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Study of IoT: Understanding IoT Architecture, Applications, Issues and

Challenges

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International Journal of Advanced Networking & Applications (IJANA) ISSN: 0975-0282

Study of IoT: Understanding IoT Architecture,

Applications, Issues and Challenges
Soumyalatha, Shruti G Hegde
Assistant Professor, Department of Computer Science and Engineering
Brindavan College of Engineering, Bangalore-63, India
soumyanaveen.u@gmail.com, shruti601@gmail.com

ABSTRACT-The Internet of Things (IoT) is an emerging and challenging field for researchers. IoT is a network of general
objects which are embedded with technologies that helps to communicate and interact within themselves and external
environment. This in-turn provides intelligence to the objects to make people life comfortable. In this paper we discussed
IoT, its architecture, Relationship between wireless sensor networks (WSN) and IoT. Further we explained different
applications of IoT, Current IoT tools for users, IoT advantage, disadvantage and challenges. In this paper we also proposed
an idea of using IoT in Indian agriculture domain.

Keywords—Internet of things, wireless sensor networks, sensor, architecture, Smart city, IOT Tools, Smart agriculture.
1. INTRODUCTION identification (RFID), sharing of information takes place [4].
So in general we can say IoT allows people and things to be

E volution of internet began by connecting computers. connected Anytime, Anyplace, with anything and anyone
Later many computers were connected together which using any network and any service as shown in fig 1.
created World Wide Web. Then mobile devices were able to
connect to the internet which leads to mobile-Internet
technique. People started using the internet via social
networks. Finally the idea of connecting daily objects to the
internet was proposed, which lead to the Internet of Things
technology [1].

First time the term ―Internet of Things: word was used

by Kevin Ashton in a presentation during 1998. [2]. He has
mentioned ―The Internet of Things has the potential to
change the world, just as the Internet did May be even more
so‖. Later during 2001, MIT AutoID Lab center presented
their view on IoT. Then during 2005, this is formally
recognized by the International Telecommunication Union Fig.1 Definition of IoT.
(ITU). Following table shows the relationship between sensor
network and IoT. [5,6]
IoT creates a world where all the objects (also called
smart objects) around us are connected to the Internet and TABLE I: Relationship between Sensor networks and IoT
communicate with each other with minimum human Senor Network IoT
intervention. The ultimate goal is to create ‗a better world Sensor is a device, which Devices or objects are
for human beings‘, where objects around us know what we collects data. made smart objects,
like, what we want, and what we need and act accordingly which is connected to the
without explicit instructions. internet.
Sensors are part of IoT. IoT is combination of
Current research on Internet of Things (IoT) mainly sensors, network and
focuses on how to enable general objects to see, hear, and people
smell the physical world for themselves, and make them Data is collected using Data is collected , later it
connected to share the observations. In that sense, sensors. is processed and
monitoring and decision making can be moved from the decisions are taken
human side to the machine side. Especially sensors are Here daily life objects
used to monitor space, are made intelligent,
Since IoT is considered as the networked connection of objects and human which alerts when
physical objects or devices. One of the definition of IoT by a beings. something is wrong.
researcher is [3]―An open and comprehensive network of
intelligent objects that have the capacity to auto-organize, According to, Cisco Internet Business Solutions Group
share information, data and resources, reacting and acting in (IBSG) study, in 2003, there were 500 million devices[7]
face of situations and changes in the environment‖. connected to the Internet and approximately 6.3 billion
people were living. Explosive growth of smart phones and
With the help of the communication technologies such tablet PCs brought the number of devices connected to the
as wireless sensor networks (WSN) and Radio frequency Internet to 12.5 billion in 2010, while the world‘s human
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International Journal of Advanced Networking & Applications (IJANA) ISSN: 0975-0282

population increased to 6.8 billion. It also predicts there will from the stored data as well from the real time data. Security
be 25 billion devices connected to the Internet by 2015 and and privacy of the data should be ensured.
50 billion by 2020. Application Layer
This is the top most layer of IoT which provides a user
interface to access various applications to different users.
The applications can be used in various sectors like
transportation, health care, agriculture, supply chain,
government, retail etc.

