Chapter 4

Internet of Things
(IoT)

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 4.1. Overview of IoT
 Most important features of IoT
 Artificial Intelligence(AI) – makes anything smart i.e. it enhances every aspect
of life with the power of data collection, AI algorithms, and networks.
 Example: enhancing your refrigerator and cabinets to detect when milk and
your favorite food run low, and to then place an order with your preferred
grocery
 Connectivity - networks are no longer exclusively tied to major providers only
but it can exist on a smaller and cheaper scale too
 Sensors - it act as a defining instrument that transforms IoT from a standard
passive network of devices into an active system capable of real-world
integration. IoT loses its distinction without sensors.
 Active Engagement - IoT makes the connected technology, product, or
services to active engagement between each other.
 Small Devices - Devices have become smaller, cheaper, and more powerful
over time. IoT exploits purpose-built small devices to deliver its precision,
scalability, and versatility

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 4.1.1. What is IoT?
 According to Internet Architecture Board (IAB), IoT is the networking of smart objects,
meaning a huge number of devices intelligently communicating in the presence of IP
that cannot be directly operated by human beings but exist as components in
buildings, vehicles or the environment
 According to the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF), IoT is the networking of
smart objects in which smart objects have some constraints such as limited bandwidth,
power, and processing accessibility for achieving interoperability among smart objects
 According to the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE), IoT is a
framework of all things that have a representation in the presence of the internet in
such a way that new applications and services enable the interaction in the physical and
virtual world in the form of Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communication in the cloud.
 According to the Oxford dictionary’s, IoT is the interaction of everyday object’s
computing devices through the Internet that enables the sending and receiving of useful
data.
 According to the 2020 conceptual framework, IoT is expressed through a simple
formula: IoT= Services+ Data+ Networks + Sensors

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 4.1.1. What is IoT? (cont’d)
 Generally,
 IoT is the network of physical objects or "things" embedded with electronics,
software, sensors, and network connectivity, which enables these objects to
collect and exchange data.
 IoT is a system of interrelated computing devices, mechanical and digital
machines, objects, animals or people that are provided with unique identifiers
and the ability to transfer data over a network without requiring human-to-
human or human-to-computer interaction.
 IoT is a network of devices that can sense, store and transfer data over the
internet without any human intervention
 IoT consists of any device with an on/off switch connected to the Internet
includes almost anything you can think of, ranging from cellphones to building
maintenance to the jet engine of an airplane, Medical devices, such as a heart
monitor implant or a biochip transponder in a farm animal, Ring, a doorbell that
links to your smartphone and lets you see who it is and to speak with them
when it is pressed. 4
 4.1.1. What is IoT? (cont’d)
 IoT can be applied in several areas such as
connected industry, smart-city, smart-
home, smart-energy, connected car, smart
agriculture, connected building and
campus, health care, logistics etc. with
improved reachability and accuracy.
 IoT systems allow users to achieve deeper
automation, analysis, and integration within
a system
 IoT utilizes existing and emerging
technology for sensing, networking, and
robotics

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 4.1.3. Advantages of IoT
 Improved Customer Engagement –
 Existing analytics suffer from significant flaws. IoT transforms this completely to
achieve efficient customer engagement.
 Technology Optimization –
 Technologies improves customer experience and device use.
 IoT unlocks a world of critical functional and field data environment
 Reduced Waste –
 Current analytics give us superficial insight, but IoT provides real-world
information leading to the more effective management of resources
 Enhanced Data Collection –
 Modern data collection suffers from its limitations and its design for passive
use.
 IoT allows an accurate picture of everything.

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 4.1.4. Disadvantages of IoT
 As the number of connected devices increases and more information is shared
between devices, the potential that a hacker could steal confidential information
also increases. (Lack of Security)
 If there’s a bug in the system, it’s likely that every connected device will become
corrupted. (Easy viruses spread out)
 Since there’s no international standard of compatibility for IoT, it’s difficult for
devices from different manufacturers to communicate with each other. (Lack of
interoperability)
 Enterprises may eventually have to deal with massive numbers maybe even
millions of IoT devices and collecting and managing the data from all those devices
will be challenging. (Complexity)

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 4.1.5. Challenges of IoT
 Security - IoT creates an ecosystem of constantly connected devices
communicating over networks with little control.
 This makes users vulnerable to various kinds of attackers.
 Privacy - The sophistication of IoT provides substantial personal data in extreme
detail without the user's active participation.
 Complexity - Some find IoT systems complicated in terms of design, deployment,
and maintenance given their use of multiple technologies and a large set of new
enabling technologies.
 Flexibility – There are issues to integrate IoT system with another.
 Users worry about finding themselves with several conflicting or locking
systems.
 Compliance – IoT must comply with regulations.
 Its complexity makes the issue of compliance seem incredibly challenging.

