IoT solutions are being used more and more frequently in the industry. The industrial IoT (IIot) offers companies a wide range of predictive maintenance, intelligent measurement technology, system management and fleet management. However, with this expansion of the networks into the least accessible corner, companies’ attack surface also increases. To avoid massive physical damage to industrial plants and machines and the potential failure of the entire production, companies are well-advised to attach great importance to securing their IIoT environments.

Industrial Plants: IT And OT Must Work Closely Together

Traditionally, the IT and operational technology (OT) teams work side by side without significant contact points. However, to find potential weak points, the employees responsible for administration and security must work closely together. Considering the complexity of the safety of OT solutions per se and the fact that security issues in IT and OT have so far been primarily resolved independently of one another, this new collaboration between these teams is no easy task.

OT Systems Go Beyond The Scope Of Current IT Security

There are fundamental problems in securing OT environments with traditional IT security solutions: On the one hand, many solutions are based on installing a software client. In older industrial plants, this often fails because the operating system is missing or out of date or a closed, proprietary system. On the other hand, IT security solutions want to protect OT devices from the outside and only allow concrete tunnels for communication. None of the approaches was developed for the diversity of networked OT. The devices used were not intended to integrate the security monitoring and management tools designed for corporate IT networks. This problem has profound implications for organizations.

UEBA: Check The Behaviour

The behaviour of OT devices is usually relatively predictable. This behaviour is documented in logs, containing thousands of log data per second per OT device. SIEM solutions can collect this log data and make it accessible for monitoring the devices. Older SIEM solutions still lacked the necessary technology to analyze this large amount of log data effectively. The latest generation of SIEM solutions relies on highly automated behaviour analysis. This “User Entity Behavior Analytics” (UEBA) massively simplifies the monitoring of the security of IIoT devices. Using analytics to model a comprehensive average behavioural profile of all entities, a UEBA solution can identify any activity deviating from the baseline.

Security For Industrial Plants Down To The Last Corner

To secure IIoT environments in a meaningful way, OT and IT teams have to come together and find an integrated solution that guarantees the integrity of the company down to the last nook and cranny. To monitor a wide variety of OT solutions in real-time, SOC teams can use the latest generation of SIEM solutions. With behavioural analyzes, create full transparency for all users and entities in the network company-wide. In this way, threats can also be detected quickly and reliably on all IIoT devices in the network, including lateral movements that are otherwise difficult to detect and zero-day exploits.

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Assistance systems such as Amazon Alexa can not only call up information by voice command. No, smart home devices can also be controlled with it. Technologies such as IFTTT (If this then that) enable devices to take action when a previously defined event occurs on another device such as the Smart Lock is unlocked and after 6 p.m., then turn on the light in the corridor. In short: the Internet of Things and Smart Home can be efficient and offer many functions.

However, this variety of functions can also be misused. Successful attacks can be expensive for the victims (the thermostat is turned on remotely by an attacker while the residents are on vacation), they can be dangerous (smart sauna heater overheats), they can be uncomfortable (owner is informed by his IP Camera spied) or all together: a door locked with a smart lock is opened to break in without leaving any traces. The burglar can steal a lot (expensive), come across private information (unpleasant), and attack witnesses (dangerous).

So safety should be a top priority. The reality is known to be different, as functions and features sell better than security. Especially when technologies are relatively new, attempts are made to bring a product onto the market as quickly as possible. As a result, IT security measures are not yet adequately implemented when the product is released.

However, the level of security has increased compared to previous years – albeit not always sufficient. This is partly because standards such as ZigBee, Apple Homekit, or Google Nest have become established, and a trend towards relocation to the cloud can be recognized. The latter has a positive effect on secure implementation but harms privacy. The increased computing capacity of the processors that support (stronger) encryption can be seen as positive.

However, not all devices are secure by a long way. The user can often deactivate the insecure functions of the devices (access from the Internet, etc.). Still, since it is no longer only technically experienced users who procure IoT devices, this is insufficient. A device must be inherently safe and remain secure.

