A team of researchers from the Federal University of Technology Minna has developed a Multiple Operator-Enabled SIM (MOES) Card and a communication-enabled smart walking stick. The team was led by Professor Abiodun Musa Aibinu, Head, Department of Mechatronics Engineering FUT Minna and Coordinator, Advanced Engineering Innovation Research Group.
The team made of 12 researchers, 8 research fellows, and 4 students started the research work in 2013. Commendably, they displayed prototypes of these two new innovations at the NCC headquarters in Abuja on Monday.
Representatives of the Federal University of Technology Minna are visiting the NCC Head Office to showcase their proposal for the Fabrication of GSM Communication Based Walking Cane Robot & proposal on Seamless Data & Voice Connection using Multiple Operators Enabled SIM card. pic.twitter.com/7putgYWTih
— ncc.gov.ng (@NgComCommission) May 21, 2018
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The research project was funded by the Nigeria communication commission (NCC) to the tune of 4.7 million naira. Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta, the Executive Vice Chairman of NCC, represented by the Executive Commissioner NCC, Engr. Ubale Maska during the presentation of the prototype said:
“Since the innovation is looking into the future, it would be of immense benefit to the telecom industry because the industry is very dynamic. A device that selects any network that is available is something that all the network operators will accept and it is in keeping with the consideration for national roaming that is being promoted now by the commission. We are really pleased today with the results shown by FUT Minna. It shows that they have been able to accomplish every single thing with the grants given by the NCC.”
Multiple Operator-Enabled SIM
After various stages, the final prototype of the Multiple Operator-Enabled SIM was developed. It was motivated by the increasing poor service experienced by subscribers which manifests itself in the form of call failure, call drops, and low signal strength. They have combined Artificial Intelligence (AI) and embedded system to provide a solution to the challenge. The AI system helps the device take intelligent decision on behalf of the user to switch from the network with poor quality of service to another with better quality service.
The device will provide subscribers the privilege of enjoying good services from available operators even when on transit on Nigeria roads without the added expenses of having more than one phone or a phone with multiple SIM slots.
The team also developed a New Method of SIM Card Forensic using a new device prototype that can read and analyze more than one SIM at a time using the principle of Multiple Operator-Enabled SIM (MOES) Card system. The prototype which comes with an application can log pertinent and necessary information from a SIM card. It has mechanism for auto-detection, auto removal, network quality of service monitoring and data can be exported to various texts formatting type including .txt, .xls.
Mobile Communication Enabled Smart Walking Stick (MCEWS)
According to the team, the smart walking stick was developed to reduce the number of falls by the aged, senior citizens and people with disability and also to curb the imbalance sometimes experienced arising from an attempt to receive call, initiate phone call, send or read SMS while holding onto the walking stick during a mobile phone call.
The connected walking stick, through an application, can communicate with your mobile phones and has a fall detection algorithm that prevents the aged and people of disability from falling. It can detect obstacles from a distance and can initiate a phone call to predefined health centers and caregivers, the smart walking stick provide real time transmission of vital signals of owner to remote health workers, it comes with flashlight to easily help with navigation in dark areas.
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The smart walking stick is Bluetooth-enabled and can connect other Bluetooth-enabled devices; the device is powered using a battery charging system. The phone capabilities of the device can be accessed via the menu options provided on the home menus. You can select a phone system function such as making a phone call to a required inputted number or making a distress call to a fixed emergency line is performed by scrolling up and down using the buttons provided
They also developed a Multiple Operators Enabled SIM (MOES) tracker an advance innovative tracking device that uses the embedded MOES system to track an object.
The device enables a wider coverage and increases the security of tracking an object. It comes with an android app that lets you install and track objects using your phone. The MOES tracking app requires a onetime registration in other to manage and provide help services to the user of the device. The installation page is only displayed on the first time the app is opened or when the app is reinstalled.
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