IoT works by providing information that was not readily
available before. Look at the case of an important machine at a
factory. Workers onsite would walk by and look at the readings
periodically, but it was impossible to get consistent readings
every minute of the day. Getting this information regularly not
only allowed your workers to do other tasks, but it also prevents
unwanted downtime.
There are two main components to any IoT system; information
gathering and communications. In this machine's case, sensors could
take readings such as how hard the machine was working and its
temperature. However, that information on its own is not valuable
if it is not shared.
Communication involves two steps. First, the information is sent
to be processed, usually to somewhere "in the cloud." It does this
using technology like Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. Once the information is
in the cloud, the software lets you be notified when you want to
be, such as an hourly update and alerts to the device
overheating.
This is the same way you can use your phone to turn up your
thermostat at home while at work, how traffic engineers monitor the
traffic level on the road, or how you can track your Uber driver on
their way to pick you up! IoT is behind all three of these.
Question #2: What is an IoT device?
Novotech's Answer:
Every day, the line between an IoT device and a non-IoT device
gets blurred. At first, your phone became smart, as you were now
able to access the Internet. Next, it was devices that communicated
through your phone to the Internet, such as your smartwatch. It was
then devices in your home that used your Wi-Fi network, such as a
smart thermostat. With the launch of 5G, this growth is not
expected to slow down.
IoT devices are devices that do one thing; they can communicate
on the Internet. So, the difference between a smart thermostat and
a non-smart one is communication. They both can control the
temperature of your home. This communication is usually two-way. In
the case of a thermostat, it can push an alert to tell you that
your home's temperature is outside of your desired range, and in
most cases, you can communicate back a command to adjust the
temperature.
As the cost to make devices smarter continues to fall, it will
become the norm that new devices you buy will be IoT-ready instead
of the exception.
Question #3: Who uses the most IoT
applications?
Novotech's Answer:
The earliest adopters of just about any technology tend to be
where it solves the most significant need, which was the case with
IoT. Many companies had valuable assets located far from their
offices and used IoT to monitor what was going on. Among these
early users were Oil and Gas companies, Forestry and Mining.
As the technology started to improve, industries such as
Transportation, Retail, Medical and Government started to deploy
IoT at increasing rates. Today, IoT is found in just about every
sector.
On the consumer side, the application was used first to either
reduce costs (such as Smart thermostats) or improve safety (such as
smart cameras). It also had a good following in the home medical
market and the fitness/wellness space. However, as time goes on, it
will become present in just about all areas of your home and work
life.