Internet of Things (IoT) is the enabling technology of many health and wellness related activities and processes. It is invisible, cost-effective, solves ongoing challenges and opens doors for new creative opportunities, and has a short learning curve. Most importantly, it allows everyone to stay healthy and helps medical experts save lives.

As promising as it already sounds, the promise of IoT in healthcare is broader still — the technology will help the industry perform a meaningful evolution. From ultimate personalization with DNA testing, to sophisticated sleep technology, to smarter houses for Parkinson’s disease patients, let’s explore how connected devices will change the healthcare industry.

Connected Wellness Devices

Evolution of Device Ecosystems

Staying fit and healthy is the main driver of modern lifestyles. Here, smart IoT devices for wellness have become our helpers. Connected gadgets provide and gather important information, motivate us, and even serve as our trainers, among other things.

Today, the vast majority of people who exercise and closely monitor their health have at least a smart watch or bracelet alongside their smartphones and fitness apps, which all work together in one ecosystem. Although they have long become essential to modern exercise routines, as technologies continue to evolve, the role these devices play will only keep growing.

The foundation for these developments is already in place. The Apple and Fitbit IoT ecosystems are already so vast that can use advanced algorithms to provide their users with spot-on insights and workout recommendations.

As the latest Apple Watch model has an ECG feature, we can also expect future IoT devices would perform checks that are currently possible only in medical facilities, gathering even more information and providing even better recommendations.

Wellness Devices will Reach Ultimate Personalization

Existing IoT wellness devices gather many types of data and provide deeply personalized recommendations to users, Still, the highest level of personalization will be enabled by more sophisticated means that rely heavily on IoT technology.

For example, Skulpt developed a scanning device that allows users to analyse fat-to-muscle ratio and muscle health individually. The information is sent to the Skulpt app, as it performs an in-depth analysis and then offers users individual recommendations for safe and efficient workouts.

Still, reaching the highest level of personalization can only be enabled by solutions based on DNA testing. With properly developed AI-driven algorithms, these connected health and wellness devices will provide truly individual workout and diet recommendations.

FitnessGenes is one of the existing examples. The company offers a three-step DNA analysis of vascular function, sleep cycles, saturated fat sensibilities, energy production, and other. After, the FitnessGenes app offers the user a genetically tailored nutrition plan and workout advice. As users continue to demand increasingly personalised products and services, health and wellness devices driven by DNA testing will be widely popular in the coming years.

The New Life of Group Fitness

Small but highly effective, IoT sensors will gain more traction in fitness as well, especially group-focused exercises. Placed on each participant, the battery-powered wireless sensors will gather information and stream it to a TV screen or a trainer’s mobile device, in real-time. This way, the participants could follow the progress of others, while trainers can better cater to each client on-the-go.

Speaking of data sharing, people love sharing their sports achievements with others, as well as connect with fellow fitness enthusiasts. So, apps like Strava will remain popular in the coming years, while also giving way to more curious solutions. For example, xMed allows users to diagnose health issues in two ways. First, it has AI-driven algorithms. Second, it serves us a social media network where users can ask fellow health and wellness enthusiasts for advice — or connect with medical experts. Smart watches and bracelets are in the equation, of course (learn more here).

Better Sleep

Sleep deprivation has emerged as a widespread modern malaise. Scientists, public figures, and popular media outlets ring red alert on our bedtime habits and the low numbers of our shut-eye hours. Arianna Huffington went as far as to branding sleep deprivation “the new smoking” in a Fast Company article, as the condition causes a wide range of mental and physical health issues. Sound-based products providing ambient sounds do not seem to suffice anymore.

Except a sleep robot, wellness medical devices powered by IoT technology have emerged as the solution. Products on this market include sleep trackers, nighttime wearables, and smart pillows.

This wellness connected devices include smart mattresses. Eight Sleep, a New York-based technology company, offers a comfortable mattress with IoT sensors, which gather data about fifteen sleep and health factors, and delivers it to the Eight Sleep app. The application also enables users to control the temperature of both sides of the bed. The latest version has an additional device called the Pod that can dynamically change the mattress temperature according to the gathered data about personal sleep temperature preferences for both sides of the bed. The solution can also be controlled with smart home systems like Alexa.

Connected Devices in Healthcare

Remote Wellness Monitoring Devices

Today, hospitals and other medical institutions continue to struggle with high patient loads, as nurses face long extra hours. The problem will not go away anytime soon, at the very least. On top of that, finding funding remains an unsolved issue for many medical institutions.

Here, IoT comes forward as the most fitting solution, and one of the major drivers of the industry’s technological evolution. Connected health devices help solve healthcare’s critical issues in an effective, patient-friendly, and cost-effective way, as well as introduce many other benefits and solutions.

For instance, the NHS (National Health Service) of the UK is currently at the second phase of testing Technology Integrated Health Management (TIHM). The program reduces the number of hospital and home care admissions for dementia patients with a system of wellness monitoring devices, allowing them to comfortably stay at home for longer periods of time. The NHS installs the sensors in a patient’s place of stay, allowing clinicians to monitor their health remotely 24/7. The solution also involves artificial intelligence-driven algorithms, and can alert medical experts in a number of occasions.

Pfizer and IBM went further with the concept to simplify the treatment of Parkinson’s disease. The medical condition requires continuous assessment and medication regimen adjustments based on a patient’s movements, cognitive responses, and a myriad of other factors. During their study, the companies placed IoT sensors on the majority of objects to monitor the symptoms and relay the data to clinicians, which in turn can make the needed adjustments to the medication routine, as well as stay informed about the patient’s condition around the clock.

The solution also leverages mobile devices and advanced machine learning capabilities. Pfizer and IBM strive to help people with Parkinson’s disease lead their lifestyles without being confined to a hospital while also gather data and streamline the patient management process.

As taking care of patients with serious long-standing diseases is problematic in the face of overcrowded and busy hospitals, solutions with connected health devices can save medical institutions costs and significantly reduce (or even eliminate) the nurses’ extra hours. Due to their invisible and user-friendly nature, connected health devices have a very short learning curve. More so, they allow hospitals to provide patients with the best type of comfort — the comfort of their homes.  

Smart Medication Management

Ensuring vaccines are kept at the right temperature at all times is critical. All the more so if they are dispatched to hard-to-reach regions with deadly diseases and a high demand for the cure.

To address this issue, Nexleaf Analytics created ColdTrace — a remote temperature monitoring system for vaccine refrigerators in rural healthcare organizations. An IoT sensor is installed into a refrigerator unit to monitor temperature and grid power, and the connected health devices system sends updates and alerts to the monitoring personnel.

As for more mundane situations, AdhereTech created a Smart Pill Bottle to ensure a person does not fall out of their medication routine. Currently available only in the U.S., each bottle connects to the company’s HIPAA compliant system to choose the most fitting treatment for every user. The solution also connects to the pharmacy system, notifying pharmacists about people who need their support in real-time. As a result, one uses the Smart Pill Bottle like a normal bottle.

What is important, the “invisibility” factor IoT healthcare solutions will continue playing a pivotal part in connected devices in healthcare. The less the patient has to learn about and deal with device, the easier and less stressful the treatment.

Equipment Management

Hospitals are big and busy, and even a bulky and expensive piece of medical equipment might get lost in a corridor, room, or one of the numerous wards. In the following years, more and more hospitals and medical organizations will turn to IoT technology to quickly locate the needed equipment.

Going back to the NHS, the organization’s Scottish wing started a pilot project with IoT-driven hospital beds at Caithness General Hospital. The beds are equipped with sensors that gather data for maintenance records and pinpoint beds’ whereabouts.

In turn, G.E.’s AutoBed platform can track nurse proximity. Installed at New York’s Mt. Sinai Hospital for testing, AutoBed also helps track the beds quickly. The numbers clearly indicate such solutions will gain traction in the future. G.E.’s platform had reduced emergency room (ER) wait times by several hours for fifty percent of the hospital’s ER patients.

Still, some hospitals are just too vast and demand more complex solutions. For example, one company needed an equipment-monitoring IoT ecosystem involving a wide range of connected devices: an RFID wand, RFID scanner, mobile app, and RFID tag printer. Together with a web portal, the devices help find and manage an extensive fleet of medical devices in large hospitals.

The post Deep Dive: Connected Health & Wellness Devices Trends appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

In this article, we will take a closer look at Internet of Things (IoT) for Healthcare. 

