Israeli technology company Sonarax unveiled at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona last month a new machine-to-machine (m2m) connectivity standard which allows devices to communicate with one another using sound waves.
The company said the protocol, which pair devices and transfer data on encrypted and open channels using sound waves, requires no special hardware and works even when the internet, GPS, and cellular networks are unavailable.
The protocol can also be integrated with any application across various operating systems, including Windows, Android, and iOS, and is already embedded in leading sonic processors.
Hence, it promises faster deployments of m2m applications such as sonic QR codes, mobile payments, and ID authentication.
Sonarax said the ultrasonic technology was designed to provide initial solutions in three main important areas: ultrasonic payments — for facilitating secure pairing for mobile payments and contactless ATM interaction; ultrasonic authentication — for providing a seamless and secure identification solution; and ultrasonic indoor positioning — for allowing indoor positioning in buildings such as shopping malls and hospitals where GPS stops working.
“We’re utilizing the existing element of sound to modernize machine-to-machine connectivity so that it enhances payment authentication and for the first time can also be used for indoor positioning,” explained Benny Saban, CEO of Sonarax. “Sound cannot fail or be compromised.”
Sonarax said it is working to implement the technology for novel indoor navigation functionality to be launched at a later date.