• Automatic and secure firmware updates
• Randomly generated passwords instead of standard passwords
• Secure standard settings
• Use of encryption
• Data economy (data protection)
• Use proven algorithms

Also Read: Know The Complete Concept Of Internet Of Things

Automatic And Secure Firmware Updates

Mirai has been attacking hundreds of thousands of IoT devices such as IP cameras and adding these devices to existing botnets. The exploited security gaps are known and could be closed, but for many of these devices, no firmware update is planned, which is why Mirai should still exist in the next few years.

IoT devices should therefore implement the option of a firmware update. If the devices have access to the Internet, they should be updated automatically by default. But in addition to automatic updates, it is also essential that these are of integrity and imported correctly. If an attacker can manipulate the firmware before installation, the firmware update creates a new attack vector.

There are several approaches for fast and secure firmware updates of IoT devices:

• Schnorr updates
• PC-based
• Physical unclonable function (PUFs)
• Blockchain
• Schneider-IoT update mechanism
• Mongoose OS

Each of these approaches has advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, as a developer, it is advisable to compare these approaches to find the right solution for your application environment.

Randomly Generated Passwords Instead Of Standard Passwords

Many IoT devices have standard logins such as admin: admin or root: 1234. If these devices can be reached from the Internet and the user does not change the password, the attacker has an easy time. Devices with common passwords are quickly known on the Internet and are easy for everyone.

To find using search engines such as Shodan. Permanently encoded service passwords are also not advisable, as these can be found by reverse engineering and then placed on the Internet. It would be better to proceed as it has been customary for routers for years. A randomly generated password that is attached to the device on a sticker, for example. If the user forgets his password, he can restore the original state by resetting the device.

Safe Default Settings

Devices should be shipped with settings that are too secure rather than too open. A thermostat or an IP camera does not have to be accessible from the Internet by default. If this is still desired, the user should activate this manually (opt-in instead of opt-out).

Also Read: Top Sectors That Are Leveraging Internet Of Things

Use Of Encryption

Communication to devices and servers should be encrypted. This is especially true when the devices communicate by radio outside their encrypted WLAN. An attacker can easily intercept, read or even change data packets. A secure algorithm should be used that also recognizes modifications to the packages.

Data Economy

Products should only send and save the most necessary data. On the one hand, this saves resources – but above all, it limits the information that an attacker can learn about the victim. If a lot of personal data is sent and saved, end-to-end encryption should be considered.

Use Proven Algorithms

When it comes to IT security, older, proven technologies are often better than in-house developments. This is because older standards have already been tested by many people and found to be safe. Of course, this does not mean that these are also error-free (see Meltdown / Specter). An in-house development, on the other hand, can contain many errors.

Conclusion

Implementing these points does not guarantee that the product is safe. However, it reduces the attack surface enormously. If the product is even more secure, a secure development process and product testing are recommended. For example, the soft check Security Testing Process is based on ISO 27034.

It contains six methods for identifying security gaps: Security Requirements Analysis, Threat Modeling, Conformance Testing, Static Source Code Analysis, Penetration Testing, and Dynamic Analysis: Fuzzing. Each of these methods identifies different classes of vulnerabilities. These methods have already been used to identify security gaps in intelligent meter gateways and the smart HS110 TP-Link socket.

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Data lakes will continue to increase in the coming years. The data that networked devices generate has a specific value in them. The data streams in the IoT should therefore be available in real-time. This is the only way for companies to benefit from the latest information at all times. This also applies to the “Industrial Internet of Things” (IIoT), which illustrates the following scenario: Real-time data can, for example, positively influence the production cycles of heavy industry.

This minimizes downtime in a blast furnace, saves material costs, and reduces costs.

Because of the high value of IoT data, it is essential to access it at all times. In addition, the data must be 100 percent reliable and secure against manipulation.

Business Needs Are Difficult To Predict

The realistic forecast of business requirements is the key to corporate success and an essential prerequisite for a quick return on investment. This applies to listed, multinational corporations as well as to innovative start-ups with disruptive business models. Companies of all sizes are faced with new challenges. These include the increasing digitization of the markets, the ever-tougher competitive pressure, and a seemingly endless stream of data and new technologies.