3 IOT APPLICATION DOMAINS

This technology has a lot of applications in various fields.
Following are some possible areas where we can leverage
the power of the Internet of Things (IoT) to solve day-to-day
problems. However, it can be put to many more uses.
Fig.2: Year Vs world population and connected devices. Smart society
2. ARCHITECTURE OF IOT Smart home
Now a day homes and offices use IoT technologies. Various
Architecture of IoT [8] is broadly classified into 4 layers. electronic gadgets and HVAC systems such as lights, fans
2.1 Sensor Layer microwave ovens, refrigerators, heaters and air conditioners
This is lowest layer of IOT Architecture, which consists of are embedded with sensors and actuators to utilize the
sensor networks, embedded systems, RFID tags and readers energy sufficiently, monitor and control amount of heating,
or other soft sensors which are different forms of sensors cooling and level of light, ,room light sense the presence of
deployed in the field. Each of these sensors has human beings and turn on when you enter , when fire or
identification and information storage (e.g. RFID tags), smoke detected at home, wireless smoke and carbon
information collection (e.g. sensor networks), etc [9] monoxide sensors sound alarms and also alert by phone or
email and adds more comfort in life, which in turn minimize
the cost and increases energy saving. [10]
Smart home automation
The IoT can be used to remotely control and program the
appliances in your home [11]. It can be useful in detecting
and avoiding thefts.
Smart City
On a broader scale, IoT technologies can be employed to
make cities more efficient. The goal of smart cities is to
leverage the IoT to improve the lives of citizens by
improving traffic control, monitoring the availability of
parking spaces, evaluating air quality and even providing
notification when trash containers are full.
Smart Traffic
Currently the traffic management is a bigger issue in the
metropolitan cities. Managing them manually has become
Fig. 3 Layered Architecture of IOT almost impossible. This problem can be overcome by
implementing IoT for traffic management. This smart traffic
2.2 monitoring uses sensors to collect rA aw traffic data, which
ccess Gateway and Network Layer provides traffic update to driver, which helps him to make
This layer is responsible for transferring the information the decision for travelling better route. This also helps user
collected by sensors to the next layer. It should support to book a cab without phone call or pick up location and also
scalable, flexible, standards universal protocol for shows cabs close and also their movement in real time.
transferring data from heterogeneous devices (Different Smart parking Sensors will be placed in
types of sensor nodes). This Layer should have high parking slots to know whether parking slot is available or
performance and robust network. It should also support not. The drivers park their vehicle looking into the
multiple organizations to communicate independently. application which provides the details of nearest parking
Management Service Layer slots available, parking cost based on the data collected and
This layer acts as an interface between the Gateway - analyzed by the smart sensors which helps them to save time
Network layer and the application layer; in bidirectional and fuel.
mode. It is responsible for device management and
information management and responsible for capturing large Smart waste Management
amount of the raw data and extracting relevant information

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A trash bin embedded with sensors which are capable to the owner regarding the requirements of water, pesticides,
analyze and alert the authorities when it is full and need to manure, fertilizer or treatment for the infected plants.
be emptied.
Smart Street light Sensors which can Healthcare
analyze the context such as time, season, weather conditions Health tracking
will be embedded within street lights which automatically The IoT is used in healthcare domain to improve the quality
turns light on or off and sets the dimming levels of of human life by assisting basic tasks that humans must
individual or group of lights based on the context. perform through application. Sensors can be placed on
health monitoring equipment used by patients. The
Smart water supply Smart cities must information collected by these sensors is made available on
monitor water supply to ensure that there is adequate access the Internet to doctors, family members and other interested
