Interoperability, Standardisation and Governance in the Era of Internet of Things (IoT)

Abstract

The idiom “Internet of Things” has appeared to describe a number of technologies and research disciplines that enable the Internet to reach out into the real world of physical objects. Technologies such as RFID, short-range wireless communications, real-time localization, and sensor networks are becoming increasingly common, bringing the “Internet of Things” into industrial, commercial, and domestic use. Since the last decade, a thought-provoking idea is fast emerging in the wireless communications which gives us the new scientific insight about the omnipresent presence around us of a variety of “things” or “objects,” such as RFIDs, sensors, actuators, mobile phones, which, through unique addressing schemes, are able to interact with each other and cooperate with their neighboring “smart” components to reach common goals. This novel paradigm, named “The Internet of Things” (IoT) continues on the path set by the concept of smart environments and facilitates the way to the deployment of numerous applications with a significant impact on many fields of future everyday life. In this perspective, logistics, Intelligent Transportation Systems (ITS), business/process management, assisted living and e-health are only a few examples of possible application fields in which this novel paradigm will play a leading role in the near future.