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The Internet is on the brink of substantial expansion that will impact every aspect of our lives. As objects of all types acquire an IP address to assume their own identity supported by ubiquitous connectivity, their interactions with other objects will open a host of new possibilities. We will witness objects and devices that are part of our daily lives, connecting to the Internet with the help of sensors and actuators. We’re talking about toothbrushes, medicine bottles, coffee machines, homes, and even shoes becoming connected, adaptive, intelligent and responsive.

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Internet of Things: Endless Opportunities

- Girish Purushottam Khanzode

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Recent advances and reduction in costs of many building blocks of IoT, like low power radio communications; RFID tags and expansion of address space of Internet connections, are now propelling its adoption.

The new Internet Protocol IPv6 is designed to overcome the limitations of IPv4. Its vastly increased address space – allowing 4.8×1028 addresses per person – will ensure that we don’t run out of capacity.

Considered as the foundation of IoT, RFID electronic tags can be read wirelessly to collect the information about the tagged object for identification and tracking. An RFID tag attached to agriculture produce can track its progress and condition; manufactured goods can be tracked through warehouses; and patients can be monitored for health conditions. Used extensively in retail, supply chains, transport, logistics, manufacturing and healthcare, their number is set to rise to 210 billion in 2021. Rising processing power and memory along with shrinking size and costs – of just a few dollars apiece – are making it possible to add more intelligence to objects.

Ubiquitous wireless networks are critical to the delivery of sensor

Multiple trends and technologies are now converging to create the greatest shift in the Internet -preparing it to enlarge a thousand times bigger. In 2008, the number of objects connected to the Internet exceeded the number of people on the planet for the first time, driven mainly by the explosive growth of smartphones and tablets. It is predicted that 50 billion things will go online by 2020. This new Internet – also called the Internet of Things (IoT) – will completely transform current web infrastructure and give rise to new innovations, industries, products, services, interfaces and applications. It is estimated that the global IoT market will reach $300 billion by 2017. IoT is also expected to significantly boost the Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications market, which currently stands at $50 billion.

Digital sensors, already in use in various living and inanimate objects and slated to grow to a trillion by 2015, are making it possible to measure and communicate location, temperature, light, movement, moisture, vibration and presence of chemicals.

All these smart objects embedded in our environment will be connected using a host of radio technologies and protocols like Wi-Fi, Z-Wave, low energy (LE) Bluetooth, WirelessHART, ZigBee, Link Layer, ISA 100A, and many mobile broadband technologies. IoT will be an environment rich with QR codes, barcodes, NFC, RFID, ipv6, Cloud, smartphone apps, GPS and miniaturized devices.

These networked objects will sense the environment with the help of chips and sensors placed on them and will communicate via the Internet or directly with each other. Most of the data generated by these sensors will be processed by analytics software and desired actions will be taken. It is also conceivable that someday in the future, connected objects will orchestrate entire action sequences independently with help of their collective knowledge, or enable humans to take more intelligent decisions!

KEY COMPONENTS

data, anytime, anywhere, and at affordable cost. ZigBee is a low-power wireless network protocol with a range of around 100 meters, maximum bandwidth of 250 kbps, and is suitable for ubiquitous sensor networks. It is targeted at applications with low data rate, long battery life and secure networking. Consumer applications include wireless light switches, electrical meters with in-home-displays, home and M2M automation.

Z-Wave communicates using a low power wireless technology and is designed for remote control operations. This protocol is optimized for reliable, low-latency communication of small data packets. In home automation, it can be used to control applications within a 30-meter range.

6lowpan provides for IPv6 over low-power wireless personal area networks. Its compression mechanism allows the sending and receiving of IPv6 packets with very low bandwidth and power consumption, thus bringing the benefits of standard IP networking to low-power mesh and sensor networks. It is highly suitable for devices with limited processing power and memory. It is used in home, office and factory automation.

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Following in the footsteps of companies and professionals, consumers are clamoring for intelligent products, whose insights can help them improve the quality of their lives. These products make it easier for individuals to collect personal data, compare it with others over Internet and learn from their previous actions. For example, shoes fitted with sensors can track athletic performance. There are other products that enable monitoring of sleep patterns, optimize diet and measure workout progress.

