Classroom Companion: Business

2.4 · Internet of Things

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Consumer applications include smart home applications, elder care, and medi-
cal supervision managed by the users. Smart home applications may include wire-
less communication with light switches and appliances and remote control of air 
conditioning and security systems using smartphones. Assistance services includes 
voice-controlled devices (e.g., light switches and door openers), medical monitor-
ing, activity monitoring, and other services making life easier for elderly and dis-
abled people.
Commercial applications include smart health care, building and home automa-
tion, and smart transport systems. These applications are based on a mix of device- 
to- 
platform communication and autonomous communication between devices. 
Smart health care comprises technologies for monitoring of patients both at home 
and in hospitals. Examples are remote reading of measuring devices (e.g., blood 
pressure and heart rate monitors), monitoring and actuating implants such as 
pacemakers and insulin pumps, and supervising patients with chronic diseases and 
elderly people. Aruba estimates that IoT technology in health care will increase the 
workforce productivity and reduce the cost of health care by more than 50% (State 
of IoT Healthcare, 
2019
).
Building and home automation include safety alarms, energy saving, comfort, 
and occupancy monitoring (e.g., reducing heating if no one is at home).
Examples of smart transport systems are communication between vehicles, 
between vehicles and road infrastructure, smart parking, toll collection systems, 
fleet management, and road assistance (e.g., automatic accident alarm generated 
automatically by the vehicle). One application that has taken off at an unexpected 
rate is renting of electric kick scooters. The autonomous system combines services 
such as location management, payment, and status reporting.
Industrial applications facilitate the evolution of existing industrial automation 
using big data, AI, robotics, and autonomous interactions between devices, 
machines, control systems, and management systems at a much larger scale than 
today. Networked sensors and complex algorithms analyzing and acting upon real- 
time measurements will improve safety management, increase process efficiency, 
reduce waste of time and resources, and admit real-time plant optimization. This 
is often referred to as Industry 4.0 or the Fourth Industrial Revolution.
Infrastructure applications are management and control of infrastructures such 
as freshwater and sewage systems, railway tracks, roads, tunnels, bridges, energy 
production and delivery networks, and so on. The category also includes environ-
mental monitoring of, for example, air pollution, freshwater quality, wildlife habi-
tats, and soil conditions. IoT may also support smooth coordination between 
authorities (political, technical, and managerial) since the management of a par-
ticular infrastructures often involves several authorities.
Military applications include technologies for surveillance, reconnaissance, and 
battlefield operations.
Several technologies support IoT networking. These are short-range applica-
tions such as Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, Zigbee, and Z-Wave; medium range systems using 
5G mobile networks; long range radio communication using ultralow bit rates 
(e.g., 300 bits per second); satellite networks, in particular, satellite terminals with 
small antennas (VSAT); and wired systems such as Ethernet, cable networks, and