The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to physical objects or groups of objects equipped with sensors, processing ability, software, and other technologies that allow them to connect and exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communications networks (Gillis, Alexander, 2021).
An IoT ecosystem consists of web-enabled smart devices that use embedded systems, such as processors, sensors, and communication hardware, to collect, send, and act on the data obtained from their surroundings. These devices connect to an IoT gateway or edge device to share the sensor data they gather. The data is then transferred to the cloud for analysis or analyzed locally. These devices often communicate with each other and act on the information they receive.
The technologies enabling the Internet of Things (IoT) include:
1. Sensors and actuators: While actuators can physically alter the environment by opening or closing a valve or turning on a motor, sensors can identify changes in temperature, humidity, light, motion, and pressure. These devices allow machines and devices to interact with the physical world, enabling automation without human intervention.
2. Connectivity technologies: IoT devices need to be connected to the internet to transmit data from sensors and actuators to the cloud. Various connectivity technologies are used in IoT, including Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, cellular, Zigbee, and LoRaWAN.
3. Cloud computing: The cloud is where the vast amounts of data generated by IoT devices are stored, processed, and analyzed. Cloud computing platforms provide the infrastructure and tools needed to store and analyze this data, as well as to build and deploy IoT applications.
4. Big data analytics: Advanced analytics tools are used to make sense of the large amounts of data generated by IoT devices, extracting insights and identifying patterns. Data visualization tools, predictive analytics models, and machine learning algorithms are a few examples of these tools.
5. Security and privacy technologies: With the increasing deployment of IoT, security and privacy become more important. Technologies such as encryption, access controls, and intrusion detection systems are used to protect IoT devices and the data they generate from cyber threats.
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Internet of Things (IoT) Applications
The Internet of Things (IoT) is expanding and becoming more prevalent in various aspects of life. This piece discusses the applications of IoT in different professions and human lives, highlighting its positive effects.
IoT refers to physical objects with sensors, processing ability, and other technologies that exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other communication networks.
IoT has an impact on many facets of human life, including infrastructure, manufacturing, agriculture, medical and healthcare, transportation, environmental monitoring, and military science.
a) Consumer Application
A significant portion of IoT devices is designed for consumer use, such as connected vehicles, home automation, wearable technology, connected health, and appliances with remote monitoring capabilities.
b) Home Automation
IoT devices are part of the broader concept of home automation, which includes lighting, heating and air conditioning, media and security systems, and camera systems. Long-term benefits include energy savings and increased awareness of usage.
c) Elder Care
Smart home systems can assist elderly individuals and those with disabilities by using assistive technology to accommodate specific disabilities. These systems can include voice control, alert systems for medical emergencies, and additional safety features, providing users with more freedom and a higher quality of life.
d) Transportation
IoT can aid in integrating communications, control, and information processing across various transportation systems, including vehicles, infrastructure, and user interfaces.
e) Enterprise Application
Enterprise IoT refers to devices used in business and corporate settings and is estimated to account for 9.1 billion devices in 2019.
f) Medical Health Care
The Internet of Medical Things (IoMT) is an application of IoT for medical and health-related purposes, data collection and analysis for research, and monitoring. It has been referenced as “Smart Healthcare” for creating a digitized healthcare system, connecting available medical resources and healthcare services.
g) Industrial IoT
Industrial IoT devices acquire and analyze data from connected equipment, operational technology, locations, and people, benefiting manufacturing and smart manufacturing processes.
h) Agriculture, Farming and Gardening
IoT applications in farming include collecting data on temperature, rainfall, humidity, wind speed, pest infestation, and soil content. This data can be used to automate farming techniques, make informed decisions, minimize risk and waste, and reduce the effort required to manage crops.
i) Maritime
IoT devices are used to monitor the environments and systems of boats and yachts, providing valuable early alerts for potential issues.
j) Urban Infrastructure
Monitoring and controlling operations of sustainable urban and rural infrastructures, such as bridges, railway tracks, and on- and offshore wind farms, is a key application of the IoT (Gubbi et al., 2013). Any incidents or modifications to the structural conditions that could jeopardize safety and raise risk can be tracked using the Internet of Things infrastructure. It can benefit the construction industry by saving costs, reducing time, improving work quality, enabling paperless workflows, and increasing productivity. Additionally, it can facilitate faster decision-making and cost savings through real-time data analytics.
k) Metropolitan scale deployments
There are several planned or ongoing large-scale deployments of the IoT to enable better management of cities and systems. Most of the city is planned to be wired and automated, with little or no human intervention (Poon, 2018).
