Policy Brief:
The Internet of Things
December 2018
www.Aii.org | The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure | !1
Policy Update: Internet of Things (IoT)
What is the IoT? TheInternetofThings(IoT)isatermthatmeansjustthat,thingsconnectedtotheInternet.Anydevicewithanon-and-offswitchthatisconnectedtotheInternetisapartoftheIoT. Refrigerators,1
watches,headphones,coffeemakers,lamps,doorlocks,andmuchmore,allconnectedbytheInternet,communicatingandsharingdatainanattempttomakeyourlifeeasier,moreefCicient,andmorecosteffective.Inshort,theIoTfulCillsthepromisethe20thCenturymadeaboutwhatlifecouldbelikeinthefuture.
When will the IoT arrive? It’slargelyalreadyhere,butnotnearlyasimpactfulasitwillbeinthenearfuture.Currently,thereareabout6.4billionconnecteddevicesworldwide. Butby2020,estimates2
suggestthat21billiondeviceswillbeInternetconnected. 3
Why is the IoT taking off? Simply,smarterandmoreconnecteddeviceswillmakelifeandworkeasier.TheIoTwillstreamlinedailyactivitiesandreducethedrudgeriesassociatedwithdailyoflife.Homeandworkoperationswill
Morgan, Jacob. A Simple Explanation of ‘The Internet of Things,’ https://www.forbes.com/sites/jacobmorgan/1
2014/05/13/simple-explanation-internet-things-that-anyone-can-understand/#223221e81d09, (May 13, 2014). Nunez, Michael. What is 5G and How Will It Make My Life Better?, https://gizmodo.com/what-is-5g-and-how-will-2
it-make-my-life-better-1760847799, (February 24, 2016).
Ibid.3
www.Aii.org | The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure | !2
becomemoreefCicientasdeviceswillknowhowtooptimizeenergyandtimeusagewhilekeepingitsuserhappy.Additionally,technologycostsaregoingdown,moredevicesarebeingcreatedwithWi-Ficapabilities,andbroadbandInternetisbecomingmorewidelyavailablethaneverbefore. Plus,early4
deploymentofultra-fast5GwirelessInternetnetworkswillhelpaccommodatebillionsofadditionaldeviceswithoutstressingalreadysubscribedandslowernetwork. In5
short,weareontheprecipiceofanIoTboom.
How is the IoT currently being used? Today,theIoTcreatesanetworkofsmartdevicesthatspeaktoeachother(andtoyou)tocoordinatetheiractivitiesinthehopesofmakingyourlifeandworkeasier,moreefCicient,andcosteffective. 6Byconnectingthesedevicestoeachotherandcreatingasmartnetwork,itbecomespossibletogatherinformation,analyzeit,andcreateanactiontohelpauserwitha
particulartask. Thefollowingare7
butafewexamplesofthetasksbeingcarriedoutbytheIoTtoday:
HomeandOf+ice:Smartthermostatslearntheusers'schedulesandprogramthemselvestoheatandcoolhomesandofCicestooptimaltemperaturesatoptimaltimes.Theycanevenopenandshutblindstomaximizenaturalsolarheating. HomesandofCicescanalsobeoperatedremotelyallowingtheoccupanttocontrolsecurity,climate,appliance,lighting,andhometheatreequipmentfromadifferentroom,oradifferentcountry. 8
Cities:StoplightsareembeddedwithsensorsthatcanadjusttrafCiclightsaccordingtowherecarsareandthetimeofdaytominimizetrafCicandstoplightidling. Solar-poweredgarbagecanscancrush
See Morgan, supra.4
Ibid.5
Meola, Andrew. What is the Internet of Things (IoT)?, http://www.businessinsider.com/what-is-the-internet-of-6
things-definition-2016-8, (December 19, 2016).
Burgess, Matt. What is the Internet of Things?, http://www.wired.co.uk/article/internet-of-things-what-is-explained-7
iot, (April 21, 2017).
Scott, Alec. 8 ways the Internet of things will change the way we live and work, https://beta.theglobeandmail.com/8
report-on-business/rob-magazine/the-future-is-smart/article24586994/?ref=http://www.theglobeandmail.com&, (accessed September 26, 2017); Rouse, Margaret. Smart home or building, http://internetofthingsagenda.techtarget.com/definition/smart-home-or-building, (accessed September 26, 2017).
www.Aii.org | The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure | !3
By 2020, estimates suggest that 21 billion devices will be Internet connected
wasteandsendamessagetoadispatcherrequestingpickupwhenthey’refull. 9
Manufacturing:ManufacturersareusingtechnologytopinpointbottlenecksonthefactoryClooranddivertresourcesaccordinglytooptimizetheproductionprocesssoasnottowastetime. 10
Vehicles:SomevehiclesareequippedwithautopilotthatcandirectacarthroughvaryingdegreesoftrafCic,canparallelpark,andcanreadpostedspeedlimitsignstowarndriverstoslowdown. 11
HealthCare:TheInternetofMedicalThingsincludesremotepatientmonitoringandpersonaldeviceslikesmartwatches,whichmeasureheartrate,sleeppatterns,diet,exercise,andthenbeamthatdatatomobileapps.Theseappsprocessthedataandoffersuggestionstohelpyoumakehealthylifechoices. 12
Energy:Windturbinescansensewinddirectionandcannotifyotherturbinesonthefarmwhichangletopositionthemselvestomaximizeenergyproduction. 13
Agriculture:Smartmachinescanplow,sow,reap,andcollectlargeswathsofdataaboutairandsoiltemperatures,moisture,windspeed,humidity,solarradiation,andrainfallandadjustthefarmingprocessaccordingly. 14
What does the future of IoT look like? ThefutureofIoTwillcomeintheformofgreaterconnectivity.Moreandmoredeviceswillgoonlineandmoreandmoredeviceswillspeaktoeachother,coordinate,andbecomeincreasinglyproactive. Youralarmclockwillwakeyou15
upat7a.m.andwilltellyourcoffeemakertostartbrewingcoffeeforyoustrong,thewayyoulikeitwhenyouhaveabigmeetinginthemorning,whichitknowsbecauseyourdigitalcalendartolditso.
Thecalendaralsotoldyourcartobereadyat8a.m.andhavetheheaterrunning,becausetheweatherappsaiditwouldbechilly.Unfortunately,youwererunninglate.
See Scott, supra.9
Ibid.10
Ibid.11
Ibid; Rouse, Margaret. IoMT (Internet of Medical Things) or healthcare IoT, http://12
internetofthingsagenda.techtarget.com/definition/IoMT-Internet-of-Medical-Things, (accessed September 26, 2017).
See Scott, supra.13
Ibid.14
See Morgan, supra.15
www.Aii.org | The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure | !4
Butluckily,yourcartextedthepersonwithwhomyouweremeetingnotifyingherofthat.Onceatwork,yourwearabledeviceswilltellyouwhenandwhereintheofCiceyouweremostproductiveandsendtheinfotoyourdayplannerwhichwillcreateascheduletohelpyoufurtheroptimizeyourtimeandenergy.
WehearalotabouttheInternetofThings.That’sbecauseit’shuge,andit’scomingtoafridgenearyou.
The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure (Aii) consists of two non-profit organizations, The National Infrastructure Safety Foundation (NISF) a 501(c)(4), and the Public Institute for Facility Safety (PIFS) a 501(c)(3). The Foundation and the Institute focus on non-partisan policy issues and are governed by separate volunteer boards working in conjunction with the Alliance’s own volunteer Advisory Council.
www.Aii.org | The Alliance for Innovation and Infrastructure | !5
Top Related