In this article, we will learn about today's most trending word, IoT (Internet of Things). My motive is to explain IoT concepts in simple language so everyone can understand and clear up the confusion about what really IoT means. Let's start now.

What is IoT?

IoT stands for the Internet of Things, which is a network of internet-connected hardware devices that give some insightful information about things such as a car, bike, truck, factory, etc.

What is the Use of IoT?

So, what means digital? Digital is nothing but the access of services to the individual over the internet in the form of a web application, mobile application, etc., which helps to minimise the presence of humans at a particular facility centre to avail the service and get work done from the location where the person resides with the help of a mobile app or web application. The example of digital payment platforms such as BHIM UPI by prime minister Narendra Modi's Indian government, Phone Pay, Google Pay, Amazon Pay, etc.

A smart city is also a part of a digital service in which citizens can see the temperature and humidity of their cities and it automatically generates alerts to their citizens regarding sudden changes in the environment and to take specific precautions. Citizens can even track the live location of specific bus routes so they can plan accordingly. Streetlight management is another example of smart city service in which streetlights are automatically managed by a digital service which is responsible for turning on or off lights based on surrounding visibility and generates alerts if any light bulb has a problem, so servicemen can fix it immediately.

The scenarios described above are just a few examples of how to facilitate and improve digital and smart services. IoT plays an important role in giving meaning to the services that collect the data and generate meaningful and actionable alerts.

Benefits of IoT

Consider just one of the scenarios which I have explained in the preceding paragraphs. Let’s assume we have implemented smart streetlight management using IoT. The benefits are

• Monitor the network of streetlights at one place using the web application or mobile application
• Turn on or off the lights automatically based on the surrounding visibility such as sunrise and sunset which help to save the huge amount of electricity consummation
• Consider some lights are got off due to some problem then IoT generates the alert with detailed reasoning which help servicemen to fix it immediately without going in person at the site

By considering the preceding few examples, you can imagine how IoT helps to give meaning to these things, which saves time, cost, and effort. The IoT will play a very important role in shaping the future of the world. In the coming few years, we will see the IoT in everything, which will make human life much easier and faster. A typical raw IoT device will look like this:

How IoT works?

To understand how IoT works, understand the following basic terminology of IoT

• Things
• Device
• Sensor
• Network
• IoT Gateway
• Communication Protocol
• Things

Things

Any surrounding objects around us which we use in our daily life, such as cars, trucks, or any vehicle, water taps, pumps, machines, houses, factories, or rooms, ac, fans, etc.

Device

The device is the hardware that is installed on the things to get the data.

Sensor

The sensor is situated on the device to monitor the intended information, such as temperature, speed, humidity, visibility, etc.

Examples

• Temperature and humidity sensor
• Pressure sensor
• Visibility sensor
• Magnetometer sensor
• Accelerometer sensor
• Network