However, these forces are not insurmountable. The technology will continue to develop consistently. Companies have to face this challenge and create new solutions that offer customers significant added value to remain competitive. The IoT is forcing companies to rethink their IT and business processes. Those companies that successfully master the management and security of their data and generate sustainable value for their business will prevail on the market.

The Required Storage Capacity Can Hardly Be Planned

IoT data is primarily unstructured and can therefore be easily stored in the public cloud infrastructure. All major cloud providers provide cost-effective, scalable storage systems based on object storage solutions. With fast networks and free data access, large amounts of enterprise IoT data can be optimally stored in the public cloud.

And the public cloud has even more to offer: Cloud Service Providers (CSP) deliver powerful data analysis tools that absorb and process large amounts of unstructured content. This enables companies to develop highly scalable ML / AI applications to process data more efficiently than in a private data center.

Correct Storage Of Sensor Data Is Essential

Typically, IoT devices are managed individually and remotely and act as embedded appliances such as cameras. However, this is not always the case. Many companies have distributed environments where servers in different branches monitor access to the building, control the environment or take on other company-specific tasks. The IoT networks devices with which content can be created, saved, and processed at many locations.

Distributed data arises outside of a company’s data center or network. The term “edge” describes computing and data management tasks carried out outside these core infrastructures. Although cloud computing has existed for many years, the technology is developing rapidly and the IoT due to the growing volume of external data. This poses significant challenges for IT departments: They have to ensure that the data is adequately backed up, assigned, and processed.

Most IT organizations know (reasonably) exactly where their data is located. However, the IoT makes it more challenging to get a firm grip on all of a company’s content. Data collected in backup sets may also contain interesting information that should be made accessible via data analysis. However, a classic backup is hardly suitable for this, as the data is not always available and access takes a relatively long time, especially for tape backups. In addition, in many cases, the value of the data may not develop optimally if all of the content is saved. For example, a camera that counts cars passing at an intersection does not store the entire video.

Instead, it is sufficient to document the number of vehicles counted in a certain period. The video data could be kept for a later date or deleted. It should also be taken into account that the data must be processed promptly. IoT devices need to decide how to use information quickly. Latency due to reading and writing of the data in a core data center cannot be tolerated. Due to these requirements, companies have to move the processing of data and applications to the edge. There they are preprocessed before they are uploaded to the core data center for long-term storage.

Conclusion

The “Internet of Things” leads to a multiplication of interfaces since any number of objects can be networked with one another. In addition to the primary functions of networked things, these interfaces generate large amounts of data ( big data ), which also have enormous potential. Intelligent solutions and data science are necessary to use the associated new business models.

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IoT gives you the power to access anything from anywhere by connecting the device to the internet. No doubt that the Internet of Things (IoT) is equipped to grow in the future. With the quantity of short-range IoT devices anticipated to outperform cell phones, IoT will penetrate modern, business, and purchaser applications. That being stated, the scene of IoT end gadgets, modems, and base stations is full of numerous guidelines associated with particular conventions endeavouring to moderate the impediments that accompany old school restrictive equipment and an absence of seller neutrality.

This venture additionally endeavours to upgrade the equipment and programming details for a specific application. There is no other single solution to gratify all IoT needs. There is likely a standard physical (PHY) and medium access control (MAC) layer that would best-fit for the application to be considered.

In any remote application, the antenna’s decision and plan depends on the space accessible, transmission strength, and frequency range. Two remote networks and topologies, in any case, have a significant contrast among them.

Types Of IoT Antenna

As there is no limitation or set protocol for device manufacturing there are a variety of IoT antennas. Antennas come in numerous sizes and configurations for various needs. Some are connected remotely to the device for the right functioning, while others should be embedded into the end gadget, so it is both undetectable and functional. The type of antennas vary according to the application, size, and placement property and functionality play a significant role in the antenna’s choice for the device.

1) Dipole Antennas

A dipole antenna is omnidirectional, implying they transmit signals on a minimum single plane. Dipole antennas are generally big because of their half-wavelength structures. This adds up to around 6 inches long for antennas. These antennas are almost consistently utilized remotely, for example, for metal box gadgets like switches. They may be with the gadget or maybe arranged independently.

