Introduction to IoT

Personal Area Network (PAN)

Personal area networks are small networks where connected wireless devices are within personal reach (Figure 1). Connecting your smartphone to your car using Bluetooth is an example of a PAN.

Internet

the Internet The Internet is a multi-layer global network system that connects hundreds of millions of computers (Figure 3). The Internet is not owned by any one person or organization. This large system is comprised of multiple local and global networks serving private, public, business, academic, and government purposes. It allows for the exchange of data between more than a hundred Internet-linked countries worldwide. This makes the Internet an enormous carrier of various information resources and services. Some of these include text and multi-media data, email, online chat, VoIP, file transfer and file sharing, ecommerce, and online gaming.

Local Area Network (LAN)

LANs are typically networks in a small or local geographic area, such as a home, small business or department within a large corporation (Figure 2). LANs can connect two or more devices, including computers, printers, and wireless devices. LANs provide access to larger wide area networks (WANs) and the Internet.

The Edge

The edge refers to the physical "edge" of a corporate network.

The Cloud

The term "cloud" is used in many different ways. The cloud is not as much a type of network as it is a collection of data centers or groups of connected servers that are used to store and analyze data, provide access to on-line applications, and provide backup services for personal and corporate use (Figure 5). Cloud services are provided by different organizations.

Wide Area Networks (WANs)

The term WAN typically refers to a collection of LANs that provides inter-LAN and Internet connectivity for businesses and governments.

Fog Computing

With the rising number of sensors used by the Internet of Things, there is often a need to store the sensor data securely and closer to where the data can be analyzed. This analyzed data can then be used quickly and effectively to update or modify processes within the organization. Figure 6 shows an example of a smart city and how sensor data is processed. The fog is located at the edge of a business or corporate network. Servers and computer programs allow the data to be pre-processed for immediate use. Then the pre-processed data can be sent to the cloud for more in-depth computing if required.