Internet of things is something we all have been dreaming of. Something strange and alien which descends from distant galaxy and set on earth. Of course kidding here, nothing of such but we may not have been familiar with the term but we use them on daily basis now. There are lot of new devices which connect to the internet which make our life lot more easier, connected and of course lot cooler!
What is IoT?
There are countless devices on the gamut, from the refrigerators to security cameras and so on. We as users of such device, who are capable of configuring such devices and command these devices over internet, collectively known as the Internet of Things (IoT). This field has evolved massively over time due to the wide array of new technology coming in time like powerful sensors, machine learning etc. Out in the market, Internet of things are commonly known based on the product and their category.
For instance, “smart home” is the term used for including technologies like lighting fixtures, thermostats, home security cameras, home security system etc. They often goes hand in hand with the ecosystem like smartphones, smart speakers etc.
The advent of IoT
One of the fun fact about Internet of things is, the concept of the whole IoT goes back in the early 1980s. A Coca-Cola vending machine from Carnegie Mellon University where this magic started. This vending machine was connected to a ARPANET, Advanced Research Project Agency Network, which was the kind of network used for research purpose. The cool thing was, this vending machine was able to report its own inventory as well as whether the newly loaded drinks were cold or not.
The types of IoT applications
The set of applications for these IoT devices if quite often categorized under – consumer, commercial, industrial and infrastructure spaces. A large amount of IoT are created for consumer use like home automation, wearable technology, vehicles, connected health and other appliances which can be remotely controlled and monitored.
A massive portion of IoT devices are for smart home. Which includes things like home automation, lighting, heating and air conditioning, media, security and camera systems. They can be can be extremely energy efficient by saving energy automatically by turning the lights and electronics off, can give you the usage of the electricity and electronics and this is just some of the useful benefits they provide.