simHERO Glossary

# A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

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The third generation of digital mobile communications which delivered faster data-transmission speeds, enabling video calling and global roaming for mobile Internet. 3G handled both voice and data much more efficiently than 2G.

The fourth generation of digital mobile communications that provides higher-speed so that data streaming for HD mobile TV, music, video conferencing and other apps are enabled.

The 5th generation of digital cellular technology emerging in 2020, that provides significantly faster data rates, higher connection density, much lower latency, and energy savings, among other improvements.

A

API

Application Programming Interface

An API is a computing interface with a set of routines, protocols, and tools for building software applications. It defines how the interactions between multiple software intermediaries should be.

APN

Access Point Name

An APN establishes a connection to the gateway between the carrier’s cellular network and the public internet. The APN has the network settings a device needs to connect to a network provider; it finds the IP address that the device is identified with on the network, determines if a private network is needed, chooses the correct security settings, and more.

C

CIoT

Consumer IoT

The Consumer IoT refers to the Internet of Things connected devices designed for the consumer market such as smartphones, wearables, fashion items and smart home appliances. All these devices collect and share data through the Internet.

CMP

Connectivity Management Platform

A Connectivity Management Platform is a comprehensive platform with tools to manage connectivity services and IoT/M2M SIM cards used globally and through their entire life cycle. It has the capability aggregate multiple networks and support multiple connectivity technologies.

Connected Home

A Connected Home also called a smart home, is a residence that uses internet-connected devices to enable the remote monitoring and management of appliances and systems, ranging from communications and entertainment to healthcare, security, lighting, heating and further home automation.

D

Dynamic Pool

In a Dynamic Pool the included data volume of one SIM Card is multiplied by the number of SIM Cards in the pool.

E

Enterprise Portal

An Enterprise Portal is an interface for enterprise customers to manage their own SIM cards connectivity and have access to related SIM cards usage and master data.

eSIM

embedded SIM

An embedded SIM is an embedded chip in a device that is equivalent in function to a Mini or Micro SIM card. It stores data that is needed for your device to connect to and use the Operator’s network, like traditional SIMs do. But an eSIM can be reprogrammed to change numbers or carriers while a traditional SIM can’t because it needs to be replaced.

G

GPRS

General Packet Radio Service

GPRS is an expansion of GSM (Global System for Mobile Communication) host networks. It is basically a packet-oriented mobile data standard on the 2G and 3G cellular communication network’s global system for mobile communication. GPRS was one of the main advances that empowered a cell system to interface with Internet Protocol systems, enabling high-speed mobile datacom usage.

GPS

Global Positioning System

GPS is a system of satellites and radio transmissions that can be used to locate GPS-enabled hardware anywhere on the planet to a very good accuracy.

GSM

Global System for Mobile Communications

GSM is the most widely used digital cellular network and the basis for mobile communication such as phone calls and the short message service (SMS).

I

ICCID

Integrated Circuit Card Identifier

Integrated Circuit Card ID is a unique number that identifies a SIM (Subscriber Identity Module) card in a GSM network.
ICCIDs are defined as the Primary Account Number. They are stored in the SIM cards and printed on the SIM card body. A full ICCID is 19 or 20 digit number including the Telecommunications industry code, country code, mobile network code and a group of digits that uniquely identifies the SIM.

IIoT

Internet of Industrial Things

Industrial IoT is a subset of the larger IoT that focuses on the specialized requirements of industrial applications, such as manufacturing, energy, oil, gas, utilities and any smart devices installed around business areas.

IMEI

International Mobile Equipment Identity

The International Mobile Equipment Identity is a unique number that identifies a hardware device to the network when its checked against a global IMEI database. IMEI numbers are produced by the GSMA and provided to manufacturers to be assigned to their devices. They are usually printed within a device’s battery component.

IMSI

International Mobile Subscriber Identity

An IMSI is an internationally standardized unique number to identify a mobile subscriber. The IMSI is defined in ITU-T Recommendation E.212. The IMSI consists of a Mobile Country Code (MCC), a Mobile Network Code (MNC) and a Mobile Station Identification Number (MSIN). An IMSI is usually presented as a 15 digit number, but can be shorter (not longer).