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 4.2. How does it work?
 An IoT ecosystem consists of web-enabled smart devices that use embedded
processors, sensors and communication hardware to collect, send and act on data
they acquire from their environments.
 IoT devices share the sensor data they collect by connecting to an IoT gateway or
another edge device where data is either sent to the cloud to be analyzed or
analyzed locally.
 Sometimes, these devices communicate with other related devices and act on the
information they get from one another.
 The devices do most of the work without human intervention, although people can
interact with the devices. For instance, to set them up, give them instructions or
access the data.
 The connectivity, networking and communication protocols used with these web-
enabled devices largely depend on the specific IoT applications deployed.

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 4.2.1. Architecture of IoT
 The architecture of IoT devices comprises four
layers: Sensing, network, data processing and
application layer
1) Sensing Layer: consists of several sensors to
identify any phenomena in the devices’
peripherals and obtain data from the real
world.
 A sensor hub is used to connect multiple
sensors that accumulate and forward sensor
data to the processing unit of a device
 Actuators can intervene to change the
physical conditions that generate the data.
 Categories of sensors
 Motion Sensors
 Environmental Sensors
 Position Sensors 10
 4.2.1. Architecture of IoT(cont’d)
 Motion Sensors – measure the change in motion as well as the orientation
of a device. It can be linear or angular
 Linear Motion Sensor – refers to the linear displacement of the device
 Angular Motion Sensor- refers to the rotational displacement of the
device
 Environmental Sensors – senses the change in environmental parameters.
It consists of light, pressure etc. Theses sensors are used in different
applications such home automation, smart lock, smart light etc. to
improve users experience
 Position Sensors – deal with the physical position and location of the
device. It consists of Magnetic sensors and GPS.
 Magnet Sensors are used as digital compass and change orientation of
display devices and GPS is used for navigation.
2) Network Layer - acts as a communication channel to transfer sensor data to
other connected devices. Uses technologies like Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, Z-
Wave, LoRa, Cellular Network etc. 11
 4.2.1. Architecture of IoT(cont’d)
3) Data Processing Layer - consists of the main data processing unit which takes
data collected at the sensing layer and analyze it to make decision based on
the result.
 Some IoT devices may save the result to improve users experience or
share it with other devices via the network layer.
4) Application Layer - implements and presents the results of the data
processing layer.
 It is a user-centric layer that executes various tasks for the users.
 It includes applications like smart transportation, smart home, personal
care, healthcare etc.

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 4.2.2. Devices and Networks
 IoT devices are meant to work together for people at home, in industry or in the
enterprise.
 IoT devices can be categorized into three main groups: consumer, enterprise and
industrial
 Consumer Devices - include smart TVs, smart speakers, toys, wearables, and
smart appliances
 Enterprise and industrial Devices - include smart meters, commercial security
systems and smart city technologies.
 Used to monitor traffic and weather condition.
 Technologies such as smart air conditioning, smart thermostats, smart lighting,
and smart security, span home, enterprise, and industrial use.
 In the enterprise, smart sensors located in a conference room can help an
employee locate and schedule an available room for a meeting, ensuring the
proper room type, size and features are available.
 When participants gets into the room, adjust temperature according to the
occupancy, and adjust lights as the PPT loads on the screen and the speaker
begins his/her presentation 13
 4.2.2. Devices and Networks (cont’d)
 IoT network includes a number of devices with constrained resources (power,
processing, memory etc)
 These devices are deployed :
 over large areas like smart cities, industrial plants
 hard-to-reach areas like pipelines hazardous zones, or
 even in hostile environments like war zones
 Therefore, the efficient management of the IoT networks requires both constraints
and deployment complexity of the underlying communication infrastructures.
 To ensure correct functioning of these device, they must be remotely accessed to
configure, monitoring their status, and so forth.
 Developing an IoT network management solution is essential and the solution must
consider elements such as scalability, interoperability, energy efficiency, topology
control, Quality of Service (QoS), fault tolerance, and security
 A new management platform called M4DN.IoT (Management for Device and
Network in the Internet of Things) is proposed. (support local and remote mgmt.)
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4.2.2. Devices and Networks (cont’d)

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 4.3. IoT Tools and Platforms
 There are many vendors of IoT platforms
 The platforms have similar capability, deployment method, are based on IoT and
cloud technology.
 Used in areas of smart home, city, enterprise,, healthcare or automotive etc.
 Some of the IoT platforms are:
 KAA
 SiteWhere
 ThingSpeak
 DeviceHive
 Zetta
 ThingsBoard