There is also a trend of “ambient display” consumer electronics products – where the environment is the interface – like mirrors that flash the latest sports scores, clocks that display the weather, or lamps that glow brighter when an intruder enters a house. These do away with the need to use smartphones with their interruptive or detailed interfaces, enabling users to get information at a glance, instead.

Current growth in IoT is aided by an understanding of its benefits; however, there are obstacles. IoT research is uncoordinated and many projects are focused on specific domains and short termism; technology is both varied and fragmented. Lack of clarity on market size and opportunity is a hindrance to the development of sustainable business models.

The very real possibility of billions of devices going online raises open architectural issues about scalability of Internet infrastructure

SUPPORTING TRENDS

MAJOR CHALLENGES

We are seeing the emergence of IoT products and data sharing services, which like web services, offer APIs and encourage third parties to develop integrated applications, which enable complex interactions amongst smart objects, even those belonging to different manufacturers or made with incompatible technologies, protocols and standards.

For example, the “Cisco planetary skin of sensors” is a global pervasive nervous system to gather readings from satellite, airborne, sea and land-based sensors connected to a Web 2.0 mashup of decision-support tools. This is a platform for global environmental situational awareness, which serves as an early warning system to enable both informed decision-making, and transition to a low-carbon economy. The data collected by this network can be used for innovation by private sector entrepreneurs, next-generation regulatory agencies, and social entrepreneurs.

along with other concerns about standards, integration, governance, service openness, interoperability and the challenges of real-virtual connectivity, not the least of which is protecting these devices from security breaches and malicious attacks. Finally, the success of IoT will also depend on the availability of uninterrupted connectivity, spectrum, and software applications capable of leveraging its full potential.

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There are many products and services based on the IoT paradigm being made available in the market.

The NikeFuel wristband records all activities and indicates how close the wearer is to achieving his or her goals, with the help of 20 LEDs that gradually go from red to green as the target draws nearer. Using a smartphone app, the wristband shows key statistics, such as the number of calories spent that day, which may be benchmarked against the performance of others.

Nest is a self-learning thermostat controllable over the Internet that can be used in homes to save energy. For instance, it shuts off cooling when nobody is at home. It also automatically learns user preferences to determine schedules and leverages energy efficient time settings to reach target temperatures.

The AutoBot is a device that can be plugged into cars, which syncs to a web service accessible via a smartphone app or a browser. It can lock and unlock doors, control window settings, locate a car in a large parking lot, perform diagnostic checks, and alert friends or family in case of accident.

A recently launched Smart Pill for the treatment of tuberculosis, mental illness, heart failure, hypertension and diabetes has a built-in sensor to detect when a drug is required and uses an artificial muscle membrane to release it inside the patient’s body.

REAL LIFE EXAMPLES

GlowCap is a cap that fits popular prescription bottles available at retail pharmacies, which helps people stick to their prescription regimen. A wireless chip fitted on the cap can alert (through mobile text or email) the patient, doctor or family members in case of missed dosage.

Smart Fabrics – the product of wearable technology – allow computing, digital components and electronics to be embedded in them. For instance, a smart jacket with a fabric control panel in the sleeve, allows the wearer to control his mobile phone’s MP3 player.

Smart Street Lamps are being rolled out in Detroit, Chicago and Pittsburgh. These have a microprocessor and are capable of wireless communication. They can capture images, count people, make public announcements through a built-in speaker and operate only when a car or pedestrian approaches, thereby saving electricity.

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IoT is relevant to unlimited applications belonging to all areas, some of which are listed below:

An aircraft engine management system equipped with location-sensing capability could communicate with remote diagnostic facilities to schedule maintenance. It could also arrange the necessary spares and personnel, and negotiate with the routing system at the head office to adjust aircraft transit time to allow time for fixing its problems.

Smart Dust is composed of a large number of tiny micro-electro-mechanical wireless devices made up of sensors and robots, which

IoT will offer endless technology opportunities that are only limited by our imagination. This new network of smart things will make it possible to develop solutions that were not thought of earlier.