of water for resident and business need. Wireless Sensor parties in order to improve treatment and responsiveness.
helps to monitor their water piping systems more accurately Additionally, IoT devices can be used to monitor a patient‘s
and discovers water leakage and alerts them about the water current medicines and evaluate the risk of new medications
loss which in turn saves money and natural resource too. in terms of allergic reactions and adverse interactions. With
Smart Environment the use of sensors and the technology stated above we can
A very important application of IoT is detecting pollution track the person‘s body temperature, heart beat rate, blood
and natural calamities. We can monitor the emissions from pressure, etc. In case of emergency, the individual and their
factories and vehicles to minimize air pollution. We can personal doctor will be notified with all the data collected by
track the release of harmful chemicals and waste in rivers the sensors. This system will be very useful to senior citizens
and the sea, thereby arresting water pollution. We can also and disabled people who live independently.
keep tabs on the quality of water being supplied for drinking.
We can send warnings of earthquakes and tsunamis by Pharmaceutical products
detecting tremors. We can keep the water level of rivers and Safety of pharmaceutical product is of utmost importance to
dams under surveillance to be alert in case of floods. The prevent the health of patients. Attaching smart labels to
detection of forest fire is also possible with this technology. drugs, and monitoring their status with sensors has benefits
like maintaining the storing conditions, expiry of drugs
Air Quality Monitoring which will prevent the transporting the expired medicines to
By embedding sensors which collects context information the patients [12].
such as amount of carbon monoxide (CO), nitrogen dioxide
(NO2) in the air, sound levels, temperature, humidity levels Food sustainability
in the environment. This provides continuous information Packed Food that we eat has to go through various stages of
about the context, which helps to take the precaution if it food cycle such as production, harvesting, transportation and
exceeds the normal level. distribution. Sensors are used to detect context like
temperature, humidity, light, heat etc. which precisely
Smart Water Quality Monitoring notifies the variation and intimates the concerned persons to
Sensors which can detect context such as water quality, prevent the food from spoiling.
water flow, speed, temperature, water pollution, contents of
water are placed or flowed in the water. This helps in real- Supply-chains
time analysis and management of the water resources Internet of Things monitors every stage of supply chain from
available for use. purchasing of raw materials from the suppliers by the
manufactures, production, distribution, storage, product
Smart sewage water management sales and after sales services. This will help to maintain the
Embedded sensors in sewage tank, helps to control the stock required for continuous sale, which in turn results in
overflow of the waste water flowing into; by continuously customer satisfaction and increased sales [12]. According to
providing the information about the level of waste water Cisco‘s economic analysis, IoT will generate $1.9 trillion
stored. By these data, the maintenance people can schedule from supply chain and logistics over the next decade[13]. By
the water treatment process to avoid the overflow of sewage. using this we can also diagnose if the machines require
repair and maintenance.
Natural Disaster Monitoring Even the Indian Government has planned to develop 100
Natural disasters such as earth quake, landslides, forest fire, smart cities which cover some of the above mentioned IoT
volcanoes, flood, etc. can be predicted by using wireless applications.
detection sensors. These detections intimate the respective
authorities to take the precautions before the disaster occurs. 4 IOT TOOLS FOR USERS
IOT can also function as a tool that saves people‘s money
Agriculture and time. Some of the tools used are:
 HAPIfork[14]—Is an electronic fork to monitor and
3.3.1 Smart Farming track the eating habits of user. When the user is eating
Context information such as current temperature, soil too fast it alerts with the help of indicator lights and
moisture conditions, leaf wetness, and solar radiation is gentle vibrations.
collected and analyzed by the sensors, which in turn informs
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 HeatWatch[15]- is a cattle monitoring solution that New business opportunities

