What is IoT? Properties, models, advantages, example, architecture, management challenges (2023)

What is IoT?

IoT stands for "Internet of Things" and refers to the network of physical devices, vehicles, household appliances, and other objects that have embedded electronics, software, sensors, and connectivity that allow these objects to connect and exchange data. The IoT enables the collection and transmission of data from devices over the Internet, creating intelligent and connected systems.

The term "Internet of Things (IoT)" was coined by Ashton in 1999. In recent years it has become a growing technological trend.

In both academia and industry, we can see significant use of the IoT over the past decade. From the perspective of the industrial revolution, IoT is referred to as Industry 4.0 as it encompasses the Internet of Things, cloud computing and cyber-physical systems. IoT presents a world where all smart things are connected and able to communicate with each other.

IoT can be very useful, improving and promoting the lives of people around the world. People will be able to monitor their vital signs, eating habits and habits so they can live healthier lives. They will be safer as they can secure their homes remotely.

Businesses will benefit tremendously from implementing IoT-based solutions. They can make their business strategies more effective and their products smarter.

IoT is considered the next evolution of the internet because of its ability to collect and analyze data. We can derive insights from the data that help us make important decisions that can even save someone's business or life. IoT can make almost every process easier, safer and more useful.

We can see the roots of IoT at MIT's Auto-ID Center. In 1999 a research group was founded to work on RFID.

Let's look at the basic architecture of an IoT system. It consists of some intelligent devices, an embedded system, e.g. B. a microcontroller with network connectivity, and some gateway/local area networks, all connected to the internet.

Properties of IoT data

The data we look at under IoT should have certain properties. These can be denoted as follows:

• accuracy: By accuracy, we mean that the data collected accurately reflects its source of generation.
• consistency: By consistency, we mean that the data captured is consistent with the context in which it was generated by each device. For example, if we report multiple events tagged with specific information such as geolocation, then we consistently expect those geolocations to be the same or roughly close.
• completeness: By completeness we mean that all data generated or generated is recorded. No data should be missing. By timeliness, we mean that the data we collect is collected within the specified time frame. If there is an unforeseen delay in collection, the data can become meaningless.
• timeliness: By timeliness, we mean that the data we collect is collected within the specified time frame. If there is an unforeseen delay in collection, the data can become meaningless.

Communication models for IoT

There are different approaches to connection and communication for IoT. These are not standardized. Choosing a particular approach is problem and domain dependent. The different models for IoT can be listed as follows:

From device to device

In device-to-device communication, two or more devices are connected and able to communicate with each other. Communication can take place over any type of network. In most cases we use the protocols like Bluetooth, Z-Wave, ZigBee, etc.

Applications like home automation, wearable IoT, etc. often use this type of model. The amount of information that needs to be sent in such applications is very small. Examples can be temperature data, room brightness data, etc.

With this model, security is simplified due to short communication range and mostly one-to-one device interaction. This model is also popular in wearable IoT devices. For example, we can pair a heart rate monitor with a smartwatch. Several standards are being developed around the device-to-device IoT model.

Here we can specifically mention one of the several standards for data communication, Bluetooth Low Energy. It is popular in wearable and wearable devices. It has characteristics such as low power consumption, which means devices can run for months without changing batteries. The size and cost of the device could also be further reduced due to its reduced complexity.

device-to-cloud

With the device-to-cloud model, an IoT device is connected directly to the cloud. The data is sent from the device to the cloud and most of the data processing is done in the cloud. The result of the processing/view can be shared with the data subject/device from the cloud. Most often, this model uses wired Ethernet or Wi-Fi. Cellular technology can also be used for communication.

This model offers remote access to services and on-the-air software updates. From a security perspective, this model is more complex than the device-to-device model. This is due to the involvement of the following two credentials:

• Credentials for network access
• Credentials for cloud access

Device-to-Gateway

In this model, an intermediary device is used as a gateway to connect the IoT devices to the cloud. An intermediary device can be a hub or a smartphone. Through this gateway we can provide security and other features. For example, if we have a smartphone as a gateway, we can have an app on a smartphone that pairs with the IoT device and communicates with the cloud.