1. Internet of Things for Healthcare.
2. What exactly is IoT and why it is important in healthcare? 
3. IoT in healthcare examples.
4. How IoT Works in Healthcare?
5. IoT Devices in Healthcare.
6. Benefits of IoT in Healthcare.
7. Challenges of IoT in Healthcare.
8. Future of IoT in Healthcare.

Let’s get to business.

Internet of Things for Healthcare

The market of IoT in healthcare is predicted to exceed $10 billion by 2024, according to a Brandessence market research. This growth forecast is also impacted by other important technologies. IoT is slowly getting traction and evolving alongside the new ultra-fast 5G mobile wireless, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and Big Data. Combing this powerful technologies with the Internet of Things will likely revolutionize the healthcare industry. IoT in healthcare using 5G wireless and AI could, for example, completely transform the way patients are monitored and treated remotely.

Still, IoT will not only help with the patient’s health, but also improve the productivity of the healthcare industry workers. 

What exactly is IoT and why it is important in healthcare? 

In a nutshell, IoT is the concept created around the idea of full ubiquitous computing, which is the processing of information linked with external activity or objects. Ubiquitous computing involves connecting electronic devices with microprocessors and sensors to talk to each other. IoT is a ubiquitous network except that all of those electronic devices have access to the Internet.  

IoT in the healthcare industry is a great example of this omnipresent computing. For example, hundreds of intelligent electronic devices can be set up in a hospital to monitor patients’ health status 24/7, talk to each other, make decisions, and upload information to a healthcare cloud platform.

IoT in Healthcare Examples

How IoT can be used in healthcare effectively? Let’s explore three workable Internet of Things healthcare examples below. 

1. Sensing and uploading up-to-date patient information to the cloud in emergency situations, from the ambulance or even from home. 
2. Medical devices capable of performing self-maintenance. IoT healthcare devices will sense their own components, detect low thresholds, and communicate with medical personnel and manufacturers.  
3. IoT and wearables can help home patients and elderly communicate directly with a healthcare facility.  
4. Telemedicine can be considered a “primitive” form of an Internet of Things in healthcare example. With IoT, a patient can be observed and in some cases treated remotely through video cameras and other electronic actuators. 

How IoT Works in Healthcare?

To understand how the Internet of Things in Healthcare works, let’s see how IoT works in general. As discussed above, an IoT unit can be considered as a device with a sensor that can interact with the physical world and send information to the Internet. 

In healthcare, these devices can gather different patient data and receive inputs from health practitioners. An Internet of Things Healthcare example is continuous glucose monitoring for insulin pens that works effectively for patients with diabetes. 

All these devices are able to communicate with each other and in some cases take important actions that would provide timely help or even save a life. For example, an IoT healthcare device can make intelligent decisions like calling the healthcare facility if an elderly person has fallen down. After collecting passive data, an IoT healthcare device would send this critical information to the cloud so that doctors can act upon it — view the general patient status, see if calling an ambulance is necessary, what type of help is required, and so on. 

Thus, Internet of Things Healthcare can greatly improve not only a patient’s health and help in critical situations, but also the productivity of health employees and hospital workflows. 

How IoT helps in healthcare — Process 

Let’s explore an IoT healthcare workflow example:

1. A sensor collects data from a patient or a doctor/nurse inputs data. 
2. An IoT device analyzes the collected data with the help of AI-driven algorithms like machine learning (ML). 
3. The device makes a decision whether to act or send the information to the cloud. 
4. Doctors, health practitioners, or even robots are enabled to make actionable and informed decisions based on the data provided by the IoT device. 

IoT Devices in Healthcare

Although not all IoT devices should have a sensor, they at least need to have a radio and a given TCP/IP address to enable communication with the Internet. As long as a device has access to the Internet, it can be considered an IoT device. 

So, every smartphone is an IoT device. A smartphone with the right set of healthcare apps can help you detect diseases and improve your health. Some examples of these are skin cancer detection apps that use your camera and AI-driven algorithms to map moles on your skin. Other examples would be sleep, yoga, fitness, and pill management apps. 

Still, smartphone is a smartphone. Monitoring healthcare is not its primary application. A dedicated healthcare IoT device can do significantly more.  

• Smartwatch. Wearables sold at consumer electronics stores come with a sensor and Internet connection. Some of them (like iWatch Series 4) can even monitor your heart rate, control diabetes, help in speech treatment, aid in improving posture, and detect seizures. 
• Insulin Pens and Smart CGM (Continuous Glucose Monitoring). These devices can monitor blood glucose levels and send the data to a dedicated smartphone app. Patients with diabetes can use these devices to track their glucose levels and even send this data to a healthcare facility. 
• Brain Swelling Sensors. These tiny sensors are implanted within the cranium to help brain surgeons keep track of severe brain injuries and avoid further deathly swelling. They measure pressure on the brain and are able to dissolve by itself in the body without further medical interference.
• Ingestible Sensors. Prescribed medication is swallowed with a tiny digestible medical sensor that sends a small signal to a wearable receiver on the patient, which, in turn, sends data to  a dedicated smartphone app. This sensor can help doctors ensure patients take their medication at all times. 
• Smart video pills. A smart pill can travel through a patient’s intestinal tract and take pictures as it travels. It can then send the collected information to a wearable device, which in turn would send it to a dedicated smartphone app (or straight to the app). Smart pills can also help visualize the gastrointestinal tract and colon remotely. 

Benefits of IoT in Healthcare.

IoT in the healthcare industry has countless benefits. However, the most important is that treatment outcomes can be significantly improved or maximized, as the data gathered by IoT healthcare devices is highly accurate, enabling informed decisions.

Health facilities and practitioners will be capable of minimizing errors because all patient information can be measured quickly and sent to a board of doctors or a healthcare cloud platform. AI-driven algorithms running on these IoT devices could also help make intelligible decisions or suggestions based on existing data.

Another great benefit of IoT in healthcare is reduced costs. With IoT in healthcare, non-critical patients will be able to stay at home while various IoT devices monitor and send all important information to the health facility — meaning less hospital stays and doctor visits.

With detailed information received from lots of IoT devices, health facilities will also be able to improve their disease management. They’ll have more data in real-time coming in than ever before. Still, this entails a number of challenges.

Challenges of IoT in Healthcare.

Although IoT in healthcare provides many great benefits, there are also some challenges that need to be solved. The Internet of Things Healthcare solutions cannot be considered for implementation without acknowledging these challenges. 

1. Massive inputs of generated data. Having thousands of devices in a single healthcare facility and a thousand more sending information from remote locations — all in real-time — will generate huge amounts of data. The data generated from IoT in healthcare will likely make storage requirements grow much higher, from Terabytes to Petabytes. If used properly, AI-driven algorithms and cloud can help make sense of and organize this data, but this approach needs time to mature. So, creating a large-scale IoT healthcare solution will take a lot of time and effort.
2. IoT devices will increase the attack surface. IoT healthcare bring numerous benefits to the industry, but they also create numerous vulnerable security spots. Hackers could log into medical devices connected to the Internet and steal the information —  or even modify it. They can also take a step further and hack an entire hospital network, infecting the IoT devices with the infamous Ransomware virus. That means the hackers will hold patients and their heart-rate monitors, blood pressure readers, and brain scanners as hostages.
3. Existing software infrastructure is obsolete. IT infrastructures in many hospitals are obsolete. They will not allow for proper integration of IoT devices. Therefore, healthcare facilities will need to revamp their IT processes and use new, more modern software. They will also need to take advantage of virtualization (technologies like SDN and NFV), and ultra-fast wireless and mobile networks like Advanced LTE or 5G. 

Why The Internet Of Medical Things Is The Future Of Healthcare? 

IoT in healthcare industry can improve components, such as medical gadgets or services. It can also enhance healthcare applications, such as telemedicine, patient monitoring, medication management, imaging, and overall workflows in hospitals.It can also create new ways of treating different diseases. 

The Internet of Things for healthcare will not only be used by hospitals or facilities, but also by surgical centers, research organizations, and even governmental institutions. 

Future of IoT in Healthcare

IoT in healthcare industry does not stand alone. All IoT devices and their networks need to be combined with other technologies to help healthcare facilities transform in a meaningful way. As mentioned before, IoT will revolutionize the healthcare industry but it also needs data, high-speed communication, and proper security and compliance. 

5G will provide the ultra-low latency speeds and mobility that the IoT in the healthcare industry needs. In turn, AI-driven solutions will make sense of the data lakes gathered from a collection of devices. Big Data strategies will use such AI algorithms to analyze data in real-time and make critical health decisions. Virtualization will help to reduce or get rid of old infrastructure in hospitals. 

