INTERNET OF THINGS
By Lloyd Kenney
Smartphones and tablets are used for a multitude of activities, including “Apps” which are downloaded
for various purposes. Home automation is becoming popular – allowing you to remotely control various
equipment items in your home; everything from your refrigerator to your security system.
Internet of Things is when you pair or connect, your smartphone or tablet with all those
consumer products, including your car. Since you are using the internet to access those
products or pieces of equipment, you are also creating an opportunity for hackers to steal part
or all your data and personal information, and of course, access to that equipment.
Besides having devices connected to systems, sensors can also be connected to the Internet of
Things platform. That allows analytics to share valuable information applied to specific uses
and needs. Internet of Things platforms can determine what information may be of use and
which can be useless and therefore ignored. The information can be used to identify trends and
detect what areas may benefit from more refinement.
An appliance manufacturer may want to know what appliance features are being investigated
most by shoppers. They could match that information with actual sales data to determine
trends and more accurately determine future inventory requirements. The same data could
indicate which items may be deleted.
The convenience of smart systems and analytics allows for automation – the reason many
features are so popular. Home automation using cameras has made baby monitoring and
thermostat adjusting very efficient. The same technology allows car manufacturers to load
systems with sensors to notify you the owner and the manufacturer when something is failing
and needs repair or replacement.
Lloyd Kenney, Performance Planning
