With the potential to knit the digital transformation across products and processes, can IoT beget seamless customer experience too? Here’s a study on IoT platforms, and tools!
Internet of Things (IoT) architecture is a network system that includes sensors, actuators, cloud service protocols, interrelated computing devices, and architecture layers stacked in a sequence to communicate intelligently without human-to-human, or human-computer intervention. These different layers let administrators evaluate, monitor, and maintain system consistency. From self-driving drones that deliver your grocery to the sensors in your clothing that monitor your health, IoT has paced up and down in various walks of life.
Table of Contents
IoT Architecture consists of four layers:
1) Application Layer (Sensors and Actuators) – Smart Applications
2) Data Processing Layer (Gateways and Data Acquisition Systems) – Process Information
3) Network Layer (Edge IT Data Processing) – Data Transmission
4) Sensing Layer (Datacenter and Cloud) – Data Gathering
All these layers ensure that the IoT Architecture is fully functional, available, scalable, and maintainable.
By now, we know that IoT is a giant network of devices/tools interconnected to share data.
What are IoT Tools?
Tools are the pieces of equipment/drivers that crusade a network by exchanging data between nodes. Users remotely control these devices over the network. Top IoT devices include (1) Tessel 2, (2) Eclipse IoT, (3) Arduino, (4) Platform IoT, (5) M2M Labs Mainspring, (6) Kinoma, (7) Device – Hive, (8) Kaax, (9) Flutter, (10) M2MLabs Mainspring, (11) Raspberry Pi OS (ex. Raspbian), (12) Node-RED, (13) Eclipse IoT, (14) SiteWhere, (15) Home Assistant, (16) OpenRemote, (17) ThingsBoard, (18) Milesight DeviceHub, (19) Zetta.
IoT Device Examples
| ● Biochip transponder,
● Built-in sensors, ● Smart microwaves, ● Self-driving cars, ● Fitness devices, ● Connected footballs, ● Autonomous vehicles (farming equipment, warehouse autonomous robots, passenger buses) ● Logistics tracking systems (GPS trackers, fuel level sensors, alert systems to monitor driver behaviour) ● Smart factory equipment (robotics, predictive maintenance solutions) |
● Smart home systems (security devices, heating, intelligent lighting, connected home appliances),
● Wearable health devices (Pulse oximeters, glucometers, sphygmomanometer), ● Connected cars, ● Smart cities, IoT in agriculture, ● Smart retail, ● IoT in healthcare, ● Industrial Internet, ● Smart Grids, ● IoT in Poultry and Farming |
What Is an IoT Platform?
An Internet of things platform stitches the gap between what is real (physical world) and what is possible (actionable insights). It consists of a set of components that allows developers to establish connectivity amongst their devices, irrespective of their geographical location via IoT tools like sensors, and actuators.
Examples: IoT platforms can be
- Hardware – Microcontrollers, microprocessors, Systems on Chip (SoC), Systems on Module (SoM)
- Software – Integrated development environment (IDE)
- Communication technologies – MQTT, DDS, AMQP, Bluetooth, ZigBee, WiFi, Cellular, LoRaWAN etc.
- Central cloud repository – Analytics platforms
- End-user application – Data management and visualization
3 Most Popular IoT Platforms in 2022 – 23
We’re discussing three platforms for Internet of things development here:
- Google Cloud IoT – It integrates multiple services that accentuate the connected solution. Such services include – Cloud Internet of things Core, Cloud Pub/Sub, Google BigQuery, AI Platform, Google Data Studio, and Google Maps Platform. This platform automatically assimilates with Internet of things hardware like hardware and Microchip and various OS like Debian Linux OS. It helps in predictive maintenance, real-time asset tracking, logistics and supply chain management, and location tracking in smart buildings.
- Cisco Internet of things Cloud Connect – It is an Internet of things solution for mobile operators. It provides reliable hardware including switches, routers, access points, and gateways to control connected cars, telematics, connected city, connected transportation, Fleet management, Home security and automation, POS Payment solutions, Smart meters, Predictive maintenance, Healthcare, and Industrial networking. Cisco Internet of things Products and Solutions include – (1) Cisco IoT Control Center, (2) Extended Enterprise Solution, (3) Edge Intelligence, (4) Industrial Asset Vision, and (5) Cisco IoT Threat Defense.
