IoT4EE: This Could Change Everything
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I
just had an epiphany. Don’t worry. It didn't hurt. I was sitting down
at the time. This is all to do with the Internet of Things (IoT).
I know that the IoT is a buzz-word everyone is throwing around these
days, but I firmly believe that -- in the very near future -- the
underlying concepts embodied in the IoT are going to change just about
every aspect of our lives.Note: The awesomely cunning technology discussed in this article will be demonstrated at the forthcoming ESC Silicon Valley and ESC Minneapolis events, which are to be held in July and November, respectively.
So, the root of my epiphany is this: from a 30,000 foot perspective, the IoT can be viewed as two separate beasts -- the Internet itself, and the "things" that are connected to it. What? You think that's obvious? You want more? OK, take a deep breath and hold onto your hat, because here we go...
The IoT is jolly exciting whichever way you look at it. We are seeing new developments on an almost daily basis with regard to sensor technology (including sensor hubs and sensor fusion) and incredibly low power microcontrollers. We're becoming acquainted with concepts like "processing on the edge" and "security on the edge," where "the edge" refers to the nodes that are interfacing with the real world, observing (sensing) things and controlling them. And, of course, we're also seeing major strides with regard to things like The Cloud and Big Data.
There is just one small fly in the soup, as it were. Up until now, most people tend to think of the "things" part of the IoT as being CBTFFUBTM.
Of course you don’t know what CBTFFUBTM means -- I just made it up. It stands for "Created by the few for use by the many." What I mean by this is that -- generally speaking -- creating an intelligent, wireless-enabled "thing" for use with the IoT requires a lot of expertise and knowledge. The end result is that most of us take it for granted that any capriciously cunning "things" have to be conceived, designed, and deployed by unkempt, badly dressed, socially inept embedded systems designers with size-16 brains (the ones with "go faster" stripes on the sides).
But all of this is about to change, because we are starting to see emerging tools and technologies that support the concept of the IoT4EE (the Internet of Things for Everyone and Everything). The idea is that anyone -- Engineers, Artists, Makers, Dreamers (even the French) -- should be able to conceive and create their own "things" for use with the IoT.
Of course, anything sounds easy if you say it fast enough and wave your arms around a lot, but IoT4EE tools and technology really are here. Take the folks at RF Digital, who are pioneers in IoT4EE Space (where no one can hear you scream). These little scamps have created something called the Simblee, which is tiny in size (10mm x 7mm x 2.2mm) and awesome in potential.
I truly believe that IoT4EE technology like the Simblee is going to change the way we think about the IoT. If you want to learn more, check out this column I posted earlier today over on Embedded.com, which explains things in excruciating detail.
When you discover just how cunning these little rascals are (I'm talking about Simblees, not the folks at RF Digital, although now I come to think about it…), I think you'll be joining me in thinking of all sorts of "things" we can build for use with the IoT. I certainly know what I'm going to be doing this coming weekend!
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