Internet of Things, or IoT, is a trend you heard of regardless of the industry you e-business belongs to. IoT is a technology that unites all devices connected to it and thus allows constant exchange of viable information in between them. Any web-enabled device can become an IoT device, starting from a smartphone and ending with a smart car. The point is the device uses its embedded systems to acquire relevant data from the environment, process it and then transmit to other devices in need.
In this article we’ll discuss why IoT is among the top trends on the market (and not just the digital one), the opportunities it opens and how to adjust them to your business.
Overview of Topics Covered
How Does IoT Impact Businesses?
The amount of businesses that apply to IoT has grown exponentially. The causes for this tendency are countless. Yet, we’ve singled out the most significant and universal of the IoT’s benefits fitting your e-business regardless of the niche it represents.
Cutting-edge development
IoT technology is in the very middle of progress. Not only does it catalyze positive shifts in other technologies but is itself improved by every new advance of the digital world. Rapid development of computing technologies makes IoT ecosystems more accurate and proactively responsive. Alongside, thanks to their sensors, actuators, appliances and other embedded systems IoT devices are the best supplies of various data that is used as a source or further revolutionary ideas’ generation.
Such a potency in IoT’s development attracts investments at a quite stable and promising rate, while embedded systems, implemented in IoT, especially sensors, become cheaper.
Wide application
We have already mentioned that there is no limit as for the niche where Internet of Things is implemented. Wide functionality of the IoT solutions will contribute to the boost of every product’s capabilities. Furthermore, IoT connects different industries. For example, B2B marketplaces can use IoT to directly connect to Industry 4.0 and get the needed products. To achieve the purpose, the IoT’s techstack permanently engages its detecting, tracking, and monitoring abilities.
Additionally, the mechanism of IoT enables enhanced real-time analytics thanks to artificial intelligence’s contribution and the advances of 5G.
Rising coverage scale
IoT is like social networking for web-enabled devices. Namely, this technology catalyzes the genesis of useful connections between all kinds of web enabled devices with the help of which necessary information can be received promptly and efficiently. At the moment there are already more than 200 applications for IoT created by multifarious companies, from start-ups to large-scale ones. No wonder. Regardless of the industry, manufacturing or telehealth, mobile sector or smart cities, implementation of IoT means evolutionary approach to a business’s inner solutions and user experience.
As the range of advantages provided by the Internet of Things enhances, the IoT network covers more and more devices. According to the latest reports, there are going to be 43 billion IoT devices by 2023 and 75.44 billion by 2025.
IoT Efficiency for Global Issues
The Internet of Things is the technology that has proved extremely useful not only for the realm of business, but for the world itself. It’s not a secret that we, as a global society, have got a lot of various issues mainly connected with the environment and the general quality of life. Luckily, technological progress is on the go as well, offering us innovative solutions of efficient problems’ management. As long as one of such timely ground-breaking solutions is the Internet of Things, let’s take a quick look at the exact ways of its positive contribution to the global issues’ overcoming.
- Environment. Thanks to the IoT’s tracking and measuring mechanisms, it is possible to exercise a constant evaluation of the environmental state and adjust it to the desirable rates. Specifically, an efficient control of such climatic factors as air pollution and energy consumption is critical for the decrease of greenhouse effect and other reasons of climate deterioration.
- Water regulation. According to the UN report, two thirds of humanity is going to face water deficiency as a constant in their lives by 2025. IoT technology helps to handle this issue by enabling efficient management of pipe leaks and irrigation systems.
- Smart agriculture. As the population grows rapidly, so do the nutritional needs. Integration of IoT in agriculture helps to make the system smarter by complex analysis of the soil, plants, and weather conditions in regard to the farming facilities.
- Waste control. Guess what, a trash can also can be an IoT device! Equipped with IoT sensors, trash cans will “know” the amount of rubbish that is stored in them and coordinate the rubbish removal process accordingly.
- Wildlife preservation. The Internet of Things spans beyond inanimate objects. In contrast, this technology is a great solution for the protection and preservation of endangered animal species. In this case, special animal collars and drones play the role of IoT devices.
