FIGURE 2: The fog extends the cloud closer to the devices producing data, thereby reducing latency.2
While any one IoT device may
not provide nor require much in the
way of data, forecasts have suggested
that at least 20 billion IoT devices
will have been deployed by the end
of 2020. Where will the data go?
For internal building systems, this
has traditionally been the internal
infrastructure. However, as cloudbased
solutions for software and
monitoring have been accepted,
this data would be transferred
to the cloud. For many systems,
time of transmission difference
between the equipment or server
room on-site and the cloud data
center hundreds of miles away is
negligible. But as data volumes
and the amount of processing
increase in conjunction with an
increased need for real-time
response without impact by
inherent latency, a new design
paradigm is emerging to address
the fog or localized low-lying
cloud layer (Figure 2).
May/June 2019 I 25
The data supplied by each system
can contain thousands or millions
of data points and is analyzed or
processed for a particular purpose
in advancing decision making
and the generation of new data
points to further drive improvement
and change. Current examples of big
data analytics include determining
root causes of failures and defects
of an oil rig in near real time,
generating coupons at the point
of sale based on a greater understanding
of customers’ buying
habits, or tracking wheelchairs
and other resources at hospital
facilities for improved
asset management.
According to the Wireless
Telecommunications Carriers in the
US IBIS World Industry Report (2017),
“The share of wireless connections
that are Machine-to-Machine (M2M)
connections is set to increase from
15.0 percent in 2017 to 30.0 percent
by the end of this decade.” While
internal building systems may
remain wired, the build-out
and upcoming implementation
of 5G wireless will allow device
placement to no longer be limited
by the reach of a cable.
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