Find solution
How to send data from device to remote server?

Machine-to-machine Communication: Do celluar-enabled connected devices (e.g., tablets and eReaders) need a telephone number to send a text message to the device to wake it up?

  • Are there asynchronous communications to the device that require a server to wake the device up to send it data?  And do they do that by first sending a text message to a telephone number associated with the device to wake it up, then sending the data?  Because these devices are not phones then if they had a telephone number they would not be used for voice or text messages to the owner of the device.

  • Answer:

    This is not a question whether a synchronous or asynchronous communication is used. It depends more on whether the device can / should remain in an "always-on" mode or not. If it does, you can send data any time. If it has to be put in sleep mode (mainly for energy reasons), then you indeed need some mechanism to wake it up. How this can be achieved, depends on the type of "sleep mode". Some M2M modules offer a low power mode (idle mode), where they remain logged on to the IP network and maintain their IP-adress. If the IP connection is closed but the device is still logged on to the GSM / CDMA network, then you could send a text message or place a call. The device then need some local logic to interpret the senders telephone number or the content of the text message as signal to establish an IP-connection. Afterwards you send your data. There is obviously some standardisation work going on around a protocol call NRPCA, which is in principle a "Wake-On LAN" functionality. However, it is not widely deployed as of now. (also see: http://www.etsi.org/deliver/etsi_tr/123900_123999/123976/10.00.00_60/tr_123976v100000p.pdf)

Jürgen Anke at Quora Visit the source

Was this solution helpful to you?

Other answers

The phone number of such a device you get by SIM: A subscriber identity module or subscriber identification module (SIM) is an https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Integrated_circuit that securely stores the https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_mobile_subscriber_identity (IMSI) and the related https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subscriber_identity_module#Authentication_key used to identify and authenticate subscribers on mobile https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Telephony devices (such as https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mobile_phone and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Computer). Read more at Wikipedia  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subscriber_identity_module

Harald Naumann

The answer is about as varied as the number of device combinations in existence. At the Hong Kong Space Museum Planetarium, the asynchronous  inter-CPU comunications was done with bidirectional parallel ports.  (Don't ask me for the details, it's been 37 years since we stayed up until about 1 in the morning figuring out how to get it to work.) If the device is on the internet (wifi, data connection, anything, and is running server software (listening on a particular port), that's all that's needed.  Talk to the port and the device is listening. If the devices have no other connection between them than a cellular network, they need telephone numbers, since that's the device's "address".

Al Klein

Related Q & A:

Just Added Q & A:

Find solution

For every problem there is a solution! Proved by Solucija.

  • Got an issue and looking for advice?

  • Ask Solucija to search every corner of the Web for help.

  • Get workable solutions and helpful tips in a moment.

Just ask Solucija about an issue you face and immediately get a list of ready solutions, answers and tips from other Internet users. We always provide the most suitable and complete answer to your question at the top, along with a few good alternatives below.