l) Energy management
Significant numbers of energy-consuming devices (e.g. lamps, household appliances, motors, pumps, etc.) already integrate Internet connectivity, which allows them to communicate with utilities to balance power generation and optimize energy consumption as a whole (Ersue et al., 2015).
m) Environmental monitoring
Applications of the Internet of Things for environmental monitoring generally use sensors to help protect the environment (Davies, 2015). These applications can even include tracking the movements of wildlife and their habitats, as well as atmospheric or soil conditions, air or water quality, and atmospheric conditions (Li et al., 2012).
n) Military
The Internet of Military Things (IoMT) is the application of IoT technologies in the military domain for reconnaissance, surveillance, and other combat-related objectives. It is heavily influenced by the future prospects of warfare in an urban environment and involves the use of sensors, munitions, vehicles, robots, human-wearable biometrics, and other smart technology relevant on the battlefield (Cameron, 2018).
Pros and Cons
According to the most recent data available, there are roughly 15.14 billion IoT devices connected. By 2030, this amount should nearly double to 29.42 billion. This brief article described the Pros and Cons of the Internet of Things. There are different advantages of the IoT which attract people to use it frequently in our daily lives. However, there are also some disagreements about IoT.
A collection of physical objects (or sets of related objects) that are outfitted with sensors, software, processing power, and other technologies that enable them to interact and exchange data with other systems and devices via the Internet or other communications networks is referred to as the “Internet of things” (IoT) (Gillis, 2021).
Pros of IoT
There are different advantages or pros described by experts regarding the IoT. The main advantages of the internet of things are highlighted here:
1. Smart Life: The Internet of Things makes our lives smarter. Different automated devices improve the quality of life for IoT users, and the concept of smart lives has shifted into smart cities.
2. Fastest Communication: IoT enables speedy communication on the internet. IoT facilitates fast track internet communication, with 5G data transmission or wifi speed of 1300 Mbps, compared to the normal internet service of 2.4 GHz for mobile or laptop users. Data transmission from Machine to Machine (M2M) is quicker with IoT compared to the 3G and 4G periods.
3. Business Model: Businesses can easily operate globally via IoT devices that connect and communicate with customers. Multiple platforms of information, such as images and video clips, are shared to provide information about products.
4. Data-Driven Policy: Data-driven policy helps identify current trends in society and understand opportunities and challenges.
5. Smart Work and Productivity: Due to the use of IoT-based products, work becomes smarter and easier to perform, such as in the manufacturing of goods, healthcare procedures and technology, and sales and marketing jobs.
Cons of IoT
The drawbacks of the Internet of Things (IoT) have been highlighted by various experts, and the major disadvantages are discussed here.
1. Privacy and Security Concerns
There are major security concerns regarding IoT devices. Cyber scams, internet fraud, and money scams often occur due to hacking of internet devices and email accounts. Privacy is also a concern, as personal images and video clips are often misused without the users’ permission, leading to a lack of personal privacy due to the frequent misuse of IoT.
2. Environmental Sustainability Impact
The environmental effects of these semiconductor-rich devices’ production, use, and eventual disposal are a concern with regard to Internet of Things technologies. Modern electronics contain a wide variety of heavy metals, rare-earth metals, and highly toxic synthetic chemicals, making them extremely difficult to recycle. Electronic parts are frequently disposed of in conventional landfills or burned.
3. Mental Health and Social Isolation
Excessive use of IoT devices such as laptops, computers, tablets, and Bluetooth devices can lead to mental health and anxiety issues. Social isolation can also occur as people may have thousands of online friends and followers but lack physical friendships with neighbors, leading to social isolation. Users may rely on smart devices instead of engaging in physical activities, causing them to become lethargic and inactive.
4. Standardization Complexity
The billions of devices connected in the IoT ecosystem are built by different companies, creating complexity in tagging and monitoring. Manufacturers build devices with different standards, which leads to complexity in version drivers and application software. Bluetooth connectivity can also lead to compatibility and complexity issues regarding the optimal use of IoT device applications, potentially forcing buyers to purchase devices from specific manufacturers and creating a monopoly in the market.
5. Unemployment
The automation of routine tasks by machines and devices has led to job displacement. Human labor jobs are being replaced by machines, such as self-driving cars replacing driver jobs, surveillance cameras replacing security personnel, and robotics performing jobs in call centers to address customer complaints.
The Internet of Things (IoT) brings challenges with security, privacy, and data management, but it also enables smart applications that improve efficiency and connectivity by integrating multiple technologies.
