Cellular IoT is injecting fresh value to micromobility services, in terms of the lifespan of bikes and scooters, and additionally in service diagnostics and logistics. 

The micromobility market, encompassing electric bikes and scooters (e-scooters), will witness growth at a compound rate (CAGR) of 16% annually until 2027, from approximately $3 billion in 2019 to $12 billion at the conclusion of the period. The emergence of cellular IoT – particularly of low-power LTE-based NB-IoT and LTE-M networks – is injecting new value to micromobility services, with regards to the lifespan of bikes and scooters, and additionally in service diagnostics and logistics. 

This is the end of a new report by those who are aware – and those within the game; cellular vendor Ericsson, mobile operator Arkessa, and micromobility operator Voi handed the task to consultancy Arthur D. Little to run their rule over their tech and solutions to evaluate their cumulative potential, as deployed in micromobility solutions. The outcome, they peg, is an e-scooter operator in a largish-sized city can obtain $460,000 in yearly value with cellular IoT. 

The image extrapolates the advantages – in fleet longevity, and several IoT services – from application of low-power IoT connectivity to a fleet of 3,500 e-scooters in a city of one million inhabitants. Every scooter can furnish rides to more than 20 individuals each day, needing minimal public space and making nearly no noise at all, the report observes. 69% of this value stems from the longer lifespan of e-scooters. 

This is accomplished with enhanced service and maintenance through onboard and remote diagnostics – affording the capacity to update bikes, fix them prior to them failing, and locate them when they are lost. Another 26% stems from more affordable service logistics – “compared to Bluetooth.” The lines are blurred; the report indicates to gains from IoT tracking with regards to pick-ups, servicing, and charging. 

5% of the gains stem from more dynamic IoT pricing, so micromobility providers can “comprehend the driving behaviour of consumers, through precise and comprehensive data.” The report makes the case, as well, that micromobility provides a method for cities to minimize car traffic, and related carbon emissions. Substituting car rides with electric scooters could minimize CO2 emissions by nearly 61% going by the International Transport Forum. 

Increasing the lifespan of electric scooters can minimize CO2 emissions by nearly 33%, and minimizing congestion in cities can minimize CO2 emissions by 6%, going by the same forecast, minimizing congestion in cities could possibly reduce CO2 emissions up to 6%. 

Ericsson calculates the number of cellular IoT connections will increase (more than three-fold) from 1.7 billion in 2020 to 5.9 billion in half-a-decade from now. Cellular IoT is proving to be popular in the emergent micromobility segment. Two years ago, in 2019, 136 million people took trips on shared bikes and scooters in the USA, increased by 60% on 2018. BIS data states 2019 revenues from micromobility services appreciated by 41% and 21% in North America and Europe, respectively. 

Usually, e-scooters feature six or seven differing IoT sensors: a condition sensor to undertake diagnosis of battery levels and damage; a sound sensor to caution close-by pedestrians; an NFC sensor for internet payments and unlocking; a motion sensor to put out signals in the scenario of vandalism or other impacts; a GNSS sensor to map out the location of scooters in a fleet; and air quality and noise sensors to gather environmental information for third parties, like city councils. 

Kyle Okamoto, general manager for IoT at Ericsson stated: “Cellular IoT is not just a stepping stone for micromobility organizations to enhance and streamline their offerings, IoT has advantages for customers, cities, and the climate at large. By harnessing cellular connectivity IoT, we will observe micromobility providers interact more with smart city infrastructure, and this is thrilling to witness.” 

Jonas Rundberg, VP of software engineering at Voi, stated: “We believe in cities that are free of congestion, noise, and pollution. We believe in cities where denizens can be free to move around on their own terms. To achieve this, we have taken the most sophisticated tech including cellular IoT and made it accessible to the masses.”