The IoT, Internet of Things or the internet of things is one of the key concepts of the new digital revolution. What is IoT? They are objects that surround us at home, on the street or in the office, and that has an internet connection. Once connected to the network, they can do tasks that until today took away a great time. The Statista website ensures that in 2019 there will be 26,660 million connected devices worldwide, and the forecast for 2025 is that there will be 75,440 million.
But how are these objects connected to the internet of things? Today, we are going to present good business examples of IoT, with which the concept will be clear and you will be able to see what the internet of things is and how our world is changing.
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IoT: smart home
From the light bulbs to the feeders. If there is something for highlights the IoT or internet of things, then the application in the smart home is the best example. Thermostats that regulate the temperature whether or not we are at home or adjustable bulbs are the most popular connected objects. But there are also smart locks, smoke detectors or feeders for animals, which dispense the ration if we give the order from the smartphone. Penet’s devices, for example, send us alerts when the animal has finished eating, with the amount it has ingested.
In houses more examples of IoT we can found, that already well established. The Nest thermostats or Roomba vacuum cleaner robots are two of the best-selling products, their ease of being controlled with an app has much feasibility. The bathroom is not out of this field: where we find the Kolibree toothbrushes, which have an application that gamifies brushing for children so that they learn the habit well. But it also works for adults, as it sends cleaning information to the tablet.
Although many of the devices of the internet of things are connected and controlled through the Wi-Fi and Bluetooth networks, it can also be done with the most traditional SMS or calls. There are power adapters to which a SIM card is inserted and that allow to remotely control the ignition or shutdown of the boiler or the air conditioning.
IoT: wearables
Yes, that bracelet that counts your steps or that smartwatch that gives you the time while monitoring your heartbeat is the internet of things. The popularity of these devices, which send data to an app for monitoring, has led to more and more models being used by more people to control exercise and their health. Among the most popular services are Apple Watch, Fitbit and Google Fit.
IoT: smart city
We have already seen how the internet of things is applied in the daily life of people, in their homes and also in their bodies. But the IoT is more than that and can also be used in the management of the contemporary city. Noise maps, more efficient lighting, traffic light management … It is the concept of a smart city, linked to the internet of things.
According to the 2018 index of Cities in Motion of the IESE Business School, Spanish cities as diverse as Valladolid, Seville, Murcia, and Palma de Mallorca are among the most intelligent cities in the world. There is even a Smart Cities Network in Spain that encompasses 83 locations throughout the country. This is divided into five working groups: social innovation; energy (they seek above all energy efficiency); environment, infrastructures and urban habitability (home automation, measurement of air quality …); urban mobility, and Government, economy and business.
Among the most prominent urban IoT projects is Chicago, with a sensor network that distributes information in real-time about air quality or weather. In Oslo, they thought of street lamps that were switched on or off if there were pedestrians or not on the streets. And in Barcelona, intelligent containers notify when they are full to activate the collection. In this way, the trucks carry out a better-planned collection.
The most curious IoT: water bottles, volcanoes, and parking spaces
There are applications that draw a lot of attention and show us how far the internet of things is coming. Hydrate Spark, for example, is a bottle of water in very attractive metallic colors that reminds you to drink water and keep track of how much you have ingested (you put the goal you want) Each drink is picked up by a sensor that takes it to the mobile phone via Bluetooth, and also integrates with Fitbit, Google Fit or Apple Watch. If you want, you can even challenge other people to see who wins in this particular competition.
But the IoT can serve much more. It has implications even in the environment. The Spanish company Libelium, based in Zaragoza, has sensors that have been placed around the Nicaraguan volcano Masaya. The objective is to prepare for possible eruptions and study their toxic gases and study how they affect the people living near them.
It is not the only example of IoT surprising of this company, it has also installed its internet sensors of things in car parks in the French city of Montpellier. Specifically, they hid them in the floor of one of them and, when a place was free, he warned an app of the drivers, who guided them until they found the space.
Examples of IoT are innumerable, and all show us how companies are exploiting all the possibilities of the internet of things. It is not that the future will be more connected to the Network: it is that the present is already connected. And we do not even need to acquire these objects: we can also build them.