IoT is already using most of these technologies to help healthcare evolve, and this evolution will only continue. Sooner than later, healthcare and Internet of Things will become inseparable, completely transforming how we approach our healthcare.

The post Everything You Need to Know About IoT in Healthcare (2019) appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

This attack is just an example of what can happen to IoT devices with poor security.

It is not only video cameras, but anything with an internet connection, from a refrigerator, smart locks, thermostats, lightbulbs, vehicles, and even smart toys. Using them always poses IoT security challenges and risks to overcome.

IoT Security Challenges

Now, it is not only us with our computers, but there are also “things” that interact with the Internet without our intervention. These “things” are continually communicating with the Internet, a fridge sending an update of the food inside or our vehicle transmitting messages to the mechanic to inform its oil levels.

IoT is wonderful in many ways. But unfortunately, technology has not matured yet, and it is not entirely safe. The entire IoT environment, from manufacturers to users, still have many security challenges of IoT to overcome, such as:

• Manufacturing standards
• Update management
• Physical hardening
• Users knowledge and awareness

Top IoT Security Risks

Returning to what happened in 2016, the lack of compliance on the part of IoT manufacturers led to weak and unprotected passwords in some IoT video cameras, which, in turn, led to one of the most damaging botnet attacks, the Mirai malware. There are many IoT security threats, but we will be highlighting the most important.

The following security issues with IoT can be classified as a cause or effect.

1) Lack of Compliance on the part of IoT Manufacturers

New IoT devices come out almost daily, all with undiscovered vulnerabilities. The primary source of most IoT security issues is that manufacturers do not spend enough time and resources on security.

For example, most fitness trackers with Bluetooth remain visible after the first pairing, a smart refrigerator can expose Gmail login credentials, and a smart fingerprint padlock can be accessed with a Bluetooth key that has the same MAC address as the padlock device.   

This is precisely one of the biggest security issues with IoT. While there is a lack of universal IoT security standards, manufacturers will continue creating devices with poor security. Manufacturers that started to add Internet connection to their devices do not always have the “security” concept as the crucial element in their product design process.

The following are some security risks in IoT devices from manufacturers:

1. Weak, guessable, or hard-coded passwords
2. Hardware issues
3. Lack of a secure update mechanism
4. Old and unpatched embedded operating systems and software
5. Insecure data transfer and storage

A smart thermostat

2) Lack of User Knowledge & Awareness.

Over the years, Internet users have learnt how to avoid spam or phishing emails, perform virus scans on their PCs, and secure their WiFi networks with strong passwords.

But IoT is a new technology, and people still do not know much about it. While most of the risks of IoT security issues are still on the manufacturing side, users and businesses processes can create bigger threats. One of the biggest IoT security risks and challenges is the user’s ignorance and lack of awareness of the IoT functionality. As a result, everybody is put at risk.

Tricking a human is, most of the time, the easiest way to gain access to a network. A type of IoT security risk that is often overlooked is social engineering attacks. Instead of targeting devices, a hacker targets a human, using the IoT.

Social engineering was used in the 2010 Stuxnet attack against a nuclear facility in Iran. The attack was directed to industrial programmable logic controllers (PLCs), which also fall into an IoT device category. The attack corrupted 1,000 centrifuges and made the plant explode. It is believed that the internal network was isolated from the public network to avoid attacks, but all it took was a worker to plug a USB flash drive into one of the internal computers.

3) IoT Security Problems in Device Update Management

Another source of IoT security risks is insecure software or firmware. Although a manufacturer can sell a device with the latest software update, it is almost inevitable that new vulnerabilities will come out.

Updates are critical for maintaining security on IoT devices. They should be updated right after new vulnerabilities are discovered. Still, as compared with smartphones or computers that get automatic updates, some IoT devices continue being used without the necessary updates.

Another risk is that during an update, a device will send its backup out to the cloud and will suffer a short downtime. If the connection is unencrypted and the update files are unprotected, a hacker could steal sensitive information.

4) Lack of Physical Hardening

The lack of physical hardening can also cause IoT security issues. Although some IoT devices should be able to operate autonomously without any intervention from a user, they need to be physically secured from outer threats. Sometimes, these devices can be located in remote locations for long stretches of time, and they could be physically tampered with, for example using a USB flash drive with Malware.

Ensuring the physical security of an IoT device begins from the manufacturer. But building secure sensors and transmitters in the already low-cost devices is a challenging task for manufacturers nonetheless.

Users are also responsible for keeping IoT devices physically secured. A smart motion sensor or a video camera that sits outside a house could be tampered with if not properly protected.  

5) Botnet Attacks

A single IoT device infected with malware does not pose any real threat; it is a collection of them that can bring down anything. To perform a botnet attack, a hacker creates an army of bots by infecting them with malware and directs them to send thousands of requests per second to bring down the target.

Much of the uproar about IoT security began after the Mirai bot attack in 2016. Multiple DDoS (Distributed Denial of Service) attacks using hundreds of thousands of IP cameras, NAS, and home routers were infected and directed to bring down the DNS that provided services to platforms like GitHub, Twitter, Reddit, Netflix, and Airbnb.

The problem is that IoT devices are highly vulnerable to Malware attacks. They do not have the regular software security updates that a computer has. So they are quickly turned into infected zombies and used as weapons to send incredibly vast amounts of traffic.

What is more, a botnet can pose a security threat for electrical grids, manufacturing plants, transportation systems, and water treatment facilities, which can threaten big groups of people. For example, a hacker could trigger a cooling and heating system at the same time, creating spikes on the power grid; in case of a big-scale attack, hackers can create a nation-wide power outtage.

6) Industrial Espionage & Eavesdropping

If hackers take over surveillance in at location by infecting IoT devices, spying might not be the only option They can also perform such attacks to demand ransom money.

Thus, invading privacy is another prominent IoT security issue. Spying and intruding through IoT devices is a real problem, as a lot different sensitive data may be compromised and used against its owner.

On a basic level, a hacker might want to take over a camera and use it for spying. Still, one should not forget that many IoT devices record user information, whether it is health equipment, smart toys, wearables, etc. On an industrial level, a company’s big data that can be collected by hackers to expose sensitive business information.  

Some countries are starting to ban specific IoT devices with security problems. For example, the interactive IoT doll with a Bluetooth pin, which gave access to the toy’s microphone and speaker to

anyone within the 25-30 meter radius. The doll was labeled as an espionage device and was banned in Germany.

7) Highjacking Your IoT Devices.

Ransomware has been named as one of the nastiest malware types ever existed. Ransomware does not destroy your sensitive files — it blocks access to them by way of encryption. Then, the hacker who infected the device will demand a ransom fee for the decryption key unlocking the files.  

Here is how a ransomware notice looks like:

Ransomware is evolving, and IoT devices with poor security can become targets as well.

Just before the Trump inauguration speech, about 70% of the Washington DC surveillance cameras were infected with ransomware, leaving the police without the ability to record for several days.  

The cases of IoT devices being infected with ransomware are rare, but the concept is quickly becoming a trend in the black hat hacker world. Still, wearables, healthcare gadgets, smart homes, and other smart devices and ecosystems might be at risk in the future.

Here, the are good news, and there are bad news. While this malware might not have valuable data to lock down because most IoT information is stored in the cloud, it can ock down the entire device’s functionality. Imagine that your vehicle will not start unless you pay a ransom fee — or your house is locked down, with the thermostat set to the maximum.

8) Data Integrity Risks of IoT Security in Healthcare

With IoT, data is always on the move. It is being transmitted, stored, and processed. Most IoT devices extract and collect information from the external environment. It can be a smart thermostat, HVAC, TVs, medical devices. But sometimes these devices send the collected data to the cloud without any encryption.

As a result, a hacker can gain access to a medical IoT device, gaining control over it and being able to alter the data it collects. A controlled medical IoT device can be used to send false signals, which in turn can make health practitioners take actions that may damage the health of their patients.

For example, a hacked medical IoT device can report a fully charged battery to the maintenance station while in reality the battery is about to die. Worse, there are risks of IoT security in healthcare devices like pacemakers or the ones making the insulin shots. The vulnerabilities found on St. Jude Medical’s implantable cardiac gave access to hackers, enabling them to alter the pacing or shocks, or even worse, deplete the battery.

