Industrial IoT, IoT Security
Article | July 12, 2023
Edge computing enables the IoT to move intelligence out to the edge. If organizations have a lot of data and need to use it, they should do so in end-to-end paths, environments with lots of sensors, or environments where a lot of data is generated at the edge, thanks to the Internet of Things (IoT) and edge data sensing. Additionally, traditional methodologies fall short of the necessary standards when dealing with real-time information and the growing amount of unstructured data, which includes a sensor and IoT data. For management, power concerns, analytics, real-time needs, and other IoT situations, speed and high-speed data are essential elements. This enables edge computing to handle data.
The Internet of Things (IoT) benefits from having compute capacity close to the location of a physical device or data source. IoT device data needs to be processed at the edge rather than traveling back to a central site before that analysis can be done in order to react quickly or prevent concerns. For the data processing and storage requirements of IoT devices, edge computing serves as a local source.
Benefits of Using IoT and Edge Together
The connection between IoT devices and the main IT networks has less latency.
Greater operational efficiency and quicker response times.
Network bandwidth improvement.
When a network connection is lost, the system continues to run offline.
Utilizing analytics algorithms and machine learning, local data processing, aggregation, and quick decision-making are possible.
Industrial IoT, often known as IIoT, is the application of IoT in an industrial setting, such as factory machinery. Consider the lifespan of the large, factory-used machinery. Equipment may be stressed differently over time depending on the user, and malfunctions are a regular aspect of operations.
The parts of the machinery that are most prone to damage or misuse can be equipped with IoT sensors. Predictive maintenance can be performed using the data from these sensors, cutting down on overall downtime.
Because IoT devices can be used as Edge Computing, the line between IoT and Edge Computing can occasionally be razor-thin. However, the most significant difference is the ability not only to compute data locally (in real-time) but also to sync that data to a centralized server at a time when it is safe—and feasible—to send.
IoT and edge computing are both here to stay since they fulfill crucial societal and commercial needs.
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IoT Security
Article | June 27, 2023
Manufacturers were already digitizing their processes before March 2020. The COVID-19 pandemic gave IT and operational professionals in the manufacturing space reasons to want to move faster. Teams that can’t work on the factory floor (pandemic, weather, closed roads, etc.) need a way to monitor and control processes over the network. Supply chain woes—like wildly fluctuating demand and the container ship that blocked the Suez Canal—highlighted the need for agility. A skilled labor shortage has further accelerated plans for automation.
Digitization brings visibility and agility
The fourth industrial revolution, also known as Industry 4.0, lays the foundation of modern digital manufacturing. It brings together cyber and physical systems, automation, industrial IoT, and better vertical and horizontal integration.
The network has a starring role in digital manufacturing, connecting people and applications in any location to factory-floor assets like sensors, actuators, cameras, and industrial automation and control systems (IACS). Benefits of digitization include improved overall equipment effectiveness (OEE) uptime, product quality, worker safety, cybersecurity, 24/7 asset monitoring and faster new product introduction and accelerating plant buildouts.
Four essentials for manufacturing networks
As IT and operational professionals work to innovate traditional manufacturing facilities and operations, we must consider that digital manufacturing requires more networks. Here are guidelines for making sure your manufacturing network is up to the task.
Use network devices specifically designed for industrial environments like factories
In addition to high performance and reliability, industrial routers, switches, and firewalls need to withstand harsh environmental conditions like extreme temperatures, shock, vibration, and humidity. They also need to be able to control access, have support for real-time industrial protocols, and enable the flow of key operational data to move across applications in the cloud. Further, the operational networks they build need to be scalable and highly resilient. We designed our industrial routers and switches to meet these requirements.
