The pace of urbanization in the 21st century is going wild. Every year, the number of people seeking to move to big cities is only growing. Megacities attract residents of villages and villages with good working conditions, higher earnings, developed infrastructure and quality medicine. But in this regard, a number of logical questions arise.
How to improve the standard of living of the urban population? How to simplify the process of city management? Is it possible to improve the work of municipal transport? Finding answers to all these questions will help the development of the concept of smart cities. Actually, it will be discussed in our article.
The problem of an ideal city
Vicenzo Scamozzi, Leonardo da Vinci, Francesco de Marc, Giovanni Bellucci, Le Corbusier - all these talented people at different times worked on the idea of the so-called ideal city. About how to create such a locality, Europe began to think actively in the Middle Ages.
For example, a drawing of a two-level street with separate traffic, dating from the middle of the 15th century, has been preserved. Its author is the outstanding Italian scientist Leonardo da Vinci. In the north-east of Italy there is a unique ancient city of Palma Nova in the shape of a star. It was laid back in 1593. This is how the “ideal city” seemed to the architect Vicenzo Scamozzi.
Of course, with the rapid development of science and information technology, the idea of an ideal city has changed somewhat. At the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries, the concept of a “smart city” was born, which is based on the automation of absolutely all the processes of urban life.
Smart City: the main tasks of an intelligent city
The concept of “smart city” arose relatively recently. Moreover, there is no unambiguous and generally accepted interpretation of this term. The very concept of a smart city (Smart City - in the English version) originated in the late 90s. It was then that the progressive part of humanity first realized that the future lies in the development of the IT sector. It is curious that initially this idea developed exclusively in an ecological and environmental context. But years passed, and today Smart City is a comprehensive reality.
So what is a smart city? The following definition can be given: this is the integration of all communication and information technologies with the goal of effectively managing the urban system. According to the concept of a “smart city”, all these technologies are used to solve a number of important tasks:
- The rational use of all urban infrastructure.
- Comprehensive improvement of the environment.
- Rapid collection and transmission of data to city officials.
- Establishing close ties between the city managerial staff and local residents.
7 signs of a smart city
In short, the main goal of the Smart City program is to increase the efficiency of all municipal services. Is there any way to distinguish Smart City from an ordinary settlement? It turns out you can. Here are seven key signs of a smart city:
- Attracting ordinary urban residents to management issues.
- The presence of intelligent traffic control systems .
- A smart approach to street lighting.
- Implementation of a citywide and affordable Wi-Fi network.
- Active use of solar panels.
- Existence of a system of warning citizens about emergency situations through SMS messages.
- Minimal use of cash to pay for services and goods.
The main technologies of a smart city today include wireless sensor networks, various online platforms, sensors (for example, for monitoring traffic, air pollution levels, etc.), electronic maps and applications.
Smart city device
According to the concept we are considering, a smart city consists of seven structural components (parts) - three main and four auxiliary. It:
- Smart economy (development of information and communication technologies, a favorable environment for innovation, the presence of an online reservation system).
- Smart financial system (cashless payments, the availability of ATMs and terminals, transparency in the distribution of tenders).
- Smart city management (openness of the municipal administration, close ties between local authorities and ordinary residents).
- Smart public transport.
- Smart infrastructure.
- Smart lighting.
- Smart residents.
Let's take a closer look at some of these components, namely transportation and lighting.
Smart city transport
Transport of the future, according to the famous Brazilian urbanist Jaime Lerner, will be maneuverable and extremely cheap. It will run on the surface and can easily integrate into underground underground lines. Today, various countries are actively working on the development of a smart bus, smart bike and smart taxi.
Smart transport controls everything that happens in the passenger compartment and on the roadway. Moreover, he is able to quickly transmit information about traffic violations to the relevant authorities.
One of the most important components of any smart city is geolocation. It helps to track the movement of urban transport online, determining the location of a particular bus, trolley or taxi. In many cities around the world, a system for optimizing the movement of municipal transport has already been introduced, which tells the passenger (through special information panels or user smartphones) the optimal route of movement.
Smart city lighting
Imagine that you are walking along a night street, the lights on which light up automatically as you progress. Similar technologies have long been introduced in many cities around the world. The so-called motion sensors are extremely popular today. They record the presence of a person (or vehicle), and only then turn on the light. Scientists estimate that smart luminaires within the framework of the “smart city” concept can save up to 80% of electricity compared to conventional incandescent lamps.
It should be noted that in the near future lighting will become comfortable not only for people, but also for plants. Research is already underway on the smart lighting of city parks and gardens, taking into account the automatic adjustment of the brightness, intensity and shades of the emitted light.
Architectural lighting is booming. Thanks to a wide variety of LED lamps, new opportunities are created for the original design lighting of the facades of city buildings and public buildings.
Smart Cities: the most famous examples
Currently, the Smart City concept is more or less implemented in 350 cities around the world. According to analysts, by 2020, this figure will increase to 600 settlements. Here are examples of the smartest cities on the planet:
- Singapore (Singapore).
- Masdar (United Arab Emirates).
- Columbus (USA).
