Module 1
IoT Introduction (6 Hours)
Topics
1. Introduction to IoT 8. IoT challenges
2. IoT definition 9. Industrial IoT Vs Consumer IoT
10. IoT levels
3. Characteristics
11. Machine-to-Machine (M2M)
4. Things in IoT communications
5. IoT complete architectural stack 12. Cyber-Physical-Systems (CPS)
6. IoT Functional components 13. Web-of-Things (WoT)
7. IoT enabling technologies 14. Interoperability in IoT-User Vs device
interoperability
1. Internet of Things (IoT)
• It is the networking of physical objects that contain electronics embedded within
their architecture in order to communicate and sense interactions amongst each
other or with respect to the external environment.
• Advancements in medicine, power, gene therapies, agriculture, smart cities, and
smart homes are just a very few of the categorical examples where IoT is strongly
established.
2. Definition :
• IoT is network of interconnected computing devices which are embedded in
everyday objects, enabling them to send and receive data.
• The Internet of things (IoT) describes physical objects (or groups of such objects)
with sensors, processing ability, software and other technologies that connect and
exchange data with other devices and systems over the Internet or other
communications networks.
Home
Cities
3. Characteristics of IoT:
1. Connectivity
2. Identity of Things
3. Intelligence
4. Scalability
5. Dynamic or Self-Adapting
6. Architecture
7. Safety
• Connectivity : IoT devices should be connected regardless of their presence.
Without connection, nothing makes sense.
• Identity : Each IoT device has its unique identity. If it needs to access the data
from specific device then its identification element is very helpful.
• Intelligence : The extraction of data from the sensor devices is very important.
This data is only useful if it is interpreted properly. IoT perform operations on
sensed data in such a way that the results are useful for us. It is the intelligence
property of IoT.
• Scalability : The number of IoT devices are increasing day by day. Hence, the
scalability of an IoT should be enough that it can handle the massive traffic.
• Dynamic and Self-Adapting : IoT devices should dynamically adapt themselves
according to situations. For example a camera can capture data according to light
conditions. It is shifted to night or day mode automatically. It is self-Adapting
technique.
• Architecture : IoT architecture should be hybrid, supporting different
manufacturers. So, it cannot be homogeneous in nature. IoT is not the name of any
engineering branch. IoT comes to picture when multiple domains come together.
• Safety : Safety should be the top priority. But in case of IoT, Safety is big
challenge because multiple things are connected through internet. And security at
each node is a critical and tough task.
[Link] in IoT
• In an IoT network, a thing could be a dedicated computing device such as a PC,
laptop, smartphone or tablet.
• In addition to these devices, the list of potential things is almost unlimited. It
could be a home thermostat, an internet-connected car, a smart refrigerator, a
drone, farming equipment, a freight container or many more things.
• Things in IoT also encompass wearable devices such as smart watches and other
devices that can monitor bodily functions and send data about these functions over
the internet.
• Increasingly, real-world applications in areas including supply chain management
, logistics and agriculture are relying on things such as digital ledgers,
real-time monitoring, data pipelines and irrigation systems.
• All these are also things because they are connected with other things and to the
internet, and they have data collection and data sharing capabilities.
5. IoT complete architectural stack
• The standardized architectural model proposed by IoT industry leaders
• Following are the key building blocks of any IoT structure :
1. Smart things
2. Networks and gateways : enabling low-power devices (which is often the
case in IoT) to enter the big Internet;
3. The middleware or IoT platforms : providing data storage spaces and
advanced computing engines along with analytical capabilities;
4. Applications: allowing end users to benefit from IoT and manipulate the
physical world.
• Most commonly layers in architecture are:
1. Perception layer hosting smart things;
2. Connectivity or transport layer transferring data from the physical layer to
the cloud and vice versa via networks and gateways;
3. Processing layer employing IoT platforms to accumulate and manage all
data streams;
4. Application layer delivering solutions like analytics, reporting, and device
control to end users.
• Besides the most essential components, there are three additional layers:
1. Edge or fog computing layer performing data preprocessing close to the
edge, where IoT things collect new information. Typically, edgy computing
occurs on gateways;
2. Business layer where businesses make decisions based on the data
3. Security layer encompassing all other layers.
• Perception layer: Convert analog signals into digital data and vice versa. It
include wide range of “things” or endpoint devices that act as a bridge between
the real and digital worlds. They vary in form and size, from tiny silicon chips to
large vehicles.