Give IT and OT visibility and control into what they care about
The manufacturing network is a joint project of the IT and OT teams. If you’re on the IT team, you want a solution that works with your existing network management and security applications, and doesn’t require significant training or disruption. You want to automate network maintenance and quickly identify and solve performance issues, especially in this business-critical space. If you’re on the OT team, you’re probably not an IT expert. You want visibility of issues that impact availability, product quality, workforce effectiveness and straightforward recommendations to resolve them. Cisco DNA Center – proven in the largest IT networks – meets all these needs. It automates time-consuming manual tasks, continuously monitors network health, and provides reports and controls on an easy-to-use dashboard. Cisco Cyber Vision gives you visibility into assets and processes.
For agile manufacturing, look for “plug-and-play” deployment
Manufacturers are simultaneously expanding production, hyper-customizing products, improving operations, and launching new products and services. To achieve these goals, you need the agility to scale product capacity, change product mix, and reallocate resources as needed. Quickly shift networking and production resources where you need them using Cisco DNA Center’s plug-and-play onboarding and provisioning.
Pay careful attention to cybersecurity
Cybersecurity starts with knowing everything that is connected to your industrial network, who’s talking to each other and what they are saying. Cisco Cyber Vision automatically takes a complete inventory. OT teams use a graphical interface to create production zones (aka network segments) containing all assets that need to communicate. (The painting controller doesn’t need to talk to the assembly-line controller.) Cisco Identity Services Engine (ISE) deploys polices that block unintended communications between segments to keep malware infections from spreading. Cisco Cyber Vision also takes a baseline of each asset’s usual communications patterns, alerting OT and IT teams to unusual behavior that could be a sign of a security breach.
Prepare to do more with less
The manufacturing skills shortage has widened the skills gap, with fewer experts left on the plant floor to prevent mistakes and solve crises. Connecting your plant floor helps you do more with less. A resilient network with the four qualities I’ve described—rugged devices, IT and OT collaboration, simpler and agile network management, and cybersecurity—helps you proactively identify potential problems, discover the cause, and resolve them before they affect production or quality.
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Enterprise Iot
Article | May 11, 2023
As development teams race to build out AI tools, it is becoming increasingly common to train algorithms on edge devices. Federated learning, a subset of distributed machine learning, is a relatively new approach that allows companies to improve their AI tools without explicitly accessing raw user data. Conceived by Google in 2017, federated learning is a decentralized learning model through which algorithms are trained on edge devices. In regard to Google’s “on-device machine learning” approach, the search giant pushed their predictive text algorithm to Android devices, aggregated the data and sent a summary of the new knowledge back to a central server. To protect the integrity of the user data, this data was either delivered via homomorphic encryption or differential privacy, which is the practice of adding noise to the data in order to obfuscate the results.
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Software and Tools
Article | May 26, 2022
Introduction
We live in a world where technology is becoming more and more intertwined with our daily lives. It’s no longer just our laptops, smartphones, and tablets connected to the internet – now, our homes, cars, and even our clothes can be too. This interconnectedness is made possible by the internet of things (IoT), a network of physical objects equipped with sensors and software that allow them to collect and exchange data.
IoT devices have the potential to transform the way we live and work. They can make our lives more convenient and help us be more efficient. IoT devices can also help us to save money and to improve the quality of our lives.
IoT devices are devices that are connected to the internet and can collect, send, and receive data. They can be anything from fitness trackers to industrial machines. IoT devices are used across a variety of industries, and they are becoming more and more commonplace. At [x]cube LABS, we have helped global enterprises deliver great value to their consumers with IoT devices, and in this blog post, we will talk about how IoT devices are used in different industries. Additionally, we will give some examples of IoT devices that are being used in each industry.
Healthcare
IoT devices are being used in healthcare to provide better patient care and to improve the efficiency of healthcare organizations. IoT devices can be used to monitor patients’ vital signs, track their medication adherence, and collect data about their health. IoT devices can also be used to provide remote patient monitoring, track medical equipment, and support clinical research.
There are many different types of IoT devices that are being used in healthcare. Some of the most common types of IoT devices that are being used in healthcare include wearable devices, such as fitness trackers and smartwatches; medical devices, such as pacemakers and insulin pumps; and hospital equipment, such as IV pumps and ventilators. All these devices collect data that can be used to improve patient care and make healthcare organizations more efficient.
