It was the International Conference on Colossal Data Analysis and Networking held at Indore, India in March 2016. I was presenting my first research paper, on the Sensor Data Computing as a Service in Internet of Things. An audience of international scholars and computer scientists sat in front of me, patiently waiting to hear what I had to say. Months of hard work and perseverance had paid off and I was thrilled yet nervous. As I began to deliver the presentation, I felt a sense of belonging and attachment to the audience. The presentation went off well and I was able to answer all the queries succinctly.
It was after this moment, I felt a deep inclination towards the concept and at the same time felt to invest my interest in learning in depth about the Internet of Things (IoT) and Data Analytics.
So what is IoT? There is an ocean of definitions, but straightforwardly IoT is a network of connected devices that communicate with other devices on the network, share meaningful data and generate valuable insights and analytics that help end users to take smart decisions and fill life with smart experiences. The figure below can help to get a quick idea.
The figure illustrates that IoT chiefly refers to the connection of everyday objects to the Internet and to one another, with the goal being to provide users with smarter, more efficient experiences. Some of the most familiar examples are Home Automation Systems, IoT Air Conditioners, Smoke Detectors, Nest Thermostat etc.
What makes it interesting?
We learned what is IoT in short and listed few examples of IoT-based products. Few of the systems already exist in the market since long, many of us by now may have used or been using such products, but what difference does the IoT create.
Consider the example of Thermostat (Nest Thermostat), the Wi-Fi-connected thermostat allows you to remotely adjust the temperature via your mobile device and also learns your behavioral patterns to create a temperature-setting schedule. This makes it interesting. We not only control the temperatures of our ambiance, but the system adapts to our patterns of setting different temperatures thereby learning itself and we don’t have to set different temperatures at respective time schedules manually. Nest (IoT Thermostat) can remember that you like to turn down the temperature before going to bed, and can automatically do that for you at a set time. Fascinating enough!
Challenges:
The various amounts of data collected by smart home devices, connected cars and wearables have made many people worried about the potential risk of personal data getting into the fluffed hands. The increased number of access points also poses a security risk. There are many IoT connected devices available in the market, but it is important to make sure you’re getting a solution that is actually going to solve a problem. Although it’s just the beginning for IoT in the consumer space, but the category is growing rapidly towards maturity.
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