Uses for Dipole Antennas

Utilize a dipole antenna when you need to communicate in an unknown direction (omnidirectional) and do not know the link’s area. Normal applications for dipole antennas incorporate cell and Wi-Fi applications; there are diverse dipole models for every correspondence type. (Dipole has restricted transmission capacity, so various lengths are needed for contrast frequency bands.)

The dipole antenna will function admirably for an outside antenna mounted on a fenced metal area, despite its size. Metal walled areas are extremely regular with industrial applications in tough conditions, and outside antennas are close to assurance under these requirements. Likewise, labs regularly use dipoles for reference antennas to align antenna estimation frameworks because of their high productivity and predictable radiation pattern.

2) Monopole Antennas

Monopole antenna is a little, omnidirectional, quarter-frequency antenna. They are ordinarily introduced inside a gadget. However, they can likewise be outside.

Uses for Monopole Antennas

When you desire a modest, narrowband, outer antenna and there is no room for a dipole antenna because of the antenna dimension limitations, use monopole antennas. A more exquisite arrangement is the PIFA, which can be made a lot smaller than the monopole and all the more precise. Yet to the detriment of a mutilated omnidirectional radiation design. One of the well-known applications for PIFAs today is cellular devices. The PIFA is difficult to produce and promotes great proficiency and transmission capacity in a little structure factor. Wearables regularly utilize an IFA or PIFA too. Readymade remote gadgets frequently use IFAs scratched onto the PCB because of their minimal effort.

3) Loop Antennas

Little loop antennas are omnidirectional. However, as the loop gets greater (width approaches one frequency), it gets bidirectional. Loop antennas will consistently be bigger than monopole or dipoles antennas to accomplish a similar radiation proficiency, so they are not as regular for remote inserted gadgets.

Uses for Loop Antennas

Wearables, for example, practice trackers and implantable gadgets, are basic applications for circle antennas. For instance, an antenna embedded close to the heart would have much more degradation in performance with an electric close to handle antennae, for example, a monopole or dipole antenna, than a loop antenna near a magnetic field.

4) Helical Antennas

Basically minuscule monopole antennas that are twisted in a helix structure. Think of taking a bit of leading wire that goes straight up and twisting it around a bobbin to decrease its general stature. The general length is fundamentally the same as a standard monopole antenna.

Uses for Helical Antennas

The exceptionally reduced size of the helical antenna makes them helpful for telephonic hardware. They are usually utilized for gear that works on lower recurrence groups, including HF, VHF, and UHF groups. For instance, a 433 MHz monopole antenna would belong; because numerous gadgets are a lot more modest than this, a helical antenna is utilized to accomplish great antenna proficiency and almost 50 OF impedance in a little structure factor.

5) Patch Antennas

Patch antennas are directional, which implies your application should have view interchanges between gadgets for best execution: Device A will converse with Device B, and they are constantly arranged so the patch antenna on the gadgets faces each other, having the knowledge where the gadgets will consistently be, there is no requirement for omnidirectional transmission.

Uses for Patch Antennas

Patch antennas are extremely helpful when you have an immediate view between the transmitter and beneficiary, and the necessary transfer speed is negligible (low information rates). GPS correspondences are one model, as they utilize satellites, and you realize they are constantly situated in the sky and utilize a low information rate. A patch is best suited for tracking automobiles since it is low profile and cheap, and when you position it above the vehicle, all the energy is engaged where you need it.

6) Slot Antennas

Slot antennas generally include a PCB or a sheet of conductive material. The slots radiate along these lines to dipole antennas and are half frequency, yet have the contrary polarization of the dipole. They are proficient antennas and have a bi-directional radiation design. It is anything but difficult to accomplish a unidirectional frequency design by walling off a fenced metal area.

Uses for Slot Antennas

Slot antennas are exceptionally valuable for walled areas like metal-enclosed devices where an outside antenna is not feasible. Normal applications remember route frameworks for maritime vessels and planes where outside antennas are at ecological danger.