Manufacturing
IoT devices are being used in manufacturing to improve the efficiency of production lines and to reduce the amount of waste. IoT devices can be used to track the production of products, monitor the condition of machinery, and control the flow of materials. IoT devices can also be used to provide data about the quality of products and to improve the safety of workers.
One of the most common types of IoT devices that are being used in manufacturing is the industrial sensor. Industrial sensors are used to monitor the production of products, the condition of machinery, and the flow of materials. Industrial sensors can also be used to provide data about the quality of products and to improve the safety of workers. The availability of data from industrial sensors is helping manufacturers to improve the efficiency of production lines and to reduce the amount of waste.
Retail
IoT devices are being used in retail to improve the customer experience and increase sales. IoT devices can be used to track inventory, provide customer loyalty programs, and collect data about customer behavior. IoT devices can also be used to provide personalized recommendations, targeted promotions, and real-time customer support.
IoT devices are changing the retail sector in a number of ways. One of the most important ways that IoT devices are changing retail is by providing retailers with real-time data about their customers’ behavior. This data allows retailers to provide a more personalized shopping experience. IoT devices are also being used to improve the efficiency of retail operations, such as inventory management and customer loyalty programs.
Transportation
IoT devices are being used in transportation to improve the safety of drivers and reduce traffic congestion. IoT devices can be used to monitor the condition of vehicles, track their location, and control their speed. IoT devices can also be used to provide data about traffic conditions and to improve the efficiency of transportation systems.
One of the most common types of IoT devices that are being used in transportation is the GPS tracker. GPS trackers are used to monitor the location of vehicles, and they can be used to track the speed and movement of vehicles. GPS trackers can also be used to provide data about traffic conditions and to improve the efficiency of transportation systems.
Agriculture
Agriculture has become increasingly reliant on IoT devices in recent years. IoT devices are being used in agriculture to improve the yield of crops and to reduce the amount of water and fertilizer that is used. IoT devices can be utilized to monitor the condition of crops, track the location of farm animals, and control the flow of irrigation water.
These innovations are helping farmers to increase the yield of their crops and to reduce the amount of water and fertilizer that is used. The data collected by IoT devices is also helping farmers to make more informed decisions about planting, irrigation, and crop maintenance.
Smart Homes
Smart homes are becoming increasingly popular, and IoT devices are the backbone of these systems. IoT devices are being used in homes to improve the security of the home, reduce energy consumption, and improve the quality of life. They can be used to monitor the condition of the home, track the location of family members, and control the operation of home appliances. What’s more, IoT devices can also provide data about the quality of the air, which can be used to improve the efficiency of home security systems. In the future, IoT devices will become an integral part of the smart home, and they will be used to control a wide variety of home appliances and systems.
Aviation
The aviation industry is making use of IoT devices to a great extent. The aviation sector is one of the most heavily regulated industries in the world, and IoT devices are being used to improve the safety of passengers and crew members.
IoT is changing the aviation industry by providing data that can be used to improve the safety of pilots and passengers. IoT devices can be used to monitor the condition of aircraft, track their location, and control their speed. IoT devices can also be used to provide data about weather conditions and to improve the efficiency of aviation operations, which can ultimately lead to lower airfare prices.
Energy
The energy sector is also utilizing IoT for a variety of applications. One way that IoT is changing the energy sector is by providing data that can be used to improve the efficiency of energy production and consumption.
They are being used to improve the efficiency of power generation and distribution. IoT devices can be used to monitor the condition of power plants, track the location of power lines, and control the flow of electricity. By using IoT devices to monitor and optimize the power grid, energy companies can reduce the amount of power that is wasted and ultimately lower energy bills for consumers.
Conclusion
IoT devices are changing the world in a number of ways. They are providing data that can be used to improve the efficiency of operations in a variety of industries, from retail to transportation to agriculture. It is likely that IoT devices will become an increasingly important part of our lives in the future due to the efficiency and data that they can provide.
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