Project ‘Everywhere’ – An Introduction to The Internet of Things – Part 1 of 9

As part of my academic studying toward a degree within the ever evolving subject field of Digital Art and Technology (DAT), at the university of Plymouth (GB), I have recently been assigned a task that consists of understanding the paradigm that is the Internet of things (IoT) and creating an object/service prototype within it, specifically with the focus on providing a seamless, inconspicuous, user-friendly experience. The module brief is illustrated below, which outlines the criterion.

Assignment Brief: ‘Everywhere’

(Fig_1: 602_Module_Brief – Everywhere)

After reviewing the brief, it was evident that starting to build a product prototype would be very gratifying and yet, equally, a seemingly daunting prospect. In order to build it successfully, a lot of research and planning will have to be addressed. A key point to consider would be that there is no real tangible measure of success, as the most obvious method would usually be monitoring sales of such a product, in this case, it will be that it simply works. There are many factors to consider, of which a small proportion are suggested below (many others will be proposed and answered in future blog posts):-

• Gaining a greater comprehension of the what the IoT is
• Understanding it as an industry, with it’s sub-categorical elements
• Why are people so enthusiastic to use wireless…networked objects?
• What makes a ‘successful/trendy’ product to people within society (psychologically)
• Identifying and reviewing new, trending products and platforms
• Ascertaining ‘gaps’ within the industry
• Cultivating unique ideas/solutions
• Future expansion of a working model etc.

So what makes a successful digitized product these days? What is different about the way in which these objects are networked to achieve connectivity? How will the Creative Industries adapt and progress by harnessing this notion that is the IoT? A statement by Kevin Ashton, who can be considered the pioneer of the IoT, states how he views the concept and bolsters the belief that technology will self-evolve (with technological ubiquity in mind):-

“We change our technology and our technology

changes us.” – Kevin Ashton (2015)¹

The term ‘Internet of Things’ was coined by Kevin Ashton. He stated: It was the title of a presentation I made at Procter & Gamble (P&G), a large supply chain, linking the new idea of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) to it’s products and then autonomously to the Internet in 1999 (Ashton, 2009)². Since the initial use of the RFID, it was only a matter of time before the internet would develop into a means of wireless connection, a method of communication that bridges various constellations. One that tethers the physical world with the digital. In essence, it would be a safe assumption to conclude that this signifies the cultivation of a primitive, autonomous, artificial intelligence (AI) that will help to streamline businesses and or services, potentially revising the structure of globalization across a large proportion of industries.

There are three states of which these particular constellations are comprised ; peer to machine (P2M), machine to machine (M2M) and peer to peer (P2P). A good example to illustrate of P2P would be that of ‘Contactless banking’. The idea allowed customers to be able to exchange a small amount of currency wirelessly or a greater volume if on a mobile platform. Although this new feature provided by banks is still in its infancy, the system, however remarkable, does lend itself to security problems – of which will be discussed in a future post.

To highlight another example, this time P2M, I’m using the transportation system of London’s Oyster card network. The model for this, all be it very useful for its client base, does provide a lot more information than you would have thought underneath its glossy vainer. The principle of the Oyster card works by a customer prepaying a card, which in turn, allows you to commute on; The London Underground, Overground or Bus service across the city. As the card is scanned, money is debited at zones/checkpoints along the route, depending on where you start and finish (using RFID). The reason this differs from M2M communication, as explained by Bill Gerba (Co-founder and CEO of WireSpring), an IoT product development platform service, is:-

(Gerba, 2013) Recognizes: While the actual sensors are “managed” in a sense, by some kind of server infrastructure, they act more like peripherals communicating with a host controller than dedicated actors communicating with another actor as peers.³

Whilst this Allows for efficiency from a customers perspective, you may be unaware to this point, that you are providing the transportation service with an abundance of information, such as; journey duration, frequency of travel, costings and location of yourself. This is useful to a business, especially when profiling its consumers, as firstly, it lends itself to the business/service improving their infrastructure (tailoring to an individual or masses etc), which is key to sustaining longevity. Secondly, it provides a new currency. One that can be exchanged between businesses, the sale-ability of information. This information is also known as ‘Big Data‘ – which will be explained in my next post.

The final element, M2M, is a concept that has been used for many years, and ultimately was the first of my 3 mentioned constellations to emerge. The first recorded instance of a networked computer to computer information transfer was established by ARPANET (Advanced Research Projects Agency Network), the precursor to the Internet, and funded by what is now DARPA (Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency), within the United States Department of Defense (Defree, 2015).⁴ It is of no surprise that the technological progression of communication has stemmed from conflict, as it forced the need for countries to correspond effectively/quickly with military services during a battle situation. More recently, it has evolved from another piece of military equipment – Satellites and with it, radio waves being relayed (carrying a digital signal). An example of an M2M technology would be Mobile phones (now SMART) to allow global communication.

Reference List:-

1) Ashton, K., P.11 (2015). How to fly a horse. NY: Random House LLC.

2) Ashton, K. (2009), That ‘Internet of Things’ Thing, http://www.rfidjournal.com/ article/view/4986 (accessed on October 15, 2012)

3) Gerba, B. (2013). What distinguishes M2M from previous online applications? For example why is the London oyster card system not an example of M2M? – Quora. [online] Quora.com. Available at: https://www.quora.com/What-distinguishes-M2M-from-previous-online-applications-For-example-why-is-the-London-oyster-card-system-not-an-example-of-M2M [Accessed 15 Oct. 2015].

4) Defree, S., (2015). http://www.edn.com/electronics-blogs/edn-moments/4399541/ARPANET-establishes-1st-computer-to-computer-link–October-29–1969 [Accessed 15 Oct. 2015]