• Significant boundaries to pick an Antennae for your IoT
• Shape and size of the antenna
• To check Mounting choice, regardless of whether it is RF connector mount, or PCB mount and so forth
• Frequency of activity
• Area to be covered
• Omni-directional or directional activity
• Cost of Antenna
• Gain of Antenna
• Antenna Manufacturers

Conclusion

Different standard antennas intended for frequencies of IoT applications, and are viable with the different size and power limitations that apply to normal IoT endpoints, are present. Effectively Installing an antenna is certifiably not about to plug and play and requires cautious choice, attention with the knowledge of different parts in the framework, including the nook, and tweaking of the antenna feed and situating.

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Coinciding with last World Internet Day, Cisco released its latest report on the role technologies play in creating a more balanced and equitable connected world. In this report, important conclusions were collected, such as the estimate that, in 2023, there will be a quantity close to 24,000 million devices connected to the internet.

While it is true that the figure is below other estimates made in previous years, it is still an overwhelming number that helps us understand the potential of connected things and the technological, business, economic and social paradigm towards which we are heading.

Irremediably, when talking about millions of connected devices, a concept emerges that, due to its characteristics and functionalities, takes on special relevance: the Internet of Things.

Considered as one of the most important technologies of the 21st century, it could be said, in very simple terms, that it is the internet connection of all kinds of physical and everyday objects. However, this is only the simplification of a technology that hides much more and whose effects are being more than remarkable.

Concept Of Internet Of Things

IoT involves the interconnection of objects and all kinds of physical devices that receive and transfer data through wireless networks without the need for human supervision. The fundamental basis of this concept is to integrate into these devices a series of components and sensors designed for a multitude of purposes, which would provide them with the necessary capabilities to collect, send, receive and analyze data in a constant way, forming a feedback cycle.

Thanks to low-cost computing, especially in terms of hardware and sensors, mobile and telecommunications technologies, cloud services, big data and data analytics, the physical objects that, probably until not long ago They were disconnected, today they are able to collect and process data with minimal human intervention, which enables applications of all kinds.

On the other hand, the Internet of Things is generally considered to be an independent technology, although the truth is that its impetus is given, among other factors, by the advances made in many other technologies:

• Low-cost sensors and devices and very low energy requirements, essential for the creation of networks and their maintenance.
• Cloud Computing and, in general, all the integrated services in the cloud that allow companies and users to access a solid and effective technological infrastructure without the need for comprehensive management.
• Edge Computing, similar to the concept of distributed cloud computing, but which brings processes and data storage closer to the location where it is needed, which substantially improves latency and saves bandwidth.
• Advanced connectivity services, with specific network protocols that guarantee fast and efficient data transmission.
• Data science and technologies based on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, which allow companies to make business decisions based on data. The data generated by the Internet of Things itself also feed into these technologies.
  
  On the other hand, it is convenient to differentiate Internet of Things from M2M systems, with which it has certain similarities, but which are based on different concepts. Machine to Machine (M2M), refers to the technology that allows the exchange of data information between machines that are on the same network.
  
  These machines, which can be any electronic device (from an industrial motor to a vending machine) communicate autonomously without the need for human supervision. It is usually a method used for remote inspection and control of the machines themselves and the network environment in which they are located.
  
  However, while this term may resemble that of IoT, they are not synonyms or identical technologies. Both solutions offer different advantages and are designed for specific and specific environments.
  
  Its application varies depending on the protocols used to make the connections, depending on the objects you want to connect, depending on the type of deployment initially proposed and adjusting to the kinds of data that are collected and the use that will be made of them later.
  
  Within the IoT concept itself, it would also be convenient to differentiate between its more generic or common applications, those that are focused on offering services to the final consumer, from those aimed at the industrial sectors. In fact, within this context, IIoT, or Industrial Internet of Things, is often spoken of, due to the weight and importance that this vertical has obtained in recent years.
  
  In industrial environments, the application of the Internet of Things is usually considered as an especially effective solution when it comes to capturing and communicating data in real-time. Additionally, companies often apply IoT to more quickly detect incidents and problems, to save time and costs, and to improve processes.
  
  Improvements in energy efficiency are also often reported, just in time production is made possible and the predictive maintenance of machinery becomes especially relevant.
  
