We are surrounded by a plethora of devices and equipment that make our lives easier in one way or the other. The internet of things is a way to make our lives even more easier by going one step further, to interconnect these devices to enable the exchange of data. Internetworking engeders new applications of already existing “things”. For example, the fridge traditionally used for food preservation could communicate relevant information to your grocery store that might reduce the amount of time you spend shopping.
Applications of IoT include inventory management, home automation, factory automation, environmental monitoring, health monitoring and energy management. IoT enabled health monitoring will allow patients to be monitored remotely using IoT enabled sensors which can track patient data and log that data to the internet, such timely information could potentially save a lot of lives and reduce hospital visits.
IoT is in itself enabled by some existing technologies which include embedded systems, networking, wireless sensor networks, signal processing and data science.