The 2023 World Internet of Things Exposition (WIoT) is set to be held from Oct 20 to 23 in Wuxi, during which industry insiders from around the world will gather to exchange the latest achievements and explore its future trends.

Since the State Council approved the construction of a national sensor network innovation demonstration zone in Wuxi in 2009, Wuxi has spared no effort in building an advanced manufacturing IoT cluster. In 2022, Wuxi's core IoT industry operating income reached 93.45 billion yuan ($14.41 billion), driving the business revenue of related IoT industries to 401 billion yuan ($54.87 billion), which accounts for nearly half of Jiangsu's total.

Over the past fourteen years, IoT technology has penetrated into various fields of Wuxi's economic and social development, and many new applications have debuted here, boosting the city's high-quality development of the digital economy.

Unmanned farm offers glimpse into future of agriculture

The Wuxi Xishan National Modern Agricultural Industrial Park has made enormous strides in developing smart agriculture and promoting agricultural development.

The unmanned farm project in the industrial park's Wuxi Taihu Rice Farming Demonstration Fields has achieved precision farming and intelligent management of grain production using IoT, AI, 5G, and big data technologies. The unmanned farm can save more than 2-kilograms-worth of seeds per mu, increase production by 10 kilograms, reduce fuel costs by more than 10 percent and reduce labor costs by more than 65 percent.

The Wuxi Intelligent Agricultural Machinery Equipment Research and Development Demonstration Center was inaugurated here on May 12, 2023. Collaborating with the Unmanned Operation Test Consortium and the On-board Information Service Industry Application Alliance, it aims to create an unmanned operation pilot zone for agriculture and promote the development of the agricultural IoT industrial ecosystem in Wuxi.

The Jiufu 4LZ-6.0 (G4) autonomous combine harvester at the Xishan National Modern Agricultural Industrial Park in Wuxi, East China's Jiangsu province. [Photo by Yang Yingxue/for chinadaily.com.cn]

Logistics robots drives industrial transformation

Founded in Wuxi in 2020, UQi Intelligent Technology Co Ltd is dedicated to promoting unmanned logistics revolution with "AI plus robots" and autonomous driving technology.

Li Bei, the company's chief executive officer, said that the company has launched the Wali series of industrial mobile robots and the Chitu Level 4 unmanned logistics vehicles to provide customers with integrated solutions for unmanned factories, unmanned warehouses, and unmanned delivery.

It has provided logistics robot products and services to globally renowned customers such as BYD, Volkswagen, Michelin, and China Electronics.

The Wali series of industrial robots undergo tests at the Wuxi laboratory of UQi Intelligent Technology Co Ltd. [Photo provided to chinadaily.com.cn]

Atmospheric environment monitoring boosts construction of low-carbon city

Wuxi CAS Photonics Co Ltd is a national level "small giant" enterprise that integrates technological research on high-end atmospheric environmental monitoring instruments, product development, integrated applications, and comprehensive services for air quality improvement.

Zhou Jianfeng, the government affairs director of the company, said that the company has taken the lead in developing integrated products, such as the stereoscopic monitoring vehicle series and super monitoring stations for atmospheric environment, particulate/photolytic composition station, and laser radar network, aiming to build a sky-earth integrated atmospheric environment monitoring network and provide data support for scientific pollution control.

The company operates a leading integrated system for atmospheric pollution prevention and control, which allows for the three-dimensional monitoring of atmospheric environmental pollution in Wuxi and accurately assists in regional atmospheric environmental forecasting and early warning.

IoT technology is applied in over 300 sectors in Wuxi, including transportation, environmental protection, healthcare, and security. New technologies, products, and markets are rapidly emerging here, bringing new impetus to industrial development and urban applications.