Iot and IIoT has made it a long way in the past several years. In fact, according to Forbes, trillions of dollars are at stake as the Industrial Internet of Things rolls out over the next decade. But, has the multi-tillion dollar trend lived up to the hype?

It could be many more years until certain industries reach the levels described in the hype.  Here’s the industries you should keep your eye on when it comes to IIoT technology.

The Internet of Things and the Industrial Internet of Things (IoT and IIoT, respectfully), widely encompasses many concepts, technologies, and products, but can generally be described as:

• A system that contains wired or wirelessly connected components which relay data that can be analyzed or used to control an output of the system
• A network that allows for automated information exchange between two devices
• A vision where any and all systems are connected to gather masses of data that will lead to overall improved performance, insights, and control

As of 2018, we most commonly see IoT being used for location tracking, remote monitoring, and preventative maintenance.  Yet, for IIoT the most common application is preventative maintenance. Many of these IIoT systems report back to a control interface, and are not completely automated control loops that are self-evaluating or self-improving.

There are some industries in particular that stand out when looking at the IIoT.  We looked at trends that will progress through the end of 2018 into 2019, and asked the following questions.

1. What industries will be most affected by IoT solutions?

According to BI Intelligence, the ‘Manufacturing’ and ‘Transportation and Warehousing’ industries have received the highest amount of investment in IoT to date.  These investments, totaling $230B between the two industries over the past few years, will continue to drive impressive progress in the development of IoT solutions. 

2. Who will be the key players in IIoT Solutions in 2019?

We are currently witnessing a race to capture the IIoT market.  AT&T is collaborating with Honeywell, Verizon offers a machine-to-machine (M2M) management platform called ThingSpace, and startups like Uptake Technologies are raising absurd amounts of capital to compete with existing analytics giants. Uptake alone has raised $218M since 2015, and specializes in analytics of complex data sets. 

Nearly all of the corporate giants you would expect to have a stake in the race are putting serious resources behind their efforts.  GE is offering Predix, and end-to-end Industrial IoT Platform, and has incorporated capabilities like Predix Edge to allow for edge computing within the platform.  Siemens offers their own Industrial IoT platform called MindSphere, and Bosch is also getting in on the action now offering their IoT Suite publicly available on AWS Marketplace. Further, Schneider Electric developed WonderWare and SAP offers Hana.

We expect that through 2019 we will see more partnerships develop, offering cross compatibility between the many platforms which are available today.

3. What further developments in IIoT can we expect in the near future?

Security will continue to be a major focus for all providers and users of the IIoT.   In a recent publication Steve Watson, CEO of VTO Labs, explains “security and specifically the ability to detect compromised nodes, together with collecting and preserving evidences of an attack or malicious activities emerge as a priority in successful deployment of IoT networks.” This ability to detect and preserve evidence of a cyber-attack will not only need to occur through edge computing, but it will also need to be maintain its integrity with interoperability of different systems that are linked together.

Given the amount of investment we are seeing in the ‘Manufacturing’ and ‘Transportation and Warehousing’ industries we expect to see many breakthroughs in both cyber security for the IIoT and interoperability between the many IIoT platforms. Looking into 2019 we can expect to see more partnerships between major sensor providers and network providers, such as the AT&T Honeywell collaboration we saw in 2018. With more interoperability and collaboration, 2019 may be the year that we see the major breakthroughs in IIoT we’ve been expecting.

About the Author: Taylor Welsh is a writer for a Speedtronic reseller, located in Fuquay-Varina, NC. To see more, visit AX Control.

“I talk to a dozen or more companies involved in IoT every week. One thing they all have in common is their desire for the projected IoT volumes and revenues to come to fruition...the sooner the better”.

Mike Krell

Analyst at Moor Insights & Strategy covering the Internet of Things, Forbes.

Internet of things has always been functioning in a context of business transformation.

If you’re in business, just read on, as we are to have several working IIoT solutions to consider right now.

To be successful today you need to:

1. really love what you do;
2. move with the times;
3. make the IIoT technology a part of your business development plan;
4. and find an Industrial IoT company for you to cooperate with.