  The new layers of automation that are generated allow not only an improvement in certain processes but the implementation of new business models that were previously not viable. Thanks to smart manufacturing, smart power grids, digitized supply chains or improvements in the field of logistics, new opportunities arise to create and distribute more and better products.

Manufacturing in general, and industries such as automotive, transport and logistics, and the consumer and retail sectors, have seen their capabilities enhanced in recent years thanks to applying IoT solutions in their business processes.

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Vodafone: Leading One Which Is Using IoT Better

In this context, Vodafone, through its telecommunications structure, stands out among the companies that promote the incorporation of IoT in more companies and public administrations. Therefore, it is not surprising that it ranks second in Spain, within this category, reaching 2,129,000 connections in 2018.

Considering this, throughout this article, we will review how part of the named sectors introduce Internet of Things solutions to their procedures. Likewise, we will talk about the tools and IoT platforms that Vodafone offers, including success stories in its applications.

Transportation: A Pioneering Sector In Incorporating The Internet Of Things

Certainly, the transport was one of the first sectors to incorporate the Internet of Things, to track the journey of cargo vehicles. Currently, Vodafone Automotive stands out among the IoT solutions for this purpose. In summary, it is a telematics platform for route management and improving the maintenance of the vehicle fleet.

The Internet Of Things In Factories

At this point, it’s fair to mention the scopes of corporations like Cisco, which provides RFID tags and many other Internet of Things systems. Through these, leading companies like Black & Decker do an impeccable follow-up of their tools in the plant. Consequently, they can determine the location, operating status, and maintenance needs of such devices.

IoT In Internet Banking & Finance

The focus of digital transformation must always be on customer satisfaction. Obviously, companies in the banking sector that bet on the Internet of Things are very clear about it.

Hence, the utility of recognition devices such as the beacon, a system that identifies the user who has the bank’s app installed on their mobile and enters a branch. In this case, one of the operators can go ahead to receive the customer and provide personalized attention.

However, payments represent the area in which more progress is registered with the use of IoT. In fact, it is already possible to pay with wearables such as smartwatches and contactless bracelets. Furthermore, payment with biometric devices already has a long way to go.

Internet Of Things: An Ally For Agriculture

Virtually Vodafone’s solutions on the Internet of Things and its connected telecommunication platforms adapt to all production areas. In this sense, the multinational provides the agricultural sector with climate, humidity and soil condition sensors. To make matters worse, it also has devices that detect diseases in plants individually.

At the same time, the data obtained in the field are stored in the cloud and contrasted with satellite images. With all this, the producer and his collaborators can control large areas of crops and quickly attend to any incident at specific points.

Of course, there are still more business areas that benefit from the Internet of Things. Surely, your business belongs to one of them.

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Even other sources double the mentioned figures and there is surely a general consensus that IoT will become one of the technological phenomena of the next decade, with applications in multiple disciplines; from risk reduction to operational improvement or development of new advanced products and services, which also provide confidence to customers.

Its presence will also be visible in multiple sectors, from service or customer service companies to multiple industries, public services, administration, in all types of shops or financial entities, where the data thrown by sensors and connected terminals can be used commercial, for surveillance tasks, better knowledge of customers, air quality control, good use of energy resources or traffic control, among many other possibilities.

Give intelligence to the most everyday things; From the home automation of our house to the robots that we will use at work or the sensors of any car, public lighting or cleaning services, it will take us one day to control everything via this technology backed by the Internet and wireless technology.

It is true that current communication networks must evolve towards the next 5G mobile protocol, due to obvious needs for coverage and benefits superior to those of current mobile technologies. In addition, telecommunications operators must bet on it, just as they once did with 4G and the most powerful smartphones to transmit video in real-time, when SMS was hardly used.

That scenario is closer than ever and most specialists consider that the Tokyo Olympics next summer are the true starting gun for the new mobile generation, which will give life to the most modern developments in the Internet of Things and that later It will generate hundreds of custom applications for each circumstance and development environment.

We will see in a few months a multitude of new initiatives in this field, which provide a connection to very different objects, so that their remote management is possible, at all times and from anywhere.