IoE

Internet of Everything

The Internet of Everything is the connection between people, things, data and processes combined into a common interrelated system, the aim of which is to improve experiences and make smarter decisions. Today, everything can be connected with everything, creating a new distributed ecosystem that goes beyond the familiar IoT (Internet of Things) concept. Any object can be outfitted with digital features and connected to the common network of other objects, people and processes in order to generate valuable information, exchange it and facilitate relevant decision-making.

IoMT

Internet of Medical Things

The Internet of Medidal Things is the IoT healthcare ecosystem to help health care organisations achieve better patient outcomes.

IoT

Internet of Things

The IoT refers to a network of electronic devices also called objects (such as sensors and actuators) that collect some kind of data autonomously based on physical World events from sensors that are attached to them. These objects are connected to the Internet so that they can send the data they collect from sensors to a larger, more powerful processor or server, becoming active participants in various public, commercial, scientific, and personal processes.

IoT module

An IoT module is a small device embedded in objects, things and machines that is responsible for connecting virtually anything to wireless networks to send and receive data.

IP Address

Internet Protocol Address

An IP address is a numerical label assigned to each device connected to a computer network that uses the Internet Protocol (IP) for communication. An IP address is used for network interface identification and location addressing.

L

LTE

Long Term Evolution

LTE is a standard for 4G wireless broadband technology that offers increased network capacity and speed to mobile device users.

M

M2P

Machine to People

Machine to People refers to the connection stablished between a machine (such as a computer, mobile device, or digital sign) and a person to transfer information. Machines get data and report it to be then analysed and actions taken based on informed judgements by people.

MCC / MNC

Mobile Country Code / Mobile Network Code

The Mobile Country Code (MCC) and Mobile Network Code (MNC) fields together specify which carrier you are using. Each carrier in the world has their own unique MCC and MNC value pair.

Mobile / Cellular Network

A Mobile or Cellular network is a radio network distributed over land areas called cells, each served by at least one fixed-location transceiver, known as a cell site or base station. Each cell within a cellular network uses a different set of frequencies from neighboring cells, to avoid interference and provide guaranteed bandwidth within each cell.

Mobile Originated SMS

A Mobile Originated message (SMS MO) is a mobile message routed from an end user’s mobile device and delivered to a mobile device or an application. In the latter case, incoming messages can be seen over a specialized web interface, which usually offers additional reporting and analytics abilities. Incoming messages can be forwarded to SMPP, HTTP push or pull, or email. Also, they can trigger further actions – an automatic reply, opening of a support ticket etc.

Mobile Originated SMS

A Mobile Terminated message (SMS MT) is a mobile message routed from a client or an application and delivered to the end user’s mobile phone or device. The word Terminated means that the message is terminated (delivered) on a mobile device. It is also known as an Outbound SMS.

MVNO

Mobile Virtual Network Operator

A Mobile Virtual Network Operator is a company that provides mobile phone services but does not have its own licensed frequency allocation of the radio spectrum, nor does it necessarily have the entire infrastructure required to provide mobile telephone services.

N

Network Interface

A Network Interface is the point of interconnection between a computer and a private or public network. While it is often a hardware (NIC-Network Interface Card), it can be implemented as a software too.

Network Provider

A Network Provider or Mobile Network Operator is a provider of wireless communications services that owns or is able to supply and control all the elements necessary to deliver services to end-users, including radio spectrum allocation, wireless network infrastructure and other necessary components.

Network Repository

A Network Repository is an archive that maintains an update of all the networks (Mobile Country Codes/Mobile Network Codes – pairs) a network Operator has roaming agreements with.

Network Slicing

A Network Slicing is a type of virtual network architecture that transforms a network into a set of logical networks on top of a shared infrastructure. It provides an end-to-end secure virtual network encompassing not just networking but storage and computing functions too.

P

Price plan

A Price Plan is the rate to apply for the usage of a service (voice, data, sms and events, eg: signalling, API calls).

Provisioning

Provisioning refers to the steps taken after commissioning on an individual thing level (mapping EID/ICCID to IMSI, change subscription in HLR).

