You may have heard the term “Internet of Things” bouncing around in the last couple of years and wondered to yourself, “What exactly does that mean?” The basic premise of the concept of Internet of Things is to seamlessly integrate every aspect of your life into useful and manageable data. At its very basic level, Internet of Things (IoT) refers to the connection of everyday objects to the Internet and to one another, with the goal being to provide users with smarter, more efficient experiences. Every object in the IoT has a unique Internet identifier and can be accessed anywhere you have an Internet connection.
One example in the real world was implemented in the city of Boston. The city recently commissioned a smartphone app to help its road maintenance crews idenitfy the location of the worst potholes. Bostonians download the app to their smartphones and keep it open while they drive. The accelerometers in citizens’ phones detect when the car goes over a particularly bad bump, and the app uploads the data to a city-owned database. The information helps the city make the most effective use of its citizens’ tax dollars.
Examples such as Boston successfully demonstrate the growth of the Internet of Things that is rapidly changing the way we connect and how business is done.
