In this day and age, there is an unprecedented amount of digital data being created.
In fact, as per a report from IDC, “A new IDC study on the impact of IoT finds that by 2020 there will be 30 billion connected things in use – which is more than four connected devices for every person on the planet – generating over $300 billion revenue.”
As a result of this massive data creation, we need to analyze it with newer tools to comprehend it. This analysis leads to countless benefits such as businesses gaining valuable insights about their market and consumers, scientific research yielding groundbreaking discoveries, etc.
One of the most powerful technologies used is ‘the Internet of Things’ or simply ‘IoT.’ The idea of IoT has been around for a while, but the actual use cases have only begun to emerge in recent times.
In fact, as per a report from Business Insider, “The number of new enterprise applications that run on IoT services will triple by 2020, according to Gartner.”
In this article, we look at some significant trends in IoT and what they mean for businesses.
The Number of Connected Devices [IoT] Is Increasing Exponentially
According to IDC’s projections, there will be 30 billion connected devices worldwide by 2020.
What does that number even mean, though? Well, it means that for every person on Earth, there would be more than four devices connected to the Internet.
The Data Is Central To IoT
As is the case with every aspect of technology, data is central to IoT too. For instance, companies planning on implementing IoT in their business would need more and better ways of handling data.
Now some might argue that this is where AWS comes in handy, but even platforms like AWS have not solved this issue altogether.
This means that companies that provide tools, services, etc., regarding data management will be highly sought after by businesses in the near future.
Here are some examples of such companies: Ayasdi, C3, Datameer, and Mode Analytics.
Wearables Are Going To Be Majorly Important In The Future
The major problem with IoT right now is that it still requires a lot of manual input, which makes it not so user-friendly.
When IoT matures entirely, though, the day would not be too far when you would have an IoT device helping you in every activity throughout your day.
For instance, you might have a band on your hand that monitors your heart rate and gives you medical advice accordingly. The possibilities are limitless!
Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality Are Going To Have an Impact on IoT
The future of virtual reality lies in mixed-use cases wherein VR assumes the character of both augmented reality and virtual reality.
That being said, both AR and VR will converge into one another, making them essentially indistinguishable from each other in the future.
This is already happening, as technologies like Microsoft Hololens are an amalgamation of the two types of reality. Now when it comes to IoT, virtual reality can be used in various applications, including training simulations and design about-faces.
The Need for Smarter Controllers and Complex Sensors Is Evident
On one side, we have data generated by billions upon billions of devices – on the other hand, we have poor analytics tools that are not effective enough to process this data.
As a result, what you need now are controllers that can provide better insights into your equipment’s performance, along with complex sensors that capture every bit of information possible.
For instance, BlueFrog Robotics makes industrial equipment management devices that monitor equipment performance and predict when it would require maintenance.
IoT Will Also Be Impacting the Site and Facility Management Sector
While IoT is not usually associated with facility management, its effects are visible in this sector.
According to experts, “IoT technology will control everything from elevators and HVAC units to locks and security systems.”
It will even be able to monitor mechanical assets. This is possible through technologies like remote sensors that can quickly detect malfunctions or other problems at an early stage.
As a result, any further damage caused due to such malfunctions will be significantly lower say RemoteDBA.com experts.
The Industrial Sector Will Be Transformed
It’s common knowledge that the industrial sector is one of the most influential forces behind economic growth.
Unfortunately, advances in this sector have been far too slow, mainly due to limitations in technology.
This, however, is all set to change with IoT because industry 4.0 can provide real-time data about anything and everything happening on your factory floor.
Supercomputers can then analyze this data to come up with projections regarding how well or how badly your production line is performing at that moment, thereby providing you better insights into where exactly things are going wrong.
As a result, decision-making becomes easier, and you can fix problems before they spiral out of control.
The Need for Better and Smarter Analytics Is Evident
It’s a known fact that the biggest hindrance in the way of IoT is analytics. Organizations spend millions of dollars on data but fail to make any real-time decisions from it due to inadequate tools and technologies – as a result, the data gathered by them becomes essentially useless because no one can make sense of it.
For this sort of data to be helpful, businesses need better and smarter analytics that can help them predict how well their equipment is going to perform and when exactly things will go wrong or break down.
This could be possible if businesses started focusing more on machine learning algorithms and other advanced analytics tools that could provide them more insightful data.
IoT Is About Altering the Customer Experience As Well
Thanks to the rise of mobile devices, businesses can now connect with their customers in a better way than ever before by harnessing the power of IoT. That being said, it wouldn’t be wrong to say that businesses are now capable of delivering customer experiences that were never possible before – this is mainly because of the growing popularity of digital assistants who can handle small tasks on your behalf.
For instance, voice-based technology is already being used at toll booths for faster transactions. Some companies have even started using smart home assistants such as Amazon Echo or Google Home to respond to service calls quickly and efficiently.
