Securing critical infrastructure

Modern societies rely on the uninterrupted and predictable flow of energy, water, and transportation. Yet, when their critical infrastructure is disrupted, the consequences can be severe. The restoration of services can take days or even weeks, compromising industries and civilian life, particularly if, for example, a hospital is affected.

For this reason, physical attacks on critical infrastructure such as railroads, gas and water pipelines, and power cables are an ongoing concern. One of the most recent examples occurred in Grünheide, Germany. The target was Tesla’s power supply near Berlin, where perpetrators set fire to a power pole. Although German legislators have implemented defense mechanisms like the KRITIS umbrella law to protect the country’s infrastructure from sabotage and attackers, more needs to be done in practice.   

MoxyByte, a company operating mainly in Germany and Austria, was founded to protect critical infrastructure (fiber optic cables, freshwater supply lines, and gas pipelines) using IoT and cloud computing. They also provide expertise in innovative AI algorithms (its founders won the AI-CUP, a Bavarian-French initiative to support AI entrepreneurs). 

Since the beginning, the founders’ ideas won government funding and national and regional competitions for projects of excellence. They also caught the attention of large gas and energy network operators, security and fiber optic companies, among others, who eventually became their customers. Some of these customers are part of the consortium of Germany’s largest gas network operators.  

Access to critical infrastructure primarily occurs through hatches and cabinets – hatch openings are flush with the ground, whereas cabinets stand above ground. MoxyByte has devised a solution to secure the hatches.

The MoxyByte Secure Ultra Low Power IoT device (SULPI) provides connectivity to the cloud through sensors placed in the access hatch (such as a magnet on the cover). It integrates with operation control centers, triggering an alarm in response to unusual activity. Additional mechanisms can be implemented for efficiency and security, including intelligent data analysis and a controller with secure boot and execution-only memory.

Let’s examine their initial challenges and how u-blox’s modules helped overcome them.

Challenge #1: weather conditions, location, and tests

Most hatches are exposed to the environment and scattered throughout thousands of kilometers of infrastructure. To detect, record, and report every breach to these hatches and the infrastructure beneath them, SULPI must be resilient to a combination of factors. These include adverse weather conditions, isolated indoor and outdoor locations, and external events that could disrupt it.

• Weather conditions. In a country like Germany, weather conditions vary greatly. SULPI must then be reliable in temperatures ranging from -20 to 40 °C. Rain is also a factor that needs consideration, as it interferes with signal transmission. Additionally, SULPI must perform reliably even underwater during flooding.
• Indoor and outdoor locations. SULPI is placed inside the hatch, below the ground, surrounded by thick concrete and a metal layer measuring 20 to 30 cm. Signal reception then becomes one of the main challenges. Given the extensive network of pipelines across the country, these hatches are often located in very remote and difficult-to-access areas, resulting in low signal reception.

• Tests. Pipeline operators select a good mix of locations to test SULPI and determine how signals are affected, from rural to urban environments. Examples include areas where a tractor frequently drives over the access hatch, even parking on it, or urban locations such as at the front of a church.

Challenge #2: AT commands, integration manuals, and standards

Since MoxyByte combined a software stack with another library, a major challenge was to align the following elements to achieve the ideal solution:  

• AT commands to control modems.
• Integration manuals to facilitate the incorporation of specific devices (or parts) into larger systems or applications.
• Communication standards to define protocols, formats, and guidelines for exchanging data between devices, including systems. During the design phase, the company tested different communication standards.
• Maximum data transfer or baud rates for communication protocols to maximize speed.
• Lowest power consumption while SULPI is in “sleep” mode.

Challenge #3: footprint

MoxyByte required testing different cellular modules (including sizes) that would enable flexible design stacks and PIN compatibility. Compatibility and modularity were essential requirements. Thus, experimenting with different modules of the same reduced footprint during the design phase was crucial.  

Challenge #4: battery consumption

MoxyByte strives to provide its customers with a low-maintenance solution, as replacing batteries every year is inconvenient and unaffordable. The minimum requirement they demand is at least five years of battery life, which has been the company’s primary goal. Still, Moxybyte has always aimed for ten years.

