow when was achieved.
  • Reduce churn

Conclusion for AI in the workforce#

The radio access network (RAN) is a major component of a customer service provider's (CSP) entire mobile phone network infrastructural development, contributing to around 20% of a cellular manufacturer's capital expenditures (CapEx). According to the findings, carriers with superior connection speeds have greater average revenue per user (+31%) and lower overall turnover (-27 percent) (Mishra, 2018). As highlighted in this blog, using Machine learning and artificial intelligence for capacity management is critical for making intelligent network financial decisions that optimize total cost of ownership (TCO) while offering the highest return in terms of service quality: a critical pillar for customer service provider's (CSP) commercial viability.

Learn more about Nife to be informed about Edge Computing and its usage in different fields https://docs.nife.io/blog

Machine Learning-Based Techniques for Future Communication Designs

Introduction#

Machine Learning-Based Techniques for observation and administration are especially suitable for sophisticated network infrastructure operations. Assume a machine learning (ML) program designed to predict mobile service disruptions. Whenever a network administrator obtains an alert about a possible imminent interruption, they can take bold measures to address bad behaviour before something affects users. The machine learning group, which constructs the underlying data processors that receive raw flows of network performance measurements and store them into such a Machine Learning (ML)-optimized databases, assisted in the development of the platform. The preliminary data analysis, feature engineering, Machine Learning (ML) modeling, and hyperparameter tuning are all done by the research team. They collaborate to build a Machine Learning (ML) service that is ready for deployment (Chen et al., 2020). Customers are satisfied because forecasts are made with the anticipated reliability, network operators can promptly repair network faults, and forecasts are produced with the anticipated precision.

machine learning

What is Machine Learning (ML) Lifecycle?#

The data analyst and database administrators obtain multiple procedures (Pipeline growth, Training stage, and Inference stage) to establish, prepare, and start serving the designs using the massive amounts of data that are engaged in different apps so that the organisation can take full favor of artificial intelligence and Machine Learning (ML) methodologies to generate functional value creation (Ashmore, Calinescu and Paterson, 2021).

Monitoring allows us to understand performance concerns#

Machine Learning (ML) models are based on numbers, and they tacitly presume that the learning and interpretation data have the same probability model. Basic variables of a Machine Learning (ML) model are tuned during learning to maximise predicted efficiency on the training sample. As a result, Machine Learning (ML) models' efficiency may be sub-optimal when compared to databases with diverse properties. It is common for data ranges to alter over time considering the dynamic environment in which Machine Learning (ML) models work. This transition in cellular networks might take weeks to mature as new facility units are constructed and updated (Polyzotis et al., 2018). The datasets that ML models consume from multiple data sources and data warehouses, which are frequently developed and managed by other groups, must be regularly watched for unanticipated issues that might affect ML model results. Additionally, meaningful records of input and model versions are required to guarantee that faults may be rapidly detected and remedied.

Data monitoring can help prevent machine learning errors#

Machine Learning (ML) models have stringent data format requirements because they rely on input data. Whenever new postal codes are discovered, a model trained on data sets, such as a collection of postcodes, may not give valid forecasts. Likewise, if the source data is provided in Fahrenheit, a model trained on temperature readings in Celsius may generate inaccurate forecasts (Yang et al., 2021). These small data changes typically go unnoticed, resulting in performance loss. As a result, extra ML-specific model verification is recommended.

Variations between probability models are measured#

The steady divergence between the learning and interpretation data sets, known as idea drift, is a typical cause of efficiency degradation. This might manifest itself as a change in the mean and standard deviation of quantitative characteristics. As an area grows more crowded, the frequency of login attempts to a base transceiver station may rise. The Kolmogorov-Smirnov (KS) test is used to determine if two probability ranges are equivalent (Chen et al., 2020).

Preventing Machine Learning-Based Techniques for system engineering problems#

The danger of ML efficiency deterioration might be reduced by developing a machine learning system that specifically integrates data management and model quantitative measurement tools. Tasks including data management and [ML-specific verification] are performed at the data pipeline stage. To help with these duties, the programming group has created several public data information version control solutions. Activities for monitoring and enrolling multiple variations of ML models, as well as the facilities for having to serve them to end-users, are found at the ML model phase (Souza et al., 2019). Such activities are all part of a bigger computer science facility that includes automation supervisors, docker containers tools, VMs, as well as other cloud management software.