• Connectivity layer: Enabling data transmission. This level is in charge of all
communications across devices, networks, and cloud services that make up the
IoT infrastructure. The connectivity between the physical layer and the cloud is
achieved in two ways:
• Directly, using TCP or UDP/IP stack;
• Via gateways — A gateway is a network
node used in telecommunications that
connects two networks with different
transmission protocols together.
• Eg : Ethernet, WIFI, NFC (Near Field
Communication) Bluetooth, LPWAN (Low-
power Wide-area Network), ZigBee, Cellular
networks
• Processing layer: making raw data useful. The processing layer accumulates,
stores, and processes data that comes from the previous layer. It include two major
stages
• Data accumulation stage : Here the real-time data is captured. The goal is to
sort out a large amount of diverse data and store it in the most efficient way.
• Data abstraction stage :
• combining data from different sources, both IoT and non-IoT, including
ERM, ERP, and CRM systems;
• reconciling multiple data formats
• aggregating data in one place or making it accessible regardless of location
through data virtualization.
• Application layer: At this layer, information is analyzed by software to give
answers to key business questions.
• Edge or fog computing layer: It reducing system latency. This level is essential
for enabling IoT systems to meet the speed, security, and scale requirements. The
idea behind this layer is to process and store information as early and as close to
its sources as possible.
• Edge computing occurs on gateways, local servers, or other edge nodes scattered
across the network. At this level, data can be:
• evaluated to determine if it needs further processing at higher levels,
• formatted for further processing,
• decoding
• filtering
• redirected to an additional destination
• Business layer: The information generated at the previous layers brings value if
only it results in problem-solving solution and achieving business goals. The
decision-making usually involves more than one person working with more than
one software solution. For this reason, the business layer is defined as a separate
stage, higher than a single application layer.
• Security layer : preventing data breaches. It should provide Device security,
Connection security, Cloud security
6. Functional components IoT:
• An IoT system comprises of a number of functional blocks that provide the system
the capabilities for identification, sensing, actuation, communication, and
management. These functional blocks are described as follows:
• Device / Things : An IoT system comprises of devices that provide sensing,
actuation, monitoring and control functions.
• Communication: The communication block handles the communication for the
IoT system
• Services: An IoT system uses various types of IoT services such as services for
device monitoring, device control services, data publishing services and services
for device discovery.
• Management: Management functional block provides various functions to govern
the IoT system.
• Security: Security functional block secures the IoT system and by providing
functions such as authentication, authorization, message and content integrity, and
data security.
• Application: IoT applications provide an interface that the users can use to
control and monitor various aspects of the IoT system. Applications also allow
users to view the system status and view or analyze the processed data
7. IoT enabling technologies
[Link] Sensor Network
[Link] Computing
[Link] Data Analytics
[Link] Protocols
[Link] System
• Wireless Sensor Network(WSN) : A WSN comprises distributed devices with
sensors which are used to monitor the environmental and physical conditions.
A wireless sensor network consists of end nodes, routers and coordinators. End
nodes have several sensors attached to them where the data is passed to a
coordinator with the help of routers. The coordinator also acts as the gateway that
connects WSN to the internet. Example –
* Weather monitoring system * Indoor air quality monitoring system
* Soil moisture monitoring system * Surveillance system
* Health monitoring system
• Cloud Computing : It provides us the means by which we can access applications
as utilities over the internet. Cloud means something which is present in remote
locations. With Cloud computing, users can access any resources from anywhere
like databases, webservers, storage, any device, and any software over the internet.
Characteristics –
* Broad network access * On demand self-services
* Rapid scalability * Measured service
*Pay-per-use
• It Provides different services, such as – IaaS (Infrastructure as a service), PaaS
(Platform as a service), SaaS (Software as a service)
• Big Data Analytics : It refers to the method of studying massive volumes of data
or big data. Collection of data whose volume, velocity or variety is simply too
massive and tough to store, control, process and examine the data using traditional
databases. Big data is gathered from a variety of sources including social network
videos, digital images, sensors and sales transaction records.
• 5 V’s of big data : Volume, Value, Variety, Velocity, Veracity
• Several steps involved in analyzing big data –
[Link] cleaning
[Link]
[Link]
[Link]
• Examples –
* Data generated by IoT systems for location and tracking of vehicles
* E-commerce and in Big-Basket * Bank transactions
* Health and fitness data generated by IoT system such as a fitness bands.
4. Communications Protocols : They are the backbone of IoT systems and enable
network connectivity and linking to applications. Communication protocols allow
devices to exchange data over the network. Multiple protocols often describe
different aspects of a single communication. A group of protocols designed to work
together is known as a protocol suite; when implemented in software they are a
protocol stack.
