The “Internet of things” (IoT) is becoming an increasingly growing topic of conversation both in the workplace and outside of it. It’s a concept that not only has the potential to impact how we live but also how we work. But what exactly is the “Internet of things” and what impact is it going to have on you, if any? There are a lot of complexities around the “Internet of things” but we want to stick to the basics. Lots of technical and policy-related conversations are being had but many people are still just trying to grasp the foundation of what the heck these conversations are about.
Let’s start with understanding a few things.
Broadband Internet is become more widely available, the cost of connecting is decreasing, more devices are being created with Wi-Fi capabilities and sensors built into them, technology costs are going down, and smartphone penetration is sky-rocketing. All of these things are creating a “perfect storm” for the IoT.
So What Is The Internet Of Things?
Simply put, this is the concept of basically connecting any device with an on and off switch to the Internet (and/or to each other). This includes everything from cellphones, coffee makers, washing machines, headphones, lamps, wearable devices and almost anything else you can think of. This also applies to components of machines, for example a jet engine of an airplane or the drill of an oil rig. As mentioned before, if it has an on and off switch then chances are it can be a part of the IoT. The analyst firm Gartner says that by 2020 there will be over 26 billion connected devices! That’s a lot of connections (some even estimate this number to be much higher, over 100 billion). The IoT is a giant network of connected “things” (which also includes people). The relationship will be between people-people, people-things, and things-things.
Here is a video link for the basic reference about IoT.
How Does This Impact You?
The new rule for the future is going to be, “Anything that can be connected, will be connected.” But why on earth would you want so many connected devices talking to each other? There are many examples for what this might look like or what the potential value might be. Say for example you are on your way to a meeting; your car could have access to your calendar and already know the best route to take. If the traffic is heavy your car might send a text to the other party notifying them that you will be late. What if your alarm clock wakes up you at 6 a.m. and then notifies your coffee maker to start brewing coffee for you? What if your office equipment knew when it was running low on supplies and automatically re-ordered more? What if the wearable device you used in the workplace could tell you when and where you were most active and productive and shared that information with other devices that you used while working?
On a broader scale, the IoT can be applied to things like transportation networks: “smart cities” which can help us reduce waste and improve efficiency for things such as energy use; this helping us understand and improve how we work and live. Take a look at the visual below to see what something like that can look like.
The reality is that the IoT allows for virtually endless opportunities and connections to take place, many of which we can’t even think of or fully understand the impact of today. It’s not hard to see how and why the IoT is such a hot topic today; it certainly opens the door to a lot of opportunities but also to many challenges. Security is a big issue that is oftentimes brought up. With billions of devices being connected together, what can people do to make sure that their information stays secure? Will someone be able to hack into your toaster and thereby get access to your entire network? The IoT also opens up companies all over the world to more security threats. Then we have the issue of privacy and data sharing. This is a hot-button topic even today, so one can only imagine how the conversation and concerns will escalate when we are talking about many billions of devices being connected. Another issue that many companies specifically are going to be faced with is around the massive amounts of data that all of these devices are going to produce. Companies need to figure out a way to store, track, analyze and make sense of the vast amounts of data that will be generated.
Jordan Duffy’s talk About IoT in TEDx
Various concepts under IoT:
Smart Cities
The IoT can be used to monitor the vibrations of buildings, bridges, and monuments in case the building material is threatened or overloaded. Noise pollution can be controlled around hospitals and schools. It can be used to manage traffic especially during traffic jams, peak hours, accidents, and rains. It can be used to manage street lights―automatically switch them off in the presence of sunlight and switch them on at the onset of darkness. Another good application is alerting the officials to empty the trash bins when filled with waste.
Home Automation
The IoT can be used to remotely control and program the appliances in your home. It can be useful in detecting and avoiding thefts.
Industrial Automation
By using this technology, we can automate manufacturing processes remotely. It can also prove useful in optimizing the production processes. We can manage the inventory and the supply chain. We can also diagnose if the machines require repair and maintenance. We can monitor the emission of toxic gases to avoid damage to workers’ health and the environment.
Health Monitoring
We can use this technology to identify health problems. The patterns of heart rate, pulse, digestive system, and blood pressure can be monitored and diagnosed for anomalies. The information can be sent to the doctor for analysis. The hospital can also be contacted in times of emergencies. This system will be very useful to senior citizens and disabled people who live independently.
Smart Environment
A very important application of IoT is detecting pollution and natural calamities. We can monitor the emissions from factories and vehicles to minimize air pollution. We can track the release of harmful chemicals and waste in rivers and the sea, thereby arresting water pollution. We can also keep tabs on the quality of water being supplied for drinking. We can send warnings of earthquakes and tsunamis by detecting tremors. We can keep the water level of rivers and dams under surveillance to be alert in case of floods. The detection of forest fire is also possible with this technology.
Pros and Cons of IoT:
The Advantages of IoT
Communication
IoT encourages the communication between devices, also famously known as Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication. Because of this, the physical devices are able to stay connected and hence the total transparency is available with lesser inefficiencies and greater quality.
Automation and Control
Due to physical objects getting connected and controlled digitally and centrally with wireless infrastructure, there is a large amount of automation and control in the workings. Without human intervention, the machines are able to communicate with each other leading to faster and timely output.
Information
it is obvious that having more information helps making better decisions. Whether it is mundane decisions as needing to know what to buy at the grocery store or if your company has enough widgets and supplies, knowledge is power and more knowledge is better.
