How IoT will lead us into the Smart Future
Internet of Things (IoT) is a seamless and massive platform through which different types of devices can connect with each other over the Internet, enabling them to share and exchange information. The devices can vary in forms and functionality, and all they need is the ability to transmit and receive data over a network. Through this, they would be able to perform useful tasks on their own without any human intervention.
For instance, if you’re stuck in a traffic jam, the sensor in your car will be able to auto-detect it and inform your smartphone about it on its own. By making use of this information, your smartphone will be able to figure out that you’d be late to a pre-scheduled meeting with a particular client based on a message sent to it through your laptop.
Subsequently, it will send out a message to the client informing about the delay, and all of this happens automatically without you even having to press a single button. This is, perhaps, a simple demonstration of the power of IoT, because some of these devices are capable of performing a much more complex task on their own, which makes it such an interesting prospect.
As it can virtually connect almost every device in the world through the Internet, IoT is deemed to have a huge potential. Going ahead, here are some of the ways in which it will be able to lead us into the smart future.
Smart Factories
One of the sectors that would extract maximum benefits from IoT is the manufacturing industry. It’s because every factory comprises of multiple departments that have to work in tandem to produce the end-product. For instance, the warehouse has to keep track of every single piece of inventory that comes in and goes out. Similarly, the Production floor and the Packaging departments also have to follow a complex process of keeping track every single product that gets produced and packaged. In factories that produce a huge number of products in a day, tracking and accounting can be highly monotonous.
Here is where IoT has a huge scope and can help in making the process much simpler.
By deploying sensors to collect and store information of each piece of inventory and every finished product, factories can be converted into smart facilities. Additionally, by using predictive analytics and telematics in a device-to-cloud connectivity model, the manufacturing units can become much more efficient. It would not only help in maximizing the output but also lead to saving huge cost and resources.
Smart Dwellings
Our homes constitute a number of domestic appliances such as washing machine, refrigerator, microwave ovens, etc. Together they can form a functional network that would essentially turn our homes into smart homes and could completely change the way we live today. They would not only make our lives easier but will also reduce the unwanted wastage of energy, which will help in saving costs.
For instance, the motion sensor would be able to track our movement in the house and would inform about our presence in the room to lights, fans or AC. The lights will then switch off automatically when there’s no one in the room, which in turn will help in reducing the energy consumption. Similarly, when the door-locking system is enabled to be controlled using our smartphones, it would add to our security.
Smart Townships
IoT will have a huge impact on the connectivity within our cities and towns. By giving the ability to the devices that help in managing the traffic, street lights or vigilance cameras in public places, the cities and towns would get smarter and better. The adoption of sensor-based surveillance for elderly monitoring and virtual city navigation will be a huge advantage for both the city authorities and citizens. These connected devices and applications which will thus improve the urban living experience by helping in boosting infrastructure while also minimizing crime rate in the cities and towns.
In short, the IoT revolution will minimize the efforts that we have to put in doing trivial things that result in the wastage of our time. The smarter factories, homes, and cities, would also ensure massive savings in power and fuel while operating at an optimal level with minimal intervention from human beings.