Here I gathered 5 IIoT solutions implemented by global industry leaders and the key examples of their efficient cooperation with IoT developers:

#1 Predictive Maintenance for Wind Energy

The IIoT solution is projected to be implemented into the maintenance of wind energy. The smart wind turbines will be applied to reveal how employees can get additional insights by using ML about the equipment performance in different conditions. Thus, smart sensors are supposed to give the information in a real-life regime.

The system can give reliable statistics for the future planning and help to replace vital parts of the engines during the less windy periods:

Source: Schaeffler Group & IBM

#2 Health Detectors for Caterpillar Equipments

Recently, the American machinery and equipment giant, Caterpillar implemented a new IIoT solution to help its customers better understand the workability and health of the equipment. It should also be said that the company uses IoT solutions for tracking fuel efficiency, idle times, location, and many more. The new project lets clients directly address the company maintenance service and timely repair the sensitive spots by using the IoT platform.

The end-to-end platform for predictive diagnostics allows for better monitoring and timely replacement of the interchangeable parts. The Caterpillar CEO, Doug Oberhelman supposes the IIoT, which is primarily applied to the fleet and fuel monitoring, will take the clients offering to the next level.

#3 Airbus Smart Manufacturing

You know the biggest European aircraft manufacturer has already applied the IoT solutions to its products. Today Airbus is working at implementing the IIoT to the tools its workers use during the manufacturing process.

For this reason, Airbus opts to involve its employees and the factory floor. The workers will manage to use smart tablets or glasses to evaluate a task and then send the data to a robotic tool that will finish it.

Jean-Bernard Henz, the head of PLM R&T Innovation at Airbus ICT, says the IoT platform manufacturing will speed up the processes and improve the reliability of the production.

#4 Siemens -- a 75% automated plant

You know the Siemens AG plant is a part of a concerted effort by the German government to develop fully automated factories. Guess what? Siemens is claimed to be 75% automated with 1,150+ employees on board.

All the employees are mainly operating computers and monitoring the process of manufacturing by using the IIoT solutions. Sinalytics, which is a critical component of the IIoT Platform was implemented in 2015. Today Siemens continues developing the Web of System, which directly connects devices to the open Internet and with each other. Besides, Siemens launched a new company in 2016 that is named Innovations AG. The company is dedicated to the search and support of the emerging start-ups that can be a good technological investment for Siemens. This has influenced the factory efficiency, opened the new technological opportunities and reduced costs.

https://twitter.com/Siemens/status/935795639472021506

#5 ThyssenKrupp Elevates IIoT Implementation

The CGI global tech firm claims ‘that thing is an elevator’ for the company. Well, let’s see it. Having joined forces with Microsoft and CGI, the ThyssenKrupp Elevator company has now obtained a predictive maintenance for elevators manufacturing.

The IIoT solution securely connects tens of thousands of sensors and elevators systems across the plant. The technology allows for monitoring every stage of production starting from motor temperature and finishing with shaft alignment. The real-life IIoT gathered data lets the company identify vulnerabilities and repair them before an actual breakdown occurs:

https://twitter.com/thyssenkrupp_en/status/964787252629946368

What’s the bottom line?

IIoT solutions undoubtedly contribute to production efficiency. The predictive maintenance and pre-emptive repair, manufacturing automation and further spending cuts are just a tiny bit of what I recorded here.

I am almost done here...

Feel like you have something to tell about your IIoT use case?

Drop me a line below!

The Internet of Things is now widely used in a wide array of business verticals like manufacturing, healthcare, logistics, and more. According to the latest research data, the number of IoT connected devices, which made up ~4,9 million things in 2015, reached the point of ~3,9 billion in 2016.

Concerning AR, Statista predicts at least three various scenarios of AR/VR growth, but they all forecast the economic impact amounting ~$29,5 billion in 2020. Having reached the decision of developing your own IoT or AR software, you need to get heads up about the pitfalls of starting this new business solution development.

Major AR and IoT solutions’ programming challenges.

Challenges may be divided into several categories: high-level business obstacles and application development problems along with the solution’s further maintenance and enhancement. The first group may include the following issues:

• Unclear business benefits;
• Insufficient funding;
• A poor go-to-market strategy, and more;

While it’s quite clear how to avoid business-level problems, it’s also worth taking into account the challenges which arise during the software development process itself. The average IoT obstacles may include:

• Infrastructure problems (devices, gateways, platforms);
• Security concern;
• Cross-platform compatibility;
• Lack of support, and more.