Data and machine learning models versioning and tracking for Machine Learning-Based Techniques#

The corporate data pipelines can be diverse and tedious, with separate elements controlled by multiple teams, each with their objectives and commitments, accurate data versioning and traceability are critical for quick debugging and root cause investigation (Jennings, Wu and Terpenny, 2016). If sudden events to data schemas, unusual variations to function production, or failures in intermediate feature transition phases are causing ML quality issues, past and present records can help pin down when the problem first showed up, what data is impacted, or which implication outcomes it may have affected.

Using current infrastructure to integrate machine learning systems#

Ultimately, the machine learning system must be adequately incorporated into the current technological framework and corporate environment. To achieve high reliability and resilience, ML-oriented datasets and content providers may need to be set up for ML-optimized inquiries, and load-managing tools may be required. Microservice frameworks, based on containers and virtual machines, are increasingly widely used to run machine learning models (Ashmore, Calinescu, and Paterson, 2021).

machine learning

Conclusion for Machine Learning-Based Techniques#

The use of Machine Learning-Based Techniques could be quite common in future communication designs. At this scale, vast amounts of data streams might be recorded and stored, and traditional techniques for assessing better data and dispersion drift could become operationally inefficient. The fundamental techniques and procedures may need to be changed. Moreover, future designs are anticipated to see an expansion in the transfer of computing away from a central approach and onto the edge, closer to the final users (Hwang, Kesselheim and Vokinger, 2019). Decreased lags and Netflow are achieved at the expense of a more complicated framework that introduces new technical problems and issues. In such cases, based on regional federal regulations, data gathering and sharing may be restricted, demanding more cautious ways to programs that prepare ML models in a safe, distributed way.

References#

  • Ashmore, R., Calinescu, R. and Paterson, C. (2021). Assuring the Machine Learning Lifecycle. ACM Computing Surveys, 54(5), pp.1–39.
  • Chen, A., Chow, A., Davidson, A., DCunha, A., Ghodsi, A., Hong, S.A., Konwinski, A., Mewald, C., Murching, S., Nykodym, T., Ogilvie, P., Parkhe, M., Singh, A., Xie, F., Zaharia, M., Zang, R., Zheng, J. and Zumar, C. (2020). Developments in MLflow. Proceedings of the Fourth International Workshop on Data Management for End-to-End Machine Learning.
  • Hwang, T.J., Kesselheim, A.S. and Vokinger, K.N. (2019). Lifecycle Regulation of Artificial Intelligence– and Machine Learning–Based Software Devices in Medicine. JAMA, 322(23), p.2285.
  • Jennings, C., Wu, D. and Terpenny, J. (2016). Forecasting Obsolescence Risk and Product Life Cycle With Machine Learning. IEEE Transactions on Components, Packaging and Manufacturing Technology, 6(9), pp.1428–1439.
  • Polyzotis, N., Roy, S., Whang, S.E. and Zinkevich, M. (2018). Data Lifecycle Challenges in Production Machine Learning. ACM SIGMOD Record, 47(2), pp.17–28.
  • Souza, R., Azevedo, L., Lourenco, V., Soares, E., Thiago, R., Brandao, R., Civitarese, D., Brazil, E., Moreno, M., Valduriez, P., Mattoso, M., Cerqueira, R. and Netto, M.A.S. (2019).
  • Provenance Data in the Machine Learning Lifecycle in Computational Science and Engineering. 2019 IEEE/ACM Workflows in Support of Large-Scale Science (WORKS).
  • Yang, C., Wang, W., Zhang, Y., Zhang, Z., Shen, L., Li, Y. and See, J. (2021). MLife: a lite framework for machine learning lifecycle initialization. Machine Learning.

Edge Gaming The Future

Introduction#

The gaming business, which was formerly considered a specialized sector, has grown to become a giant $120 billion dollar industry in the latest years (Scholz, 2019). The gaming business has long attempted to capitalize on new possibilities and inventive methods to offer gaming adventures, as it has always been the leading result of technology. The emergence of cloud gaming services is one of the most exciting advances in cloud computing technology in recent years. To succeed, today's gamers speed up connections. Fast connectivity contributes to improved gameplay. Gamers may livestream a collection of games on their smartphone, TV, platform, PC, or laptop for a monthly cost ranging from $10 to $35 (Beattie, 2020).

