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Unit-1

Contents pg.no

Introduction to Internet of Things 2

Characteristics of IoT 2

Physical design of IoT 3

Generic block diagram 4
Communication / IoT Protocols 5

Logical Design of IoT 9

Functional blocks of IoT 10
IoT Communication Models 12
Communication APIS

Sensing 16

Actuation 24

Sensor Networks 29

Basics of Networking, 35

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INTRODUCTION
“Internet of Things” was coined by Kevin Ashton in 1999, and it has recently become
more relevant to the practical world largely because of the growth of mobile devices,
embedded and ubiquitous communication, cloud computing and data analytics.

Imagine a world where billions of objects can sense, communicate and share
information, all interconnected over public or private Internet Protocol (IP) networks.
These interconnected objects have data regularly collected, analyzed and used to
initiate action, providing a wealth of intelligence for planning, management and decision
making. This is the world of the Internet of Things.

DEFINITION AND CHARACTERISTICS OF IOT

Definition :
IOT can be defined as a global infrastructure that enables advanced services
by interconnecting physical and virtual things based on existing information and
communication technology .
The Internet of Things (IoT) refers to a system of interrelated, internet-connected
objects that are able to collect and transfer data over a wireless network without human
intervention.

Characteristics of IoT:
Various characteristics of IoT are:
• Dynamic and self-adapting
• Self-configuring
• Interoperable Communication protocols
• Unique identity
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• Integrated into information network

Dynamic and self-adapting:

The IoT devices can dynamically adapt with sensed environment, their operating conditions, and
user’s context and take actions accordingly. For ex: Surveillance System

Self-configuring:
I. IoT devices can be able to upgrade the software with minimal intervention of user, whenever
they are connected to the internet
. II. They can also setup the network i.e a new device can be easily added to the existing network.
For ex: Whenever there will be free wifi access one device can be connected easily.

Interoperable Communication: IoT allows different devices (different in architecture) to

communicate with each other as well as with different network. For ex: MI Phone is able to control
the smart AC and smart TV of different manufacturer.
Unique identities:
I. The devices which are connected to the internet have unique identities i.e IP address through
which they can be identified throughout the network
. II. The IoT devices have intelligent interfaces which allow communicating with users. It adapts to
the environmental contexts.
III. It also allows the user to query the devices, monitor their status, and control them remotely, in
association with the control, configuration and management infrastructure .

Integrated into information network:

I. The IoT devices are connected to the network to share some information with other connected
devices. The devices can be discovered dynamically in the network by other devices. For ex. If a device has
wifi connectivity then that will be shown to other nearby devices having wifi connectivity

II. The devices ssid will be visible though out the network. Due to these things the network is also called as
information network.

III. The IoT devices become smarter due to the collective intelligence of the individual devices in
collaboration with the information network. For Ex: weather monitoring system. Here the information
collected from different monitoring nodes (sensors, arduino devices) can be aggregated and analysed to
predict the weather.

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Physical Design of IoT

Physical Design of IoT refers to IoT Devices and IoT Protocols. Things are Node
device which have unique identities and can perform remote sensing, actuating and
monitoring capabilities. Communication established between things and cloud based
server over the Internet by various IoT protocols.

Things
Basically Things refers to IoT Devices which have unique identities and can perform
remote sensing, actuating and monitoring capabilities. Things are is main part of IoT
Application. IoT Devices can be various type, Sensing Devices, Smart Watches, Smart
Electronics appliances, Wearable Sensors, Automobiles, and industrial machines.
IoT devices can:
Exchange data with other connected devices and applications (directly or indirectly).

 Collect data from other devices and process the data locally .
 Send the data to centralized servers or cloud-based application back-ends
for processing the data, or
 Perform some tasks locally and other tasks within the IoT infrastructure,
based on temporal and space constraints.

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As shown in above diagram An IoT device may consist of several interfaces for
connections to other devices, both wired and wireless.
 I/O interfaces for sensors
 Interfaces for Internet connectivity
 Memory and storage interface

IoT Protocols
IoT protcols help to establish Communication between IoT Device (Node Device) and
Cloud based Server over the Internet. It help to sent commands to IoT Device and
received data from an IoT device over the Internet. An image is given below. By this
image you can understand which protocols used.

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1.Link Layer

Link layer protocols determine how data is physically sent over the network’s physical layer or medium
(Coxial calbe or other or radio wave). This Layer determines how the packets are coded and signaled by
the hardware device over the medium to which the host is attached (eg. coxial cable).

