People counting with Aruba Central
Your Aruba Central cloud already manages the access points. Bumbee Labs makes them count footfall too. Adding footfall is a configuration step, with no installation project.
No new hardware. Your Aruba Central network doubles as a footfall sensor grid.
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Why Aruba Central + Bumbee Labs
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No new hardware
Runs on the Aruba Central cloud-managed access points you already have.
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Privacy-first
Anonymisation and aggregation are built in. The measurement is GDPR-approved and nobody is identified.
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One platform
Visitor counts, dwell times and movement reach you through dashboards and the API.
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Sustainable measurement
The connection runs on cloud data, so no new access points are made, shipped or thrown away.
Getting started on Aruba Central
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Connect to your Central-managed network
Aruba Central manages your access points from the cloud, so Bumbee Labs reads from your Central-managed network. Connecting is a data exercise with nothing to install.
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Filter & anonymise
The signals are filtered for noise, then anonymised and aggregated. Personal data is irrevocably deleted, leaving only statistics.
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Process & calibrate
What remains becomes visitor counts, dwell times, zone correlations and movement flows, calibrated to your venue.
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Deliver
Clean, anonymous metrics arrive in real time through your dashboards and the API, ready for your BI tools.
What you measure with Aruba Central
Wi-Fi is Bumbee Labs' whole-space method, strongest at covering entire venues and the journeys across them. Typical metrics from an Aruba Central network:
- Visitor count (total) and unique visitors
- Dwell time, per zone and overall
- Visitor paths & flows between zones and between sites
- Zone data & correlation
- Passers-by and capture rate (passing → entering)
- Peaks & lows and long-run trends
For exact line-crossing in/out and live occupancy at a specific door, pair Aruba Central with cameras or 3D sensors. See the full method-by-method grid.
Footfall analytics and occupancy monitoring on Aruba Central
Aruba Central (now part of HPE Aruba Networking Central) manages your access points from the cloud, so adding footfall measurement is a data exercise and nothing has to be installed. Bumbee Labs reads from your Central-managed network, anonymises and aggregates the signals, and serves visitor counts, dwell times and movement patterns in real time via dashboards and APIs.
What you need to start: an Aruba Central environment and permission to connect Bumbee Labs to it. You need no new hardware and no site visit, and your network runs as before.
Visitor counting and real-time occupancy monitoring both run on the same infrastructure, so the cloud you already manage also gives you a commercial view of where people go and where they do or don’t dwell.
Running on-prem instead? See people counting with ArubaOS & ALE, or read how Wi-Fi people counting works in practice.
Curious what this looks like for your venue?
Aruba Central vs other counting methods
Wi-Fi covers whole spaces and the journeys across them. Pair it with cameras or cellular where you need point precision or wide-area catchment.
| Capability | Aruba Central (Wi-Fi) | Camera & 3D | Cellular |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whole-space coverage | Yes | Partial | Yes |
| Exact in/out at a door | Partial | Yes | No |
| Real-time occupancy | Partial | Yes | No |
| Paths & flows between zones | Yes | Partial | Partial |
| Dwell time | Yes | Yes | Partial |
| Catchment / origin | No | No | Yes |
| Uses your existing hardware | Yes | No | Yes |
| Built-in privacy protection | Yes | Yes | Yes |
- Full
- Partial
- Not available
Approved and validated
Aruba Central pairs with the only footfall method in Europe approved by a data protection authority. The method is also validated by academia, partners and customers.
At Ray our motto is customer success, and we are excited about our partnership with Bumbee Labs. Complimenting the seamless Wireless provided by Ray, our customers will now be able to leverage the deep analytics provided by Bumbee Labs and take informed business decisions to aid their growth.
Frequently asked questions
Do we need to install new hardware?
No. Bumbee Labs runs on the Aruba Central cloud-managed access points you already have, so there is nothing to mount or cable.
How does Bumbee Labs connect to Aruba Central?
Aruba Central manages your access points from the cloud, so Bumbee Labs reads from your Central-managed network. Adding footfall measurement is a data exercise and needs no installation project.
What's the difference from ArubaOS / ALE?
Aruba Central is the cloud-managed route. ArubaOS / ALE is the on-prem route, reading location data from the Aruba Location Engine. Both feed the same Bumbee Labs platform; the right route depends on how your Aruba network is managed.
Does this use Aruba Central's Presence Analytics?
Bumbee Labs works from the data your Aruba Central-managed network already produces and adds its own GDPR-approved footfall analytics layer on top, so you don't need Aruba Central's Presence Analytics to get visitor counts, dwell and flows. If you already use Presence Analytics, book a demo and we'll confirm the right route for your setup.
Does it identify individual visitors?
No. Signals are anonymised and aggregated, and personal data is irrevocably deleted, so only anonymous statistics remain. No individual can be identified.
Is it GDPR-compliant?
Yes. Personal data is deleted at source, leaving only aggregated statistics, and the underlying method was reviewed and approved by a European data protection authority.