In the other scenario, multiple devices can connect to a gateway. This gateway can act as a data aggregator.

It can then send that data locally to different devices/controllers or send that data to the cloud. It is common to have devices with different communication standards. A gateway can bridge the interoperability gap between devices. This is another benefit of a gateway.

Backend data sharing

This model can be viewed as an extension between the device and a cloud model. Authorized third parties can access the sensor data and the IoT devices here. With the backend data sharing model, we can export and analyze smart object data from a cloud in addition to data from other sources.

We may also send this data to other services for aggregation and further analysis.

Choosing a specific IoT model depends on the application and domain scope. There is therefore no clear IoT deployment model. This makes the work of IoT developers quite complicated. This is because they have to make decisions about device connectivity and the integration of different devices, whether to aggregate the data or send it directly to the cloud.

It's not just a matter of convenience of implementation. We need to consider various factors such as limitations of different wireless technologies, security, small size considerations, low power consumption, cost reduction, etc.

Technologie-Roadmap des IoT

In 1991, the World Wide Web, popularly known as www, was launched. This made the internet more popular. It also stimulated the rapid growth of the internet in all fields. Then, in the early 2000s, various mobile devices were connected to the internet. So it formed the mobile internet. In the mid-2000s, people were connecting across the internet through the use of social networking sites.

In the early 2010s, people began to connect more and more to such devices, and the era of IoT—the next big thing in the technology landscape—was born. Figure 1.7 shows the technology roadmap of IoT1960, the computer network enabled communication between the two computers. By the late 1980s, internet use was widespread. This was made possible by the introduction of TCP/IP in the early 1980s.

Benefits and example of IoT

The advantages of implementing IoT can be listed as follows:

• task automation
  
• process optimization
  
• behavior tracking
  
• Optimized resource consumption
  
• Satisfied calculation
  
• intelligent service
  
• cost cutting
  
• More accurate and faster data collection

Some examples of the potential benefits that can be leveraged from the IoT can be explained below:

inventory management

In any industry, inventory management is one of the most important and important tasks. This is where IoT can be used to track inventory. Accordingly, stocks can be maintained in advance, orders placed automatically, and some unforeseen stoppages due to insufficient stocks can be warned. It increases overall efficiency in managing inventory.

supply chain

In the supply chain it is always desirable and in some cases almost essential to track the location or movement of the vehicle/goods. Tracking the shipment allows us to know the exact status of the shipment to be delivered. In the past, location was carried out using GPS.

Now, the use of IOT not only makes tracking things easier, but also simplifies the whole process through the use of sensors. All of this happens in real time. It simplifies the entire operation and monitoring process.

advertisements

It can be used to send mobile promotions to potential customers. For this purpose, the previous purchasing habits/interests of the customer are analyzed and offers are automatically made accordingly.

Identifying potential customers

IOT can be used to find potential customers by tracking their online presence. By observing their social media usage, likes, comments and clicks, a better understanding of their interests and possible purchases/spends can be gained. It turns out to be a very useful analysis to identify the most important customers and their preferences. It really justifies the right use of the already limited marketing budget.

Advanced Services

Companies can improve their service offerings by using IoT. It allows them to track product performance.

By observing the product usage pattern, they can predict the possible failure/maintenance needs before they become a problem. Accordingly, they can inform their customers in a timely manner, which in turn increases customer satisfaction. The companies can also offer some good product replacement/upgrade deals.

Another benefit we can get is product tracking in case of loss/theft. All of this helps in building a loyal relationship with customers. These are just some of the benefits that IoT offers. It's just as important that we start in the right places to make better use of this technology, so it works best for all of us without harming the environment.

The availability of daily operational data combined with analytics can provide a huge competitive advantage. This certainly allows companies to incorporate new functionalities, features and capabilities throughout the product cycle.

Organizations can analyze the data they receive from the connected products, operating environment and enterprise assets and use these insights to innovate, open new ways of service, reduce costs, save time and improve quality.

Impact of the IoT on business

The impact of the IoT on businesses worldwide is enormous. Those companies that implement IoT-based solutions reap some significant benefits, including increased efficiency, better product control, improved operations and services, cost reduction, etc. IoT makes any device capable of communicating with other devices, directly or over the Internet. In the near future, this will drastically change business processes.

