Understanding the Enterprise Internet of Things (EIoT)

Over the last few years, the Internet of Things (IoT) has taken the world by storm, becoming one of the most discussed topics and promising markets of the tech industry. The concept of a connected world where a host of devices are connected and communicating has spurred innovation, creating new applications and solutions for IoT infrastructure. Business Wire estimates that there will be a total of 23.3 billion IoT devices connected by 2019. Most of the buzz surrounding the IoT is around the consumer sector, however IoT is just as applicable to the enterprise as it is to the home. In fact, of that 23.3 billion, the enterprise market is estimated to account for around 40% of the total or 9.1 billion devices. Of enterprise deployments, the top three industries for IoT deployment by 2020 are predicted to be manufacturing, healthcare, and insurance. The Enterprise Internet of Things (EIoT) has a unique set of challenges, requirements, and uses. Before IoT can become a practical reality both in the home and in the enterprise, there are issues that must be resolved to ensure reliability, security, truly comprehensive interoperability, and more.

Security

Connecting, authenticating, and securing IoT communications is a must and solutions are still being developed. Issues include untrusted devices with network access and brute force attacks on infrastructure.

Encryption

Low power consumption is at odds with needs for encryption. A powerful but resource conscious solution is needed. Issues include sensitive data being sniffed over the air and finding ways to reduce demands on the host system.

Addressing

Connecting devices through other devices will require new approaches to addressing and identifying devices by IP. Issues include high volume of devices added and compatibility with existing addressing.

Computing

The extremely high volume of new data that comes with IoT will require new resources and distributed computing models. Issues include rapid scale of demand for bandwidth and analyzing traffic for security.

Transitioning from the vision of the IoT to the reality is not an easy task. Steps are being taken today as the first products are developed, but there is a long road ahead. It will take the collaborative work and engineering of many parties to become everything it can be. Standards will need to be drafted and new approaches must be envisioned to ensure the whole ecosystem runs smoothly. Laird's Embedded Wireless modules are a key part of this exciting future, providing the best security, power management, interoperability, and support. First class software provides a trusted, robust path to expanding future networks. Powerful and resource conscious hardware enables faithful connections for weeks or months on a small battery. Global support from initial design to mass production and beyond provides customers with integration support support, analysis, and troubleshooting for all currently supported hardware and bridges developers to decades of software, experience, and wireless expertise. A few short years ago, the IoT was just a dream. Today Laird is proud to take part in making that dream a reality.

Check out our corresponding infographic and don't forget to subscribe!