Application Layer
Transport Layer
Network Layer
Link Layer
They are used in
[Link] encoding
[Link] schemes
5. Embedded Systems : It is a combination of hardware and software used to
perform special tasks. It includes microcontroller and microprocessor, memory,
networking units (Ethernet Wi-Fi adapters), input output units (display keyword etc.
) and storage devices (flash memory).
It collects the data and sends it to the internet.
Some common embedded computing boards are : Node MCU. Arduino Uno,
Raspberry Pi 3, Intel UP Squared IoT Dev Kit
Embedded systems used in Examples –
[Link] camera
[Link] player, music player
[Link] robots
[Link] Routers etc.
8. Challenges in World Of IoT
Integrated effort from the government, civil society and private sectors would play
a vital role in protecting the following values given below in to prevent IoT from
getting hampered:
• Scalability: Billions of internet-enabled devices get connected in a huge network,
large volumes of data are needed to be processed. The system that stores, analyses
the data from these IoT devices needs to be scalable. In present, the era of IoT
evolution everyday objects are connected with each other via Internet. The raw
data obtained from these devices need big data analytics and cloud storage for
interpretation of useful data.
• Interoperability: Technological standards in most areas are still fragmented.
These technologies need to be converged. Which would help us in establishing a
common framework and the standard for the IoT devices. As the standardization
process is still lacking, interoperability of IoT with legacy devices should be
considered critical. This lack of interoperability is preventing us to move towards
the vision of truly connected everyday interoperable smart objects.
• Lack of government support: Government and Regulatory bodies like FDA
should come up and bring up regulations by setting up a standard committee for
safety and security of devices and people.
• Safety Of Patients: Most Of IoT devices are left unattended, as they are
connected with real-world objects. If used on patients as wearable devices, any
technical error in security can be life-threatening for patient.
• Security And Personal Privacy: There has been no research in security
vulnerabilities and its improvements. It should ensure Confidentiality, Integrity
and Availability of personal data of patient.
• Design Based Challenge: With the development in technology design challenges
are increasing at a faster rate. There have been issues regarding design like limited
computation power, limited energy and limited memory which need to be sorted
out.
• Power requirements: All IOT devices require power and most of them are battery
operated. Even though we have long lasting batteries that are economical demand
for power is on rise. Hence use of green power sources should be motivated.
9. Industrial IoT Vs Consumer IoT
10. IoT levels
• An IoT system comprises of the following components:
• Device: An IoT device allows identification, remote sensing, actuating and
remote monitoring capabilities.
• Resource: Resources are software components on the IoT device for accessing,
processing, and storing sensor information, or controlling actuators connected
to the device. Resources also include the software components that enable
network access for the device.
• Controller Service: Controller service is a native service that runs on the
device and interacts with the web services. Controller service sends data from
the device to the web service and receives commands from the application (via
web services) for controlling the device.
• Database: Database can be either local or in the cloud and stores the data
generated by the IoT device.
• Web Service: Web services serve as a link between the IoT device, application,
database and analysis components. Web service can be either implemented
using HTTP and REST principles (REST service) or using Web Socket
protocol (WebSocket service).
• Analysis Component: The Analysis Component is responsible for analyzing
the IoT data and generate results in a form which are easy for the user to
understand.
• Application: IoT applications provide an interface that the users can use to
control and monitor various aspects of the IoT system. Applications also allow
users to view the system status and view the processed data.
• IoT Level-1
• A level-1 IoT system has a single node/device
that performs sensing and/or actuation, stores
data, performs analysis and hosts the
application
• Level-1 IoT systems are suitable for
modeling low- cost and low-complexity
solutions where the data involved is not big
and the analysis requirements are not
computationally intensive.
• IoT Level-2
• A level-2 IoT system has a single node that
performs sensing and /or actuation and local
analysis.
• Data is stored in the cloud and application is
usually cloud- based.
• Level-2 IoT systems are suitable for solutions
where the data involved is big, however, the
primary analysis requirement is not
computationally intensive and can be done
locally itself.
• IoT Level-3
• A level-3 IoT system has a single node. Data
is stored and analyzed in the cloud and
application is cloud- based.
• Level-3 IoT systems are suitable for
solutions where the data involved is big and
the analysis requirements are
computationally intensive.
• IoT Level-4
• A level-4 IoT system has
multiple nodes that perform
local analysis. Data is stored in
the cloud and application is
cloud-based.