- Yinchuan (China).
- Fujisawa (Japan).
- Curitiba (Brazil).
Let us briefly consider which intelligent technologies are introduced and used in the listed settlements.
Singapore
In the ranking of the smartest cities, Singapore is often given the first line. The government of the country launched a special Smart Nation program, in which city blocks were equipped with solar panels, vacuum waste bins, as well as sensors that monitor the volume of electricity and water consumption. Many Singapore houses have special sensors that monitor the movements of older people and, if necessary, send messages to nearby hospitals.
Masdar
The village of Masdar is a futuristic project of the city of the future, located in the United Arab Emirates. According to the designers, it should become completely autonomous and self-sufficient. All the energy necessary for the functioning of urban services and systems will be obtained exclusively from natural renewable sources - wind, sun and water. Despite the hot climate, the air temperature will be maintained on the streets of Masdar. This project will be fully implemented only by 2030.
Columbus
In the capital of Ohio, at least 850 thousand people live. Google has introduced here its Flow system, which collects and analyzes traffic information from smartphones and navigators. This helps the municipal authorities to avoid large traffic jams, and for local residents to choose the best route and method of transportation, taking into account the congestion of the main roads. In addition, very soon unmanned shuttle buses will start operating in Columbus.
Yinchuan
The relatively small Chinese city of Yinchuan is notable, first of all, for the fact that there is no need here not only for cash, but also for bank cards. In order to make a purchase, just bring your face to a special sensor. The unique face recognition system will automatically debit the required amount from your account.
In addition, a number of other smart technologies are successfully operating in the city. For example, all garbage containers run on solar panels and are equipped with filling indicators. But in the building of the local administration, visitors are not met by government officials, but by holograms that can solve many problems of citizens.
Fujisawa
How not to mention Japan, which today is one of the leaders in introducing the latest technologies and developments. More recently, the smart city of Fujisawa was inaugurated in this country. Only electric cars roam its streets, and all houses use only the energy of the Sun.
Smart lighting is installed on the streets and in the alleys of Fujisawa. Lights turn on only when moving objects are in the zone of their action. In Japan, as you know, earthquakes are not uncommon. But the city of Fujisawa is fully prepared for any natural disasters and is able to provide its residents with cold and hot water for at least three days.
Curitiba
The Brazilian Curitiba is perhaps the most vivid example of a “smart city” when it comes to developing countries. Many problems of the modern metropolis here were resolved fifty years ago. Largely thanks to the efforts of the mayor of the city - Jaime Lerner. He became famous throughout the world for the modernization of his native Curitiba, transforming the urban environment to a reference level in terms of planning.
Lerner achieved particular success in the field of urban transport. The statistics speak for themselves:
- Curitiba's public transport consumes 30% less fuel than other major metropolitan areas.
- The city bus transport system works no less efficient than the light metro.
- Curitiba is famous for one of the largest pedestrian zones among all cities in the world.
- About 70% of Sao Paulo residents would like to live in Curitiba.
Smart cities of Russia
The concept of smart cities in recent years has been of great interest in Russia. The fact that it resonates with politicians and officials at various levels is also positive. So, in 2016, on the initiative of the Moscow Government, the Smart City center was opened at VDNH. A separate pavilion was built for him with a rather original design of the external facades (in the form of a relief drawing of computer microcircuits).
Within Moscow, they want to implement the concept of a smart city in the village of Kommunarka (Sosenskoye settlement). Here, the city authorities plan to create a modern business center with the participation of the French company Engie.
But Huawei is directly involved in the implementation of the Safe City project in St. Petersburg. A cloud storage system for video files collected from 12,000 surveillance cameras has already been developed in the Northern capital. It allows you to find the right fragment in a matter of minutes and take appropriate security measures. The total capacity of this cloud storage is impressive: about 40 PB (for reference: 1 MB of memory in 1 PB).
Smart City: Rostelecom Concept
In April 2018, an expanded meeting of a special working group was held in the Ministry of Construction of the Russian Federation with the participation of representatives of various regions of the country. At it, Rostelecom presented a roadmap for the new Smart City project as part of the state program Digital Economy of Russia.
The Smart City concept developed by Rostelecom includes a number of tasks in six different areas, designed to significantly improve the lives of citizens. Among the most important results of the implementation of this project:
- The introduction of public transport on unmanned control.
- Reducing accidents and emergencies in the housing system.
- Reducing the total number of accidents in cities.
- Increasing the reliability of energy supply.
The Ministry of Construction of the Russian Federation also compiled a list of municipalities in whose territory this pilot project will be implemented. It included 18 cities: Perm, Voronezh, Veliky Novgorod, Ufa, Yekaterinburg, Novosibirsk, Kotovsk, Yevpatoriya, Tolyatti, Izhevsk, Elabuga, Glazov, Sarov, Novouralsk, Satka, Sarapul, Magas and Sosnovy Bor.
Finally…
“Smart city” is a concept based on a locality that uses a variety of information technologies for more efficient functioning of all its services and systems. The key idea of such a city is to collect various information (in real time) and use it to make rational, constructive decisions.