MODULE I

Fundamental Concepts of Internet of Things

Module outcomes
On the completion of the module student will be able to:

Module Duration Cognitive

Description
Outcomes (Hours) Level

CO1 Explain the fundamental concepts of Internet of Things (IoT)

M1.01 Outline the key features of Internet of Things 2 Understanding
Explain IoT Hardware, protocols and
M1.02 4 Understanding
software using IoT Stack
Summarize different IoT enabling
M1.03 3 Understanding
technologies
Classify IoT based on the complexity to build
M1.04 3 Understanding
and operate

M1.05 Explain challenges in IoT 1 Understanding

Contents:
Introduction and Definition of IoT, Applications , Characteristics , Things in IoT, IoT Stack, IoT
enabling Technologies, IoT challenges, IoT Levels

Definition of IoT
 IoT refers to the interconnection via the Internet of computing devices embedded in
everyday objects, enabling them to send and receive data.
 IoT can also define as the analysis of data to generate a meaningful action, triggered
subsequently after the interchange of data.
 IoT is not owned by any one engineering branch
 IoT is a reality when multiple domains come together.
 IoT is a combination of technologies and domain knowledge.

Application areas of IoT

IoT can be used to build applications for,
 Agriculture
 Asset tracking
 Energy sector
 Safety and security sector
 Defence
 Embedded applications
 Education
 Waste management
 Healthcare products
 Telemedicine
 Smart city applications
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 Characteristics of IoT
The main characteristics are :
 Connectivity
 Intelligence and identity
 Scalability
 Dynamic and self-adapting (Complexity)
 Architecture
 Safety
1. Connectivity
 Things in IoT should be connected to IoT infrastructure .
 Anyone, anywhere, anytime connectivity should be guaranteed at all times
2. Intelligence and Identity
 Extraction of knowledge from the generated data is very important.
 Sensor generated data should be interpreted correctly
 Each IoT device is uniquely identified by ip address helps to track the equipment.

3. Scalability
 The number of elements connected to IoT zone is increasing day by day.
 Hence, an IoT setup should be capable of handling the massive expansion.
4. Dynamic and self – adapting (Complexity)
 IoT devices should dynamically adapt themselves to the changing contexts and scenario.
5. Architecture
 It cannot be homogeneous in nature.
 It should be hybrid, support different manufacturer’s product to function in the IoT
network.
6. Safety
 Sensitive personal data should be secured. Equipment

Things in IoT
“ THINGS = HARDWARE + SOFTWARE + SERVICE “
 Things in IoT refers to a variety of devices.
 Thing in a network can monitor/measure. Eg temperature sensor
 Things are capable of exchanging data with other connected devices in system.
 Data could be stored in cloud, processed there and a control action could be initiated and
the devices involved in getting this accomplished is known as things.
 Eg: Industrial motors, wearables (watch), vehicles, shoes, heart monitoring implants etc

IoT Stack
IoT stack is a seven layered architecture.
Application Layer
User Experience Layer
Session (Message) Layerr
RF Layer
Hardware Interface Layer
Processing and Control Action Layer
Sensor (Physical) Layer
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 Layer 1 – Sensor (Physical) Layer
 Sensors are the core componet.
 Eg: temperature sensor, pressure sensor etc.
 In industrial automation actuators are considered as components.
 This layer is responsible for data collection
 Selection of sensor is a challenge

Layer 2 – Processing and Control Action Layer

 It Contains core components of IoT.
 The microcontrollers or processors are found in this layer.
 The data are received by microcontrollers from the sensors
 Variety of development kits available - Arduino, NodeMCU, PIC, ARM, etc.
 OS play a major role (Android, IOS, Linux…) and execute the task.
 The data collected from the sensors is processed in this layer.

Layer 3 – Hardware Interface Layer

 The hardware components and communication standards ( RS232, CAN, SPI etc)
occupy this layer.
 All these components ensure flawless communication.

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 Layer 4 – RF Layer
 It plays a major role in communication channel, the signal may be short range/long range.
 Protocols used for communication and transport of data based on RF are Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, Zigbee, Zwave, RFID etc.
 Alternate for RF is Li-Fi

Layer 5 – Session/Message Layer

 It says how messages are broadcasted to cloud.
 It support messaging protocols such as MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport),
CoAP (Constrained Application Protocol).
 It also supports SSH and FTP protocols.

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 Layer 6 – User Experience Layer
 This layer is concerned with the end user experience.
 Object oriented programming languages, scripting languages, analytics tools etc are
included in this layer.

Layer 7 – Application Layer

 Everything comes to perfection.
 Deals with possible applications that can be built with the support of other layers.
 It can range from simple application to to complex applications.


IoT Enabling Technologies

 IoT enabling technologies or devices are classified into four groups
1. Technologies that help in acquiring or sensing data
2. Technologies that help in analysing or processing data
3. Technologies that help in taking control action
4. Technologies that help in enhancing security or privacy.

