Internet of wearable things: Advancements and benefits from 6G technologies

Abstract

The great achievements in electronics, automation, and digital communication technologies in the sixth-generation (6G) era has significantly accelerated the development of smart wearables and the personal ecosystems realizing the Internet of wearable things (IoWT). As the IoWT technologies have not matured yet, a keen knowledge of current states and future research trends is of importance to promote the popularization of the technology. In this review article, we investigate state-of-the-art characteristics of IoWT to identify its advancements and benefits from 6G technologies. First, IoWT oriented 6G technologies such as long-range low-power communications, ultra-reliable low-latency communications, and in-network intelligent computing services are demonstrated. Subsequently, we describe three typical IoWT interconnectivity architectures including wearables-to-wearables, wearables-to-hub, and wearables-to-infrastructure topologies that facilitate the exchange of IoWT information with the Internet. Next, the three IoWT systems (i.e., wearable, implantable, and molecular communications) are analyzed, which are then followed by their application scenarios. Finally, we discuss open challenges to drive future research in the fields toward the maturation of the IoWT.