Smart Village.
Digital transformation in a small village.
In Martinfeld in the Eichsfeld region, SMARTinfeld shows how sensors, open data and local collaboration can be used in village life. Anyone looking to solve a similar task can explore the applications, check measurements and compare the requirements with those of their own community.
Discover applications in the village →An award for digital ideas in rural communities.
In 2023, SMARTinfeld won an award in the “Smarte Kommune” (Smart Municipality) category of the “Digitale Orte” competition. The “Deutschland – Land der Ideen” initiative presents the project as an example of how IoT applications can support village life.
The award reinforces our approach: even small villages can shape and test digital applications together.
Official award winner profile ↗What is a Smart Village?
A Smart Village uses digital tools to solve specific everyday tasks in rural areas. This includes understandable information for residents as well as measurements for municipal buildings, water or traffic. The key questions are who needs the data and who will operate the application in the long term.
Which applications does SMARTinfeld demonstrate?
- Energy and photovoltaics: put generation and consumption into context; view available measurements with their timestamps.
- Water and the environment: understand local measurements and their limitations.
- Traffic monitoring: view the published camera and radar counts.
- Road surface temperature: understand how hot a road surface can become.
- Lighting: learn about the local use case and its context.
- Information for daily life: quickly find the bread schedule, bus departures, village services and waste collection dates.
What does a small village need to get started?
A specific task, a suitable site, a responsible person and a manageable pilot. Before the first sensor, clarify radio coverage, power supply, data access, maintenance and ongoing costs. LoRaWAN can be suitable for small volumes of regularly transmitted measurement data; suitability must be checked at the site.
Steps, roles and review questions for municipalities →What can be applied elsewhere – and what is not yet proven?
The approach and operational questions can be applied elsewhere. An application is not cost-effective simply because it works technically. We do not quote general savings rates or investment costs without verified comparative data. The project pages distinguish observations, measurements and open questions.
How current are the data?
Measurements show the timestamp of their source. Timetable times are not live delay information; a local water-level reading does not replace an official warning. Technical and spatial limitations must be considered when interpreting the data.
Check public measurements →