使用 LoRaWAN® 转变瑞士的邮政服务

Postal delivery companies face a highly competitive landscape as customer expectations have evolved. The demand for fast delivery times, low prices and exceptional service has driven rapid innovation: new solutions are needed in order to meet the needs of smart cities worldwide. Postal companies must also reach customers in rural areas, which are often much more difficult to serve due to inaccessibility and lack of infrastructure able to handle communication demands. Rural postal customers also tend to be older, which can present technological literacy issues.

The Swiss Post, Switzerland’s national postal service, plays a central role in the lives of its citizens, many of whom live in remote mountain villages. Switzerland’s Postal Services Act requires that the Swiss Post ensure postal service access to all users: post offices must be within a 20-minute walk or public transit trip for 90% of each federal state’s population. This poses a significant challenge in rural areas. Limited Wi-Fi connectivity in these locations represents another obstacle to providing postal services, given customers cannot easily place orders online.

为应对连接性的障碍和日益增长的客户需求，瑞士邮政与领先的技术供应商合作，打造出一款电池供电的光学识别 (OID) 器件 - SmartButton。它为消费者和企业优化了邮政服务订购流程，有助于加强全球社区的智能供应链管理，大大改善了瑞士邮政的服务范围。

LoRaWAN® and the SmartButton

In order to create the device, the Swiss Post collaborated with leading technology design services company, Miromico. The devices needed to leverage the Internet of Things (IoT) in order to facilitate customer postal supply and service orders, and would also need to rely on Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) technology in order to serve rural customers, given that the system would cover physical distances too substantial for cellular or local area network (LAN) technologies to accommodate.

Of LPWAN technologies, the LoRaWAN protocol offers the broadest range of connected applications and the ability to connect hundreds of thousands of LoRa® integrated, battery-operated sensors over long distances. Integration with LoRaWAN also provides the SmartButton ecosystem with openness, robust security, bi-directional communication, mobile optimization, and scalability.

有些村庄太小，不值得设立实体邮局。瑞士邮政已开始为这些村庄的家庭发放 SmartButton。这些器件使用电池供电，电池寿命长达 10 年。用户只需单击按钮即可根据需要订购邮政服务，不需要配置或设置，也不需要连接到 Wi-Fi。SmartButton 已不再局限于农村地区，现在任何希望简化邮政订购流程的瑞士公民都可以使用该器件。

B2C Applications

Beyond postal service use, the SmartButton facilitates a broad range of potential B2C applications. Businesses can use the device to simplify and digitize the ordering process; orders placed via the SmartButton appear in the web application instantly, replacing the need to compile and log information on each item ordered. The SmartButton’s plug and play installation, stand-alone communication network, feedback functionality, and low maintenance needs also make the device extremely compelling for business use.

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