Here we explain some Link Layer Protocols:

1. 802.3 – Ethernet : Ethernet is a set of technologies and protocols that are used primarily in
LANs. It was first standardized in 1980s by IEEE 802.3 standard. IEEE 802.3 defines the physical
layer and the medium access control (MAC) sub-layer of the data link layer for wired Ethernet
networks. Ethernet is classified into two categories: classic Ethernet and switched Ethernet.
802.3i – is IEEE standard for 10Base5 that uses coaxial cable as shared medium .

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802.3j-- is IEEE standard for 10BaseT uses copper twisted pair connection .

802.3ae -- is IEEE standard for 10Gbs/Ethernet over fiber.

2. 802.11 – WiFi : IEEE 802.11 is part of the IEEE 802 set of LAN protocols, and specifies the set of media
access control (MAC) and physical layer (PHY) protocols for implementing wireless local area network
(WLAN) Wi-Fi computer communication in various frequencies, including but not limited to 2.4 GHz,
5 GHz, and 60 GHz frequency bands.

Forex:

802.11a – operates in 5GHZ band.

802.11b,802.11g—operates in2.4GHZ band

802..11n---operates in 2.4/2.5GHZ band

3. 802.16 – Wi-Max : The standard for WiMAX technology is a standard for Wireless Metropolitan Area
Networks (WMANs) that has been developed by working group number 16 of IEEE 802, specializing in
point-to-multipoint broadband wireless access.

2G/3G/4G- Mobile Communication : These are different types of telecommunication generations. IoT
devices are based on these standards can communicate over the celluer networks.

2.Network Layer

Responsible for sending of IP datagrams from the source network to the destination network. Network
layer performs the host addressing and packet routing. We used IPv4 and IPv6 for Host identification.
IPv4 and IPv6 are hierarchical IP addrssing schemes.

1.IPv4 :
IPv4 is the most deployed intrnet protocol used to identify the device on a network using hierarchical
addressing scheme.ipv4 uses 32 bit addressing scheme which allows to identify 26^32 addresses . But
more and more addresses got connected to the inntenet addresses got exhausted by year 2011 .IPV6
succeeded this .

2.IPV6 : it is the newest version in nternet protocol which uses 2^128 addresses .

3.6LoWPAN : It is an acronym of IPv6 over Low-Power Wireless Personal Area Networks. 6LoWPAN
is the name of a concluded working group in the Internet area of the IETF. This protocol allows for the
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smallest devices with limited processing ability to transmit information wirelessly using an internet
protocol. 6LoWPAN can communicate with 802.15.4 devices as well as other types of devices on an IP
network link like WiFi.

Transport Layer

This layer provides functions such as error control, segmentation, flow control and congestion control. So
this layer protocols provide end-to-end message transfer capability independent of the underlying
network.

1.TCP : TCP (Transmission Control Protocol) is a standard that defines how to establish and maintain a
network conversation through which application programs can exchange data. TCP works with the
Internet Protocol (IP), which defines how computers send packets of data to each other.

UDP : User Datagram Protocol (UDP) is a Transport Layer protocol. UDP is a part of Internet Protocol
suite, referred as UDP/IP suite. Unlike TCP, it is unreliable and connectionless protocol. So, there is no
need to establish connection prior to data transfer.

Application Layer

Application layer protocols define how the applications interface with the lower layer protocols to send
over the network.

HTTP : Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) is an application-layer protocol for transmitting hypermedia
documents, such as HTML. It was designed for communication between web browsers and web servers,
but it can also be used for other purposes. HTTP follows a classical client-server model, with a client
opening a connection to make a request, then waiting until it receives a response. HTTP is a stateless
protocol, meaning that the server does not keep any data (state) between two requests.
CoAP : CoAP-Constrained Application Protocol is a specialized Internet Application Protocol for
constrained devices, as defined in RFC 7252. It enables devices to communicate over the Internet. The
protocol is especially targeted for constrained hardware such as 8-bits microcontrollers, low power
sensors and similar devices that can’t run on HTTP or TLS

WebSocket : The WebSocket Protocol enables two-way communication between a client running
untrusted code in a controlled environment to a remote host that has opted-in to communications from
that code. The security model used for this is the origin-based security model commonly used by web
browsers.

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MQTT : MQTT is a machine-to-machine (M2M)/”Internet of Things” connectivity protocol. It was

designed as an extremely lightweight publish/subscribe messaging transport and useful for connections
with remote locations where a small code footprint is required and/or network bandwidth is at a premium

XMPP : Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP) is a communication protocol for
message-oriented middleware based on XML (Extensible Markup Language). It enables the near-real-
time exchange of structured yet extensible data between any two or more network entities.

