How to improve the reliability of the Internet of Things?

Improve IoT reliability, including making networks more secure, protected against cyber threats, and edge-based intelligent data storage and computing. Implementing a reliable IoT for smart cities can reduce latency, improve performance, and improve energy efficiency.

In the last decade, smart devices seem to have taken over the world. The number of users in the global smart home market is expected to continue to grow by 311.9 million households between 2023 and 2027. Similarly, an automated supply chain can use smart sensors and plugs for asset tracking and inventory management. The Internet of Things (IoT) powers the network that connects such smart devices and applications. As expected, manufacturers, hospitals, exporters and businesses in other industries rely heavily on such applications for key functions, such as bypass surgery using a robotic arm or autonomously mixing two explosive chemicals in the right proportions to form solutions that are critical to business operations. In this case, the reliability factor of ioT devices must be absolutely firm.

 Here are some ways to achieve the high reliability of the smart city Internet of Things:

1. Improve the ability of the edge Internet of Things

Older IoT networks involve edge components with lower computing power. This slows down data transmission through various IoT devices, thus making the entire network unnecessarily delayed. This can be prevented by incorporating computing resources on edge devices, and by extending, computing power, and storage space. This will achieve two purposes in the IoT network. First, this will prevent the backend data from stalling. Instead, improved data processing and storage in network edge devices will alleviate data flow and prevent congestion. Second, the improvement of computing power and autonomous decision-making in edge devices will make Internet of Things-driven operations faster and more accurate.

2. Implement the network and Internet of Things network

Traditional IoT networks use star networks, in which all devices in the network are connected through a public gateway. The gateway serves as a carrier for all the data collected by the sensors and devices. Despite the cost-effective implementation of star networks, problems such as black dots and limited network coverage are common in such IoT networks. In contrast, mesh networks involve sensor devices distributing data to each other through multiple nodes, increasing the coverage, scalability, and self-healing algorithms for data transmission. This greatly improves the reliability of the smart city Internet of Things, even if the two devices are far apart.

3. Build multi-layer defense for the Internet of Things network

Another factor to consider when considering the reliability of the IoT is network security. IoT networks may involve multiple businesses and stakeholders. For the entire network to withstand DDoS, data breach, and other types of network threats, these stakeholders must build a multi-layer infrastructure in which all devices have strict identity and access management (IAM) agreements through multiple authentication (MFA) applications. This will make it difficult for cybercriminals to invade IoT networks.

 These measures will simply improve the reliability of the IoT for smart cities and businesses, and ensure that critical operations using the technology face zero to minimal downtime.