 Some of the enabling technologies includes :

 Sensors
 Cloud computing
 Big data analytics
 Embedded computing boards
 Communication protocols
 User Interfaces

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 A. Sensors
 They are the heart of any IoT applications.
 They sense the environment and retrieve data.
 They are the starting point of any IoT application.
 Sensors could be analog or digital.
 Examples
 Camera used in home security systems.
 Weather tracking system uses temperature/humidity/moisture sensors.
 Thermometer etc
B. Cloud Computing
 The technology of cloud computing helps to store the data.
 As a data storage option cloud serves as an affordable , effective and efficient
medium for data storage
 Cloud services are categorized as :
 IaaS – Infrastructure – as – a - Service
 PaaS – Platform - as - a - Service
 SaaS – Software - as - a - Service

IaaS – Infrastructure – as – a – Service

 It is a form of cloud computing that provides virtualized computing resources over the
internet
 The users manage the machines, select the OS and underlying application and pay per
their use

PaaS – Platform – as – a – Service

 The cloud service provider delivers hardware and software tools needed for application
development to users over the Internet
 A PaaS provider hosts the hardware and software on its own infrastructure
 Users have to build manage and maintain the applications as per their requirement

SaaS – Software – as – a – Service

 A complete software application is provided to the user.
 It can also be called application as a service.
 This service can be availed by paying a monthly, yearly etc subscription

Examples of Cloud service providers are Amazon web services, Microsoft Azure and
Adafruit

C. Big Data Analytics

 IoT is collecting data from various sensory nodes.
 Data is fundamental thing to make the application a success
 The biggest challenges with big data is its volume, variety, speed and its veracity and are
referred as the 4Vs of big data.

1. Volume (Scale) : Huge volume of data is generated every minute. Storage has become in
expensive , hence cost related challenges have reduced

2. Variety (Complexity) : Data no longer comes from one single source. It comes in
different forms. It has to be interpreted systematically.

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 3. Velocity (Speed) : It is a rate at which new data is being created. It is very fast. Data
dynamics changes very frequently.

4. Veracity (Data in doubt) : How accurate is all this data anyway? The data’s nature alters
dynamically and is often seen.
 Data analytics is the enabling technologies for building a complete and comprehensive
IoT application.
D. Embedded Computing Boards
 An embedded computing board is a very important component to bring IoT design to
reality
 Most of the computing boards available in the market are driven by microcontrollers or
processors.
 Eg: Raspberry pi, Arduino, Node MCU, Intel Edison etc
 All boards are small and smart.
E. Communication Protocols
 Protocols are the pillars for IoT communication.
 Data exchange happens through these protocols and can be done as follows:
 Addressing, Format of the message, Message security, Routing, Flow control
 Error monitoring, Sequencing ,Retransmission guidelines , Segmentation of the
data packets
F. User Interface
 All devices must have an user interface.
 The accessing and handling the services are easier and comfortable for the end user.
 The end user shall be provided with “mobile application or web application

IoT Challenges
 The important challenges faced while developing an IoT application are:

1. Security/Personnel Safety :
 Number of devices used in IoT applications are high, so user data becomes more
vulnerable to theft .
 So it becomes to make sure data is safe
 People’s personal safety is also a concern and challenge.
 The implants and wearable used by people should be safe and the devices should not
cause any physical damage to the person using it.
 Since many devices are in loop, if one device gets attacked, then the rest of the devices
could also become vulnerable
2. Privacy :
 One could be tracked/monitored by anyone as we are connected to the internet
 User data may be tracked without the host’s permission in place
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 3. Data extraction with consistency from complex environment:
 To sense/extract data from complex environments.
 Data extraction and storage in the cloud could be more challenging.
 Extracting data inside a room is different from extracting data from an open environment
4. Connectivity :
 It is an important challenge.
 The requirement of wired and wireless connectivity of devices are necessary.
5. Power Requirements :
 All IoT devices require power and most of them are battery operated
 Long-lasting batteries that are economical demand for power is on the rise
 Usage of green power sources such as solar and wind should be motivated
6. Complexity involved :
 IoT is not easy
 It needs a lot of different domains to integrate into a cohesive system.
 There is very limited expertise available but its growth is rapid.
7. Storage :
 Cloud is mandatory for data storage and analysis.
 The challenges are :
 Which cloud do we use (public, private or hybrid)?
 How do we identify the service provider?
 How must does it cost?
 Do we really need cloud?

Levels of IoT
 Based on the architectural approach, IoT can be classified into five levels.
 They are Level 1 to Level 5.
 Level 1 is less complex and Level 5 is more complex.
Level 1
 Level 1 IoT has minimum complexity and easy to build.
 The Level 1 IoT has normally one sensor. (Temperature / Pressure Sensor)
 The data sensed is stored locally and the data analysis is done locally.
 Data generated in this level is not a big data.
 All the controls happens through the internet.
Eg: Smart home

Level 2
 It is more complex than Level 1.
 Data are huge, hence cloud storage is preferred.
 Frequency of sensing is faster.
 Analysis is carried out locally.
 Control action can be triggered through web/mobile applications.
 Eg: Smart factory

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 Level 3
 Data is huge/voluminous.
 Frequency of sensing done by the sensor is faster.
 Data stored in the cloud.
 Analysis is carried out on the cloud.
 The control action can be triggered trough the web/mobile application.
 Eg: Agriculture application

Level 4
 Multiple nodes are present, which are independent of each other.
 These nodes uploads data to the cloud.
 Analysis also carried out in the cloud.
Eg: Courier tracking system.

Level 5
 The amount of data is extensive and sensed much faster.
 Multiple nodes are involved and are independent of each other.
 Sensing of data and storage is cloud based.
 The application is completely cloud oriented and it is computationally intensive in real
time.

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