Writing Beacon Apps with Magic xpa

Beacon apps may be created for any number of reasons: streamlining access to physical devices and records; tracking things; tracking people; routing and navigation; and improved interaction with the Internet of Things (IoT). When creating mobile beacon apps with Magic xpa, the Magic developer can bring a number of benefits to an organization.

Beacons Make It Easier and More Secure to Access Things

Most of us are familiar with the manner in which Bluetooth technology can be leveraged to let you unlock your car without a key. Likewise, beacons can streamline access to everything from physical spaces to electronic records. A mobile app using beacons could eliminate extras like key cards and make proprietary systems and fobs unnecessary, saving the company and its employees time and money. Many of these business processes, are ideally suited to mobile apps running on Magic xpa. The mobile RIA interface in Magic xpa is more easily extensible across multiple devices meaning you only have to develop once for support of many different physical devices, operating systems and screen sizes.

Beacons Make It Easier to Keep Track of Things

Where’s my stuff? is a common question in business. What if you always knew where every piece of equipment was located without annoying codes to determine inventory? Beacons can be used to track valuable property for improved asset management. Magic mobile apps can be updated by the use of beacon technology and servers can also track locations of mobile app users based on beacon proximity. Mobile apps can also be used to locate, check-out and check-in assets. With Magic xpa’s automated database discovery, building tracking apps using beacons is greatly simplified.

In fact, with beacons, employees will spend less time tracking down the stuff they need to do their jobs. Location tracking apps are convenient for things like computers, but life-saving in places like hospitals where assets can not only be located but controlled remotely. It also enables companies to learn how assets are being used in order to plan more effectively, optimizing equipment purchasing, rental, utilization and attrition. Because Magic xpa can read in those pre-existing tables, building the app is fairly straightforward.

Beacons Make It Easier to Keep Track of People

Beacon apps can interact with customers and employees based on proximity to beacons. These beacons may also be mobile. For example, wheelchairs in an airport can be equipped with beacons. A mobile app can track not only where they are but also where the skycaps are. Based on where the skycaps and wheelchairs travel during the day, usage costs can be allocated to various airlines based on their actual use of pooled assets and people. Similarly, beacons enable employees to be aware of each other’s location. In a fire or disaster situation at a chemical factory, knowing which employees are near which beacon can literally become a matter of life and death. Of course, these would not be the first Magic xpa mobile apps that deal with location. Boston Medical Center uses Magic mobile apps all across its diverse campus comprised of dozens of buildings.

Beacons Make It Easier to Navigate

Navigation within a confined building environment such as an airport, library or hospital can be tricky. Wifi and cell dead zones run throughout. Bluetooth beacons can aid navigation in these tight spots. In-mall package delivery. Let’s say you’ve ordered a pair of glasses at your local Lens Crafters type store. Rather than wait for your glasses, you’d prefer to continue shopping in the mall. A valet app could be created that is able to send the valet right to your beacon location and deliver your new pair of glasses while you shop and without your having to return to the store. The app can then capture your signature as proof-of-delivery and store that information in the server for access in enterprise applications and databases.

Beacons Make it Easier to Control Your Environment

Beacons can help businesses become more efficient and secure, protecting and enabling employees, customers and assets without an army of manual resources. Beacons can help reduce heating and lighting usage when no one is present, place equipment in low power modes when mobile app users are not near the beacon, trigger online meeting programs when the key executive enters a meeting room, and activate and focus surveillance cameras when certain movements occur.

So How Do You Build Beacon Apps with Magic xpa? Magic xpi Integration Platform for JD Edwards and Magic xpa Application Platform offer mobile app development and integration capabilities needed for building and integrating beacon apps. While few companies have experience with beacon app integration using Magic xpa, all of the technical components are in place and it is basically just a matter of finding the business vision and use case that exploits these powerful capabilities.