- Smart cities.This is a vast category that includes multiple elements depending on the aspect of the city taken into consideration. For example, IoT sensors can significantly improve general traffic control, predict and prevent car accidents. Another option to this end is smart interactive bus stops that not only provide people with accurate data about the traffic, but exercise smart air conditioning depending on the amount of people at the stop. There even exist sensors that learn to classify the sounds of the city. For instance, IoT can identify gun shooting and transmit the data to the nearest police department.
Internet of Things Future Trends
Now that we have seen the ways in which the Internet of Things can be used in different fields except for the one it originally belongs to. Still, the digital world already considers IoT one of its major players, mixing and matching this technology with other IT game-changers that can center on the next points:
- Big Data
- Machine Learning
- Blockchain
- IoT and Big Data
As the main principle of the Internet of Things lies in gathering and processing data, it is a perfect match for Big Data technology. An incredibly wide scale of integration in all realms of human life allows IoT to gather big data in every sphere connected with technologies, which nowadays is literally any.
- IoT and Machine Learning
The data learned by IoT devices can also be used to teach other computer systems.
The whole point of machine learning refers to building predictive models based on the analysis of the received data. What distinguishes Machine Learning algorithms among other analytical modeling systems is their ability to evolve in the process of learning. Of course, the quality and quantity of the data determine the relevance of the received predictions. That last is especially critical in such industries’ cases as medicine, or road traffic. As IoT devices are permanently contactable and gather data in real-time regime, they are the best supplier of the “raw material” for the Machine Learning system.
- IoT and Blockchain
While the Internet of Things has given a boost to the information gathering and processing capacities, the level of responsibility grew as well. Traditional security mechanisms are not sufficient when it comes to the IoT due to the scale and fluidity of the operated data. Fortunately, a solution that can handle this tall order exists. Blockchain is an efficient and secure method of processing IoT data. First, it is a decentralized distributed database so that no misuse of authority happens. Second, Blockchain protocols guarantee protection to the stored data.
Here is the list of companies that have successfully integrated IoT in their products:
- BovControl: work in the farming sector, enabling cow tracking.
- SkyBell: a security and guest-meeting system for your home consisting of an IoT doorbell and an eye hole.
- Particle: a full-fledged platform for IT projects building.
- Samsara: an IoT upgrade for a camera.
- Molekule: a cleaning home product that detects the dust through the means of Wi-Fi and destroys it completely.
- Kinsa: the company that sells smart thermometers.
IoT Business Opportunities
Let’s take a bit more precise look at the business opportunities that are available thanks to the implementation of IoT.
- Fitness and healthcare. Fitness bracelets is a widely known fitness wearable. The bracelet owes its popularity to the ability to connect with a smartphone and pass the data collected to it for further processing. As an element of the Internet of Things, a fitness bracelet can track the heartbeat of its owner and signal a medical establishment in case of any disturbing deviations. Besides, this IoT accessory is a perfect match during training as it identifies your current nutrition needs and offers recipes accordingly.
A healthcare software development company is another potential beneficiary of the Internet of Things’ technology. Specifically, IoT contributes to optimization of the whole medical process in general and patience-doctor interactions in particular.
- Retail. IoT makes any retail transaction easier, starting from automatic card debiting and ending with recording visited stores’ location.
- Banking. The technology of IoT assists the banking industry with exercising a profoundly more individual and personalized approach to their clients. Additionally, IoT contributes to a smoother digitalization and, as a result, simplification of the banking processes.
- Smart toys for kids. Diamonds can be a girl’s best friend, but not when this girl is 5 years old. Instead, toys are our kids’ true companions. And with a small contribution of IoT they become the parents’ friends as well. For example, Toymail is a company that makes web-enabled talkies which allow parents to communicate with their children remotely through the app.
Another few business ideas with the IoT integration:
- Smart cars
- Surveillance
- Customer appliances
Tips on IoT Integration
Finally, as the reasoning for the Internet of Things implementation is given, we can take a look at what to look at when integrating IoT in your business.
- Locate and address your customers’ pain
- Identify the product purpose so that no doubts or second thoughts are left
- Make sure the scalability is sufficient
- Stay tuned to the trends of the market
- Make the most of the IoT data
