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Speaking the language: the collision of OT and IT

Operational technology (OT) and information technology (IT) have been living in two different worlds for a very long time. Historically, they have looked at things very differently. With the emergence of Internet-of-things (IoT) and industrial IoT (IIoT), however, the two worlds are being forced...

Designing with the MultiTech LoRaWAN Developer’s Kit

When developers decide to create a new product using LoRaWAN™, a critical first step is the proof of concept to make sure the product works as intended. To simplify the process, it is easier to use a LoRaWAN developer’s kit. I tested the Multiconnect®...

What is IoT telemetry?

Telemetry, data acquisition, SCADA — What do they mean, and how do they become part of IoT? Let’s try to sort it out. What is telemetry? Telemetry — the gathering of data from remote places for analysis and other purposes — is at the heart of...

IoT isn’t about data, it’s about creating new business opportunities (Reality Check)

Over the last decade, the Internet of Things (IoT) has allowed organizations to gather data from machines that have never produced data before. As time has gone on and the cost of technology has decreased significantly, this data is now being collected in economical...

Key challenges of visual fog computing

To understand visual fog computing, it is important to first understand fog computing. Let’s take a look at how the physical world connects to the cloud. Think of the physical world at the bottom of a pyramid, and the cloud as the top. At the...

Making smart buildings safer with trusted ID solutions (Reader Forum)

Thousands of people pour into and out of high-rise office buildings each day, and each must be kept safe and secure. Two of the most significant challenges in accomplishing this are guard tour management and ensuring that all fire and safety equipment complies with...

Technical challenges behind real-time traffic management for smart cities (Reader Forum)

As many of us routinely trapped in rush hour backups can attest, traffic congestion can be incredibly frustrating. But beyond the annoyance, a study from INRIX estimates that congestion costs drivers in the United States several billions of dollars a year in lost time...

Remote management: What good is Big Data if you can’t get it? (Reader Forum)

Now that I spend a lot of my time thinking about how to help companies get their networks to do what their businesses want them to do, I realize what sorts of challenges IT organizations have overcome to get any truly remote management operational. Now...

How does energy harvesting enable the IoT?

Many of the sensors used in IoT are battery-powered and organized into mesh networks. Set to transmit anywhere from every few seconds to every few hours. They can run for years before needing a battery replacement, but eventually they do. And if there are...

The impact of OT/IT convergence on manufacturing

We live in a world of continuous digital transformation. One technology obsoletes another, and the pattern repeats itself. For example, the invention of email has displaced the fax technology. Today we see another digital transformation caused by the industrial Internet-of-Things (IIoT) — the convergence...

Edge computing: 4 facts vs. fiction (Reader Forum)

Today’s IT landscape is all about moving towards the microdata centers, as the demand for edge computing pushes through the need for quick and instant access to data. Edge computing is localized computing for systems that operate away from the primary data center. Typically,...

How is embedded design shaping the IoT?

Embedded processors have become smaller, more powerful and less expensive and are now shaping the development of the Internet of Things. Specifically, new IoT applications have benefited from embedded design, including smart cities, connected auto communication and asset tracking in transportation. Smart cities Smart cities use...

Handle with care: How the IoT enables monitoring of sensitive assets throughout the supply chain (Reality Check)

  Over the past decade, the Internet of Things (IoT) has transformed logistics, enabling shippers to track the location of assets as they move through the supply chain — in real-time, if necessary. However, although enterprises have become savvy at using the IoT to track...

Why mesh networks matter at the edge

Mesh networks are essential ingredients in almost every IoT platform, as they use short-range wireless standards to communicate with each other and send their data to the “outside world.” So, it’s important to understand how they differ from their counterparts, and why their characteristics...

7 IoT product design best practices

Regardless of the hyperbole constantly hammered home by marketing departments, IoT as a tangible entity is embryonic. We’re at the very early stages of the IoT learning curve, so it should be no surprise that the success rate for IoT adopters has been in...

Top IoT protocols

You could, perhaps, be forgiven for characterizing the situation with IoT protocols as semi-chaotic, with competing systems jostling for market share. In a way, it’s reminiscent of the Fieldbus wars, which went on from the late 1980s to about 2000. Like any communication system, IoT...

When does XaaS make sense for industrial operations? (Reader Forum)

  The use of software as a service (SaaS) and infrastructure as a service (IaaS) is well established in the enterprise data center. Now, industrial organizations are beginning to make tentative steps to XaaS offerings for their operational computing. However, there is some trepidation preventing...

Time to treat GDPR as the world’s first global privacy law (Reader Forum)

While personal data breaches keep cyber security in the headlines, the topic of privacy lacks the drama of a high-profile hack. That is a shame, since privacy and cyber security are closely related. Privacy is usually defined as the right to be left alone,...

IoT platform licensing models

Behind the benefits of connectivity and big data that the IoT promises there remains a question: Who will pay for it? And how? This article will take a look at the available models and give a few tips on choosing what’s best for you. Making money from...

Does GDPR portend a cross-border data privacy policy? (Reality Check)

The recent data privacy scandal surrounding Facebook and Cambridge Analytica has opened up an interesting period of collective soul-searching regarding huge tech firms that operate utilizing “big” data. The overarching question that is being asked and, frankly, still needs to be answered is “what...

Five IoT embedded design tips and tricks

The exploding Internet-of-Things (IoT) market has attracted many companies, large and small, to join the modern-day gold rush. To be successful in this market, it is crucial to establish market leadership and develop a brand. Those who get there fast will win. How should...

Four steps to solve IoT device testing dilemmas (Reader Forum)

The internet of things (IoT) is creating enormous innovation opportunities for mobile operators, vendors, and enterprises. But it comes with commercial and technological challenges. From years of testing and launch experience, here’s what we’ve learned about how best to get your latest device from...

Five IoT embedded design best practices

The Internet of Things (IoT) promises big market potential and infinite opportunities, but success is not guaranteed. A study done by Cisco showed that only 26% of all IoT projects come to fruition. By applying these five best practices in embedded design, you will...

IoT platforms: What are they and how do you choose?

What does an IoT platform do? An IoT system consists of the individual field devices — temperature sensors, door cameras, refrigerators or what have you; the cloud, where the data is stored, and much of the analysis is done; and the platform, the set of...