DDS : The Data Distribution Service (DDS™) is a middleware protocol and API standard for data-centric
connectivity from the Object Management Group® (OMG®). It integrates the components of a system
together, providing low-latency data connectivity, extreme reliability, and a scalable architecture that
business and mission-critical Internet of Things (IoT) applications need.

AMQP : The AMQP – IoT protocols consist of a hard and fast of components that route and save
messages within a broker carrier, with a set of policies for wiring the components together. The AMQP
protocol enables patron programs to talk to the dealer and engage with the AMQP model.

Logical Design of IoT

In this article we discuss Logical design of Internet of things. Logical design of IoT system refers to
an abstract representation of the entities & processes without going into the low-level specifies of the
implementation. For understanding Logical Design of IoT, we describes given below terms.

 IoT Functional Blocks

 IoT Communication Models
 IoT Communication APIs

IoT Functional Blocks

An IoT system comprises of a number of functional blocks that provide the system the capabilities
for identification, sensing, actuation, communication and management.

functional blocks are:

Device: An IoT system comprises of devices that provide sensing, actuation, monitoring and control
functions.

Communication: Handles the communication for the IoT system.

Services: services for device monitoring, device control service, data publishing services and
services for device discovery.

Management: this blocks provides various functions to govern the IoT system.

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Security: this block secures the IoT system and by providing functions such as authentication ,
authorization, message and content integrity, and data security.

Application: This is an interface that the users can use to control and monitor various aspects of the
IoT system. Application also allow users to view the system status and view or analyze the processed
data.

IoT Communication Models

Request-Response Model
Request-response model is communication model in which the client sends requests to
the server and the server responds to the requests. When the server receives a request,
it decides how to respond, fetches the data, retrieves resource representation, prepares
the response, and then sends the response to the client. Request-response is a stateless
communication model and each request-response pair is independent of others.
HTTP works as a request-response protocol between a client and server. A web
browser may be the client, and an application on a computer that hosts a web site may
be the server.
Example: A client (browser) submits an HTTP request to the server; then the server
returns a response to the client. The response contains status information about the
request and may also contain the requested content.

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Publish-Subscribe Model
Publish-Subscribe is a communication model that involves publishers, brokers and
consumers. Publishers are the source of data. Publishers send the data to the topics
which are managed by the broker. Publishers are not aware of the consumers.
Consumers subscribe to the topics which are managed by the broker. When the broker
receive data for a topic from the publisher, it sends the data to all the subscribed
consumers.

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Push-Pull Model
Push-Pull is a communication model in which the data producers push the data to queues and the
consumers Pull the data from the Queues. Producers do not need to be aware of the consumers.
Queues help in decoupling the messaging between the Producers and Consumers. Queues also act as
a buffer which helps in situations when there is a mismatch between the rate at which the producers
push data and the rate rate at which the consumer pull data.

Exclusive Pair Model

Exclusive Pair is a bidirectional, fully duplex communication model that uses a persistent connection
between the client and server. Connection is setup it remains open until the client sends a request to
close the connection. Client and server can send messages to each other after connection setup.
Exclusive pair is stateful communication model and the server is aware of all the open connections.

IoT Communication APIs

Generally we used Two APIs For IoT Communication. These IoT Communication APIs are:

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 REST-based Communication APIs

 WebSocket-based Communication APIs

REST-based Communication APIs

Representational state transfer (REST) is a set of architectural principles by which you can
design Web services the Web APIs that focus on systems’s resources and how resource states are
addressed and transferred. REST APIs that follow the request response communication model, the
rest architectural constraint apply to the components, connector and data elements, within a
distributed hypermedia system. The rest architectural constraint are as follows:

Client-server – The principle behind the client-server constraint is the separation of concerns. for
example clients should not be concerned with the storage of data which is concern of the serve.
Similarly the server should not be concerned about the user interface, which is concern of the
clien. Separation allows client and server to be independently developed and updated .

Stateless – Each request from client to server must contain all the information necessary to
understand the request, and cannot take advantage of any stored context on the server. The session
state is kept entirely on the client.

Cache-able – Cache constraints requires that the data within a response to a request be implicitly or
explicitly leveled as cache-able or non cache-able. If a response is cache-able, then a client cache is
given the right to reuse that repsonse data for later, equivalent requests. caching can partially or
completely eliminate some instructions and improve efficiency and scalability.

Layered system – layered system constraints, constrains the behavior of components such that
each component cannot see beyond the immediate layer with they are interacting. For example, the
client cannot tell whether it is connected directly to the end server or two an intermediaryalong the
way. System scalability can be improved by allowing intermediaries to respond to requests instead of
the end server, without the client having to do anything different.