records the activities of animal which in turn helps Creates new business for IoT technology, hence
farmer to breed more cows. increases economic growth and new jobs .
 Smart Traffic ParkSightis[16]: Is a parking Better Environment
management application to guide the driver regarding
Saves natural resources and trees and helps in creating
the availability of parking slots.
 SmartBelly[17] : is a smart waste management a smart greener and sustainable planet.
solution to alert authorities when the trash bin is full .
 Airqualityegg[18]: is an application which notifies the Disadvantages
amount of air pollution. 5.2.1Compatibily
 Aircasting[19] is a platform for sharing health ( heart As devices from different manufacturers will be
and breathing rate, pressure, etc. ) and environmental interconnected in IoT, presently , there is no international
data( temperature, humidity, sound level, air contents). standard of compatibility for the tagging and monitoring
 G.Dontflush[20]- is an application to intimate peoples equipment.
to reduce the usage of water when the sewage tank is 5.2.1 Complexity
full. The IoT is a diverse and complex network. Any failure or
bugs in the software or hardware will have serious
 Insightrobotics[21]- is a forest fire detection system.
consequences. Even power failure can cause a lot of
inconvenience.
Some other tools are bumblebee , Floating Sensor Network
5.2.2.Privacy/Security
and Intelligentriver , MyVessylCup , Smart Tooth brush,
IoT has involvement of multiple devices and technologies
Smart propane tank, Glucose monitoring, Smart Washing
and multiple companies will be monitoring it. Since lot of
machines, Hydroponic System, Smart sprinkler Controller,
data related to the context will be transmitted by the smart
Smart home security, Smart lightening, Smart a/c, Blood
sensors, there is a high risk of losing private data.
pressure monitor, Smart weather station, Smart slow cooker,
5.2.3 Lesser employment of menial staff:
Smart bike, Smart garbage cans, Smart gardening.
With the advent of technology, daily activities are getting
5 THE ADVANTAGES AND DISADVANTAGES automated by using IoT with less human
OF IOT intervention, which in turn causes fewer requirements of
Advantage human resources. This causes unemployment issue in the
Communication society.
Since IoT has communication between devices, in 5.2.4 Technology Takes Control of Life
which physical devices are able to stay connected and Our lives will be increasingly controlled by
hence the total transparency is available with lesser technology, and will be dependent on it. The younger
inefficiencies and greater quality. generation is already addicted to technology for every little
Automation and Control thing. With IoT, this dependency will spread amongst
Without human involvement, machines are automating generations and in daily routines of users. We have to decide
and controlling vast amount of information, which how much of our daily lives are we willing to mechanize and
leads faster and timely output. be controlled by technology.
Monitoring saves money and time
5.3 Challenges and issues
Since IOT uses smart sensors to monitor various
5.3.1 Scalability
aspects in our daily life for various applications which Spontaneously various new smart objects or devices are
saves money and time. getting connected to the network. So IoT should be capable
to solve the issues such as addressing, information
management and service management and also should
support both small-scale and large-scale environments.
5.3.2 Self configuration
IoT objects should be programmed for self configuration to
suit particular environment without manual configuration by
the user.
5.3.3 Interoperability (Devices heterogeneity)
In IoT many smart objects are connected and each smart
object has its own information collection capability,
processing and communication capability. For
communication and cooperation between the smart objects
of different types; they should have common communication
Fig.4 Advantages and Disadvantages of IoT standard.
Better Quality of Life 5.3.4 Software complexity
IoT based applications increases comfort and better Since software systems in smart objects work with minimal
management in our daily life; thereby improving the resources, there is a need for software infrastructure to
quality of life.
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support the network and requires a server on the back owner/farmer in crop selection, crop monitoring, crop
ground to manage and support smart objects of the network. maturity, crop yield, spreading of seeds, fertilizers,
5.3.5 Storage Volume pesticides, soil erosion, crop yield, diagnosis of crop
Based on the scenario and context, smart objects collect diseases.
either small amount of data or huge volume of data. So
based on amount of data, storage has to be allocated. Further IoT sensors enabled machineries could further
5.3.6 Data interpretation improve yields. These leads to less man power, increased
It‘s very important to interpret the context, that sensor has to productivity and profit.
sense. Context has important role for generating useful 6.2 Present Tools for agriculture
information and to draw a conclusion from the data sent by
the sensors. Cropln technology[24] has developed a mobile application
which takes input related to farm and helps in efficient
5.3.7 Security and personal privacy maintaining and ensuring the crop quality in short duration.
In IoT, network formed by smart objects via internet, so Precisionhawk[25] provides an application for the field of
providing security and privacy is a big challenge. In IoT, agriculture, which asses plant health, allocates water,
sometimes user prevent other user to access some particular detects weeds and monitor seasons.
information at certain time or preventing some Sensefly[26] provides eBee presision agriculture drone.
communication or some transaction to protect secrete This can capture high quality images of fieild, which in turn
information from competitors. So handling all this situation helps the farmer to take decisions.
is a big challenge. Based on the survey, there are only few tools or applications
5.3.8 Fault tolerance are available for agriculture. So we propose the idea of
In IoT, smart objects or devices are dynamic and rapidly embedding multiple sensors in the field which collects the
context may change. But still network has to function information of crop health and detects the pests if any and
properly automatically, to adapt to the changed conditions. this sensors collectively send the data through the gateway,
So IoT has to be structured for fault tolerance and robust which will be analyzed and results will be passed on to the
[22]. smart phones of the farmers via application. Based on
5.3.9 Ubiquitous data exchange through wireless these data, farmer can accurately know the affected area and
technologies: can take right decisions at right time.
Issues such as availability, network delays, and congestion Initially creating awareness regarding this new
etc. of wireless technologies; which is used for technology is very important. This can be done by providing
communication of smart devices are big challenge. free demo‘s and training to the farmers on how to use and
5.3.10 Energy-optimized solutions the advantages of using this application and also providing
Network consists of many interconnected devices; which them with free samples sensor kits. The opinion of usage and
requires high energy to keep the network active. So energy results of the application can be collected and analyzed for
optimization is the major aspect in IoT[23]. further improvement of application.
7 CONCLUSION
6 PROPOSED IDEA FOR AGRICULTURE
In this survey paper, we analyzed IoT domain by considering
Traditionally in India farmer usually follows the following its architecture and applications and advantage and
major phases for agriculture. They are Crop Selection, Land disadvantage. We observed that still IoT is not much used in
Preparation, Seed Selection, Seed Sowing,, Irrigation, Crop the field of agriculture. So we find its very much necessary
Growth, Fertilizing and Harvesting. They were completely to improve the applications of IoT in this field and educate
dependent on man power for all the above mentioned work. the same to the agriculturist, this will in turn reduces the
Now a day‘s finding the man power has become tedious task dependency on man power and also will improve the yield
and even the profit is reduced. This has lead to the decrease which leads increase in the economy.
the number of peoples completely involving in agriculture. A
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