- Salesforce IoT Cloud – It synchronizes with connected assets in Salesforce CRM to initiate context-based actions. It has a user-friendly interface where no programming is needed. It is compatible with third-party websites, and services and is therefore used in government administration, machinery, financial services, marketing, advertising, and chemical engineering.
More IoT Platforms To Consider
Salesforce Internet of things Cloud, IRI Voracity, Particle, IBM Watson Internet of things, ThingWorx, Amazon AWS IoT Core, Microsoft Azure IoT Hub, and Oracle IoT.
How to Choose the Best IoT Platform?
This answer will always vary with the upcoming advancements, the context in which it is used, and the specific requirements of a business. Smaller companies will look towards bigger counterparts, and enterprises will turn toward humongous organizations like Amazon, Salesforce, Google, and Microsoft. Still, the choice can be based on the capabilities of the platform, trends in the market, competitor offerings, and the provider’s reputation.
10 Most Popular IoT Tools and Devices in 2022 – 23
Arduino – It offers multiple hardware including microcontroller boards, shields, kits, modules, home automation tools, and robotics. Examples of Arduino tools – are Arduino IDE, Arduino Cloud, Internet of things Cloud Remote, and Web Editor.
Flutter – It is a programmable processor core with a powerful ARM processor, built-in battery charging and security chip. It features a long-range wireless transmitter for wireless networks of sensors. It also comes with a basic control module, pro control module, accessory boards, Bluetooth adapter, remote control, explorer, quick start kit, vehicle control kit, solar panel, cylindrical battery, and 3D printed parts for your device.
Kinoma – It is a series of software and hardware products for embedded solutions and Internet of Things solutions. It features Kinoma Create, Kinoma Studio, and Kinoma Connect.
Tessel 2 – It is a programmable microcontroller that supports Javascript, and Node.js libraries and runs on Linux. It is a robotics development platform that leverages Node.js to create useful devices in minutes. It provides access to many NPM modules with its capabilities. It can be extended by external hardware, sensors and peripherals. It offers Wi-Fi and Ethernet connectivity, MediaTek Router, and command line tools to simplify prototyping.
M2MLabs Mainspring – This platform is based on Java, Apache Cassandra, and No SQL Database. It is open-source and features flexible device modelling, device configuration, validation and normalization of data, communication between devices and applications, long-term data storage and data retrieval functions. It is widely used for fleet management and remote monitoring. It ensures long-term data storage due to the scalability of Apache Cassandra.
Raspberry Pi OS – It is a cost-effective, credit card-sized computer that makes use of a standard keyboard and mouse, can be connected with a TV using an HDMI port, and can run on a host of operating systems like Raspbian (Debian Linux), Internet of things Core, Android, Windows 10, etc.
Node-RED – It is a user-friendly visual interface that is lightweight and allows the creation of workflows for Internet of things scenarios. It interconnects internet-enabled devices, for the web, API and services. It is stored using JSON and can be imported and exported with ease. It comes with repositories, and interfaces to connect MQTT, logic sets and format parsers. This tool can be extended by integrating it with cloud platforms like IBM, AWS, Azure or any third-party systems.
More Top IoT Tools to Explore
Eclipse IoT, SiteWhere, DeviceHive, Home Assistant, OpenRemote, ThingsBoard, Milesight, DeviceHub, and Zetta.
How to choose the best tool for your IoT infrastructure?
Goldman Sachs thinks that “The Internet of things (IoT) will be the third wave in the evolution of Internet. It has the potential to connect 10 times and more.” IoT Development Companies with better resources at their disposal like IoT technology, devices, ecosystem, communication protocol, services, software, and analytics have more chances of scaling up and faring well amongst the competition. This article is not comprehensive, and more significant platforms and tools are available in IoT. These resources will ease up your project customization.
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