9) Rogue IoT Devices

We might already know about the rapid growth of the number of IoT devices, which is predicted to reach 18 billion by 2022, according to Ericsson. The problem with this number of devices arises not only in the BYOD (Bring-Your-On-Devices) approach in enterprises, but also in home networks. One of the most significant IoT security risks and challenges is being able to manage all our devices and close the perimeter.

But rogue devices or counterfeit malicious IoT devices are beginning to be installed in secured networks without authorization. A rogue device replaces an original one or integrates as a member of a group to collect or alter sensitive information. These devices break the network perimeter.

Raspberry Pi board

Example of rouge IoT devices can take the form of the Raspberry Pi, or WiFi Pineapple. These can be turned into a rogue AP (Access Point), thermostat, video camera, or MITM (Man in the Middle) and intercept incoming data communications unbeknownst to users. Other variations of rogue devices may also emerge in the future.

Interestingly, the upcoming horror movie “Child’s Play” was inspired by the concept and can serve as a curious example. In the movie, controlling other devices in a smart home system, Chucky is a rouge IoT device that has become a high-level threat to people’s lives.

10) Cryptomining with IoT Bots.

Mining cryptocurrency demands colossal CPU and GPU resources, and another IoT security issue has emerged due to this precondition — cryptomining with IoT bots. This type of attack involves infected botnets aimed at IoT devices, with the goal not to create damage, but mine cryptocurrency.

The open-source cryptocurrency Monero is one of the first ones to be mined using infected IoT devices, such as video cameras. Although a video camera does not have powerful resources to mine cryptocurrency, an army of them does.

IoT botnet miners pose a great threat to the crypto market, as the have the potential to flood and disrupt the entire market in a single attack.

Summary

After the Mirai attack, people realized that any device connected to the Internet is a potential ally for an army of bots. But that was only the beginning.

For now, IoT and security are still not found in the same place. There are still many risks and security challenges of IoT now — and more will inevitably emerge in the coming years.

The more variations of IoT devices we see out there, the more complex IoT security problems will become. International organizations and governments will need to create universal IoT standards to control the security in cities, homes, locations like nuclear plants, the manufacturing process, and other areas and locations.

We have seen the emergence of IoT as a trend in the last few years. There are smart devices coming out that we never thought needed an Internet connection: smart toothbrushes, beauty mirrors, tables, pillows, beds, and the list continues to grow. The world is turning into a network of objects collecting our personal, sensitive information.

We can only imagine the amount of important data hackers could steal from those IoT devices if they do not have proper security. So, the top IoT security threats listed above are just the beginning. If we want our devices smart, we need them to be secure as well.

The post Top 10 Biggest IoT Security Issues appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Adero, formerly TrackR, whose shareholders include Amazon, Foundry and Revolution, developed a series of products and software solutions along with Activefield, a platform that can scale across many products, many companies and unlimited use cases.

Adero, being a well-funded startup, has been successfully reinventing itself to stay relevant as it grows together with its addressable market. Like any early stage ventures, one of Adero’s challenges hinged on a need to scale its software development together with its engineering bandwidth, with the required growth vs. available local resources.  

Competing in a rather fragmented market of IoT-based consumer solutions for organizations, Adero aimed high, worked hard, and raced against time to go to market with an offering that would win over millennial and Generation X consumers alike.  

During its quest, Adero partnered with Intellectsoft, which was able to integrate its efforts smoothly into the strides undertaken by Adero’s in-house team. Understanding  IoT technologies, the intricacies of hardware design and embedded software, coupled with an innate understanding of the needs and wants of Adero’s core consumers, Intellectsoft was able to contribute its skills and knowledge to the partnership, resulting in a product that lies at the core of the intelligent, easy and stress-free organization concept of Adero.

Shortly after the product’s release, Fast Company awarded Adero the #10 spot on their list of Most Innovative Companies, alongside tech giants Apple, Google and Microsoft.

About Adero & Smart Tagging System

Adero (formerly known as TrackR) is a Santa Barbara, CA-based technology company that provides an intelligent organization system aiming to end the stress and chaos that comes with managing personal things. Converging consumer electronics, hardware, the Internet of Things (IoT), mobile, software, and wireless in one place, Adero’s Smart Tagging system lets a user’s life essentials manage and keep track of themselves.

1 Smart Tag (parent beacon) and 3 Taglets (smaller beacons) connected to it

No matter how many things you have and the number of bags you use to carry them, Adero is built to ensure you never lose anything in a simple way. The logic behind Adero’s product is the following. The Smart Tagging system consists of small tracking devices, parent trackers, and a custom mobile app. You place the parent beacon (called a Smart Tag) on a bag, the smaller trackers (called Taglets) on the things you usually put in that bag, and then register the bag and its tags in the mobile app. When you leave something from the bag behind, the app sends you a notification after communicating with trackers. You can organise the bags, trackers, and notifications in the app.

How hard was the road to the seamlessly working final product and the customer? And where did Intellectsoft step in to play the part?

Challenges, Challenges, Challenges

At the start, Adero faced fierce competition in the tracking solutions market. The only option was creating a pitch-perfect product that would fully deliver on the premise of keeping track of personal belongings at all times.

The final result needed to be simple, work seamlessly, and stand out among competitors. Adero’s talented team had experience  creating similar products that enjoyed success, including the wireless speaker system from Sonos, XBox from Microsoft and the Tesla.

The accompanying mobile app is an important part of Adero’s product

Adero began working with various development partners focusing on design, firmware, hardware, and software. The two unresolved pieces of the fully-developed product puzzle were: a) ensuring interoperability between all product components and b) simplicity of the solution that would resonate with users of diverse tastes, age groups and abilities.

For those tasks Adero selected Intellectsoft to partner across mobile, cloud, and microservices development.

Building the Team & Getting to Work

While the right expertise and niche skills were critical to the product development success, contracting planned time to market put both companies under significant pressure to perform fast and, most importantly, to deliver robust and superb performance.

For Intellectsoft such a time-pressed environment is actually a modus operandi, as many domestic and foreign enterprise clients come to Intellectsoft “in a pinch.” The company has a well-oiled system of acquiring, training and onboarding the resources with required core domain and technology prowess and compiling an outstanding team within Adero-required deadline.  Intellectsoft has been working with Adero through a combination model from its offshore development centers in Kyiv and Minsk, as well as on-site in a client-facing capacity at Adero’s offices in Santa Barbara.

The project epitomised success of this close collaboration between Intellectsoft and Adero teams that enjoyed great synergies in the process, consisting of knowledge sharing across a wide array of subjects from general technology challenges to particular relevant  intricacies in software development.

Areas of Collaboration:

• iOS app MVP architecture (Swift)
• Android app MVP architecture (Java)
• Custom Bluetooth communication protocol
• Advanced rule validation and notifications engine
• Custom User Interfaces and Motion
• AWS cloud backend solution
• Platform build on Ruby and Node.js
• Advanced platform rollout
• Mobile app development
• Hardware onboarding and communication security
• AWS Cognito for authorisation
• ELK Stack for Logging and Metrics
• Installation of microservice architecture

See how Adero’s product works:

Abundant Payoff Was Commensurate With The Efforts

Intelectsoft’s cooperation with Adero could not have resulted into anything short of an award- winning product that stands out among competition.

Fast Company ranked Adero #10 in their list of Most Innovative Companies of 2019 in the Consumer Electronics segment. Adero stands beside the majority of the tech industry’s giants, including Apple, Google, and IBM. Meanwhile, the customers enjoy Adero’s simple and elegant product that helps manage essentials without leaving behind vital items for all upcoming engagements in an easy and sleek manner.

“Smart devices were supposed to make our lives better.  However, over the past decade we’ve discovered that users are quickly becoming overwhelmed in this overly-connected blue-chip stuffed IoT driven world,” said Adero’s Chief Executive Officer Nate Kelly. “More apps to manage, more devices to keep an eye on, more cords to untangle and remember about—it’s way too much! Adero is giving the users  an opportunity to passively manage and keep track of their essentials in a non-invasive way that allows for confidence and a peace of mind for our customers. ur system of tags, effectively “taking care” of the items,” freeing consumers’ minds to focus on more rewarding matters. Without Intellectsoft’s expertise, getting a product of this quality to market, especially within the outlined time constraints, would have been nearly impossible.”