Uniform interface – uniform interface constraints requires that the method of communication
between client and server must be uniform. Resources are identified in the requests (by URIsin web
based systems) and are themselves is separate from the representations of the resources data returned
to the client. When a client holds a representation of resources it has all the information required to
update or delete the resource you (provided the client has required permissions). Each message
includes enough information to describe how to process the message.

Code on demand – Servers can provide executable code or scripts for clients to execute in their
context. this constraint is the only one that is optional.
A RESTful web service is a ” Web API ” implemented using HTTP and REST principles. REST is
most popular IoT Communication APIs.

HTTP METHODS/COMMANDS SHOWN IN ABOVE TABLE :

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WebSocket based communication API

Websocket APIs allow bi-directional, full duplex communication
between clients and servers. Websocket APIs follow the exclusive pair communication
model. Unlike request-response model such as REST, the WebSocket APIs allow full
duplex communication and do not require new coonection to be setup for each
message to be sent. Websocket communication begins with a connection setup request
sent by the client to the server. The request (called websocket handshake) is sent over
HTTP and the server interprets it is an upgrade request. If the server supports
websocket protocol, the server responds to the websocket handshake response. After
the connection setup client and server can send data/mesages to each other in full
duplex mode. Websocket API reduce the network traffic and letency as there is no
overhead for connection setup and termination requests for each message. Websocket
suitable for IoT applications that have low latency or high throughput requirements. So
Web socket is most suitable IoT Communication APIs for IoT System.

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SENSING
A sensor is a device that is able to detect changes in an environment. By
itself, a sensor is useless, but when we use it in an electronic system, it plays a key role.
A sensor is able to measure a physical phenomenon (like temperature, pressure, and so
on) and transform it into an electric signal.

What is a Sensor ? 
A device that receives and responds to a signal or stimulus.

The sensor converts any type of energy into electrical energy.

Example: A pressure sensor detects pressure (a mechanical form of energy) and converts it to
electrical signal for display.

 A sensor is a device that receives a stimulus (measurand) and responds with an electrical signal.

 A sensor may have several energy conversion steps before it produces and outputs an electrical
signal, since most of stimuli are not electrical.

Transducers:
What is a Transducer:

 A device that converts a signal from one physical form to a corresponding signal having a different
physical form.

 Transducer is a converter of any one type of energy into another.

 Transducers may be used as actuators in various systems.

 An example of a transducer is a loudspeaker, which converts an electrical signal into a variable

magnetic field (acoustic waves).

Actuators
Another type of transducer that you will encounter in many IoT systems is an actuator. In simple terms,
an actuator operates in the reverse direction of a sensor. It takes an electrical input and turns it into
physical action. For instance, an electric motor, a hydraulic system, and a pneumatic system are all
different types of actuators.

Transducers: sensors and actuators

Sensor: an input transducer (i.e., a microphone)
Actuator: an output transducer (i.e., a loudspeaker )

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Sensing in IoT
Definition
A sensor detects (senses) changes in the ambient conditions or in the state of another
device or a system, and forwards or processes this information in a certain manner.
"A device which detects or measures a physical property and record, indicates, or
otherwise responds to it"

Sensors
They perform some input functions by sensing or feeling the physical changes in
characteristics of a system in response to a stimuli.
For example heat is converted to electrical signals in a temperature sensor, or
atmospheric pressure is converted to electrical signals in a barometer.

The structure of a sensor

Transducers
Transducers convert or transduce energy of one kind into another.
For example, in a sound system, a microphone (input device) converts sound waves
into electrical signals for an amplifier to amplify (a process), and a loudspeaker (output
device) converts these electrical signals back into sound waves.
Sensor vs. Transducer
The word "Transducer" is the collective term used for both Sensors which can be used
to sense a wide range of different energy forms such as movement, electrical signals,
radiant energy, thermal or magnetic energy etc., And Actuators which can be used to
switch voltages or current.
Sensor Features

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It is only sensitive to the measured property (e.g., A temperature sensor senses the ambient
temperature of a room.)
 It is insensitive to any other property likely to be encountered in its application
(e.g., A temperature sensor does not bother about light or pressure while sensing the
temperature.)
 It does not influence the measured property (e.g., measuring the temperature
does not reduce or increase the temperature).
Sensor Resolution

 The resolution of a sensor is the smallest change it can detect in the

quantity that it is measuring.
 The resolution of a sensor with a digital output is usually the smallest
resolution the digital output it is capable of processing.
 The more is the resolution of a sensor, the more accurate is its precision.
 A sensor's accuracy does not depend upon its resolution.
Sensor Classes

Analog Sensors

 Analog Sensors produces a continuous output signal or voltage which is

generally proportional to the quantity being measured.
 Physical quantities such as Temperature, speed, Pressure, Displacement,
Strain etc. are all analog quantities as they tend to be continuous in nature.
 For example, the temperature of a liquid can be measured using
a thermometer or thermocouple (e.g. in geysers) which continuously responds to
temperature changes as the liquid is heated up or cooled down.

