IBM InfoSphere Streams

TerraEchos Inc., a leading provider of covert intelligence and surveillance sensor systems, has signed a technology agreement with IBM to imbed InfoSphere Streams in their Adelos™ solution. TerraEchos helps organizations protect and monitor critical infrastructure and secure borders. Based on advanced fiber-optic acoustic sensor technology licensed from the US Navy, TerraEchos’ Adelos solution helps meet growing security demands for government, energy, public safety and transportation sectors.

The technology is made up of a fiber-optic sensor that is buried in the ground or under water and gathers real-time acoustic information. The acoustic information is then analyzed and the sound patterns are matched against complex algorithms to determine what made the noise. The system, leveraging Streams, can instantly identify, distinguish, and classify a variety of objects detected by the fiber optic sensor array.

For example, to monitor the security and performance of an oil pipeline, a company could bury the sensors strategically throughout the pipeline corridor on specific locations. The complex sound patterns made by a security breech or problem in the pipeline such as a change in flow dynamics or mechanical impacts on the exterior of the pipeline would be captured by the sensor array and instantly analyzed. Within seconds, the team monitoring the pipeline would be alerted to the problem, potential cause and where along the miles of pipeline it was located.

"As a licensee of US Navy technology, TerraEchos has been committed to the successful commercialization of technology that previously had been proven very successful in military applications," said Dr. Theresa Baus, Head, Technology Partnerships Enterprise Office, Naval Undersea Warfare Center, Newport. "TerraEchos's licensing agreement with IBM is a key milestone in transitioning this sensor technology for commercial purposes."

TerraEchos selected InfoSphere Streams as the engine that processes approximately 1600 MB of data in motion that is continually generated from their fiber optic sensor array. The processing capacity of InfoSphere Streams enables Adelos to analyze all of the data streaming from their sensors. In addition, the technology enables Adelos to match the sound patterns against an extensive library of algorithms, giving TerraEchos the most robust classification system in the industry.

“Given our data processing and analytical challenges associated with the Adelos Sensor Array, InfoSphere Streams is the right solution for us and our customers,” said Dr. Alex Philp, President and CEO of TerraEchos Inc. “We look forward to growing our strategic relationship with IBM across various sectors and markets to help revolutionize the concept of Sensor as Service.”

• Learn more about TerraEchos Inc.