Cloud Gaming

Reasons to buy a gaming computer:

  • The gameplay experience is second to none.
  • Make your gaming platform future-proof.
  • They're prepared for VR.
  • Modified versions of your favourite games are available to play.
  • More control and better aim.

Why is Hardware PC gaming becoming more popular?#

Gamers are stretching computer hardware to its boundaries to get an edge. Consoles like the PlayStation and Xbox are commonplace in the marketplace, but customers purchasing pricey gaming-specific PCs that give a competitive advantage over the other gamers appear to be the next phenomenon. While the pull of consoles remains strong, computer gaming is getting more and more popular. It was no longer only for the die-hards who enjoy spending a weekend deconstructing their computer. A gaming PC is unrivalled when it comes to providing an unrivalled gaming experience. It's incredible to think that gamers could play the newest FPS games at 60fps or greater. Steam is a global online computer gaming platform with 125 million members, compared to 48 million for Xbox Live (Galehantomo P.S, 2015). Gaming computers may start around $500 and soon grow to $1500 or more, which is one of the most significant drawbacks of purchasing gaming PCs.

The majority of games are now downloadable and played directly on cell phones, video game consoles, and personal computers. With over 3 billion gamers on the planet, the possibility and effect might be enormous (Wahab et al., 2021). Cloud gaming might do away with the need for dedicated platforms, allowing players to play virtually any game on practically any platform. Users' profiles, in-game transactions, and social features are all supported by connectivity, but the videogames themselves are played on the gamers' devices. Gaming has already been growing into the cloud in this way for quite some time. Every big gaming and tech firm seems to have introduced a cloud gaming service in the last two years, like Project xCloud by Microsoft, PlayStation Now by Sony, and Stadia by Google.

Cloud Computing's Advantages in the Gaming World:

  • Security
  • Compatibility
  • Cost-effective
  • Accessibility
  • No piracy
  • Dynamic support
Cloud Gaming Services

What are Cloud Gaming Services, and how do they work?#

Cloud gaming shifts the processing of content from the user's device to the cloud. The game's perspective is broadcast to the person's devices through content delivery networks with local stations near population centres, similar to how different channels distribute the material. Size does matter, just like it does with video. A modest cell phone screen can show a good gaming feed with far fewer bits than a 55" 4K HDTV. In 2018, digital downloads accounted for more than 80% of all video game sales. A bigger stream requires more data, putting additional strain on the user's internet connection. Cloud streaming services must automatically change the bandwidth to offer the lowest amount of bits required for the best service on a specific device to control bandwidth (Cai et al., 2016).

Edge Gaming - The appeal of Edge Computing in Gaming#

Revenue from mobile gaming is growing more sociable, engaging, and dynamic. As games become more collaborative, realistic, and engaging, mobile gaming revenue is predicted to top $95 billion worth by 2022 (Choy et al., 2014). With this growth comes the difficulty of meeting consumers' desire for ultra-fast, low-latency connectivity, which traditional data centres are straining to achieve. Edge computing refers to smaller data centres that provide cloud-based computational services and resources closer to customers or at the network's edge. In smartphone games, even just a fraction of a millisecond of latency would be enough to completely ruin the gameplay. Edge technology and 5G connection assist in meeting low-latency, high-bandwidth needs by bringing high cloud computing power directly to consumers and equipment while also delivering the capacity necessary for high, multi-player gameplay.

Edge Computing in Gaming

Issues with Cloud Gaming#

Cloud technology isn't only the future of gaming it's also the future of hybridized multi-clouds and edge architecture as a contemporary internet infrastructure for businesses. However, this cutting-edge technology faces a few obstacles. Lag, also known as latency, is a delay caused by the time required for a packet of data to move from one place in a network to another. It's the misery of every online gamer's existence. Streaming video sputters, freezes, and fragments due to high latency networks (Soliman et al., 2013). While this might be frustrating when it comes to video material, it can be catastrophic when it comes to cloud gaming services.

