The Basic Elements of IoT

There’s a lot of talk at the moment about the Internet of Things (IoT for short) and its impact on everything from the way we travel and monitor locations to the way manufacturers keep track of inventory. But what is the Internet of Things? How does it work? Do you need it? What is it really made of? Is there any way SPG Controls can help us?

In a nutshell, the Internet of Things is the concept of connecting any device to the Internet and to other connected devices. The IoT is a giant network of connected things and people – all of which collect and share data about the way they are used and about the environment around them.

1. Connected devices
Devices are the primary physical objects connected to the system. For Asset Control Systems, sensors are the components of the device connectivity layer. These smart sensors are continuously collecting data from the environment and transmit the information to the next layer.
Latest techniques in the semiconductor technology are capable of producing micro smart sensors for various applications.

Arco Solution: Device Compatibility
Arco Solution is compatible with most common sensors and devices available in the market:

2. Central Control Hardware
A Control Panel manages the two-way data traffic between different networks and protocols. Another function of the control panel is to translate different network protocols and make sure interoperability of the connected devices and sensors.

Arco Solution: S1000 Control Panel
The S1000 Control Panel is installed on-site and configured to perform pre-processing of the collected data from various sensors locally before transmitting it to Arco Platform.

Robust and compact, the S1000 has a built-in battery charger, wide supply range and 4G capability. It can handle temperatures up to 70°C, making it ideal in harsh, remote environments.

The S1000 Control Panel also features easy setup and configuration with the SPG Alarm Readers and Arco App.

The S1000 Control Panel also offers an additional level of security for the cloud network and transmitted data with higher order encryption protocols. It acts as a safety middle layer between devices and the cloud to protect the system from malicious attacks and unauthorized access.

3. Data Cloud
Internet of things creates massive data from devices, applications and users which has to be managed in an efficient way. IoT cloud offers tools to collect, process, manage and store huge amount of data in real time. Industries and services can easily access these data remotely and make critical decisions when necessary.

Basically, IoT cloud is a sophisticated high-performance network of servers optimized to perform high-speed data processing of myriads of devices, traffic management and deliver accurate data analysis. Distributed management database systems are one of the indispensable components of IoT cloud.

Arco Solution: Fully configurable Cloud
The Arco Platform can be deployed as a single, large scalable system on a cluster of servers (or cloud resources), or optionally it can be partitioned amongst several servers that could be physically located in different regions that each view only a portion of the system data.

This hub topology has a core cloud or globally accessible service connected to a bunch of smaller regional or site services. In turn, each regional service can manage a collection of devices or child services.

Arco Platform is also designed to work on-premises or even a hybrid environment. Based on micro-services architecture, Arco Solution offers very high scalability, flexible deployments, resilience, and maintainability.

4. User interface
User interfaces are the visible, tangible part of the IoT system which can be accessible by users. Designers will have to make sure a well-designed user interface for minimum effort for users and encourage more interactions.

User interface design has higher significance in today’s competitive market; it often determines the user whether to choose a particular device or appliance. Users will be interested in buying new devices or smart gadgets if it is very user-friendly and compatible with common connectivity standards.

Arco Solution: Arco Platform
The Arco Platform is a powerful management tool designed to monitors security, access and telemetry activity and gathers data from the sensors connected to the controller located at each remote site and prioritises events for multiple operator workstations.

Interactive dashboards, graphical and geographical screens provide easy management and data consolidation showing the current and historical status of an estate, with the ability to drill down to view the current status of the system configuration at any site and details of the recorded history of activity at, and performance of, that site. Arco handles the central management of access rights for accessing areas or the opening of site doors or locks that are distributed to the intelligent keys held by engineers and other personnel.

5. Network Interconnection
The IoT’s major significant trend in recent years is the explosive growth of devices connected and controlled by the internet. The wide range of applications for IoT technology means that the specifics can be very different from one device to the next, but there are basic characteristics shared by most.

There are many technologies that enable IoT. Crucial to the field is the network used to communicate between devices of an IoT installation, a role that several wireless or wired technologies may fulfil.

Arco Solution: Diverse Communications Protocols
Arco Solution uses diversified paths of communication within the system using SPG propriety and open protocols. Additional expansion cards expand the available paths based on requirements.

6. System Security
Security is a critical element of IoT deployment, yet it is too often neglected in the development of systems. Everyday vulnerabilities in IoT are being exploited with malicious intent – yet the vast majority of them can be prevented simply and cost-effectively.

A secure system starts with the practice of eradicating vulnerabilities in IoT devices and equipping them with the means to resist, detect and recover from malicious attacks.

Arco Solution: Secure by Design
Arco Solution is designed to be secure from the ground up. The aim is to have it hardened enough to be installed in highly secure environments. Connections from both users and devices will use authentication and strong encryption to secure the connection and restrict the resources that each are allowed to access.

All communication between components of the system is secured and encrypted using TLS and managed by certificates. FIPS standard compliant implementation of security algorithms are used where applicable.

The core components of the ARCO Platform shall only have a single point of entry through the secure Web API.

Docker container networking provides an extra layer of security so that communications between different components on the Arco Platform occur on an isolated internal virtual network that is only accessible from within a Docker container, and shall only expose an HTTPS endpoint via the API gateway service

7. Data Analytics
Analytics is the process of converting analogue data from interconnected smart devices and sensors into usable insights that can be processed, interpreted and used for detailed analysis. Intelligent analytics are inevitable for IoT technology for management and improvement of the entire system.

One of the utmost advantages of an efficient IoT system is real-time smart analytics which helps engineers to find out irregularities in the collected data and act fast to prevent an undesired scenario. Service providers can prepare for further steps if the information is collected accurately at the right time.

Arco Solution:
Arco Solution integrates S1000 Control Panels, sensors, Arco Platform, cloud storage and provides data analytics. Companies use these analytics data for improvement of products and services, preventive measures for certain steps and build their new business model accurately.

Big enterprises can use the massive data collected with ARCO Solution and utilise the insights for their future business opportunities. Careful analysis will help predict trends in the market and efficiently plan ahead for a successful implementation.

Accurate information is very significant in any business model, and predictive analytics ensures success in the concerned area of the business line.

Conclusion

Internet of Things is ever evolving since it started its journey a few years back. New technologies and protocols join the IoT ecosystem to make it more accessible, cost-effective, energy efficient and most importantly secure. We at SPG offer you ARCO Solution to help you get there.

Web source:

https://comarkcorp.com/internet-of-things/

https://iotsecurityfoundation.org/

https://www.ibm.com/blogs/internet-of-things/what-is-the-iot/