Refer the module and https://geekflare.com/iot-platform-tools/ for further

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 4.4. Applications of IoT
 Agriculture – IoT devices helps us to increases production by
 monitoring and managing climate conditions,
 sensing soil moisture and nutrients
 better control irrigation and fertilizer systems,
 prevent wastage of precious resource for instance water (instruct sprinkler to
dispense water when needed)
 Consumer Use - For private citizens, IoT devices improve entertainment, network
connectivity, health, and fitness etc. (Make our life easier)
 Wearables cover accessories such as Fitbit, smartphones, Apple watches, health
monitors, to name a few.
 Smart homes take care of things like activating environmental controls
 Dinner that requires either an oven or a crockpot can be started remotely
 Security is made more accessible, with the consumer having the ability to control
appliances and lights remotely (activating a smart lock to allow the appropriate
people to enter the house even if they don’t have a key)
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 4.4. Applications of IoT (cont’d)
 Healthcare –
 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.
 sensors can also determine if a patient has fallen or is suffering a heart attack
 In hospitals, smart beds keep the staff informed as to the availability, thereby
cutting wait time for free space.
 Insurance – Insurance companies can offer their policyholders discounts for IoT
wearables such as Fitbit.
 By employing fitness tracking, the insurer can offer customized policies and
encourage healthier habits, which in turn benefits insurer and customer.
 Manufacturing – RFID and GPS technology can help a manufacturer track a product
from its start on the factory floor to its placement in the destination store.
 Sensors can help to identify bottlenecks in the production line, thereby reducing
lost time and waste. It can also track the performance of the machine, predicting
when the unit will require maintenance, thereby preventing costly breakdowns 18
 4.4. Applications of IoT (cont’d)
 Marketing – IoT can help analyze mall traffic so that stores located in malls can
make the necessary adjustments that enhance the customer’s shopping
experience.
 IoT helps retailers target customers based on past purchases (Making
Personalized promotion for loyal customers)
 Transportation – GPS and Self Driving cars
 GPS is used for navigation or determine more efficient routes for trucks hauling
freight, thereby speeding up delivery times.
 City planners can also use sensor data to help determine traffic patterns,
parking space demand, and road construction and maintenance.
 Utilities – IoT sensors can be employed to monitor environmental conditions such
as humidity, temperature, and lighting
 Sensors data can aid in the creation of algorithms that regulate energy usage
and make the appropriate adjustments, eliminating the human equation
 With IoT-driven environmental control, businesses and private residences can
experience significant energy savings, which in the long run, benefits everyone 19
 In general ,sensor data can help to utilize energy more efficiently
 4.4. 1. IoT based smart home
 Smart Home initiative allows subscribers to remotely manage and monitor
different home devices(smart) from anywhere via smartphones or over the web
with no physical distance limitations.
 Remote Control Appliances - remote appliance management to avoid accidents and
save energy.
 Weather - Displays outdoor weather conditions such as humidity, temperature,
pressure, wind speed and rain levels.
 Smart Home Appliances - Refrigerators with LCD screen, Washing machines with
remote management capability, Oven with remotely adjustable temperature control
and monitoring feature.
 Safety Monitoring - cameras, and home alarm systems making people feel safe in
their daily life at home.
 Intrusion Detection Systems - Detection of window and door openings and
violations to prevent intruders.
 Energy and Water Use - Energy and water supply consumption monitoring to obtain
advice on how to save cost and resources, & many more. 20
 4.4. 2. IoT based smart city
 In cities, the development of smart grids, data analytics, and autonomous vehicles
will provide an intelligent platform to deliver innovations in energy management,
traffic management, and Security.
 Structural Health - Monitoring of vibrations and material conditions in buildings,
bridges and historical monuments.
 Lightning - intelligent and weather adaptive lighting in street lights.
 Safety - Digital video monitoring, fire control management, public announcement
systems.
 Transportation - Smart Roads and Intelligent High-ways with warning messages
and diversions according to climate conditions and unexpected events like
accidents or traffic jams.
 Smart Parking - Real-time monitoring of parking spaces available in the city making
residents able to identify and reserve the closest available spaces,
 Waste Management - Detection of rubbish levels in containers to optimize the
trash collection routes. Garbage cans and recycle bins with RFID tags allow the
sanitation staff to see when garbage has been put out. 21
 4.4. 3. IoT based smart farming
 Green Houses - Control micro-climate conditions to maximize the production of
fruits and vegetables and its quality.
 Compost - Control of humidity and temperature levels in alfalfa, hay, straw, etc. to
prevent fungus and other microbial contaminants.
 Animal Farming/Tracking - Location and identification of animals grazing in open
pastures or location in big stables, Study of ventilation and air quality in farms and
detection of harmful gases from excrements.
 Offspring Care - Control of growing conditions of the offspring in animal farms to
ensure its survival and health.
 Field Monitoring - Reducing spoilage and crop waste with better monitoring,
accurate ongoing data obtaining, and management of the agriculture fields,
including better control of fertilizing, electricity and watering.

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