Developers are Ready for the Change#

Gaming is sweeping the media landscape. Please have a look around if you are unaware of this information. Although cloud gameplay is still in its infancy, it serves as proof that processing can be done outside of the device. I hope that cloud gaming is treated as the proving point that it is. Because cloud gameplay always has physical issues, we should look to edge gaming to deliver an experience where gamers can participate in a real-time multiplayer setting.

References#

  • https://www.investopedia.com/articles/investing/053115/how-video-game-industry-changing.asp
  • Beattie, A. (2020). How the Video Game Industry Is Changing. [online] Investopedia. Available at:
  • Cai, W., Shea, R., Huang, C.-Y., Chen, K.-T., Liu, J., Leung, V.C.M. and Hsu, C.-H. (2016). The Future of Cloud Gaming . Proceedings of the IEEE, 104(4), pp.687-691.
  • Choy, S., Wong, B., Simon, G. and Rosenberg, C. (2014). A hybrid edge-cloud architecture for reducing on-demand gaming latency. Multimedia Systems, 20(5), pp.503-519.
  • Galehantomo P.S, G. (2015). Platform Comparison Between Games Console, Mobile Games And PC Games. SISFORMA, 2(1), p.23.
  • Soliman, O., Rezgui, A., Soliman, H. and Manea, N. (2013). Mobile Cloud Gaming: Issues and Challenges. Mobile Web Information Systems, pp.121-128.
  • Scholz, T.M. (2019). eSports is Business Management in the World of Competitive Gaming. Cham Springer International Publishing.
  • Wahab, A., Ahmad, N., Martini, M.G. and Schormans, J. (2021). Subjective Quality Assessment for Cloud Gaming. J, 4(3), pp.404-419.

About Nife - Contextual Ads at Edge

Contextual Ads at Edge are buzzing around the OTT platforms. To achieve the perfect mix of customer experience and media monetization, advertisers will need a technology framework that harnesses various aspects of 5G, such as small cells and network slicing, to deliver relevant content in real time with zero latency and lag-free advertising.

Why Contextual Ads at Edge?#

Contextual Ads at Edge

"In advertising, this surge of data will enable deeper insights into customer behaviors and motivations, allowing companies to develop targeted, hyper-personalized ads at scale — but just migrating to 5G is not enough to enable these enhancements. To achieve the perfect mix of customer experience and media monetization, advertisers will need a technology framework that harnesses various aspects of 5G, such as small cells and network slicing, to deliver relevant content in real-time with zero latency and lag-free advertising."

Contextual Video Ads Set to Gain#

A recent study shows that 86% of businesses used videos as their core marketing strategy in 2021 compared to 61% in 2016. A report by Ericsson estimates videos will account for 77% of mobile data traffic by 2025 versus 66% currently.

Read more about Contextual Ads at Edge in the article covered by Wipro.

Wipro Tech Blogs - Contextual Ads Winning in a 5G World

Computer Vision at Edge and Scale Story

Computer Vision at Edge is a growing subject with significant advancement in the new age of surveillance. Surveillance cameras can be primary or intelligent, but Intelligent cameras are expensive. Every country has some laws associated with Video Surveillance.

How do Video Analytics companies rightfully serve their customers, with high demand?

Nife helps with this.

Computer Vision at Edge

cloud gaming services

Introduction#

The need for higher bandwidth and low latency processing has continued with the on-prem servers. While on-prem servers provide low latency, they do not allow flexibility.

Computer Vision can be used for various purposes such as Drone navigation, Wildlife monitoring, Brand value analytics, Productivity monitoring, or even Package delivery monitoring can be done with the help of these high-tech devices. The major challenge in computing on the cloud is data privacy, especially when images are analyzed and stored.

Another major challenge is spinning up the same algorithm or application in multiple locations, which means hardware needs to be deployed there. Hence scalability and flexibility are the key issues. Accordingly, Computing and Computed Analytics are hosted and stored in the cloud.

On the other hand, managing and maintaining the on-prem servers is always a challenge. The cost of the servers is high. Additionally, any device failure adds to the cost of the system integrator.

Thereby, scaling the application to host computer vision on the network edge significantly reduces the cost of the cloud while providing flexibility of the cloud.

