Hello,
Understand that the accuracy of UWB is no where comparable to Bluetooth beacons. What is the real practical costs for functioning an anchor?
If it is a Bluetooth beacon anchor, then as it is battery powered, it can be just mounted at any needed location with a double sided sticker. So the costs are just the BT beacons and double sided sticker (which is quiet less!!)
If it is a UWB anchor, then it needs mains power with a AC/DC converter or mains power with AC/DC adapter with USB cable. Let us further assume that the location has mains powered line running everywhere in passages and aisles. So the electrician just has to tap the lines and create a socket to plug the AC/DC adapter.
I was told that in US, the cost of just tapping a line and mounting the socket costs around $500. Is this correct? It will be great if someone with practical experience and have deployed anchors at different real locations share the costs? I cannot this number, but want to justify the leadership. If $500 cost is correct, then the ROI will be very very late!!!
Please revert back.
Regards
Sandeep Suresh
You are trying to compare two very different systems. It’s a bit like saying a car uses more fuel than a bicycle so is it worth getting a car?
Yes, a bluetooth based location system will be lower power and so run for longer off a small battery.
However a battery powered bluetooth tag will not last forever, it will need to be changed at some point. A UWB system can run off battery, the bigger the battery the longer it will last. It becomes a question of how big the battery is, how often it needs to be changed and the cost associated with that change. How many battery changes do you need to do before it’s cheaper to add a power socket.
$500 to install a power socket sounds a little on the high side, especially if you are getting a lot done at the same time, but not massively high. Keep in mind most commercial buildings don’t like turning the power off during the day so the work will need to be done out of hours which means you’re going to be paying overtime rates. And then in the US there is a lot of paperwork and compliance requirements that add costs to the company. Also expect a large price variation depending on location, the cost of getting something done in California could easily be several times higher than in North Dakota.
Is UWB worth the extra cost over bluetooth? That question is the same no matter how much more it costs. If you need the accuracy it’s worth it. If you don’t it’s not.