French IoT firm Actility has acquired API-K, a technology start-up founded in Grenoble specialising in outdoor geo-security.

Prior to this acquisition, API-K and Actility subsidiary Abeeway had already been collaborating for years on the design of equipment and low-power LoRaWans for ski resorts.

API-K has developed search-and-rescue technology that increases the effective search radius by two orders of magnitude compared with existing technologies. Air rescue teams can detect the signal from API-K’s PLB personal location beacon up to 10km away. Unlike existing systems that rely on expensive and hard-to-integrate equipment, the API-K geo-location detector is lightweight, portable and weighs less than 100g. It can be carried in any type of aircraft or drone without complex integration.

This technology reduces recovery time: if the person being searched for is within the search radius around their last known position, a helicopter will be able to fly over them within minutes, even if they are buried under snow. API-K detectors are already deployed with French air rescue teams, making recovery possible anywhere in France for users of the API-K PLB.

“The personal locator beacon allows for very effective detection and location, even outside any telecom network coverage,” said Olivier Favre from the High-Mountain Gendarmerie Platoon (PGHM). “Anyone equipped with an API-K/Abeeway PLB in France can now be found by the PGHM following a call from a relative to 112.”

In the future, API-K will be integrated into Abeeway and will expand the group’s portfolio of patents and location technologies. Actility, Abeeway and the API-K team aim to integrate API-K’s PLB technology into outdoor brands’ products through licensing and to equip more rescue organisations and emergency response teams with the detection system.

Beyond the mountain world, Actility and Abeeway (www.abeeway.com) also intend to expand the application of the technology to securing natural parks, maritime rescue and recovering stolen assets.

“The safety of people is, of course, a primary concern, and every minute is precious when it comes to locating and rescuing a missing person,” said Olivier Hersent, CEO of Actility (www.actility.com). “In this context, API-K’s very long-range personal locator beacon technology already enables air rescue units to locate beacon carriers even when the last known position is only within a 10km radius. We will work to make API-K technology the new standard for outdoor geo-security, but also more generally for aerial and terrestrial search and rescue.”

Nicolas Sornin and François Sforza, co-founders of API-K (api-k.com) and two of the inventors of the LoRa protocol, added: “We have worked tirelessly to extend IoT networks across entire countries and even into space. Despite this, emergencies can occur when the network is not available. With API-K’s peer-to-peer location technology, rescue teams no longer need to spend hours in the sky searching for a tiny point on the ground. The long-range LoRa signal becomes a life-saving technology, and it is one of our most meaningful achievements. We are delighted that our long-time partner Actility wants to further develop this technology.”