Key Challenges and Drivers of Computer Vision at Edge#

  • On-premise services
  • Networking
  • Flexibility
  • High Bandwidth
  • Low-Latency

Solution Overview#

Computer Vision requires high bandwidth and high processing, including GPUs. The Edge Cloud is critical in offering flexibility and a low price entry point of cloud hosting and, along with that, offering low latency necessary for compute-intensive applications.

Scaling the application to host on the network edge significantly reduces the camera's cost and minimizes the device capex. It can also help scale the business and comply with data privacy laws, e.g. HIPAA, GDPR, and PCI, requiring local access to the cloud.

How does Nife Help with Computer Vision at Edge?#

Use Nife to seamlessly deploy, monitor, and scale applications to as many global locations as possible in 3 simple steps. Nife works well with Computer Vision.

  • Seamlessly deploy and manage navigation functionality (5 min to deploy, 3 min to scale)
    • No difference in application performance (70% improvement from Cloud)
    • Manage and Monitor all applications in a single pane of glass.
    • Update applications and know when an application is down using an interactive dashboard.
    • Reduce CapEx by using the existing infrastructure.

A Real-Life Example of the Edge Deployment of Computer Vision and the Results#

Edge Deployment of Computer Vision

cloud gaming services

In the current practice, deploying the same application, which needs a low latency use case, is a challenge.

  • It needs man-hours to deploy the application.
  • It needs either on-prem server deployment or high-end servers on the cloud.

Nife servers are present across regions and can be used to deploy the same applications and new applications closer to the IoT cameras in Industrial Areas, Smart Cities, Schools, Offices, and in various locations. With this, you can monitor foot-fall, productivity, and other key performance metrics at lower costs and build productivity.

Conclusion#

Technology has revolutionized the world, and devices are used for almost all activities to monitor living forms. The network edge lowers latency, has reduced backhaul, and supports flexibility according to the user's choice and needs. We can attribute IoT cameras to scalability and flexibility, which are critical for the device. Hence, ensuring that mission-critical monitoring would be smarter, more accurate, and more reliable.

Want to know how you can save up on your cloud budgets? Read this blog.

Case Study 2: Scaling Deployment of Robotics

For scaling the robots, the biggest challenge is management and deployment. Robots have brought a massive change in the present era, and so we expect them to change the next generation. While it may not be true that the next generation of robotics will do all human work, robotic solutions help with automation and productivity improvements. Learn more!

Scaling deployment of robotics

Introduction#

In the past few years, we have seen a steady increase and adoption of robots for various use-cases. When industries use robots, multiple robots perform similar tasks in the same vicinity. Typically, robots consist of embedded AI processors to ensure real-time inference, preventing lags.

Robots have become integral to production technology, manufacturing, and Industrial 4.0. These robots need to be used daily. Though embedded AI accelerates inference, high-end processors significantly increase the cost per unit. Since processing is localized, battery life per robot also reduces.

Since the robots perform similar tasks in the same vicinity, we can intelligently use a minimal architecture for each robot and connect to a central server to maximize usage. This approach aids in deploying robotics, especially for Robotics as a Service use-cases.

The new architecture significantly reduces the cost of each robot, making the technology commercially scalable.

Key Challenges and Drivers for Scaling Deployment of Robotics#

  • Reduced Backhaul
  • Mobility
  • Lightweight Devices

How and Why Can We Use Edge Computing?#

Device latency is critical for robotics applications. Any variance can hinder robot performance. Edge computing can help by reducing latency and offloading processing from the robot to edge devices.

Nife's intelligent robotics solution enables edge computing, reducing hardware costs while maintaining application performance. Edge computing also extends battery life by removing high-end local inference without compromising services.

Energy consumption is high for robotics applications that use computer vision for navigation and object recognition. Traditionally, this data cannot be processed in the cloud; hence, embedded AI processors accelerate transactions.

Virtualization and deploying the same image on multiple robots can also be optimized.

We enhance the solution's attractiveness to end-users and industries by reducing costs, offloading device computation, and improving battery life.

Solution#

Robotics solutions are valuable for IoT, agriculture, engineering and construction services, healthcare, and manufacturing sectors.

Logistics and transportation are significant areas for robotics, particularly in shipping and airport operations.