The post Tech Story: How Adero Created a Stellar Product that Consumers & Top Tech Media Love appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Big data analytics emerged as a requisite for the success of business and technology. That is why we now have various big data frameworks in the market to choose from. Apache Spark and Hadoop are two of such big data frameworks, popular due to their efficiency and applications. While we do have a choice, picking up the right one has become quite difficult. Perhaps, performing a downright comparison of the pros and cons of these tools would be no good as well, since this will not highlight the particular usefulness of a tool. Instead, this article performs a detailed Apache Spark vs Hadoop MapReduce comparison, highlighting their performance, architecture, and use cases.

Before delving into a detailed comparison, we will briefly explore what Spark and Hadoop are.

Let’s start exploring the frameworks.

What is Apache Spark

Apache Spark is a real-time data analytics framework that mainly executes in-memory computations in a distributed environment. It offers incredible processing speed, making it desirable for everyone interested in big data analytics. Spark can either work as a stand-alone tool or can be associated with Hadoop YARN. Since it flaunts faster data processing, it is suitable for repeated processing of data sets. Nonetheless, it requires more power.

What is MapReduce, or Hadoop MapReduce

MapReduce is what constitutes the core of Apache Hadoop, which is an open source framework. The MapReduce programming model lets Hadoop first store and then process big data in a distributed computing environment. This makes it capable of processing large data sets, particularly when RAM is less than data. Hadoop does not have the speed of Spark, so it works best for economical operations not requiring immediate results.

Hadoop MapReduce vs Spark – Detailed Comparison

Both Spark and Hadoop serve as big data frameworks, seemingly fulfilling the same purposes. However, they have several differences in the way they approach data processing. Here, we draw a comparison of the two from various viewpoints.

Spark vs MapReduce Performance

At a glance, anyone can randomly label Spark a winner considering the data processing speed. Nonetheless, delving into the details of the performance of Hadoop and Spark reveals more facts.

Spark vs Hadoop big data analytics visualisation

Apache Spark Performance

As said above, Spark is faster than Hadoop. This is because of its in-memory processing of the data, which makes it suitable for real-time analysis. Nonetheless, it requires a lot of memory since it involves caching until the completion of a process. So, if the data fits well into memory, Spark can become the right option.

MapReduce Performance

Hadoop processes data by first storing it across a distributed environment, and then processing it in parallel. The software is basically designed to process data gathered from various sources. Thus, it takes quite some time to show results. In other words, Hadoop should not be considered for data processing where faster results are needed.

However, if speed and time are not critical, then Hadoop outperforms Spark Apache as it conveniently handles large data sets, is capable of handling hardware failures, and does not require a lot of processing memory. Besides, unlike Spark, it does not require caching, thus saving up memory.

Hadoop vs Apache Spark Language

Hadoop MapReduce and Spark not only differ in performance but are also written in different languages. Hadoop is usually written in Java that supports MapReduce functionalities. Nonetheless, Python may also be used if required.

On the other hand, Apache Spark is mainly written in Scala. But‎, it also comes with APIs for ‎Java‎, ‎Python‎, R, and SQL. Hence, it offers more options to the developers.

Spark and MapReduce Architecture

Spark and MapReduce both perform data analytics in a distributed computing environment. However, both the software process a given dataset differently. Below we explain and compare the architecture when it comes to Spark vs MapReduce.

Apache Spark Architecture

Spark is a clustered computing system that has RDD (Resilient Distributed Dataset) as its fundamental data structure. This data structure makes Spark resilient to faults and failure when processing data distributed over multiple nodes and managing partitioned datasets of values. It is RDD’s capability to exploit the power of multiple nodes in a cluster that makes it faster and tolerant to faults.

While executing data analysis, Spark Apache manages the distribution of datasets over various nodes in a cluster, creating RDDs. RDD is an immutable collection of objects that may be lazily transformed via Directed Acyclic Graph (DAG). Each dataset in an RDD is divided into multiple logical partitions facilitating in parallel computation across different nodes in the cluster.

Inside the cluster, the master node holds the driver program where the Spark Context is created for smooth execution of all Spark functionalities. The Spark Context collaborates with the Cluster Manager to manage a task. Besides, the Spark architecture also consists of Worker Nodes that hold data cache, perform task execution, and return the results to the Spark Context. The number of Worker Nodes may be increased as desired for faster processing. However, it will require more space.

Apache Spark Architecture Diagram

The following diagram illustrates Spark architecture. Whenever an RDD is created in the Spark Context, it is then further distributed to the Worker Nodes for task execution alongside caching. The Worker Nodes, after task execution, send the results back to the Spark Context.

Apache Spark architecture

Hadoop MapReduce Architecture

Hadoop comprises of two core components – HDFS (Hadoop Distributed File System) and YARN (Yet Another Resource Negotiator). As the name implies, HDFS manages big data storage across multiple nodes; while YARN manages processing tasks by resource allocation and job scheduling.

The HDFS architecture is based on two main nodes – a NameNode, and multiple DataNodes. These nodes exhibit a master/slave architecture where a NameNode serves as the master managing storage and logging changes to the metadata of all files in a cluster. While the DataNodes are the slave nodes that perform NameNode’s commands.

YARN also comprises of two major components that manage the core functions of resource management and task scheduling. These are the Resource Manager and the Node Managers. Resource Manager is a cluster-level component (there can only be one per cluster), whereas Node Managers exist at the node level, making up several NodeManagers in a cluster.

Hadoop MapReduce Diagram

The following diagram shows the architecture of Hadoop HDFS. The NameNode saves the metadata of all stored files as well as logs any changes to the metadata. Whereas, the DataNodes store the actual data, attend read/write requests and performs NameNode’s instructions regarding creation, deletion, or replication of blocks.

Hadoop HDFS architecture

In YARN architecture, the Resource Manager allocates resources for running apps in a cluster via Scheduler. Besides, its ApplicationManager component accepts job submissions and negotiates for app execution with the first container.

Node Managers manage containers and track resource utilization. NodeManagers also communicate with ResourceManager for updates.

Hadoop YARN architecture

Hadoop vs Spark Cost

In general, both Hadoop and Spark are free open-source software. However, developing the associated infrastructure may entail software development costs. From the viewpoint of Hadoop vs Apache Spark budget, Hadoop seems a cost-effective means for data analytics. It requires less RAM and can even work on commodity hardware.

Spark, on the other hand, requires more RAM since it works faster and does not consume disk I/O. So, it may require pricey systems. However, as it boasts advanced technology, it requires less computation units, and this may lower the costs.

Spark vs MapReduce Compatibility

Spark and Hadoop MapReduce are identical in terms of compatibility. While both can work as stand-alone applications, one can also run Spark on top of Hadoop YARN. Spark also supports Hadoop InputFormat data sources, thus showing compatibility with almost all Hadoop-supported file formats.

Likewise, Hadoop can also be integrated with various tools like Sqoop and Flume.

Apache Spark And Hadoop Security

Spark supports authentication via shared secret. Its security features also include event logging, and it uses javax servlet filters for securing web user interface. Nevertheless, if it runs on YARN and integrates with HDFS, it may also leverage the potential of HDFS file permissions, Kerberos, and inter-node encryption.

On the other hand, Hadoop surpasses Apache Spark in terms of security, as it supports Kerberos authentication. While Kerberos may be difficult to handle, Hadoop also supports third-party authentication, such as Lightweight Directory Access Protocol (LDAP). It also offers conventional file permissions, encryption, and access control lists (ACLs). Besides, it ensures providing appropriate user permissions for a job with Service Level Authorization (SLA). Here, Hadoop surpasses Spark in terms of security features.

MapReduce Vs Spark Use Cases

While Apache Spark and Hadoop process big data in different ways, both the frameworks provide different benefits, and thus, have different use cases.

Apache Spark Use Cases

Spark, being the faster, is suitable for processes where quick results are needed. Hence, Spark fits best for:

1. Real-time analysis of big data
2. Fast data processing with immediate results
3. Iterative operations
4. Machine Learning algorithms
5. Graph processing

Hadoop MapReduce Use Cases

As noted above, comparing processing speeds of Apache Spark vs MapReduce gives Spark an edge over Hadoop. However, Hadoop exhibits tremendous capability of processing large data sets. Hence, it works best for:

1. Analysis of archive data
2. Operations involving commodity hardware
3. Data analysis where time factor is not essential
4. Linear data processing of large datasets

Spark And Hadoop Examples

By comparing MapReduce vs Spark practical examples, one can easily get an idea of how these two giant frameworks are supporting big data analysis on large scale.