• Level-4 contains local and
cloud- based observer nodes
which can subscribe to and
receive information collected
in the cloud from IoT devices.
• Level-4 IoT systems are
suitable for solutions where
multiple nodes are required,
the data involved is big and the
analysis requirements are
• IoT Level-5
• A level-5 IoT system has multiple
end nodes and one coordinator node.
• The end nodes that perform sensing
and/or actuation.
• Coordinator node collects data from
the end nodes and sends to the
cloud.
• Data is stored and analyzed in the
cloud and application is cloud-based.
• Level-5 IoT systems are suitable for
solutions based on wireless sensor
networks, in which the data involved
is big and the analysis requirements
are computationally intensive.
IoT Level-6
• A level-6 IoT system has multiple
independent end nodes that
perform sensing and/or actuation
and send data to the cloud.
• Data is stored in the cloud and
application is cloud-based.
• The analytics component
analyzes the data and stores the
results in the cloud database.
• The results are visualized with
the cloud-based application. The
centralized controller is aware
of the status of all the end
nodes and sends control
commands to the nodes.
11. Machine-to-Machine (M2M) communications
• Machine-to-Machine (M2M) refers to networking of machines (or devices) for the
purpose of remote monitoring and control and data exchange.
• Figure shows the end-to end architecture for M2M systems comprising of M2M
area networks, communication / core network and application domain.
• An M2M area network comprise of machines (or M2M node ) which have
embedded hardware modules for sensing, actuation and communication. Various
communication protocols can be used for M2M local area networks such a
ZigBee, Bluetooth, Mod Bus , M-Bus, Wireless M-Bus, Power Line
Communication (PLC), 6LoWPAN, IEEE 802.15.4, etc. These communication
protocols provide connectivity between M2M nodes within an M2M area
network.
• The communication / core network provides connectivity to remote M2M area
networks. The communication network can use either wired or wireless networks
(IP-based).
• Since non-IP based protocols are used within M2M area networks, the M2M
nodes within one network cannot communicate with nodes in an external network.
To enable the communication between remote M2M area networks, M2M
gateways are used.
Block diagram of M2M Gateway
• The communication between the M2M nodes and the M2M gateway is based on
the communication protocols which are native to the M2M area network. M2M
gateway acts as a proxy performing translations from/to native protocols to/from
Internet Protocol (IP).
Difference between IOT and M2M
• Though both IOT and M2M involve networking of machines or devices, they differ in
the underlying technologies, system architecture and types of applications.
• Communication Protocols : M2M and IoT can differ in how the communication
between the machines or devices happens. M2M uses either proprietary or non-IP
based communication protocols for communication within the M2M area networks.
Commonly uses M2M protocols include ZigBee, Bluetooth , Mod Bus, M-Bus,
Wireless M-Bus, Power Line Communication (PLC). 6LoWPAN, IBEE 802.15.4, Z-
Wave, etc. The focus of communication in M2M is usually on the protocols below the
network layer. The focus of communication in IoT is usually on the protocols above
the network layer such as HTTP, CoAP, WebSocket's, MQTI, XMPP, DDS, AMQP,
etc.
• Hardware vs Software Emphasis: While the emphasis of M2M is more on hardware
with embedded modules, the emphasis of IoT is more on software. IoT devices run
specialized software for sensor data collection, data analysis and interfacing with the
cloud through IP-based communication.
• Machines in M2M vs Things in IoT: The "Things" in IoT refers to physical
objects that have unique identifiers and can sense and communicate with their
external environment (and user applications) or their internal physical states. The
unique identifiers for the things in IoT are the IP addresses (or MAC addresses).
Things have software components for accessing, processing, and storing sensor
information, or controlling actuators connected. IoT systems can have heterogeneous
thing (e.g. a home automation IoT system can include IoT devices of various types,
such as fire alarms, door alarms, lighting control devices, etc.) M2M systems, in
contrast to IoT typically have homogeneous machine types within an M2M area
network.
• Data Collection & Analysis: M2M data is collected in point solutions and often in
on-premises storage infrastructure. In contrast to M2M, the data in IoT is collected in
the cloud (can be pubic, private or hybrid cloud).
• Applications: M2M data is collected in point solutions and can be accessed by on-
premises applications such as diagnosis applications. service management
applications, and on-premise enterprise applications. IoT data is collected in the cloud
and can be accessed by cloud applications. Since scale of data collected is massive
cloud based real time and batch data analysis framework are used for data analysis
12. Cyber-Physical-Systems (CPS)
• IoT is all about "things" getting identified through an address or identifier. These
"thing" can also be accessed from anywhere, anytime by an authorized party. The
information (i.e., the sensed data) can be as simple as an RFID read. Hence, the
complexity involved in IoT applications is minimal.
