Bakutel, the International Telecommunications and Information Technologies fair, is marking its 20th anniversary. It’s a chance for visito...
Bakutel, the International Telecommunications and Information Technologies fair, is marking its 20th anniversary. It’s a chance for visitors to discover some of the most innovative technology in the Azeri capital, from computers, electronic chips, mobile telecommunication and social networks to other elaborate IT transmission systems. And generally, when you’re talking telecoms, the best is to look up into space. AzerCosmos is the Azeri space agency. Founded in 2010, it launched its first satellite last year, the Azerspace-1, and has just signed a deal with France’s Airbus to operate and commercialise a second satellite, Spot 7, renamed Azersky. “It offers a lot of opportunities, from point of view of technology, development, business, education. At the same time, this satellite will allow us to evaluate in more details our opportunities in terms of agriculture, and also in emergency situations, in different area of our lives,” said Azerbaijan’s president, Ilham Aliyev. With the joined and integrated operation of SPOT 6 and SPOT 7, the acquisition capacity is boosted to six million square kilometres per day and will provide imagery with a resolution of up to 1,5 metres. “These images will be used on a daily basis by organisations and companies in Azerbaijan and in the wider Caspian region, for mapping and environmental purposes, to manage environmental risks, to help oil and agronomic companies plan ahead, and to follow and update geographic data based on space imaging,” said Bruno Bertolini of Airbus Defence and Space. This edition drew some 250 companies from 23 different countries. The aim of the Hi Tech Park incubator is to give start-ups like Aznanofor more visibility. A joint Azeri-Turkish firm, it has just launched the ‘Let The Nature Glow’ project. The idea is to light up cities using a ceramic material that shines in the dark – a natural product, harmless for humans. “This is made up of ceramic. We worked eight years on this topic in the university. It’s the combination that gives out most glow. It takes energy from the sun or from the environment, and it gives it out when it is dark. So you won’t consume any electricity or any gas, it uses natural light,” said Aznanofor’s Mehmet Baris Daryal. “This is for cities, roads, anywhere you can imagine when there is no light. So if you need light in the middle of nowhere, this is where it comes (from).” German firm SAP was at Bakutel to unveil the secrets behind the efficiency of the German football team during the last World Cup. Hana, which stands for High Performance Analytic Appliance, analyses data captured by cameras around the pitch, turning it into information that can help a team gain a deeper insight into its rivals’ strategy and improve its own performance. And finally, ‘Play with Air’ could be the touchscreen of the future, except there is no screen to speak of. Instead, the image appears on a screen of smoke. An infrared system detects the hand movement and allows interaction with the display. Equipped with a smoke generator and an overhead projector, it provides an innovative, if a little cumbersome, alternative to the regular touchscreen. Less