It will be then that this technology, emerged in MIT laboratories at the beginning of the century, will provoke a great wave of development of projects and products that, with a simple radio tag, can be remotely controlled to make our lives much easier and more productive.

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When it comes to explaining what the IoT (Internet of Things) is, one tends to summarize that it is about turning everyday objects into sources of information that are connected to the network. Taken into the business world, it can be from sensors in production silos, that warn us of the level of a certain raw material and that allows automatic orders to be made for certain levels from an intelligent system, or the GPS itself incorporated in smartphones that allows registering the delivery routes and to plan more efficient routes.

When Did The IoT Really Emerge? How Does It Affect Us In The Present And Future?

Being this the origin, the definition of the IoT concept can be specified in a collection of unlimited objects permanently connected in a digital scenario that aspire to make everything smart by managing large amounts of information.

And here Big Data comes into play, ultimately focused on people. The purpose of the IoT is to focus on both personal and social utility. Therefore, this trend will mean the focus on the person seeking the maximum customization without losing sight of the possibilities for social or business progress.

The extent to which the IoT can affect us today is the ability to list everyday objects from the personal, or work, environment that we can turn into connected data sources.

Therefore, the IoT journey is still a long way to go and to exploit for the benefit of the information that can be processed. With more objects interconnected at work and home, more information will be flowing from these simple systems into large databases, where correlations can be made and decisions made.

The main field of current development and application of the IoT has to do with the incipient development of SmartCities. The use and transformation of the elements of a city into information collectors is leading to the use of massive data management platforms for decision-making at the government level.

Therefore, the future of the IoT, beyond the technological possibilities that it allows and the creation of this new market, will, in turn, be a driver of all kinds of sectors, at an industrial, professional level or in the Smart City environment mentioned.

The main advantage is that these data receivers and transmitters can become more and more intelligent and even be able to make decisions for themselves. What is not subject to creativity and human judgment will be replaced. We are talking about great changes that we will see soon, so much so, that in the next generation it will already be totally transformed.

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More and more machines and systems are connected to the internet. This gives companies access to a lot of data that should serve as the basis for digital business models. Before that, it is important to collect and analyze the data. In view of the increasing data volume, a complete evaluation in the cloud is neither sensible nor practical: The technically related latency times make real-time evaluations impossible, while the increasing amount of data takes up enormous computing capacities. Processing data where it is created, i.e. on the edge of the network, is becoming increasingly important in view of these developments.

Edge Computing – The Answer To Growing Amounts Of Data

With this technology, known as “ edge computing ”, a pre-evaluation takes place in the machine or system that generates the data. Only the results obtained are forwarded to the higher-level IoT platform. Edge computing is particularly suitable for application scenarios with high latency sensitivity, such as M2M communication.

For on-site data processing, and IoT gateway with the appropriate computing capacity is required, such as that offered by the Endian 4i Edge X. With such an edge device, rules can be defined when a transfer to the IoT platform should take place: either after a local evaluation on-site or if a certain limit value is exceeded or fallen below.

The most important basis for data-based business models is the absolute correctness of the data. Wrong data inevitably leads to wrong decisions. It is therefore important to protect the machine data from theft and manipulation, both during processing and storage in the edge device and during transmission to the cloud. For edge computing, only IoT gateways that are equipped with coordinated security technologies, such as a firewall, anti-virus software, and an intrusion detection system (IDS), are suitable. It is also important to encrypt the data during transmission, from end to end.

The storage capacity of an IoT gateway makes a further contribution to data security: If the internet connection is interrupted and data transmission to the cloud is not possible, the gateway offers the option of temporarily buffering the data locally so that it can then be sent to the IoT platform transmitted when the internet connection is available again. Analyzes are therefore based on consistent data records.

Container Technologies For More Flexibility

If data processing takes place on the edge of the network, the appropriate applications should also be executable there. With container technologies, such as Docker, applications can be put together flexibly and used in a wide variety of environments.

