Applications of IoT

1. IoT Applications in Agriculture

For indoor planting, IoT makes monitoring and

management of micro-climate conditions a reality, which
in turn increases production. For outside planting, devices
using IoT technology can sense soil moisture and
nutrients, in conjunction with weather data, better control
smart irrigation and fertilizer systems. If the sprinkler
systems dispense water only when needed, for example,
this prevents wasting a precious resource.
2. IoT Applications in Healthcare
First and foremost, wearable IoT devices let hospitals monitor
their patients’ health at home, thereby reducing hospital stays
while still providing up to the minute real-time information that
could save lives. In hospitals, smart beds keep the staff informed
as to the availability, thereby cutting wait time for free space.
Putting IoT sensors on critical equipment means fewer
breakdowns and increased reliability, which can mean the
difference between life and death.
Elderly care becomes significantly more comfortable with IoT. In
addition to the above-mentioned real-time home monitoring,
sensors can also determine if a patient has fallen or is suffering a
heart attack.
 3. IoT Applications in Transportation

By this time, most people have heard about the progress being
made with self-driving cars. But that’s just one bit of the vast
potential in the field of transportation. The GPS, which, if you think
of it, is another example of IoT, is being utilized to help
transportation companies plot faster and more efficient routes for
trucks hauling freight, thereby speeding up delivery times.
There’s already significant progress made in navigation, once
again alluding to a phone or car’s GPS. But city planners can also
use that data to help determine traffic patterns, parking space
demand, and road construction and maintenance.
4. IoT Applications in Wearables
From medical to fitness to GPS tracking, wearables serve a wide
range of purposes. These IoT have more than doubled in the last
three years.
The fitness bands monitor calorie expenditure, meters of distance
covered, heartbeats per minute, blood oxygen level, and more.
These IoT mostly come in the form of wristbands/watches.
However, they can also appear as earbuds, clip-on devices, or
smart fabric. Other wearables include virtual glasses and GPS
tracking belts. These small and energy-efficient devices equipped
with sensors and software collect and organize data about users.
Top companies like Apple, Google, Fitbit, and Samsung, are behind
the introduction of the Internet of Things.
5. IoT Applications in Traffic Monitoring

A major contributor to the concept of smart cities, the Internet of

Things is beneficial in vehicular traffic management in large cities.
Using mobile phones as sensors to collect and share data from
our vehicles via applications like Google Maps or Waze is an
example of using IoT. It informs about the traffic conditions of the
different routes, estimated arrival time, and the distance from the
destination while contributing to traffic monitoring. Traffic pattern
analysis gives commuters a perfect idea of what might happen
during peak hours. Thus, they will be better prepared to avoid
traffic by being aware of possible alternatives.
6. IoT Applications in Water Supply

When incorporated externally into water meters, a sensor

connected to the Internet accompanied by software helps in
the seamless collection, processing, and analysis of data,
allowing a better understanding of consumer patterns, fault
detection in the supply service, and result reporting.
Simultaneously, they offer end users to track their
consumption information via app or web page in real-time.
Automatic alerts that detect consumption out of the
average range record, indicating the presence of a leak,
have immensely contributed to water saving.
7. IoT Applications in Smart Home

Every second there are 127 new smart home devices connected to
the Internet. Some popular ones include Google Home, Philips Hue
Lighting System, and Amazon Echo Plus.
IoT allows you to connect all your home applications like air
conditioners, lighting, locks, thermostat, theft alarm systems, and
whatnot into a single system and have the control at your
fingertips with a smartphone.
It is predicted that by 2023, 309M homes worldwide will have
smart systems installed. Their popularity is on the rise as they
provide the complete freedom to personalize a home.
 Advantages of IoT
1.Minimize human effort: As IoT devices interact and
communicate with each other, they can automate the tasks
helping to improve the quality of a business’s services and
reducing the need for human intervention.
2.Save time: By reducing the human effort, it saves a lot of our
time. Saving time is one of the primary advantages of using
the IoT platform.
3.Enhanced data collection: Information is easily accessible,
even if we are far away from our actual location, and it is
updated frequently in real-time. Hence these devices can
access information from anywhere at any time on any device.
4. Improved security: If we have an interconnected system, it can
assist in the smarter control of homes and cities through mobile
phones. It enhances security and offers personal protection.
5. Efficient resource utilization: We can increase resource
utilization and monitor natural resources by knowing the
functionality and how each device works.
6.Reduced use of other electronic equipment: Electric devices are
directly connected and can communicate with a controller
computer, such as a mobile phone, resulting in efficient electricity
use. Hence, there will be no unnecessary use of electrical
equipment.7. Use in traffic systems: Asset tracking, delivery,
surveillance, traffic or transportation tracking, inventory control,
individual order tracking, and customer management can be more
cost-effective with the right tracking system using IoT technology.
8. Useful for safety concerns: It is helpful for safety
because it senses any potential danger and warns users.
For example, GM OnStar is an integrated device that
identifies a car crash or accident on the road. It
immediately makes a call if an accident or crash is found.
9. Useful in the healthcare industry: Patient care can be
performed more effectively in real-time without needing a
doctor’s visit. It gives them the ability to make choices as
well as provide evidence-based care.
 Disadvantages of IoT
1.Security issues: IoT systems are interconnected and
communicate over networks. So, the system offers little control
despite any security measures, and it can lead to various kinds of
network attacks.
2.Privacy concern: The IoT system provides critical personal data
in full detail without the user’s active participation.
3.Increased unemployment: Unskilled workers or even the skilled
ones are at a high risk of losing their jobs, leading to high
unemployment rates. Smart surveillance cameras, robots, smart
ironing systems, smart washing machines, and other facilities
are replacing the humans who would earlier do these works.
4.The complexity of the system: The designing, developing,
maintaining, and enabling the extensive technology to IoT
system is quite complicated.
5.High chances of the entire system getting corrupted: If there
is a bug in the system, it is possible that every connected device
will become corrupted.
6.Lack of international standardizations: As there is no
international standard of compatibility for IoT, it is problematic
for devices from different manufacturers to communicate with
each other.
7.High dependency on the internet: They rely heavily on the
internet and cannot function effectively without it.
8. Reduced mental and physical activity: Overuse of the
internet and technology makes people ignorant because
they rely on smart devices instead of doing physical work,
causing them to become lethargic and inactive.
Physical Design of Internet of Things (IOT)
The physical design of an IoT system is referred to as
the Things/Devices and protocols that are used to build an IoT
system. all these things/Devices are called Node Devices and
every device has a unique identity that performs remote sensing,
actuating and monitoring work. and the protocols that are used to
establish communication between the Node devices and servers
over the internet.