Monitor
The second most obvious advantage of IoT is monitoring. Knowing the exact quantity of supplies or the air quality in your home, can further provide more information that could not have previously been collected easily. For instance, knowing that you are low on milk or printer ink could save you another trip to the store in the near future. Furthermore, monitoring the expiration of products can and will improve safety.
Time
As hinted in the previous examples, the amount of time saved because of IoT could be quite large. And in today’s modern life, we all could use more time.
Money
The biggest advantage of IoT is saving money. If the price of the tagging and monitoring equipment is less than the amount of money saved, then the Internet of Things will be very widely adopted. IoT fundamentally proves to be very helpful to people in their daily routines by making the appliances communicate to each other in an effective manner thereby saving and conserving energy and cost. Allowing the data to be communicated and shared between devices and then translating it into our required way, it makes our systems efficient.
Automation of daily tasks leads to better monitoring of devices
The IoT allows you to automate and control the tasks that are done on a daily basis, avoiding human intervention. Machine-to-machine communication helps to maintain transparency in the processes. It also leads to uniformity in the tasks. It can also maintain the quality of service. We can also take necessary action in case of emergencies.
Efficient and Saves Time
The machine-to-machine interaction provides better efficiency, hence; accurate results can be obtained fast. This results in saving valuable time. Instead of repeating the same tasks every day, it enables people to do other creative jobs.
Saves Money
Optimum utilization of energy and resources can be achieved by adopting this technology and keeping the devices under surveillance. We can be alerted in case of possible bottlenecks, breakdowns, and damages to the system. Hence, we can save money by using this technology.
Better Quality of Life
All the applications of this technology culminate in increased comfort, convenience, and better management, thereby improving the quality of life.
The Disadvantages of IoT:
Compatibility: Currently, there is no international standard of compatibility for the tagging and monitoring equipment. I believe this disadvantage is the most easy to overcome. The manufacturing companies of these equipment just need to agree to a standard, such as Bluetooth, USB, etc. This is nothing new or innovative needed.
Complexity:
As with all complex systems, there are more opportunities of failure. With the Internet of Things, failures could sky rocket. For instance, let’s say that both you and your spouse each get a message saying that your milk has expired, and both of you stop at a store on your way home, and you both purchase milk. As a result, you and your spouse have purchased twice the amount that you both need. Or maybe a bug in the software ends up automatically ordering a new ink cartridge for your printer each and every hour for a few days, or at least after each power failure, when you only need a single replacement.
Privacy/Security:
With all of this IoT data being transmitted, the risk of losing privacy increases. For instance, how well encrypted will the data be kept and transmitted with? Do you want your neighbors or employers to know what medications that you are taking or your financial situation.
Safety:
Imagine if a notorious hacker changes your prescription. Or if a store automatically ships you an equivalent product that you are allergic to, or a flavor that you do not like, or a product that is already expired. As a result, safety is ultimately in the hands of the consumer to verify any and all automation.
As all the household appliances, industrial machinery, public sector services like water supply and transport, and many other devices all are connected to the Internet, a lot of information is available on it. This information is prone to attack by hackers. It would be very disastrous if private and confidential information is accessed by unauthorized intruders.
Compatibility
As devices from different manufacturers will be interconnected, the issue of compatibility in tagging and monitoring crops up. Although this disadvantage may drop off if all the manufacturers agree to a common standard, even after that, technical issues will persist. Today, we have Bluetooth-enabled devices and compatibility problems exist even in this technology! Compatibility issues may result in people buying appliances from a certain manufacturer, leading to its monopoly in the market.
Complexity
The IoT is a diverse and complex network. Any failure or bugs in the software or hardware will have serious consequences. Even power failure can cause a lot of inconvenience.
Lesser Employment of Menial Staff
The unskilled workers and helpers may end up losing their jobs in the effect of automation of daily activities. This can lead to unemployment issues in the society. This is a problem with the advent of any technology and can be overcome with education.With daily activities getting automated, naturally, there will be fewer requirements of human resources, primarily, workers and less educated staff. This may create Unemployment issue in the society.
Technology Takes Control of Life
Our lives will be increasingly controlled by technology, and will be dependent on it. The younger generation is already addicted to technology for every little thing. We have to decide how much of our daily lives are we willing to mechanize and be controlled by technology.
Scenarios :
Imagine a scenario when:
Your fridge can identify that you have run out of milk; it contacts the supermarket and orders the quantity you usually need, and also informs you by sending a message on your phone!
Your alarm rings at 6:30 am; you wake up and switch it off. As soon as you switch off your alarm, it conveys to the geyser to heat water at a temperature you prefer and also the coffee maker starts brewing coffee!
You are on your way while returning home from work and you use an app on your mobile to switch on the lights, the AC in your home, and tune the TV to your favorite channel so that your house is ready to welcome you before you even open your door!
What would really make a refrigerator “smart” would be if it could read tags and alert owners when their food is about to reach their expiry date, for example. Or perhaps it could refer to an online calendar and make orders on a regular basis for certain items to be delivered.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the Internet of Things is closer to being implemented than the average person would think. Most of the necessary technological advances needed for it have already been made, and some manufacturers and agencies have already begun implementing a small-scale version of it.
The main reasons why it has not truly been implemented is the impact it will have on the legal, ethical, security and social fields. Workers could potentially abuse it, hackers could potentially access it, corporations may not want to share their data, and individual people may not like the complete absence of privacy.
For these reasons, the Internet of Things may very well be pushed back longer than it truly needs to be.
SCIENCE AND YOU 