Robots have significantly impacted the current era, and edge computing further reduces hardware costs while retaining application performance.

How Does Nife Help with Deployment of Robotics?#

Use Nife to offload device computation and deploy applications close to the robots. Nife works with Computer Vision.

  • Offload local computation
  • Maintain application performance (70% improvement over cloud)
  • Reduce robot costs (40% cost reduction)
  • Manage and Monitor all applications in a single interface
  • Seamlessly deploy and manage navigation functionality (5 minutes to deploy, 3 minutes to scale)

A Real-Life Example of Edge Deployment and the Results#

Edge deployment

In this customer scenario, robots were used to pick up packages and move them to another location.

If you would like to learn more about the solution, please reach out to us!

Case Study: Scaling up deployment of AR Mirrors

cloud computing technology

AR Mirrors or Smart mirrors, the future of mirrors, is known as the world's most advanced Digital Mirrors. Augmented Reality mirrors are a reality today, and they hold certain advantages amidst COVID-19 as well.

Learn More about how to deploy and scale Smart Mirrors.


Introduction#

AR Mirrors are the future and are used in many places for ease of use for the end-users. AR mirrors are also used in Media & Entertainment sectors because the customers get easy usage of these mirrors, the real mirrors. The AI improves the edge's performance, and the battery concern is eradicated with edge computing.

Background#

Augmented Reality, Artificial intelligence, Virtual reality and Edge computing will help to make retail stores more interactive and the online experience more real-life, elevating the customer experience and driving sales.

Recently, in retail markets, the use of AR mirrors has emerged, offering many advantages. The benefits of using these mirrors are endless, and so is the ability of the edge.

For shoppers to go back to the stores, the touch and feel are the last to focus on. Smart Mirrors bring altogether a new experience of visualizing different garments, how the clothes actually fit on the person, exploring multiple choices and sizes to create a very realistic augmented reflection, yet avoiding physical wear and touch.

About#

We use real mirrors in trial rooms to try clothes and accessories. Smart mirrors have become necessary with the spread of the pandemic.

The mirrors make the virtual objects tangible and handy, which provides maximum utility to the users building on customer experience. Generally, as human nature, the normal mirrors in the real world more often to get a look and feel.

Hence, these mirrors take you to the virtual world, help you with looking at jewellery, accessories and even clothes making the shopping experience more holistic.

Smart Mirrors use an embedded processor with AI. The local processor ensures no lag when the user is using the Mirrors and hence provides an inference closest to the user. While this helps with the inference, the cost of the processor increases.

In order to drive large scale deployment, the cost of mirrors needs to be brought down. Today, AR mirrors have a high price, hence deploying them in retail stores or malls has become a challenge.

The other challenge includes updates to the AR application itself. Today, the System Integrator needs to go to every single location and update the application.

Nife.io delivers by using minimum unit architecture, each connected to the central edge server that can lower the overall cost and help to scale the application on Smart Mirror

Key challenges and drivers of AR Mirrors#

  • Localized Data Processing
  • Reliability
  • Application performance is not compromised
  • Reduced Backhaul

Result#

AR Mirrors deliver a seamless user experience with AI. It is a light device that also provides data localization for ease of access to the end-user.

AR Mirrors come with flexible features and can easily be used according to the user's preference.

Here, edge computing helps in reducing hardware costs and ensures that the customers and their end-users do not have to compromise with application performance.

  1. The local AI processing moves to the central server.
  2. The processor now gets connected to a camera to get the visual information and pass it on to the server.

Since the processing is moved away from the server itself, this helps AR mirrors also can help reduce battery life.

The critical piece here is lag in operations. The end-user should not face any lag, the central server then must have enough processing power and enough isolations to run the operations.

Since the central server with network connectivity is in the control of the application owner and the system integrator, the time spent to deploy in multiple servers is completely reduced.

How does Nife Help with AR Mirrors?#

Use Nife to offload device compute and deploy applications close to the Smart Mirrors.

  • Offload local computation
  • No difference in application performance (70% improvement from Cloud)
  • Reduce the overall price of the Smart Mirrors (40% Cost Reduction)
  • Manage and Monitor all applications in a single pane of glass.
  • Seamlessly deploy and manage applications ( 5 min to deploy, 3 min to scale)