The challenge MoxyByte faced was power consumption. The nature of the required hardware didn't allow for many adjustments to keep power consumption as low as possible and thus meet the requirements mentioned above.

SULPI meets u-blox

The skeleton structure SULPI is built upon foundational blocks that perform essential functions such as configuration, secure communication, tamper detection, and secure updates.

In addition to these functions, this architecture also facilitates application-level communication with different clouds, including Microsoft Azure, AWS, Google, or even on-premises clouds. By integrating other AI algorithms, SULPI can predict battery consumption, for example. From a hardware perspective, it’s also possible to mount different sensors and choose an adapter or PCP to fit more sensors on the board.

For SULPI to operate smoothly, it needs a cellular module to transmit all the information to the cloud.

Benedict Schwind, MoxyByte’s CEO, first encountered u-blox’s cellular modules in 2020 when he became familiar with the SARA-R5 series at university. The initial approach involved testing with standard development kits.

Pleased with their quality, performance, and reliability, he found u-blox’s modules highly affordable, with excellent service and assistance from u-blox technicians. He then decided to integrate them into SULPI. Later, MoxyByte also found u-blox's modules attractive for their small footprint, variety, adaptability, and ease of use.

Another benefit related to the modules' geographical production is worth mentioning. The modules are designed in Switzerland and manufactured in Austria (the SARA-R5 series). This intrinsic characteristic, specifically requested by their customers, is a major advantage for MoxyByte. Now that the market is shifting from predominantly Chinese to European equipment, u-blox’s modules have proven to be an excellent ally for MoxyByte.

Outcome #1:

Supported by the u-blox SARA-R510S, SARA-R510M8S, and SARA-R540S modules, MoxyByte has overcome the challenges posed by weather conditions, locations, and external factors. As we speak, MoxyByte has deployed a network of devices to detect unusual activity across Germany's critical infrastructure.   

An example of SULPI’s resilience occurred this year. In the first few weeks of 2024, temperatures in Germany ranged from -20 to 0 °C, with significant snow on the roads. Even under these extreme conditions, the data showed full reception levels.  

Outcome #2:

MoxyByte also found ubxlib extremely useful. This host C library from u-blox functions as a driver library. MoxyByte ported it to various RTOS and microcontrollers, using it as their cellular module driver. The challenge was integrating it with a different stack the library didn’t support. This involved writing and porting files to ensure compatibility and functionality. With ubxlib, MoxyByte maximized the timing rates specified in the AT commands manual, avoiding the need to develop an AT driver.  

Although the process posed challenges, the effort paid off, and the system now operates smoothly. With ubxlib, what could have taken MoxyByte three months of development time was completed in less than three weeks.

Another benefit that MoxyByte is reaping is that u-blox’s modules, such as SARA-R55040S, support the new 450 MHz band.

Yet another benefit is the security offered by u-blox’s modules through over-the-air updates and automatic provisioning.

Outcome #3: 

The pin-to-pin compatibility offered by u-blox’s modules has been one of the main advantages for MoxyByte, especially during design tests like battery consumption, where modules could easily be swapped to obtain different outcomes.

“We sought compatibility and modularity in the modules as we employed free design stacks requiring PIN compatibility.” – Benedict Schwind, CEO at MoxyByte.

Outcome #4: 

To overcome the battery lifetime problem, the trick is to minimize power draw when the solution is not in use. By putting it in idle mode, SULPI can consume almost no battery for days, weeks, or even months.

u-blox’s modules have been extremely helpful in achieving the company's objectives, as they adapt to this sleep mode and reduce power consumption to a minimum when needed most.

Moving forward

MoxyByte’s future looks promising as its critical infrastructure application can be adapted to other environments and meet different objectives. So far, two potential customers have approached them, both requiring enhanced positioning accuracy: one for tracking boats in regatta races and another for monitoring luxury vehicles.

Similarly, other customers have asked for dual-application solutions, such as detecting gas leaks (with sensors that verify perfect fittings, maintain required pressure, and detect leaks) or monitoring water levels (with sensors for detection).

If you want to learn more about u-blox’s modules, check out our website. Also, if you are interested in MoxyByte’s SULPI, click here.