Apache Spark Examples

1. Risk management and forecasting
2. Industrial analysis of big data gathered from sensors for predictive maintenance of equipment
3. Fraud detection and prevention with real-time analysis
4. Delivering more tailored customer experiences by analyzing data related to customer behavioral patterns
5. Predicting stock market trends with real-time predictive analysis of stock portfolio movements

MapReduce Examples

1. Social networking platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn use MapReduce for data analyses
2. Law enforcement and security agencies use Hadoop for processing huge datasets of criminal activities gathered over a period of time for crime prevention
3. Finance, telecom, and health sectors rely on Hadoop for periodic analysis of big data to fuel future operations based on the gather customer reviews
4. Improvement of science research with data analysis
5. Data analysis by city and state governments for improving overall infrastructure, such as by analyzing data related to traffic situations

Hadoop MapReduce Or Apache Spark – Which One Is Better?

Considering the overall Apache Spark benefits, many see the framework as a replacement for Hadoop. Perhaps, that’s the reason why we see an exponential increase in the popularity of Spark during the past few years.

Nonetheless, the outlined comparison clarifies that both Apache Spark and Hadoop have advantages and disadvantages. Though both frameworks are used for data processing, they have significant differences with regards to their approach to data analytics. Both of them are designed in different languages and have distinct use cases. Therefore, it purely depends on the users which one to choose based on their preferences and project requirements.

The post Spark vs Hadoop MapReduce – Comparing Two Big Data Giants appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

How does it happen? We selected IoT software development examples of different scale from our own projects to show the impact of IoT in detail.

Let’s see how a luxury hotel chain, vending machine provider, and retail solutions company added the prefix “smart” to their businesses.

Types of IoT Software Development Services & Solutions

Before exploring the cases, let’s stop at the types of IoT software development and solutions for valuable context. They range in scale, complexity, and enabling hardware.

1. Embedded software development involves creating software that would control other machines or devices. Examples of embedded software development applications include smart hotel systems where guests can use a tablet to control room amenities; next-generation vending machines with tables; interactive displays; and smart car systems.
2. Firmware development for Android. IoT development solutions like a smart room tablet, vending machine, or interactive display need their own Android firmware. This allows for building a custom launcher, connecting external sensors needed for a given solution, enforcing custom security policies, porting the latest Android OS, and enabling over-the-air updates and device monitoring.
3. Indoor & outdoor navigation systems primarily involve beacon technology and mobile devices. Beacons are small devices that send messages via Bluetooth to mobile devices, providing navigation, contextual experiences (for example information about a location an individual just entered), as well as ads and critical notifications.
4. Industrial IoT solutions. This solutions allow enterprises monitor operations with sensors to gather various types of data, inform about inconsistencies and emergencies, and get a wholesome view of operations.
5. Enterprise IoT solutions combine different types of IoT software development and hardware in scalable IoT ecosystems.
6. Custom IoT solutions — solutions built from scratch for specific purposes or as a product.

Enterprise IoT Solution — Smart Hotel System

In their first experience of outsourcing software development, an award-winning Asian hotel chain turned to Intellectsoft for a smart hotel system for its new, ambitious luxury hotel.

The system would have a tablet app that allows guests to control amenities, access resort information, and drive sales. The project involved embedded software development and Android custom firmware development.

Challenge. The company’s new hotel offers a range of suites of different size, from multi-bedroom suites to two-story villas. Each of them has a different set of amenities. We needed to create a universal tablet experience that would adapt to suite type and extend the chain’s unmatched hotel experience to the tablet.

Solution. Our team created an Android app with pre-set designs for each suite type. In eye-pleasing and uncluttered UX, guests can control light, air conditioning, windows, TV, and media devices in all rooms. They also can use the app to order guest services, chat with stuff, receive notifications, and access important information (restaurant and in-room menus, entertainment, flight schedules, and other).  

Impact. Regardless of scale, successful IoT development requires the right expertise and effort. After working closely with the client on and off site, our smart hotel solution ensured a smooth opening day for the client’s one-of-the-kind resort and became essential to the hotel experience. Our partnership continues in Internet of Things development (beacon technology) as well as extending to solutions with other tech.

Android Custom Firmware Development & Embedded Software Development — Smart Fridges

Whether it is a scalable Industrial IoT ecosystem or a solution of a much smaller scale, Internet of Things development often provides a foundation for a business. Our solution for Californian vending machine provider is a handy illustration of that.

Challenge. The company provides offices around the U.S. with healthy food from local brands in smart fridges. Aiming to make the user experience as simple as possible, the company approached Intellectsoft to elevate the existing solution further up. The new solution also needed to have smooth integration with card readers and RFID antennas. In other words, the company’s smart fridges needed to be a perfect example of what a frictionless user experience is.

Solution. Our designer team put together a questionnaire, dived deep on the subject of vending machines and how they work, and explored cases when tablets were used with hardware in the client’s niche and similar markets.

Our team’s work resulted in Android tablet solution with unique, three-step UX: a user chooses a food item, swipes their card, and takes the item out of the fridge — as simple as that. The software engineers on the team ensured the simplicity and speed by establishing fail-safe communication between the system, the card readers, and the RFID tags.

To speed up the UX further, the solution involved no third-party software onboard. As embedded system software development allows for remote monitoring and over-the-air updates, the company could always manage their fleet of fridges and ensure the tablets are consistently updated.

Impact. Over the years, the result of our Internet of Things development continues to be a reliable foundation for the company’s business. Our partnership continues to this day.

Indoor Positioning System with Android App & Embedded Software Development

As beacons started emerging several years ago, the retail industry was first in the queue to implement them. Hidden from plain sight, these small, cost-effective devices were set to help retailers breath new life into the in-store experience along with mobile apps. Right at that moment, a company specializing in IT solutions for retail got in touch with Intellectsoft for an indoor positioning system and Internet of Things software development.

Challenge. The solution needed to locate the user on premises and supply them with promotional information. The GPS option was excluded.

Solution. As Beacons rely on Bluetooth technology, the devices were the perfect fit for the project. We designed an indoor positioning system were beacons are strategically placed to accommodate the user experience and drive sales.

To make everything work, we added a mobile app to the equation. Our IoT software development efforts result in an Android app that allows users create and modify shopping lists with details about the products they are interested in, like name barcode or product category. While creating a list, they can take advantage of prior history, auto-suggestions, loyalty cards, product searches, and favorites.

As a result, beacons and app pairing can be used to send location-based individual offers to shoppers: when a user approaches an item they could be interested in, a beacon sends a notification to the app.

Impact. As beacons were only emerging back then, our solution gave the company and their clients an edge over competition. The beacon-based indoor positioning system supplied customers with individual notifications, opening up new marketing avenues for retailers, driving sales, and adding value to both customer and in-store experience.

Final Notes

Despite the scale and type of solution, Internet of Things software development can become a solid foundation for a business or a separate operation. Coupled with mobile and other technologies, IoT allows companies to solve existing issues, deliver new experiences, and continuously drive sales.

From industrial IoT applications to custom products with Internet of Things at their very core, Intellectsoft will continue examining the cases with technology in upcoming posts. Follow us on Facebook to stay informed.  

Need an impactful and reliable IoT solution? Get in touch with us.

The post Internet of Things Software Development: 3 In-Depth Case Studies appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

In the years since it emerged, the concept of The Internet of Things (IoT) has travelled from connecting several daily wearables with smartphones to big-scale industrial IoT ecosystems. Small and hidden, IoT devices and sensors are always out of sight, but they are the means to collect Big Data and drive impactful, enterprise-wide decision making.

Jeremy Rifkin, an American economic and social theorist, who has been advising the European Union and Chancellor Angela Merkel, goes as far as to brand IoT as the universal platform for for the Third Industrial Revolution.

According to Rifkin, humanity is currently transitioning to new forms of communication, energy, and transportation that will operate on the Internet of Things infrastructure globally.

Leading the way are long-established large enterprises across industries that test and implement IoT solutions successfully.

Let’s see how Amazon, Bosch, Hewlett Packard, and other big brands use enterprise IoT in our selection.

IoT Technology Solutions: Bosch and Connected Housing

Bosch is one of Europe’s largest electrotechnical and engineering firms. The company is based in Germany and produces various automotive components, manufacturing tools, diagnostics and control mechanisms, and a great many other products.

Bosch’s recent take on house appliances includes smart connectivity that lets gadgets “talk” to each other and exchange information fast, or machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. For example, smart devices notify house owners, suppliers, or maintenance office about food shortage, electricity overuse, malfunctioning, as well as other information. In some cases, M2M devices can solve an issue on their own.