AR development challenges encompass:

• AR hardware;
• Generated content;
• Security issues, and more;

With reference to the latest Cisco’s survey, only 26% of IoT projects considered as successful by their developers, whereas more than 50% reach the jumping-off place at the strategy crafting stage. One of the key AR challenges is to correlate virtual data with the real environment, which can bring even a leading vendor to a screwjob. For this very reason, it’s critically important to have an idea of technology development nuances.

Nevertheless, the latest statistics on the number of the internet connected devices and the AR technology in various spheres shows that a business owner is a targeted consumer for the outputs. This gives extra room for the IoT and AR initiatives:

Statistics reveals the amount of investment made worldwide in IoT by sectors during 2015-2020.

Statistics shows AR technology’s market share by business spheres.

2 notable IoT/AR use cases

In the context of solving the task, below are the two living examples of successful solutions to take into account while initiating your own development project.

E.g.: IoT mobile app for smart buildings and yachts management:

The idea was to develop a highly customizable system allowing to manage numerous connected devices in smart buildings/yachts.

Challenge:

A necessity to run a proprietary protocol in remoteness from real devices.

Solution:

Multiple devices installed within a building/yacht were united into a single smart system. A proprietary text protocol which provided smooth communication between the user interface and the backend was applied for infrastructure visualization configuration, gateways, and IR-gateways communication. This permitted cutting down on customizing the part of UI for each client.

The developed IoT application allowed for managing a chain of devices, including surveillance cameras (change the angles, zoom in/out), lighting, media systems, smart locks, and more via an Android-based mobile app. This led to essential energy and budget economy. The product is now being enhanced by integrating more smart devices into the system. A similar solution may be implemented in any smart home, hotel, or yacht to introduce automation and analysis to the existing infrastructure.

E.g.: Equipment maintenance and service mobile app with augmented reality

The idea was to develop a mobile app compatible with numerous platforms, which would give a possibility to maintain complex industrial equipment single-handedly.

Challenge:

A necessity to ensure image recognition with absolute accuracy.

Solution:

To create a repair or service guide, a user takes a photo of the equipment as a first step. Then the image is processed by Metaio SDK, which is a basis for its further recognition by the app. The built-in image recognition helps to save on painstaking programming and therefore additional investments on the part of the user.

Afterward, each of the required equipment part scenes is supplied with a step-by-step guide by means of animated, drag-and-drop 3D objects, such as a nut, a screwdriver, etc. The system allows to include text information, as well as images and videos in the instructions. Finally, the app’s user gets the complete instructions by simply pointing the device’s camera at the equipment that needs repair. A similar solution may be applicable to any industrial enterprise, healthcare organization, or any other vertical which requires urgent fixes and updates.

The bottom line

Any AR and IoT application development challenges may be addressed with a well-thought-out plan for development, implementation, and further maintenance and enhancement. The quantity of IoT and AR applications is skyrocketing and the above examples are a living proof of the system’s effectiveness in different business spheres.

Guest post by Ronald van Loon 

The Internet of Things (IoT) is changing our world. This may seem like a bold statement, but consider the impact this revolutionary technology has already had on communications, education, manufacturing, science, business, and many other fields of life. Clearly, the IoT is moving really fast from concept to reality and transforming how industries operate and create value. 

As the IoT creeps towards mass adoption, IT giants experiment and innovate with the technology to explore new opportunities and create new revenue streams. I was invited to Genius of Things Summit as a Futurist by Watson IoT and WIRED Insider and attended the long-awaited grand opening of IBM’s headquarters for Watson Internet of Things in Munich. The two-day event provided me an insight into what IBM’s doing to constantly push the boundaries of what’s possible with the IoT.

In this article, I have discussed the major developments that caught my interest and that, in my opinion, will impact and improve customer experience substantially. 

IoT capabilities become an integral part of our lifestyle

According to IBM the number of connected devices is expecting to rise as high as 30 billion in the next three years. This increasingly connected culture presents businesses with an opportunity to harness digital connections to improve their products and services and ultimately, foster deeper human connections in order to improve customer experiences and relationships. 

