A 2022 Detailed Guide for IoT in Business

IoT In-Depth Guide: Essence, Working Principles, and More

The worldwide connectivity made the Internet of Things (IoT) one of the most attractive spheres in the modern IT world. Due to it, the gadgets can interact with each other increasing the working efficiency and taking the cooperation results to a new level.

Moreover, many routine tasks earlier performed by people can be effectively carried out by devices managed by appropriate software. This post will explain what you may obtain with IoT-based business solutions, risks you should avoid while using technology, and more.

What is the Internet of Things?

Before talking about IoT’s essentials, we’ll discover what it is. In a few words, the Internet of Things is a structure connecting digital machines with each other to transfer and analyze the received information and transform it into certain actions according to prepared scripts.

Let’s discuss the nodes at the IoT system.

Sensors for gathering certain data send the information to a receiving gadget. Then, this device performs the activities earlier programmed into it.

Connectivity. The “sensor-gadget” communication is a very complex thing requiring wireless connection protocols (e.g., Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, etc.) for working on various devices.

Analytics. Sensors daily collect vast amounts of data, both beneficial and useless. You need to use a robust analytical IoT system to divide one from another.

How IoT Impacts Businesses

It’s high time to learn more about the IoT commercial opportunities and marketing potential.

For instance, in the retail sector, analysts can use beacons to identify your location and learn about the most popular items based on customers’ routes, time spent near the counter, or categories of the purchased goods.

It’s only one example among the dozens that brightly shows how IoT can be used for marketing needs. Moreover, the Internet of Things is utilized in business, primarily to automate various processes and make them work without human intervention.

What Companies Can Take Advantage of IoT

Entrepreneurs from all business fields want to boost their income, and IoT may help them do so. That’s why companies will invest in IoT more: the global spending on the Internet of Things implementation is expected to grow to $1.1 trillion by 2023, according to the recent industry stats.

Below, we’ll look at some IoT use cases in business industries answering how they benefit from IoT.

IoT Use Cases in Healthcare

First off, the wearables would benefit the companies and clients in the healthcare domain. With the help of these gadgets (smartphones, trackers, or even scales) and the appropriate software installed, the doctors can be aware of any changes in weight or heart rate and immediately contact the patient if something goes wrong.

People positively perceive such a process. Thus, according to Pew Research Center data, 4 of 10 Americans think that the manufacturers of fitness trackers can share the user data with medical workers to find out more about heart diseases and their connection to the physical exercises completed.

Patients can also use other targeted IoT-based gadgets. One of them is a smart asthma inhaler which reminds to use it with the help of push notifications sent to the person’s smartphone from the particular app. This software also monitors the use of the inhaler, takes the records of its use, etc.

IoT Use Cases in Education

The IoT-based solutions can be helpful in educational establishments, too. For example, IoT can also enhance security in a school or university building, allowing security guards to monitor the facility through motion sensors, IP cameras, and biometric scanners to reveal the trespassers.

In terms of the educational process, RFID tags combined with specialized software can keep automatic track of the students present in courses. Teachers may also keep track of each student’s performance, grades, strengths, and shortcomings.

Moreover, IoT can be widely used in such business industries as manufacturing or agriculture. It facilitates people’s lives, giving them more opportunities to automate well-known processes on time or control a part of work entrusted. That’s why IoT should be implemented in your business software, which can be done flawlessly by an experienced software development company.

Companies using IoT

Let’s look at some of the most exciting samples of firms using the Internet of Things in their everyday business activity.

EWaterPay provides a vending water machine working with the help of the specific RFID tag for African people who have water resources far from them. This is a low-cost IoT business idea with the potential to save lives.

AeroFarm is a vertical farm management company using data analytics to attempt to determine what stress level promotes the plants’ growth rate. It’s worth noting that the watering and fertilization operations are also automated, making them far more cost-effective.

Mustang specializes in dairy production analytics boosting its clients’ profits by implementing modern cattle-care techniques. Temperature, humidity, and atmospheric pressure data are collected via IoT sensors.

Internet of Things Protocols

We’ve covered all of the IoT business potential and application cases. Let’s look at the most commonly used IoT standards and protocols for device connection.

Wi-Fi. One of the most widely used protocols for connecting medium-range devices. The 802.11 standard offers a lot of bandwidth, so you can send and receive a lot of data.

Bluetooth. This Internet-of-Things protocol competes with Wi-Fi for the first position. Bluetooth Low Energy raises the bar for the protocol, expanding the range of possibilities for devices with limited battery capacity.

NFC is also an excellent IoT communication protocol. This Internet of Things protocol allows for safe two-way communication — you may send sensitive data without fear.

IoT Risks and Challenges

The Internet of Things is beneficial for various business domains. However, there are also some risks you should know to mitigate or avoid.

Security. According to IoT World Today, there were 1.51 billion breaches of IoT in 2021. So, IoT security standards are still low-level ones, allowing hackers to access critical data.

It’s essential to pay attention to the security of each device, caring about using different security mechanisms (e.g., 2FA, encryption algorithms, etc.) to implement in your IoT-based app or to create a customized security system.

Integration. IoT devices may not be incompatible with each other regardless of industry. That’s why it’s preferable to remain with a single manufacturer and create an ecosystem of comparable products around it. Devices from the same manufacturer will most likely utilize the same IoT protocols, so there will be no concerns with interoperability.

Flexibility. Companies that take advantage of IoT business potential must be innovative and precisely assess their chances of success. Furthermore, most businesses lack the expertise required to run IoT equipment. That implies entrepreneurs will need to hire an outsourced software development business to help them integrate and expand their IoT network.

Wrapping Up

IoT has brought more convenience to people’s lives. Although, like any other technology, it has not only benefits but also challenges to avoid. That’s why you need to apply to a skillful software development team if you decide to develop an IoT-based solution for your business. The specialists will consult you about the most challenging issues to solve and help you create a modern, competitive and profitable product for your company.

My name is Katherine Orekhova and I am a technical writer at Cleveroad – mobile app development company. I’m keen on technology and innovations. My passion is to tell people about the latest tech trends in the world of IT.