Cisco and IoT Development For Enterprise

Cisco Systems, the world’s largest network equipment producer for remote access, security services, and storage networks, also didn’t miss the opportunity to leverage the Internet of Things. The company sets forth the IoT benefits for business, and offers broad-scale industrial IoT solutions that help monitor operations, gather Big Data, and optimise overarching business processes.

See the video:

Cisco also focuses on fog technologies, which operate between cloud services and the end user. Fog tech significantly speeds up the connection and widens the range of transmitted data. Fog tech will facilitate the adoption of IoT solutions, with 50 billion smart devices connected by 2020, according to McKinsey research. More so, fog technologies will allow for converging IT and operational technologies across organizations.

See Cisco’s panel discussion on IoT system deployments using fog applications:

IoT Solutions in Shopping: Amazon Go

With their Go shops, Amazon has reimagined grocery shopping by allowing customers to simply walk into the store, take the products they need, and walk out. The shops’ IoT ecosystem relies on many RFID chips, CCTV cameras, and customers’ smartphones connected to their Amazon accounts via a dedicated app, as well as computer vision and deep learning.

The system analyzes what a customer takes and automatically adds it to their virtual cart, processing the payments for the products after they leave the store. The system is also highly responsive. For example, it can identify when a shopper took an item, but decided to put it back.

As a result, there are no queues, and the shopping experience is more pleasant, smooth, and efficient.

See the video:

Amazon Go launched to general public at the start of 2018. There are currently two stores in Seattle, WA.

Enterprise Internet of Things: Azure IoT Suite (Microsoft), IoT Hub for Developers

Microsoft’s Azure IoT suite converges IoT, machine learning, business intelligence, and notifications systems to help gather Big Data with IoT devices, as well as drive IoT software and application development.

Azure IoT suite allows enterprises to:

• Collect data from devices
• Carry out real-time data analysis
• Store and query large data sets
• Visualise data in real time
• Manage device fleet

Azure IoT suite also includes user templates that allow for creating fully customizable solutions for typical IoT scenarios.

With the help of Azure IoT Suite, Internet of Things for enterprise solutions can increase equipment reliability with predictive maintenance, connect and monitor devices remotely, improve tracking the operation of devices, assets, and sensors, as well as develop and test IoT solutions with device simulation.

IoT in Business: Daimler’s Autonomous Truck-Based Logistics

In 2016, Daimler unveiled their Highway Pilot Connect, a truck platooning system of semi-autonomous Mercedes-Benz trucks. The platoon can consist of up to ten vehicle driving in liniar formation and connected by onboard telematics platform using Wi-Fi.

The solution allows enterprises to drastically optimise their logistics, improve productivity, as well as reduce costs and ecological footprint. In the future, Highway Pilot Connect and similar solutions would help build big, reliable logistics ecosystems that require low human involvement level.

IoT Solutions for Sports: Hewlett Packard

HP also appears among IoT solutions providers, specifically for football and baseball sports businesses. The company’s solutions allow teams to track athlete performance to prevent injuries and improve team strategy, whether it is a game or the entire season. In addition, coaches can also use the IoT solution from HP to perfect their players’ game during practice, an advantage that FC Arsenal has enjoyed.

Google and IoT Software & Application Development

The Internet giant from the FANG group (Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google) offers a number of IoT technology solutions, both for enterprises and IoT developers. As usual, Google has something for everyone, as their Cloud IoT platform also caters to IoT for small business solutions.

Developers have enjoyed Google products for years and now a wave of IoT app development is on the way.

Enterprise IoT — Summary

From automotive to computer networks, from home devices to shopping and healthcare, enterprises around the world have discovered the major benefits of the Internet of Things. According to Kaleido Insights, the spectrum of IoT technology solutions will improve efficiency, safety and profitability, and unleash a new era of economic productivity in the enterprise in the next decade.

Intellectsoft offers comprehensive and secure enterprise IoT solutions. Explore how we can help you.

The post How Brands Like Bosch & Daimler Leverage Enterprise IoT appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

What is it?

The Internet of Things (IoT) is the new Internet. It is the next logical stage in the evolution of data networks. Although you may have missed the nascent stages, it’s by no means too late to get on board. Right now is a pretty darned exciting time to be an app or software development company.

Depending on your perspective, the Internet of Things is somewhere on a spectrum between Kubrickian horror and technological utopia. A lot of our “things,” like our laptops, phones, tablets, televisions, and fitness trackers, are already a part of the IoT. The gist of the IoT is that all of the electronic devices you use – alarm clock, lamp, toothbrush, coffeemaker, car (and that’s just before you get to work) – will be connected to the internet in order to collect and transmit data.

The world is changing. Today’s kids can’t imagine a world without the Internet. Tomorrow’s kids won’t be able to imagine a world without the Internet of Things. And it’s time for a mobile app development company to understand the implications of that.

It’s the way of the future…but it’s still relatively unknown

If you’re still not sold on the Internet of Things, consider this: Intel, the tech giant which invented the modern day microprocessor, predicts that by the year 2020 there will be 200 billion connected devices. That’s 200 billion — as in twice the number of stars in the Milky Way.

There are a number of factors driving this incredible growth. As technology costs fall, it’s easier for manufacturers to create Wi-Fi capable products. At the same time, smart phones – with Internet connectivity – are becoming the standard communication device. Industry leaders like Apple are already integrating fitness trackers, televisions, and mp3 players into the IoT, with many players expected to follow suit.

Yet, even with these bold predictions and trends pointing towards the IoT as the next big thing, there’s still not much awareness of the concept among the general public – even those who use it on a daily basis. In fact, according to Forbes magazine, 87 percent of people either do not understand or have not heard of the Internet of Things (IoT).

The potential for growth is huge

If you’re a software developer this should sound like music to your ears. As the app store continues to bloat with over one and half million games, trackers, and timewasters, IoT presents a whole new playing field for you to branch out. By comparison, there are only 1,000 apps offered for the Apple TV and 10,000 for the Apple Watch.

To break into the IoT, become an expert in a field that’s still untapped. If you spend the next five years with an app development company creating software and apps for showers or toaster ovens, chances are no one will know more about your niche than you do. The IoT is so multifaceted that it’s impossible for the major players to cover every device. It’s an absolute goldmine for a custom mobile app development company.

The biggest thing to remember, should your software, app, or other IoT creation take off, is to ensure scalability. While research and development are important in early stages, it’s important to plan for best-case contingencies. Will you be ready when the order for a million units comes in?

There’s incredible potential in the IoT so long as you understand how it works and where you can fit in. What a time to be alive!

The post What Is the Internet of Things and How to Thrive in It appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

M2M Communication

The rapid increase in numbers of smart things, from fridges to cars and from humidity sensors to door locks, has inevitably led to significant fragmentation in terms of the ways, in which devices talk to each other and/or to a central hub.

Machine-to-machine communication solutions are in most cases created to solve this problem and make interaction between all kinds of hardware as smooth and seamless as possible.

OpenHAB

Aimed at the host of smart home devices released to date, OpenHAB is a “vendor-neutral and hardware/protocol-agnostic” platform that can work on any device capable of running a Java Virtual Machine (JVM). That means it’s good to go on any computer running Windows, OS X or Linux, including most micro-devices like Raspberry Pi.

The open-source solution comes with a set of web-based UIs, as well as native apps for Android and iOS. OpenHAB claims to be able to integrate virtually any smart home systems, but also can be integrated into another system through an API.

OpenHAB supports more than a hundred technologies, services and protocols, including Zwave, Withings, Nest, Dropbox, Twitter, and so on. The system also has an integrated rule engine, in which rules are written in a Java-like language and can be triggered by all kinds of events. Parts of rules can be reused as scripts.

The Thing System

Another open source solution in the pack, the Thing System promises users to make them finally able to take control of their things. The range of things to take control of is quite long, too, from Nest and Apple TV to Samsung’s smart air conditioners and Cube Sensors.

The heart of the solution is called a steward system. Written in Node.js, it’s lightweight and flexible, and can run on pretty much any computer, no matter how resource-restricted it is.

The creators of the Thing System encourage third-party developers to build their own clients using the steward and contribute to its code base.

Paraimpu

Named after a variant of a Sardinian word that can be translated as “mediator,” Paraimpu positions itself as a social tool that allows users to connect, manage and mash up their smart devices and online services.