IBM, being one of the world’s top innovators in IoT, announced an exciting series of new offerings at The Genius of Things Summit alongside 22 clients and partners. These new IoT capabilities are likely to be the future of the IoT and become an integral part of our lifestyle in the near future. 

Digital Twin 

Traditionally, industrial assets are designed, built, and operated using numerous data sources with engineers working in specialized teams that conduct analysis for their specific tasks separately. As a result, the most current information may not be available readily for critical decisions. These silos, in turn, lead to increased costs and inefficiencies, create uncertainties, and require vast amount of time and resources. Digital Twin is a more efficient of working. It is a cloud-based virtual image of an asset maintained throughout the lifecycle and easily accessible at any time. One platform brings all experts together, allowing them to work cost-effectively using a collaboration platform, which helps reduce errors and improve efficiency. Consequently, this enables more profitable, safe, and sustainable operation. 

Case — Airbus Makes Digital Twin Come to Life

 Airbus and Schaeffler are using digital twin engines and digital twin bearings, respectively, to transform their production process, increasing operation productivity and improving design elements. IBM Watson is the IoT platform through which these two companies are reshaping their corresponding industries. Cognitive cloud based insights augments predictive systems to enable improved safety and efficiency for these two manufacturing organizations. Watch the Digital Twin replay from Genius of Things.

Cognitive Commerce 

Cognitive commerce is a revolutionary phenomenon that involves the use of a spectrum of technologies, ranging from speech recognition to a recommendations system based on machine learning. A cognitive commerce journey is based on an in-depth understanding of customers’ behaviors and preferences, both at aggregate and individual level. The knowledge is then applied in a real-time manner to offer a truly personalized experience to the customers in order to improve their satisfaction and drive more revenue to the business. 

Case: Visa Embraces the IoT

Visa partnered with IBM to leverage on the cognitive capabilities of IBM’s Watson IoT platform. The collaboration allowed Visa to launch a technology that will allow customers to make payments from any IoT connected device, from an application to a car or a watch. The new technology will not only eliminate the need to use sensitive financial information present on payment cards, but will also introduce a new level of simplicity and convenience to customer journey. See the video about Visa and IBM. 

Predictive Maintenance 

Predictive maintenance is a valuable application of the Internet of Things that helps reduce maintenance costs, increase asset availability, and improve customer satisfaction by issuing an alert before a machine or equipment breaks down. The technology involves analysis of large volumes of sensor data, such as temperature, oil levels, vibration, and voltage to predict maintenance needs before equipment failures happen. 

Case: Watson IoT to Help SNCF Railway Run Smoothly

SNCF is a leader in passenger and freight transport services that has a network of over 15,000 trainers covering more than 30,000 kilometers of track. The company recently announced its collaboration with IBM. The collaboration will help SNCF connect its entire rail system, including trains, train stations, and railroad tracks to Watson IoT. Using real-time data collected from sensors, the company will be able to anticipate repair needs and improve the security and availability of its assets. Watch the CTO of SNCF explain more about their approach to better client outcomes with IoT. 

Connected Devices

This involves the use of sensors to merge the real world and the digital world. These sensors are used in automobiles, smartphones, and other devices to make the devices web-compatible. These sensors measure humidity, light, temperature, magnetic fields, pressure, and sound. The information collected is programmed, processed, and transmitted using a radio network to the user, allowing them to control their smart devices from a remote location.

Case: Bosch Makes Industrial IoT a Reality

Bosch recently introduced its new and revolutionary ‘Bosch IoT Rollouts’ service for advance device management and cloud-based software updates. Bosch will leverage on its development and manufacturing expertise as well as the IBM’s Watson IoT platform to update connected devices in a seamless manner and deliver personalized services and experience to customers with connected devices. Watch how Bosch and IBM are working together on the glue between IoT and connected products and devices.

The impact of how digitizing the physical infrastructure around us affects customer experiences is an ongoing source of inspiration for me. I will appreciate your comments, insights, and feedback on this article, as well as invite you to follow me on Twitter and LinkedIn to learn more about Big Data and IoT.

This post originally appeared here.