Perhaps the time is right to provide a reading on the future of the Internet of Things or the “peripheral computer” that is evolving and crystallizing at every moment. We find it in the form of smart audio aids that sometimes work on sound commands; IoT devices, at another time, form a vision associated with developments in the world of artificial intelligence, or speech recognition techniques, natural language processing, machine learning, or cloud computing.
The beginnings of the Internet of Things were in 1999, when Kevin Ashton coined the phrase “Internet of Things” during a presentation he made at a company where he worked, and then researched radio wave identification technology, or RFID, by which he could find out where, and send a signal from, a card-carrying body to any computer via sending a special signal, which was actually the first step on the way to the Internet of Things.
The Internet of Things is to give internet connectivity to different devices and objects, as well as the possibility of connecting with each other through the network and cloud services, thereby exchanging information, so that each is part of the performance of the mission and function.
Devices and things include everything you can think of, from TVs, refrigerators, surveillance cameras, to clothes, glasses, shoes, even to body parts! The important part of this technology is not the “machine” or “thing” but the sensors it provides so that it can collect information from its surroundings, whether it is the physical environment, or the human body, and this peripheral intelligence is likely to extend to devices that are not only able to collect data, but also re-report to systems operated by technology giants.
The IoT modus operandi can be divided into three main sections. The first and easiest consists of the different radio waves that help transmit information and connect these devices to the Internet, including, of course, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, NFC, RFID, etc.
The second is about the devices themselves, whether they are motion sensors, door locks or even room lights. Sometimes several devices connect to a main device that allows them to exchange information to perform tasks in the best way.
The third is cloud services, i.e., Internet services that allow information to be collected and analysed and allow access to the Internet to be possible from any device, phone or app that uses the Internet.
The global trend of the Internet of Things has become evident through the emergence of new cars that come pre-loaded with applications, as well as homes with smart devices and fitness trackers. But is this just the beginning of what will be the future of the Internet of Things in 2020?
Reading the future of the Internet of Things is possible by noting the enormous development that is increasing daily for this technology, and by some statistics, there are more than 20 billion smart devices connected to the Internet, possibly as many as 200 billion devices in 2020, and the biggest expectation is 1 trillion Internet-connected devices, by IoT, by 2025. Nearly $6 trillion will be spent on the Internet of Things over the next five years and IOT will be the largest adopter of solutions to problems.
The new rule for the future will be: “Anything that can be connected, will be connected.” But why do we want to have so many devices and things connected, and in harmonious conversation with each other? The potential value says, for example, that you are on your way to a meeting and your car will make the decision for you, as traffic is heavy and therefore it will send the parties a message stating that the meeting will be postponed until a later time. Your alarm will also let the coffee maker know that you will wake up at 6:00 a.m. and save you the time on your wearable device that you use in the workplace and tell you both when and where you are most active and productive and share that information with other devices that you use at work.
There may also be a development in things from computerized technology to implanted technology in the body, and we will see the integration of the body and machine together with smart slides, eye lenses and advanced brains, and computing in learning will be a big breakthrough in the Internet of Things, because the curriculum will evolve to be automatically intelligent according to the scientific development of the student.
There are a lot of companies that have produced and continue to develop this section of products and devices significantly, and when we reach a stage where these devices, from different manufacturers, can cooperate with each other, and communicate smoothly, we will go beyond a lot of simple and routine tasks, which these devices will perform instead of us, and these devices will be able to read their surroundings, and communicate with other devices to get the data they need to do their tasks to the fullest.
In the future, too, the house will not be the only place where this technology works; we can imagine a smart city connected to the Internet, where the streets talk to each other; you can tell us how long it will take to get to work, or maybe show us a better path in the event of a traffic accident, with smart traffic lights that will immediately prioritise ambulances and fire engines and lead you to an alternative route to your original destination; perhaps in a world where self-driving cars are spread, communication will be much easier, and we may be able to consider these, because the car is also part of the IoT world.
Governments are expected to focus on increasing productivity, reducing costs, and improving the quality of life for their citizens, and governments will be the second largest adopter of IoT solutions, as in the creative emirate of Dubai. And to talk the rest.
Author : Manahel Thabet
Published January 08, 2018
Al Bayan Newspaper
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