• For complex levels of operation and to address larger network of "things'; a new
term called Cyber Physical System, or CPS, has been introduced.
• It is important to note that CPS is not IoT.
• CPS has IoT as one of its components. CPS is more complex than IoT and is
much more challenging.
• It is a combination of multiple engineering domains coming together, which
includes computer science, electronics, electrical, and mechanical engineering.
• The flight of an airplane can be seen as a CPS which involves multiple domains of
engineering. It also has IoT as one of the components. Obviously, the complexity
increases by volumes.
• CPS is much more autonomous than IoT, taking appropriate decisions as and
when needed. It is not merely about identifying "things"; it is more about
understanding and taking decisions in a more dynamic way.
13. Web-of-Things (WoT)
• Web of Things (WoT) describes a set of standards by the World Wide Web
Consortium (W3C) for the interoperability of different Internet of things (IoT)
platforms and application domains.
• The Web of Things (WoT) is a computing concept that describes a future where
everyday objects are fully integrated with the Web. The prerequisite for WoT is for
the "things" to have embedded computer systems that enable communication with
the Web.
• Such smart devices would then be able to communicate with each other using
existing Web standards.
Building blocks of WoT
• Thing Description (TD) : The key component of the WoT building blocks is
the WoT Thing Description. A Thing Description describes a virtual or a
physical device (Thing).
• Binding Templates
• IoT uses a large variety of protocols to interact with Things since there does not exist a
single protocol, which is suitable for any case. So, one of the main challenges for the
Web of Things is to handle the variety of protocols and interaction mechanisms. This
problem is tackled through the Binding Templates. WoT Binding Templates provide a
collection of communication metadata blueprints to support various IoT solutions.
• Scripting API
• The WoT Scripting API is an optional building block of Web of Things. It provides a
common programming language for implementing Thing connectivity over IoT.
• This API is in the form of a JSON API. A device doesn’t need to use the Scripting API
to be part of the WoT, but it is convenient to simplify application portability across
platforms.
• Security and Privacy Guidelines
• These are perhaps the most important aspect of WoT. Much like the Internet itself does
not define any specific safety guidelines for applications, neither does the Internet of
Things. In a technical world where cyber-attacks and compromised personal electronic
security are becoming a threat, ensuring that data is safe is more important than ever.
14. Interoperability in IoT-
• Interoperability is the ability of two or more devices, systems, platforms or
networks to work in conjunction.
• Interoperability enables communication between heterogeneous devices or system
in order to achieve a common goal.
• However, the current devices and systems are fragmented with respect to the
communication technologies, protocols, and data formats. This diversity makes it
difficult for devices and systems in the IoT network to communicate and share
their data with one another.
• The utility of IoT network is limited by the lack of interoperability.
User Vs device interoperability
Different Types of Interoperability
• User Interoperability : Interoperability problem between a user and a device
• Device Interoperability : Interoperability problem between two different devices
• Example of Device and User Interoperability
• Using IoT, both A and B provide a real-time security service
• A is placed at delhi, India, while B is placed at Tokyo, Japan
• A,B, U uses Hindi, Japanese, and English language , respectively. User U wants real-
time service of CCTV camera from the device A and B
Problems :
• U user does not know the devices A and B
• A and B are different in terms of syntaxes and
semantic notation
• U user can’t understand service provided by A
and B. Similar A & B do not mutually
understand each other.
• User Interoperability : The following problems need to be solved
• Device identification and categorization for discovery
• Syntactic interoperability for device interaction
• The interoperability between devices and device user in term of message
format
• The message format from a device to a user is understandable for the users
computer
• The message format from the user to the device is executable by the device.
• Semantic interoperability for device interaction
• The interoperability between devices and device user in term of message’s
meaning
• The device can understand the meaning of users instruction that is sent from
the user to the device
• The user can understand the meaning of devices response sent from the device
• Device Interoperability
• let us say that we have two devices: device A and device B. And let us assume that
A and B do not follow the same specific protocol, they did not have the same
specifications at the physical layer or other layers.
• Since, no common protocol is available across all these different layers. So, how
do they communicate. So, this is the problem of device interoperability.
• Solution : Let us assume initially that we have some kind of a middleware which
will understand the language of A and the language of B. So this will be able to
translate what A is saying A wants to send and also B is saying & what B wants to
send