R

Rating Plan

A Rating Plan describes the pricing model offered by a SIM card provider to determine the cost of data services used by the customers.

Roaming

Roaming is a term that refers to the ability of a mobile phone user to use his mobile phone for making or receiving voice calls, sending or receiving messages and data while travelling outside the coverage of his mobile service provider. The mobile phone uses the subscriber’s identity to access the network in the visited country.

Roaming Partner

A Roaming Partner is a grouping of multiple physical networks into one logical network.

Roaming Policy

A Roaming Policy is a whitelist of one or more networks that can be added on top of the roaming profile. Several policies can be applied per subscriber. The policy overrides the profile.

S

Service Profile

A Service Profile describes an allowed combination of service settings (service on/off) per interface provider (e.g. Data On/Off, SMS-MO On/Off, SMS-MT On/Off, …)

SIM

Subscriber Identity Module

A SIM is an integrated circuit which stores an international mobile subscriber identity number (IMSI) and other data related to a subscriber.

Smart City

A Smart City is a urban area that uses different types of electronic Internet of Things (IoT) sensors to collect data, analyse it and then use insights gained to increase operational efficiency across the city by optimizing the city functions, driving economic growth and improving quality of life for its citizens.

Smart Factory

The Smart Factory is defined as a factory where physical production processes and operations are combined with smart digital technology, smart computing and big data to improve efficiency through automation and self-optimization.

Smart Farming

Smart Farming is the concept of managing the agricultural industry with modern technology infrastructures to increase the productivity of agricultural products in quantity and quality and in an efficient way.

Smart Grid

A Smart Grid is a modern power generation and distribution infrastructure which can automate and manage the increasing complexity and needs of electricity in the 21st century. It aims to support and integrate renewable energy sources like solar, hydro and wind. Empower consumers with real-time information about their energy consumption and assist utility companies to reduce costs and outages.

Smart Manufacturing

Smart Manufacturing refers to the use of modern real-time technology with Internet connected devices and machinery in the manufacturing line, to automate processes that increase the production and the efficiency in the production of goods which are to be sold.

Smart Meter

A Smart Meter is an electronic device that remotely records real consumption of energy, gas, water and other utility services. Smart Meters typically record data near real-time and report in short intervals throughout the day.

Static Pool

A Static Pool allows you to insert as many SIM Cards as you want which use the data volume of the pool together.

Z

Zone

A Zone is a list of networks (=Network Groups) combined by political/geographical criteria (countries, regions, etc.).

Zone Model

A Zone Model is a specific combination of Zones meeting the requirement that each Network appears only once in a Zone.

Zone Price Plan

A Zone Price Plan is a price plan based on a zone model.

Interested in another simHERO model?

Choose your simHERO

Just as there are many paths to reach your destination, simHERO presents two distinct business models accompanied by our tailored IoT connectivity, designed to meet your specific business needs.

Customers appreciate that they can easily manage their plans, add more credit if needed just by using the simHERO online platform. The big benefit is that they do not need to look for guidance anywhere else, all is very clear in the platform and easy to use. simHERO integrates instructive video tutorials, and FAQ to assist end-users when using the tool. Additionally contacting simHERO support service is very easy in case any questions appear.

For us it is a simple as less support needed > less stress > happy customer

Imane Bakhi - Tracker.fi

simHERO has been a great partner for a “technologically challenged” company like ours who is trying to offer unique connection solutions to an extremely complex, cellular network and devices trying to pass data through it.

Stan Love - Western Recreations Industries Inc.

IoT Use Case

Honey Bees and cellular SIM card technology, how are they connected

This article will highlight how remote sensing technology has become a vital component in the healthy production of bee colonies and honey production while using

IoT Use Case

Cellular Connectivity in Security Cameras

In this blog post, we will discuss why Cellular Security Cameras are currently becoming more and more popular, and we will also show why

simHERO Partner

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The mobile positioning system for hunting & sport dogs In our new series, we will introduce our simHERO partners, their products, and how the IoT

Worldwide network Partners

simHERO strives for excellence and quality. This is why we aim to partner up with the most established mobile networks on the Globe and continuously expand our partnerships to improve your IoT connectivity wherever you need it.