Therefore, it becomes imperative for companies to think about IoT very seriously. In almost all businesses we can have assets that can be tracked. By implementing IoT for this purpose, companies can improve efficiency, make better use of the information gained from the connected assets, improve business operations, etc. All of these help a company to increase the satisfaction of its valuable users/customers.

All companies in general and industrial companies in particular lose money when equipment/machines break down. With the new data collected by sensors, IoT can help a company save money by avoiding or minimizing device/machine failures.

This can be achieved by planning and performing much-needed maintenance just-in-time. As the saying goes, "One stitch in time saves nine". For example, sensor data recording anomalies in equipment vibration can be used to predict and prevent equipment failures.

Let's discuss some of the areas of business where the IoT will have a large and more relevant, direct impact:

Minimal downtime

As more devices become IoT-enabled, organizations can now perform timely predictive maintenance.

As machines interact with each other, the system can predict any likely error/failure and inform/warn the affected department/person and avoid major downtime. By continuously analyzing machine operation and performance, companies can avoid or minimize downtime.

Targeted Marketing

Marketing has always been an integral and very important part of any business. Unless you do proper marketing, the chances of selling your product/service are slim. But it is also a fact that the budget for marketing is also limited. So it has to be spent very carefully for it to lead to sales. But the question remains, how to decide where to invest the marketing budget? This is where the IoT comes to your rescue. IoT-based solutions help you identify target customers.

Improved business intelligence

IoT makes it much simpler and easier to collect and extract relevant information from the data. This helps the businesses to investigate and gain insights needed to improve the businesses. With the adoption of IoT-based solutions, the company can create a data-driven infrastructure. It allows companies to get product feedback and performance ratings, track loyalty, observe customer behavior, etc. in real time.

New service-oriented approach

With the increasing adoption of IoT in enterprises, some of them are moving from product-based to service-oriented solutions. Instead of focusing on selling the product, they are now more focused on renting the product.

New business models such as freemiums, subscriptions, bundles, etc. are becoming more attractive in the business world, making their services more and more flexible and scalable. All of this offers companies a wide range of opportunities to generate revenue.

Improved customer experience

Today's customers are more connected and more demanding. Therefore, it becomes a priority for companies to meet their expectations from the right perspective and also on time. As a result, businesses are now using the IoT to access consumer data in real-time and listen to their complaints, instantly meet their needs, fix their issues, and provide them with an enhanced personalized experience.

Creation of new requirements

IoT is poised to create new business opportunities. In the IoT era, new business models are emerging due to the new demand and availability of products and enhanced services compatible with the changing business landscape.

The demand for improved services on top of regular products, effective supply chain management, real-time access to product and customer data and the resulting intelligent operations will provide impetus for the emergence of new businesses and the diversification of existing businesses.

With the adoption of IoT in enterprises, the benefits are not only realized from a financial point of view, but also from an operational and strategic point of view.

IoT is not a simple landscape. It's complicated. There are numerous categories and many vendors/suppliers in each category. The four main categories of an IoT solution landscape are as follows:

• The sensor that is often found in devices
  
• Machine-to-Machine (M2M) device management platform
  
• solution delivery platform
  
• Apps that enable IoT devices to report or act on the collected data

While there are many vendors and solution providers, no single vendor can offer a one-stop solution. You need to build a strong ecosystem of partnerships. If a company wants to start their IoT journey, they should build a cross-functional team. The team should consist of IT and business managers evaluating strategic partnerships.

It should also take into account various factors such as vendor financial standing, expertise, partnership ecosystem, breadth and breadth of offerings, etc. To understand the true potential and value of IoT, companies need to understand that IoT is not the same for everyone.

It depends on the context, the product, services, and the business problems you want to address.

As more and more devices are connected, we can see exponential growth in IoT. According to Robert Metcalfe, founder of 3.com, network value increases proportionally to the square of the number of network users. The value becomes incredible as more devices and people connect.

Companies can now meet their challenges effectively by bringing processes, people and products together. You can now offer exceptional services to both end users and partners. We can therefore conclude that today the IoT has become more widespread and useful and the need of the hour is to integrate the IoT in all areas.