Connectivity: Devices like USB hosts and ETHERNET are used

for connectivity between the devices and the server.
Processor: A processor like a CPU and other units are used to
process the data. these data are further used to improve the
decision quality of an IoT system.
Audio/Video Interfaces
An interface like HDMI and RCA devices is used to record audio and
videos in a system.

Input/Output interface
To give input and output signals to sensors, and actuators we use
things like UART, SPI, CAN, etc.

Storage Interfaces
Things like SD, MMC, and SDIO are used to store the data generated
from an IoT device.
Logical Design of IoT
An IoT system comprises of a number of functional blocks that
provide the system the capabilities for identification, sensing,
actuation, communication and management.
functional blocks are:
Device: An IoT system comprises of devices that provide
sensing, actuation, monitoring and control functions.
Communication: Handles the communication for the IoT
system.
Services: services for device monitoring, device control service,
data publishing services and services for device discovery.
Management: this blocks provides various functions to govern
the IoT system.
Security: this block secures the IoT system and by providing
Application: This is an interface that the users can use to
control and monitor various aspects of the IoT system.
Application also allow users to view the system status and view
or analyze the processed data.

IoT Protocols
These protocols are used to establish communication between a
node device and a server over the internet. it helps to send
commands to an IoT device and receive data from an IoT device
over the internet. we use different types of protocols that are
present on both the server and client-side and these protocols are
managed by network layers like application, transport, network,
and link layer.
Application Layer protocol
In this layer, protocols define how the data can be sent over the network
with the lower layer protocols using the application interface. these
protocols include HTTP, WebSocket, XMPP, MQTT, DDS, and AMQP
protocols.

HTTP
Hypertext transfer protocol is a protocol that presents in an
application layer for transmitting media documents. it is used to
communicate between web browsers and servers. it makes a
request to a server and then waits till it receives a response and in
between the request server does not keep any data between two
requests.
WebSocket
This protocol enables two-way communication between a client and a
host that can be run on an untrusted code in a controlled environment.
this protocol is commonly used by web browsers.
MQTT
It is a machine-to-machine connectivity protocol that was designed as a
publish/subscribe messaging transport. and it is used for remote
locations where a small code footprint is required.
Transport Layer
This layer is used to control the flow of data segments and handle the
error control. also, these layer protocols provide end-to-end message
transfer capability independent of the underlying network.
TCP
The transmission control protocol is a protocol that defines how to
establish and maintain a network that can exchange data in a proper
manner using the internet protocol.
UDP
a user datagram protocol is a part of an internet protocol called the
connectionless protocol. this protocol is not required to establish the
connection to transfer data.
Network Layer
This layer is used to send datagrams from the source network to the
destination network. we use IPv4 and IPv6 protocols as host
identification that transfers data in packets.
IPv4
This is a protocol address that is a unique and numerical label
assigned to each device connected to the network. an IP address
performs two main functions host and location addressing. IPv4
is an IP address that is 32-bit long.
IPv6
It is a successor of IPv4 that uses 128 bits for an IP address. it is
developed by the IETF task force to deal with long-anticipated
problems.
Link Layer
Link-layer protocols are used to send data over the network's physical
layer. it also determines how the packets are coded and signaled by the
devices.
Ethernet
It is a set of technologies and protocols that are used primarily in
LANs. it defines the physical layer and the medium access control for
wired ethernet networks.

