The concept of the Internet of Things is not very complex, it simply defines the connection of all kinds of household appliances and everyday objects to the Internet to create a network that can be manipulated remotely. Up to now it has been partially implemented, since a network made up of hundreds of thousands of devices needs the support that only a next-generation internet can bring.

For this reason, on many occasions, when talking about IoT (Internet of Things), we necessarily have to relate it to 5G, since its mass adoption has always been thought to be conditioned by this new speed standard. The pandemic and social distancing came to change this condition completely. In the first half of 2020 alone, interest in Internet of Things platforms increased by 20%, reaching 66 billion dollars, a not insignificant number in the market.

The new conditions that COVID-19 brought to society are the ones that IoT-focused projects most seek to solve: remote work, super-charged e-commerce, telemedicine needs, and computer security. Applied to these sectors is where this network of connected objects becomes complex, seeking to combine with innovations such as Blockchain, giving it the potential to change the way in which societies build their economy, relate to each other and work

The New Aspects Of The IOT

Integrating an internet connection is not the only requirement for something to be considered part of the IoT. The Internet of Things focuses on four particular aspects that, when included in new technological concepts or modernized devices, make them part of this new network of interconnected objects: sensors, networks, the cloud, and applications.

The interest of the commercial sectors is divided between these four functionalities, 84% are interested in the benefits that sensors can bring, 77% in data processing solutions combining multiple IoT functions and 76% are interested in connectivity in the cloud.

Once the pandemic began to hit global economies, projects developing these aspects pointed to the lack of computer connectivity that international health organizations exhibited in managing the pandemic. They argue that, if they had combined Blockchain solutions, for example, to transmit decentralized information in real time with multifunctional IoT sensors that reported on patient parameters and the speed of response of each health center to the crisis, a more appropriate response supported by exact statistics that limited the spread of the virus would have been possible.

Of course this study is applicable to future health crises, but it is still possible to enable aspects of the IoT in the present, especially for the logistical challenge that the virus vaccine presents to global supply networks.

And this is where its application to online commerce also comes in, since next-generation logistics traceability depends almost exclusively on effective IoT systems that can detect, collect, and interpret information from massive vehicle fleets. In both cases, inventory control and warehouse automation also largely depend on these technologies being implemented, allowing for better product tracking, but also significant energy savings with IoT lighting sensors and reports.

The lockdown changed our consumption habits profoundly and will continue to do so, so investments in technologies that increase the connectivity of individual components in delivery operations will be a necessity for companies of all sizes.

Without neglecting the demand for smart spaces in home and work environments that allow greater comfort, control and savings in household appliances, the IoT has surpassed the daily applications to which it was reduced before the pandemic to project itself as a necessity in all aspects of the new economy. Stanford University predicts that, by 2030, there will already be 500 billion objects connected to the Internet, so the impact they will have cannot be relegated to a hypothetical distant. Like all other technological innovations, the IoT has been drastically accelerated by the pandemic and it is time for us to take active stances on its cybersecure regulation.

Also Read: What Is The Internet Of Things?