The service emphasizes its social aspect, which means that users are encouraged to share their connected things and produced data with friends, as well as play with the others’ shared stuff.

As opposed to the first two M2M communication tools of this overview, Paraimpu is a fully functional cloud-based platform that employs the freemium model. The free tier lets you create, edit, run and share up to four things with one communication between any thing and Paraimpu per minute. The premium version, pricing of which isn’t disclosed on the website, allows 14 things and three communications per minute.

Middleware

Another crucial element in building Internet of Things appliances, middleware can be described as an abstraction level necessary to connect different devices that also provides API for communications on the physical level. The definition of middleware in the domain of the Internet of Things can seem vague and change depending on who’s talking. If you want to familiarize yourself with its different aspects, we’d recommend reading this detailed post.

Meanwhile, here’s a list of a few middleware offerings from different providers worth attention.

MachineShop

This enterprise-level middleware platform can be used in a wide range of environments, from public cloud to on-premise deployment to other options like hybrid or EDGE. The main idea here is that the platform can be seen as a large collection of services with RESTful APIs, which developers can use as building blocks for their products.

This middleware is compliant with everything an enterprise solution should be compliant with, including Cisco IoT Blueprint for Edge Computing and Industrial Internet Consortium open interoperability standards. In addition to that, it promises to be able to connect to all the major public cloud providers.

ProSyst

ProSyst is another large-scale middleware provider focused on connection and managing IoT devices in the cloud. The range of usage of the solution is quite wide, from eHealth and connected cars and to smart homes and industrial appliances.

The middleware also allows to conduct remote diagnostics and servicing of the connected devices, as well as implement complex use cases for context-aware IoT systems like multifunctional house monitoring solutions.

IoTSys

An open source solution created with EU funding, IoTSys doesn’t seem to be actively developed anymore but could serve a good basis for a home-grown middleware product.

The middleware works as a gateway for sensor and actuator systems. The project’s stack includes standards (and proposed standards) such as IPv6 over Low-Power Wireless Personal Area Network (6LoWPAN), OASIS Open Building Information Exchange (oBIX), Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP), and Efficient XML Interchange.

OpenIoT

Like IoTSys, OpenIoT is a EU-funded project, which means it can be used as a building block for any other solution thanks to its open nature.

The middleware is created for sensor networks and promises to “support flexible configuration and deployment of algorithms for collection, and filtering information streams stemming from the internet-connected objects, while at the same time generating and processing important business/applications events.”

The Internet of Things appliances are complex systems with multiple hardware and software layers, and building them won’t become any easier in the future, as new concepts and use cases appear on a daily basis. It is, however, a highly exciting world of ever-changing technology paradigms and solutions.

Feel free to share which communication systems, middleware, and platforms you use for your own development – let’s discuss!

The post IoT Developer’s Software Toolkit. Part II: Middleware And M2M Communication appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.

Be it a smart home solution with scores of devices connected to each other or a few telemetry sensors in your car, developers always have choices to make when designing their IoT appliance. We have already taken a look at different ready-made cloud platforms and visualization tools for IoT, so now it’s time to dig deeper.

Operating systems

The choice of the OS to power your sensors and other hardware can be more or less wide depending on the devices you’ve chosen. If you haven’t made you mind yet, check out our brief overview.

For example, if you want the system to be controlled by a Raspberry Pi or Arduino, you will most likely have just a couple of solutions to choose from. Here are the most interesting OS on offer today.

Raspbian

Arguably the most popular operating system for Raspberry Pi, Raspbian comes with over 35,000 packages optimized for best performance on these computers. As the name suggests, Raspbian is actually a port of Debian, namely Debian Wheezy released in 2013.

Being a “normal” full-fledged OS at its core, Raspbian can be used for any kind of task, including IoT applications. A Raspberry Pi can function as a hub that collects and, in some cases, analyzes data from a number of sensors and passes it on to the cloud or elsewhere.

In addition to that, Raspbian can use MATE, a fork of the discontinued Gnome 2, to provide a graphic user interface.

Contiki

This operating system has been around since 2003 and is widely used in systems with limited resources. Requiring just 10 KB of RAM and 30 KB or ROM to function, Contiki is now positioning itself as an ultimate OS for the Internet of Things.

The main goal of Contiki is to connect low-power microcontrollers to the Internet. The platforms it can run on include Re-Mote, wismote, seed-eye and many others.

One of Contiki’s benefits is easy development. Apps for the OS are written in standard C, while the Cooja simulator allows to emulate a Contiki network to test your code. In addition to that, you can download Instant Contiki, an entire develpment environment in the form of an Ubuntu Linux virtual machine.

Riot OS

Another operating system focused on the Internet of Things, RIOT requires even less memory to run than Contiki. The versatile OS is supposed to be functioning with just 1.5 KB of RAM and 5 KB of ROM. What’s even more interesting, it can run on a few embedded architectures but also on common x86 computers.

RIOT OS offers developers a possibility to run code in C and C++ and use standard tools, including gcc, gdb, and valgrind. You can write and test your code on Linux or OS X using the native port.

In order to enable maximum energy efficiency, RIOT supports multi-threading with a threading overhead of less than 25 bytes per thread in addition to providing real-time capability with low interrupt latency and priority-based scheduling.

Windows 10 IoT Core

Publicly released in August 2015, this is a special edition of Windows for resource-constrained embedded devices. The operating system currently supports Raspberry Pi 2 and MinnowBoard MAX. In addition to that, you can create virtual shields for Arduino boards.

Obviously, Windows 10 IoT Core will let you run code in any language you’d normally use with Windows, which is a great benefit for developers who want to try their hand at the Internet of Things.

Although still living through early stages, Windows 10 IoT Core appears to have good prospects, especially considering the giant corporation with virtually unlimited resources behind it.

Frameworks

The Internet of Things appliances require quite a bit of low-level programming in order to ensure that sensors and other devices communicate with each other smoothly and “understand” the data sent to them. That’s why we need frameworks, which basically provide a higher level of abstraction and take care of the underlying communication protocols and other nuances.

Check out some of the most interesting ones you can use in your projects.

Eclipse Kura

Part of the Eclipse IoT project, Kura is a platform for building IoT gateways. It runs on top of the JVM (Java Virtual Machine) and offers a bunch of APIs to access different pieces of hardware, including serial ports, GPS, USB, GPIOs, etc.

Kura comes with a number of services, such as remote management, telemetry data storage and forwarding, cloud services communication API, remote management, and web-based management console. It can be used in systems based on Raspberry Pi, BeagleBone and Intel Edison boards.

Node-RED

While not being exactly a framework, Node-RED is a fairly interesting platform for wiring together devices, APIs and online services. It provides a browser-based visual flow editor that allows to create and connect nodes and flows.

The whole thing is built on Node.js, which makes it lightweight and suitable to run on resource-constrained devices. Node-RED supports the most popular IoT hardware platforms: Raspberry Pi, Arduino, and BeagleBone.

KinomaJS

Another JavaScript-based IoT framework, KinomaJS is a part of Kinoma’s offering for IoT that also includes the Kinoma Studio IDE and Kinoma Create hardware prototyping platform.

The application framework also provides an optional XML programming interface. KinomaJS itself is open source, while Kinoma’s hardware prototyping products work with off-the-shelf components.

AllJoyn

The open-source product released by the Allseen Alliance is a flexible framework that “makes it easy for developers to write applications that can discover nearby devices, and communicate with each other directly regardless of brands, categories, transports, and OSes without the need of the cloud.”

This noble goal is achieved by providing a simple API for secure communication between devices. It runs on RTOS, Arduino, Linux, Android, iOS, Windows, and Mac, supporting bindings in C, C++, Objective C, and Java.

M2MLabs Mainspring

As follows from the name of its creator, Mainspring is an application framework for building machine-to-machine (M2M) applications. Use cases of such apps include remote monitoring, fleet management or smart grid solutions.

Mainsprings’ features include flexible modeling of devices and their attributes, convenient device configuration, long-term storage of data in a compact format, and data retrieval functions for external applications using REST API.

The framework is written in Java and runs on standard J2EE6 application servers, while the data storage is powered by the Cassandra noSQL database.

This overview of operating systems and frameworks for IoT projects should help you to choose right products for your next big thing.

In the second part of this article, which will be out soon, we’ll talk about middleware and M2M communications solutions. Stay tuned!

The post IoT Developer’s Software Toolkit. Part I: Operating Systems and Frameworks appeared first on Intellectsoft Blog.