For example, Node-Red: With this programming software, logical sequences can be defined. If a branch has created a logic for data processing via Node-Red, the company may also want to use it on other, globally distributed production facilities. Using container technologies, these applications can easily be transferred to a variety of different machines. This is why container technologies are particularly interesting for system integrators who support industrial companies in Industry 4.0 projects.

Containers are independent of an operating system and consist of several layers. Depending on the host environment, each layer reloads the components that are necessary for the execution. For this reason, containers consume far less computing capacity than virtual machines and at the same time ensure maximum flexibility: If globally distributed branches use different operating systems to monitor their production systems, the application can still be used equally in all branches via containerization.

Cloud And IoT Platforms

If machines and systems are securely networked and the appropriate applications for data preprocessing are installed, the results of the local data analyzes can be transferred to the IoT platform. Here the results of the pre-evaluations are brought together and processed. Supplemented by other factors, such as the outside temperature, the data collected enables conclusions to be drawn about the optimal operating conditions of a machine.

The more decentralized the network structure, the more important a two-way connection to the cloud. The security of the edge devices can only be guaranteed with centrally organized remote maintenance: The permanent connection of an IoT gateway to the Internet or the cloud enables the timely import of security patches. This is a central point for IT security because any type of security software only reliably protects against cyber threats if it is always kept up to date.

Conclusion: In the future, the right mix of edge and cloud computing as well as container technologies will be the key to more agility in the digitized industry and thus the basis for future-proof concepts in the Industry 4.0 environment.

Also Read: Edge Computing Makes IIoT Mountains Of Data Manageable

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Everyone wants to mine it – the gold of the 21st century; using sensors, actuators or other IoT technologies. Also the many medium-sized companies that cannot start their journey on the green field. The problem: The data is processed in the cloud. For many IoT applications, however, the transport there takes too long or costs too much due to the large amount of data or poor network connection.

We have known for a long time that it is not possible to process unlimited amounts of data even in the computer cloud. This results in great difficulties for the required IoT data exchange between the automation level and the cloud. All too often, added values ​​are generated from the transmission and processing of real-time data or through the integration of sensors. Some examples of this are gripper modules, valve terminals with feedback, aggregates on machine tools, intelligent valve heads with additional logic or proportional control valves. Metadata that is rarely transmitted provides valuable information, for example why certain components have failed. They are therefore the basis for the development of IoT applications such as predictive maintenance or condition monitoring.

Also Read: Internet of Things (IoT) – Revolution Of IoT In Modern World

Endstation Latency

In these scenarios, latency is not just a disruptive factor, but an exclusion criterion. In addition, it can be assumed that the amount of data will become even larger in the future due to the increasing use of more data-intensive sensors, such as vibration or image sensors. The solution? Local temporary storage as well as aggregation and application of further algorithms to send the data already prepared for information to the cloud.

This is exactly the role of edge computing. Put simply, it moves data processing closer to the source or the production process and only forwards pre-filtered data in the required form. If the Edge Gateway comes from the operator, data sovereignty is also guaranteed at all times and the industrial IoT platforms, which are usually billed according to data rate, are used efficiently. In this way, edge computing not only speeds up the transport and processing of data in the cloud. It also reduces the risk of confidential data being disclosed. Because the local use of computing power also puts companies in a position to better control the distribution of information (such as trade secrets) or to be able to comply with guidelines (such as the GDPR).

Last but not least, companies in rural regions can benefit from these advantages. Many of them still do not have an adequate network connection – cloud computing is simply not possible for many. By moving data processing to a decentralized edge infrastructure – i.e. to the edge of the Internet – you save valuable bandwidth that can be used for just that.

That Speaks For Edge Computing

• Accelerate data transfer and processing in the cloud
• Improved controllability of confidential data
• Minimize load times
• Minimize latency
• Limitation of transmission delays and service failures
• Bypassing bandwidth restrictions
• Enabling real-time monitoring and services
• Reduction of network costs

Decentralized Data Processing

Data collection from existing systems, excessive latency, lack of bandwidth – medium-sized companies, in particular, have to face a number of hurdles on the way to IIoT. Edge computing solves these challenges by having a company share a pool of resources across multiple locations.

Also Read: Top 10 Artificial Intelligence Technologies In 2020

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