The idea of IoT is no longer a vague concept, it is turning into actuality right now and is everywhere. From smart thermostats that are able to detect and learn individual habits to smart wristbands that track and report our physical activity, IoT is revolutionizing the very fabric of our lives. But how it is going to affect the future of smart devices and what may be seen in the future in this regard?
Let’s plunge into this constantly expanding sphere of smart Iot devices and discover the variety of opportunities.
In Smart Home – Opportunities and Threats for the IoT in the Future
Among all the fields, the use of IoT is one of the most widely used in smart homes. It has now become possible to regulate virtually everything inside a house simply by a touch of a button in your smartphone. From turning the lights on or off, bolting doors or adjusting the temperature, smart devices are precisely providing the homeowners with an incredible level of control and comfort.
In fact, the global smart IoT devices home market is expected to reach $134.8 billion by 2023 from $39.4 billion to 2017. An analysis done by the Statista suggests that this figure will rise to 231.6 billion by the year 2028.
But the future looks even more interesting. Consider a house in which your refrigerator orders food online when it is out of stock or your washing machine that programs itself to wash clothes at the times when energy tariffs are competitively priced. With IoT this is not just fantasy, this is where we are headed. Houses will be smarter, using people’s habits as a way of adjusting optimum tasks throughout the day.
Smart IoT devices such as Amazon’s Alexa and Google Assistant are now designed with ways to control voice. In the near future, houses will have smart systems working through the IoT that work through natural language and without any trigger word. It is the future which can be as imaginative as thinking about one’s home, suggesting what one may require at a specific time or before one can express the wish.
IoT Security and Privacy
It is quite evident that IoT has made great efficiency in smart homes; however, use of IoT has its own repercussions in terms of security and privacy concerns. Because there are a lot of gadgets that are connected to the internet, each of the gadgets acts as a point of attack by hackers. The survey by Symantec also revealed that, on average, IoT devices are attacked 5,200 times in a month. Wow that is a lot, and that tells a lot about security in this interconnected world.
In turn, manufacturers keep bringing improvements to the smart IoT devices with better patterns of encryption and security measures. But web developers also have the paramount responsibility of protecting IoT ecosystems. For instance, while looking for web design services Florida for IoT integration, factors such as secure methods of authentication, data encryption and sound frameworks of network security should be given top priority. In this way, web developers can minimize risks, starting with conducting secure code reviewing and implementing firewalls without disruption.
For its part, consumers, too, must take proactive measures, such as keeping software updated, using strong passwords, and installing firewalls to secure their home networks.
When designing user interfaces for smart IoT devices, web designers and developers have to implement interfaces that encourage the use of such practices and inform consumers of the security protocols that are in place.
IoT in Healthcare
Amongst the various industries that smart IoT devices are playing its part to the greatest extent is the healthcare sector. Connected devices also are bridging patient’s care by making diagnostic tests, offering real-time patient checks and even enriching the customer experience.
Smart IoT devices likewise watches can measure body parameters, sleep patterns and detect arrhythmia, for example. These wearables are allowing populations to manage their own disease and allowing doctors to monitor patients’ conditions without face-to-face contact. For instance, a diabetic patient may use a smart IoT devices sensor on the glucose level in his/ her body, and the results are transmitted to the doctor to make the necessary changes.
IoT & AI in Wearables
Intelligence of Things – IoT and AI are even more impactful, particularly if it concerns the wearables. AI plays a significant role in improving the IoT by the added feature of making the devices not only collect data but also analyze the data collected in a more meaningful manner. AI will be the pivotal point of wearables of the future, specifically the ones associated with health and fitness sectors.
For instance, with the data collected by smart IoT devices, it is possible to develop AI algorithms to point towards a developing health condition, such as heart disease, or even, a mental disorder. This means, with time, the data that wearables are gathering, the AI behind it, only gets better as it learns users’ patterns. This could even change the face of preventive healthcare since it can actually tell what might be wrong with one’s body before it blows up into full-blown complications.
Retail IoT
It is also refreshing the retail industry all because of IoT. Retail IoT applications are changing the world as overall two customers and business organizations are benefiting from it in various ways. Smart IoT devices such as shelves which can check the stocks on display in real time and beacon technology that when in a store, sends offers directly to the screen of your mobile device.
Some of the industries that are incorporating smart IoT devices include the retailers who utilize it for efficient supply chain management as well as, monitoring of consumers and consumers’ experience within the stores. For instance, smart mirrors in changing rooms that use IoT can enable a customer to try various outfits on without having to remove his or her clothes. In the backend, IoT devices can also help retailers gain insights on the shoppers’ behavior so as to better tailor their marketing strategies and store designs.
Another area in which IoT is acting as the supplement is in the e-commerce industry where consumers are benefiting from IoT applications. Smart IoT devices make it possible for retailers to integrate ordering possibilities or recommendations proactively with the shopping process depending on a user’s preferences or previous purchases.
IoT in Automobiles
This is informative for the automotive industry, as it is now standing on the edge of the largest change that has IoT at the core. From fully autonomous vehicles to connected cars, the smart IoT devices are revolutionizing mobility from point A to point B, globally By 2025, 76 million connected cars on the roads according to Statista.
Automobiles have built-in elements such as sensors that help to view the vehicle’s performance, topography real-time, and anticipate when it is best to service the car. This can reduce the incidences of breakdowns and make the mode of transport to be more efficient. In the future, there could be ways where the cars on the road will be given a chance to communicate with each other in order to prevent accidents as well as have smooth flow of traffic.
Self-driving automobiles are still another important application of IoTs. Self-driving cars are however not expected in the market for the next few years but the technology involved is fast developing. Some of these companies include Tesla, Google, Uber and many more. Through the use of smart IoT devices they are on their way to develop self-driving cars around the world.
Final Thoughts
The phenomenon of the Internet of Things is spreading its influence in the world so that we can only start to predict its influences. Applications of IoT vary from areas such as smart homes and health care to wearables as well as connected automobiles. The growth of this kind of innovation comes with the question of security and privacy measures that should be taken in order to secure the huge amount of data being gathered.
In the future, due to the further development of IoT technology, various smart devices will be more human-oriented and will become truly part of people’s lives by enhancing productivity, safety, and comfort. IoT is the future of device connectivity and it’s going to just get smarter from now on!