Examples of IoT

Logistics management with IoT

Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags are widely used to tag and quickly identify assets. These tags are inexpensive and can use a radio signal to reveal information embedded within them. In a factory environment they are very useful for tracking material. When goods are brought into a factory, for example on a truck, RFID tags are read for each item in the shipment and also for the pallet or box they are brought on. The systems at the gate can record the time, date and the exact amount of input material.

Inside the factory, machine readers identify where each item or group of items needs to be stored and transmit this to devices on forklifts. Human operators, in conjunction with machine controls, can then move the items to their storage areas or bins. The RFID information is used in conjunction with current inventory status information to determine both the precise location of the new inventory and the route the forklift must move and deposit the material.

The factory systems are updated with the new input material information. When material is consumed, their RFID tags are removed and material balances updated. RFID tags are also used on finished goods, which are scanned as they leave the factory premises and the exact time and amount of movement are recorded by the systems. If the papers need to be carried with the packaged goods, they can be scanned by human operators using virtual reality (VR) glasses. The scanned documents are stored digitally together with information about the shipment.

Healthcare with IoT

Modern health devices include bracelets and health bands that measure body parameters such as heart rate, blood pressure, and blood oxygen levels. These parameters are transmitted to smartphones via Bluetooth wireless protocol, which forward them to control applications. Hospitals use such devices to constantly monitor patients with chronic diseases.

The Giraff project in Sweden is another example of the use of IoT in healthcare. Giraffe is a telepresence robot used in homes where people need 24/7 monitoring and care. The robot is equipped with a screen and cameras, and the entire assembly is mounted on wheels.

The robot can be remotely controlled by an operator to move it around the patient's home. Its cameras provide a feed on the patient's activity and allow the patient to speak to an operator or nurse via a teleconferencing facility such as Skype if necessary.

The operator or nurse can move the cameras and review the patient's surroundings, zoom in on details, provide voice feedback and have the robot reverse to a position from which it can monitor the site and charge via an electrical connection. The sensors on this device are the cameras and microphones that transmit information about the patient over the Internet.

Challenges in managing IoT solutions

The examples discussed above show that there are numerous ways to use IoT systems to deliver innovative services and products. There are also significant challenges in deploying IoT solutions. Some are discussed below:

Massive data flows

Huge amount of data

Once the data is generated by the sensors and sent to the central system, the problem of storing such large amounts of data arises. In previous systems, in the 1990s and 2000s, data coming from such sensors was sampled, some data stored and the rest discarded. However, with modern IoT systems, managers tend to store all data on cloud servers because they have access to advanced algorithms that can process all data and put it to good use.

data diversity

Sensors in industrial systems are made by different manufacturers from very different industry groups using a variety of standards and formats in which the data is generated. When data is collected in different formats and standards, the challenge is to process it coherently to make the analysis useful and relevant. The challenge for managers is to translate the many data protocols and standards into a useful format.

sensors and actuators

sensors

Sensors and actuators are key elements of the IoT. A sensor is a device that detects events or changes in its physical environment and provides an electronic output. Simple sensors capture the changes and report them as data. Smart sensors perform additional processing - they filter out duplicate data and send data when certain conditions are met.

Sensor technology has advanced rapidly and there are many types and variants of sensors available on the market. The choice of which sensor to use depends on its characteristics, some of which are as follows:

• Data filter:Whether the sensor can filter out redundant data to remove noise from the analysis. Sensors with such facilities are referred to as intelligent sensors.
• Power consumption:Sensors require a power source to function. Typically, the lower the power consumption, the more preferable they are.
• Size:Sensor sizes determine how and where they can be placed in devices. Many sensors are small enough to be used in a variety of devices.
• Sensitivity and Accuracy:Sensitivity and Accuracy – Sensors should be able to accurately and reliably detect changes in their environment. The sensitivity range of sensors limits and often determines the applications for which they can be used.

The actuator

Actuators are tools or mechanisms that can change their state or the state of other devices and machines. They are often motors that respond to electrical or data signals and change the state of something they are connected to. Actuators can also be mechanical or hydraulic devices and change their state depending on the physical signal received.