APPLICATION AREAS

TECHNOLOGY OPPORTUNITIES

can detect light, temperature, vibration, magnetism, biological compounds and chemicals. These intelligent nano-sensors could be dispersed over a remote area to sense environmental threats, like forest fire.

Using IoT, broadband enabled television could stream video and other web services. Intelligent medical devices measuring vital signs could send the data to clinicians, to monitor patients remotely. Sprinklers could optimize water flow based on weather and vending machines could order refill based on its inventory.

The opportunities of IoT can be divided into three broad categories: embedding sensors in day-to-day objects in order to connect them to the Internet, and controlling them remotely through software; developing software to orchestrate multiple devices to achieve complex tasks; and exploiting bigger themes, such as smart cities, smart grids and smart healthcare.

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Smarter Device Opportunities

• Remotely Operated – Digitally programmable and controllable devices over Internet, like floor cleaning robots, refrigerators and washing machines

• Self-Learning – Devices that configure themselves by observing usage patterns like air-conditioners

• Self-Updating – Televisions that automatically download programs based on past user choices; devices that download latest patches or new versions of their operating system, on their own

• Self-Correcting – Devices which schedule maintenance, send periodic operational data to manufacturers or order spare parts

• Efficient – Devices, which try to operate when energy prices are lowest

Platforms and Application Opportunities

• Software components that enhance quality of service by improving network availability, securing data transfer and avoiding outages of sensor networks

• Software development environments for creating machine-to-machine (M2M) applications for connecting, managing, and securing intelligent devices. These would also provide ready-to-use frameworks, integrated off-the-shelf software components like secure remote management, and several network connectivity options based on multiple protocols

• New software components specifically designed for lightweight, low-power network operating systems that can, for example, run on 50 kilobytes of RAM and 100 kilobytes of ROM

• Intelligent virtual assistants that can autonomously communicate with other assistants to schedule meetings and notify users

• Business intelligence and analytics applications to identify and analyze sensor data

• Real-time dashboards to monitor city systems managing water supply, traffic, electricity, public transport, events, people flow and public safety

• Collection, analysis and management of data from remote diagnostics equipment in a patient’s home, in order to monitor vital signs and provide treatment

• Software that enables remote monitoring of patients through GPS enabled devices

• Smart grid software systems that use sensors, meters, digital controls and analytic tools to automate, monitor and control the two-way flow of energy across operations

• Smart dust systems to monitor environmental conditions in remote areas

• Smart building applications that monitor devices to optimize heating, air-conditioning, lighting, and building security

• Fleet management solutions using onboard vehicle sensors to notify drivers or fleet owners about the location of goods or a vehicle problem

• Proactive transportation systems that communicate with devices used by other drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists and roadway infrastructure to provide advance warning of hazard ahead

• Real-time traffic management to reduce travel time and fuel inefficiency by using sensors embedded in roadways and street lights

• Labor productivity systems that estimate the amount of work performed from sensor readings from produce, and thereby implement fair wages

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About the Author

Girish Purushottam KhanzodeProducts & Platforms Innovator for Futuristic Technologies, Infosys Ltd.

Girish is a veteran in Enterprise Software Product design and development with more than 20 years of professional experience. He has built and led large product engineering teams to deliver highly complex products in multiple domains, covering entire product life cycle. Currently, he is engaged in innovating and building the next generation products and platforms in emerging new technology areas like Enterprise Data Security and Privacy, Collaboration technologies, Digital Workplace, Social Analytics, Smart Cities, Big Data and Internet of Things. Girish holds M. Tech. degree in Computer Engineering and a bachelor’s degree in Electrical Engineering.

Conclusion

Clearly, the Internet is on the verge of unprecedented transformation. This new intelligent Internet will make our lives more comfortable and create limitless new opportunities for individuals and businesses. Its potential is so significant as to spawn the next Facebook or Google, in the form of a visionary company that successfully combines hardware and software to provide a global platform for IoT objects.

© 2012 Infosys Limited, Bangalore, India. Infosys believes the information in this publication is accurate as of its publication date; such information is subject to change without notice. Infosys acknowledges the proprietary rights of the trademarks and product names of other companies mentioned in this document.

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