What is IoT?
The Internet of Things (IoT) basically refers to a system where devices and products contain various sensors and softwares that are all linked together, and working in tandem by collecting data, making observations, providing recommendations and sending it over to other devices.
For instance, a smartwatch has various sensors and softwares that monitor your heart rate, measure blood oxygen levels and your sleep cycle as well. Once these sensors and softwares collect this data, it is stored on the physical device as well as the online server. Moreover, it is passed on to other devices as well such as the companion smartwatch app on your smartphone for ease of access. That’s the Internet of Things (IoT).
Origin of IoT
The term ‘Internet of Things’ was coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton, MIT’s Executive Director of Auto-ID Labs, during a presentation he made about RFID Networking at Procter & Gamble (P&G). Mr. Ashton said that:
“Today computers, and, therefore, the Internet, are almost wholly dependent on human beings for information. Nearly all of the roughly 50 petabytes of data available on the Internet were first captured and created by human beings by typing, pressing a record button, taking a digital picture or scanning a barcode. The problem is, people have limited time, attention, and accuracy. All of which means they are not very good at capturing data about things in the real world. If we had computers that knew everything there was to know about things, using data they gathered without any help from us, we would be able to track and count everything and greatly reduce waste, loss, and cost. We would know when things needed replacing, repairing, or recalling and whether they were fresh, or past their best.”
Surprisingly enough, this term originated much before smartphones and smart wearables were even a thing. The definition of IoT keeps evolving as the world of tech keeps progressing.
Business Potential
Right now, IoT is still in its early stages despite having very sophisticated systems because of the limitless potential for further development and applications. Projections indicate that the market for IoT would be worth an incredible USD 650.5 billion by 2026.
Businesses love the convenience and efficiency provided by the capabilities of IoT. Smart devices connected to each other, collecting, analyzing and sharing data with each other locally as well as over the cloud allows automation with minimal human input.
Written by Gagan Dhawan
Stay tuned for the next article which will talk about the 5 reasons for businesses to use IoT and integrate the tech into their daily operations