Actors can act locally, where they react autonomously to changes detected by nearby sensors, or they can react to changes commanded by the IoT system.

IoT architecture

Given the complexity of IoT systems, analysts and designers have proposed several architectures that provide a comprehensive view of the entire stack of devices and software that make up an IoT system. At a very basic level, the IoT is viewed as three layers - the perception layer below, the associated network layer, and the application layer above.

The perception layer consists of sensors and actuators, the things of the IoT that are placed in the physical world and perceive events and changes. Data from these sensors is routed through Internet-connected devices such as gateways to the network layer, which collects, stores, and distributes the data to designated sites. The application layer analyzes the data and provides control instructions that are sent back through the network layer to the perception layer devices.

The four layers are as follows:

device layer

This layer consists of the sensors and actuators, as well as the perception layer that generates data from the environment and surroundings. Some frameworks present a fifth, physical layer below this layer from which information is gathered.

network layer

The layer consists of gateways, routers, and switches that connect devices to the internet. This layer also includes wired and wireless connectivity devices based on protocols such as Bluetooth and Zigbee. These allow the sensing devices to connect and exchange data with other devices and software on the network. Specialized hardware is often deployed at this level to manage the speed, volume and intensity of the data generated by the sensors.

Management Services layer

This layer houses the software that manages the entire IoT system. The function of this layer is to monitor and control the IoT devices, ensure they are functioning, provision or remove their services when needed, and ensure they are responding properly within the network. This layer relies on the network layer to receive data from devices and provide data to them.

Application and business management layer

This layer analyzes data for high-level business applications and ensures that the system is functioning according to management priorities. For example, if the IoT is used for an industrial application such as warehouse logistics, the business rules for controlling the devices are defined at this level.

This information is used to measure, for example, whether there is an excess or shortage of inventory and how to deal with this situation. The data generated by the various devices is abstracted at this level to understand how the underlying operations work and to communicate any necessary changes.

The layered approach to managing IoT systems like the framework allows the layers to be managed independently. Changes and upgrades in a given layer, such as the device layer, only need to be propagated to the layer above, the network layer, while the upper layers can continue to function as before. On the other hand, changes at the top level of management need not be reflected in changes at any lower levels. This independence of layers allows designers to make changes and innovations to a given layer without disrupting the entire system.

Challenges of Cloud Computing and IoT

Cloud computing and IoT offer immense opportunities for innovation in products and services. However, they also pose challenges for managers. Some of these management challenges are highlighted below.

Security

Since its inception, cloud computing has always been questioned in terms of security. Those who adopted cloud services had doubts about the security of their organizational and personal data hosted on servers beyond their control. Cloud service providers have assured their customers of security and created contracts and guarantees to protect their data. As cloud services grew and the market matured, so did security practices and the risk to customers also decreased.

Security is also an issue for IoT. IoT devices and gateways, if left unprotected, remain entry points for malicious software to inject into the organization. There are instances where IoT devices have been compromised to disrupt industrial processes for competitive reasons and also as acts of war. In some cases, the monitoring of IoT devices is also operated as industrial espionage. Managers of IoT systems need to ensure devices remain secure at the device and network level.

privacy

Privacy and surveillance are the other issues that have grown with the use of cloud computing and IoT. Devices that monitor individual parameters, for healthcare or fitness, invariably store data on cloud servers. This data is evaluated to gain insights into how the product and services can be improved and to design new products. Privacy becomes an issue in those cases where explicit consent to such analysis has not been obtained, and also when the data is used for purposes beyond those specified in contracts with users.

Privacy and monitoring issues also arise in the industrial IoT, where worker performance is monitored along with machine performance. Managers have access to a multitude of data on minute aspects of work that may violate applicable data protection laws. The challenge for managers is to ensure transparency and inform both employees and customers about possible data breaches and the possibility of surveillance. Contractual obligations regarding data protection must also be complied with.

Internet access

A major concern for many areas and regions is access to the Internet. This is especially true in developing countries like India, where internet access via wired or wireless means is unreliable outside of urban areas. This poses a major challenge for cloud-based services and for the continued functioning of IoT systems installed in these regions. Managers need to ensure reliable connectivity through redundant access and backup systems.