Do you know what the Internet of things is? Believe it or not, we will already surround devices connected to the Internet and each other right now — and perhaps many of us haven’t realized it yet. Since the 2000s, we have been experiencing a veritable Internet boom, which has driven people to connect worldwide. But today, thanks to the dizzying evolution that technology has provided, we can say that the Internet connects people and everything around us, from gadgets to home appliances.

When Did It Come?

The term IoT, from the English Internet of Things, was born in 1999 when the British researcher Kevin Ashton published a new article titled “The things of the internet of things.” In this article, Kevin talks about people’s lack of time in the modern age and how devices are evolving to fill this gap, replacing us and even automating tasks that don’t require human effort. In practice, these devices can help us throughout the day, generating information, carrying out activities, and accompanying us in our tasks—all this “talking” within the same social networks through different protocols.

But What Is the Internet of Things Anyway?

The Internet of Things will form a network of distinct objects such as vehicles, cell phones, refrigerators, and even buildings capable of collecting, storing, and transmitting information, connecting online to other networks, data centers, or other objects/things.

IoT has been a generic term encompassing commercially relevant technologies for over a decade. So, for example, we can mention the use of tracking vehicles in a fleet and the digitization of economic segments such as energy, health, and finance.

More directly, IoT refers to the connection that machines establish with each other as a way of collecting information and nurturing their system, making them able to act autonomously, as much as possible, and producing results that aim to meet the needs and human desires.

As with blockchain and cryptocurrencies in the financial market, the IoT is changing a lot about the operation of companies. This connection and interaction between different devices create a wide range of practical applications that we will follow shortly. Magnesium Alloys

What Applications?

The numerous artificial intelligence devices interconnected with IoT technologies impact the most diverse sectors. The Internet of Things is present from the logistics of a company’s goods to the public safety of entire cities. Through the IoT integrated with a GPS service, it is likely to monitor, in real-time, the entire route traveled by a fleet of vehicles, providing more safety and efficiency in transporting inputs and goods. Ahead, we will demonstrate some more practical examples of using the Internet of Things.

Wearable Devices

Wearables, known as ” wearable technologies,” combine various electronic equipment with a processor that can be used as accessories or directly in clothing. The popular intelligent bracelets are the icon of this segment and will widely use for health monitoring (LG’s Lifeband Touch being the most famous example). These gadgets deliver different features and information to the user, such as step counter and distance covered, time, heart rate, and body temperature.

Along the same lines, other gadgets will develop for payment processing — such as electronic wristbands that authorize transactions by simply approaching them, being managed through an application. Google’s famous augmented reality glasses are another example of this family of wearables, which are helpful or at least interesting. Along with other applications, it is possible to make calls, activate a microphone and camera, see the weather forecast and use GPS through glasses.

Nature Monitoring

You may have seen, in television documentaries, different rare or endangered animals receiving microchips to monitor remotely. Well, this is an example of the use of IoT technology. The same principle can apply to different situations for monitoring reserves, parks, rivers, fauna, and flora through cameras that capture images of the environment and send them to a processing and storage center, where the collected data will evaluate.

Home Automation

The Jetsons’ home of the future is also no longer an exercise in the imagination. Home automation systems allow electronics to talk to each other, enabling ambient temperature control, security systems, and the automation of doors, windows, and gates. In addition, your home can react to your presence by adapting it to your preferences.

Can you imagine coming home from work and your favorite relaxation music starts playing in the background, at the ideal volume, while a hot and sparkling bath awaits you in your suite? It is one of the increasingly common luxuries in “smart” homes.

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Marketing And Advertising

A mass of data will generate through devices that collect information from people in different locations (your home, cars, and even your own body). It can use as a market intelligence tool to profile customers. With a well-designed target audience with information about tastes, habits, and preferences, it is possible to design targeted and much more effective Marketing strategies.

Devices such as beacons, which recognize devices inside establishments, can also be used as a complement to this strategy. It is the future of Marketing, which manifests itself in Google and Amazon-sponsored ads based on user preferences.

City ​​Management

Entire cities can benefit from using intelligent systems and the Internet of Things. For example, traffic signals connected to a control center can provide better fluidity at peak times. It can benefit public safety by using monitoring cameras connected with computer vision technology, which can combat crises in a preventive or ostensible way.

Clever traffic signs are just one example. Imagine the center of a metropolis where the traffic light system adapts to demand without the help of people. Each signal watches its street and, within the system, works to make the flow of vehicles flow efficiently.

Self-driving cars based on the same technology developed by companies like Uber and Google are already in the testing phase and represent the future of safer traffic.

As we observed throughout the article, the effective use of technologies such as IoT allows companies to find numerous advantages for their businesses, such as integrating sectors, evaluating metrics, and creating new products/services. Moreover, this possibility of developing new ways of acting and thinking also opens the way for the emergence of innovations.

And you, reader, what did you think of all this? Did you understand a little more about the concept of the Internet of things? Leave your comment on the post and enrich this article, telling about your impressions or even leaving any questions about the topic.

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