WiFi
It is a set of LAN protocols and specifies the set of media access
control and physical layer protocols for implementing wireless local
area networks.
Sensors and Actuators in IoT
Sensors are the source of IoT data. Furthermore, sensors and
actuators in IoT can work together to enable automation at
industrial scale. Finally, analysis of the data that these sensors
and actuators produce can provide valuable business insights
over time.
Sensors: A better term for a sensor is a transducer. A
transducer is any physical device that converts one form of
energy into another. So, in the case of a sensor, the
transducer converts some physical phenomenon into an
electrical impulse that determines the reading. A microphone
is a sensor that takes vibrational energy (sound waves), and
converts it to electrical energy in a useful way for
other components in the system to correlate back to the
original sound.
Actuators: Another type of transducer that you will encounter
in many IoT systems is an actuator. In simple terms, an
actuator operates in the reverse direction of a sensor. It takes
an electrical input and turns it into physical action. For
instance, an electric motor, a hydraulic system, and a
pneumatic system are all different types of actuators.
Controller:
In a typical IoT system, a sensor may collect information and
route to a control center. There, previously defined logic
dictates the decision. As a result, a corresponding command
controls an actuator in response to that sensed input. Thus,
sensors and actuators in IoT work together from opposite
ends. Later, we will discuss where the control center resides in
the greater IoT system.
 introduction to 5G network
5G is the 5th generation mobile network. It is a new global
wireless standard after 1G, 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. 5G
enables a new kind of network that is designed to connect
virtually everyone and everything together including
machines, objects, and devices.
Three characteristics of 5G: high speed, low latency
and massive devices

High speed is a comprehensive upgrade of upload and

download speed and the download speed is theoretically
more than 10 times higher than that of 4G.
Low latency is a great improvement in the feedback speed
of the network. Low latency will be used in remote control,
games and the Internet of Things.
Massive devices are the Internet of Things. Compared with
traditional 4G networks, 5G networks can accommodate
more devices.
 Application areas of 5G Network
1. High-speed mobile network:
● Can support up to 10 to 20 GBPS of data download speed which is
equivalent to
a fiber-optic and internet connection accessed wirelessly.
● Voice and high-speed data can be simultaneously transferred
efficiently in 5G.
● Due to low latency of 5G technology, it is significant for autonomous
driving
and mission-critical applications.
● The small cell concept used in 5G will have multiple advantages of
better cell coverage, maximum data transfer, low power consumption,
cloud access,network, etc....
2. Entertainment and multimedia
● High-speed streaming of 4K videos and crystal clear audio clarity.
● Live events streaming via a wireless network with high definition.
● HD TV channels can be accessed on mobile devices without any
interruptions.
● Augmented reality and virtual reality with HD video with low latency.
● HD virtual reality games.
3. Internet of Things that Connecting everything
● Internet of Things will connect every object, appliance, sensor, device,
and
application to the Internet.
● IoT applications will collect huge amounts of data from millions of
devices and sensors.
It requires an efficient network for data collection, processing,
transmission, control, and real-time analytics.
● 5G is the most efficient technology for the Internet of Things due
to its flexibility,
unused spectrum availability, and low-cost solutions for
deployment.
● IoT can benefit from 5G networks in many areas like:
i. Smart Home
● 5G wireless network will be utilized by smart appliances which
can be
configured and accessed from remote locations, closed-circuit
cameras will
provide high-quality real-time video for security purposes.
ii. Logistics and shipping
● The logistics and shipping industry can be use smart 5G technology
for goods
tracking, fleet management, centralized database management, staff
scheduling, and real-time delivery tracking and reporting.
(i) Efficient use of RFID tags
(ii) Accelerated packing and labeling
(iii) Use of smart tracking devices for accurate monitoring of
temperature, shock,
light exposure, humidity, etc...
(iv) Realtime GPS location tracking and reporting
(v) Efficient monitoring minimizes theft risk and misplacing of items
(vi) Realtime delivery tracking and reporting
(vii) Self-driving cars and drones for future goods delivery
iii. Smart cities
● Smart city applications like traffic management, Instant weather
update, local
area broadcasting, energy management, smart power grid, smart
lighting of the street, water resource management, crowd
management, emergency response,
etc. can use a reliable 5G wireless network for its functioning.
iv. Smart farming
● 5G technology can be used for agriculture and smart farming in the
future. Using smart RFID sensors and GPS technology, farmers can
track the location of livestock and manage them easily. Smart sensors
can be used for irrigation control, access control, and energy
management.
v. Industrial IoT
● Future industries can be used 5G technology for efficient
automation of
equipment, predictive maintenance, safety, process tracking,
smart packing,
shipping, logistics, and energy management.
● Smart sensor technology compromises unlimited solutions
for industrial IoT for
smarter, safe, cost-effective, and energy-efficient industrial
operations.
 NGN Architecture
A next-generation network (NGN) is a packet-based
network which can provide services including
Telecommunication Services and is able to make use of
multiple broadband, quality of service-enabled transport
technologies and in which service-related functions are
independent from underlying transport-related
technologies
The main goal of Next Generation Network (NGN) is to
serve/work as an replacement of Public Switched
Telephone Network (PSTN) and Integrated Services
Digital Network (ISDN).
functional block diagram of ngn architecture