By Ayan Bagchi and Marike Fourie- The “Internet” is considered one of the greatest inventions of mankind. Devices, till then completely isolated, got a complete system to connect with each other, irrespective of their location, enabling seamless information exchange, communication, and interaction.
Phase one of the internet largely connected PCs. Phase two brought “smartphones” into the global network. Phase three, which is a more recent phenomenon, is now bringing any device imaginable to this network. From watches, bulbs, streetlights, CCTV cameras, cars, drones, machines, and many other industrial, or consumer-facing devices can now be made “smart”, enabling data exchange and/or interaction & communication. This is being termed as the “Internet of Things” – or IoT for short – where “Things” can be anything or everything.
IoT solves several challenges so far thought to be impossible. It allows for improved Monitoring capabilities (of devices/machines), better decision-making (analysis of real-time data streaming from devices), and helps raise productivity and efficiencies. These advantages are driving widespread adoption and disruption across Verticals – Automotive, Logistics, Cities / Governance, Real Estate, Consumer, and many more. This is testified by the fact that from the current levels of ~20 Billion connected devices, it is being projected that by 2030 close to 50 billion devices would comprise the Global IOT network.
The IoT Architecture
Broadly, there are four layers underlying the IoT Solution Architecture. At the core is the Devices layer, which has devices powered with sensors (Bluetooth, Zigbee, RFID), emitting signals. The second layer is the IoT Gateway or Aggregation Layer, which is connected with devices in the Devices layer. The third layer is the Event Processing that interacts with the Gateway to process data streams from all the devices, received via the Gateway layer. The Event Processing Layer processes data streams by applying business rules, analyzing and transforming these. This is also connected with database(s) to store processed data in meaningful form(s). The final layer is the Application or Interface layer which manages how Users view this data, and how – if needed – this is integrated with other systems or modules.
IoT and Big Data
While each IoT implementation could have its own unique objective, but there is one that usually is the core of any Solution: Realtime Monitoring.
Disconnected and multitudes of devices, machines, vehicles, retail shelves, cameras, etc, create a huge challenge for businesses. How do you constantly monitor these, ensure they are performing optimally, understand exceptions, take proactive interventions, and more. Solving this in the context of IoT is a two-step process.
First, is the Dashboard(s) that help track all infrastructure and its key benchmarks in real-time. “Human experts” monitoring this data can then intervene when they see any exception(s). For example, a Dashboard monitoring a fleet of trucks could provide locations, speed, and overall trip duration, destination details of all trucks. Any variance from the established benchmark(s) for any of these parameters could trigger human intervention.
The second is to automate actions so that repeated human intervention is not needed. This implies, in the above context, in case of any established benchmark being missed, there are alerts triggered to Managers, or Drivers themselves.
Big Data is the core of any IoT solution. It has ideally to be real-time, with zero losses, the highest level of accuracy, zero-to-minimal processing latency, insightful dashboards, and meaningful automation design. Multiple different technologies come together and solve these requirements, ensuring we just don’t set up an IoT system, but also ensure that maximal advantages are derived which were set out to be met.
IoT Use-cases
There are hundreds of IoT use-cases across Verticals today, and many more being thought of every day. In Utilities, Smart Meters in power distribution ensure accurate, tamper-proof usage data and real-time updates of the same for efficient billing. IoT-based Water Pipeline Monitoring systems are being deployed to minimize losses due to leakages and Hydraulic failures.
In Manufacturing, IoT is being used to collect Production data, ensure different machines in an assembly line are working optimally, and efficiently run such small or large production units. Production, inventory monitoring, and planning, end-to-end logistics, to tracking sales – modern systems are integrating all disparate processes and bringing them under a centralized and transparent monitoring system.
Mining Industry also has several exciting IoT use-cases. Remote Managers at the HQ level can centrally monitor multiple mining sites. Smart Badges worn by miners can not just ensure the presence but also the security of employees working on sites. Logistics of mined material can also be centrally logged and monitored.
Conclusion
IoT is a truly transformative technology stack, combining several components coming together to potentially disrupt Industries and their underlying downstream/upstream processes.
As an organization, Reverside is currently focusing on modeling the asset value chain comprising of things – data, processes, and people with an IoT ecosystem. We believe that this will help organizations to facilitate reach, time to market as well as increase productivity and profitability. Our focus is on: Device-to-Device, Device-to-Cloud, Device-to-Gateway, and Back-End Data-Sharing.
We are currently focused on modeling different ways that IoT devices can connect and provide value to the user.
Market size: IoT Market in South Africa
IoT set to go mainstream in South Africa as barriers to entry fall.
The Middle East and Africa (MEA) IoT market is set to grow 15% year on year, reaching $6.99 billion in 2018 and $12.62 billion by 2022.
IoT is one of the many digital advances that is currently driving the 4th industrial revolution, therefore in line with South Africa’s vision (highlighted by President Cyril Ramaphosa); Reverside and Geeks4Learning, who are passionate about technology and people, are actively training South Africa’s youth in this area. We are confronting, head-on, the current 4IR skills gap within the industry and by doing so empowering the future ICT leaders with the right skills to face the future challenges and drive our nation forward. This will allow South Africa to remain competitive globally and able to contribute to the growing need for technological advancements around the globe.
Authors:
Ayan Bagchi from Reverside, 21 years of experience in South Africa and internationally driving large transformation projects
Marike Fourie from Geeks4Learning, 5 years experience in the IT industry-leading IT graduate programs.
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