Digital Sensors

 Digital Sensors produce discrete output voltages that are a digital

representation of the quantity being measured.

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 Digital sensors produce a binary output signal in the form of a logic "1" or a
logic "0" , ("ON" or "OFF).
 Digital signal only produces discrete (non-continuous) values, which may be
output as a signal "bit" (serial transmission), or by combing the bits to produce a
signal "byte" output (parallel transmission).

Scalar Sensors
 Scalar Sensors produce output signal or voltage which generally proportional
to the magnitude of the quantity being measured.
 Physical quantities such as temperature, color, pressure, strain, etc. are all
scalar quantities as only their magnitude is sufficient to convey an information.
 For example the temperature of a room can be measured using thermometer
or thermocouple, which responds to temperature changes irrespective of the
orientation of the sensor or its direction.

Vector Sensors
 Vector Sensors produce output signal or voltage which generally proportional
to the magnitude, direction, as well as the orientation of the quantity being measured.
 Physical quantities such as sound, image, velocity, acceleration, orientation,
etc. are all vector quantities, as only their magnitude is not sufficient to convey the
complete information.
 For example, the acceleration of a body can be measured using an
accelerometer, which gives the components of acceleration of the body with respect
to the x,y,z coordinate axes.

Types of sensors :

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Temperature sensors

Temperature sensors detect the temperature of the air or a physical object and concert that
temperature level into an electrical signal that can be calibrated accurately reflect the
measured temperature. These sensors could monitor the temperature of the soil to help with
agricultural output or the temperature of a bearing operating in a critical piece of equipment
to sense when it might be overheating or nearing the point of failure.

Pressure sensors

Pressure sensors measure the pressure or force per unit area applied to the sensor and can
detect things such as atmospheric pressure, the pressure of a stored gas or liquid in a
sealed system such as tank or pressure vessel, or the weight of an object.

Image sensors

Image sensors function to capture images to be digitally stored for processing. License plate
readers are an example, as well as facial recognition systems. Automated production lines
can use image sensors to detect issues with quality such as how well a surface is painted
after leaving the spray booth.

Proximity sensors

Proximity sensors can detect the presence or absence of objects that approach the sensor
through a variety of different technology designs. These approaches include:

 Inductive technologies which are useful for the detection of metal objects
 Capacitive technologies, which function on the basis of objects having a different dielectric constant than that of
air
 Photoelectric technologies, which rely on a beam of light to illuminate and reflect back from an object, or

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 Ultrasonic technologies, which use a sound signal to detect an object nearing the sensor

Chemical sensors

Chemical sensors are designed to detect the presence of specific chemical substances
which may have inadvertently leaked from their containers into spaces that are occupied by
personnel and are useful in controlling industrial process conditions.

Smoke sensors

Smoke sensors or detectors pick up the presence of smoke conditions which could be an
indication of a fire typically using optical sensors (photoelectric detection) or ionization
detection.

Infrared (IR) sensors

Infrared sensor technologies detect infrared radiation that is emitted by objects. Non-contact
thermometers make use of these types of sensors as a way of measuring the temperature
of an object without having to directly place a probe or sensor on that object. They find use
in analyzing the heat signature of electronics and detecting blood flow or blood pressure in
patients

Characteristics of Sensors

It is the minimum step size within the range of measurement of a sensor in a wire-wound
potentiometer, it will be equal to resistance of one turn of wire. In digital devices with
‗n‘bits, resolution is ‗Full range/2n
Sensitivity:
It is defined as the change in output response divided by the change in input response.
Highly sensitive sensors show larger fluctuations in output as a result of fluctuations
in input.
Linearity:
It represents the relationship between input variations and output variations.
In a sensor with linear output, any change in input at any level within the range will
produce the same change in output.

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Range:
It is the difference between the smallest and the largest outputs that a sensor can provide,
or the difference between the smallest and largest inputs with which it can operate
properly.
Response time:
It is the time that a a certainsensor‘spercentage output of total change.
It is also defined as the time required to observe the change in output as a result of
change in input for example, ordinary mercury thermometer response time and digital
thermometer response time.
Frequency response:
The frequency response is the range i to the input remains relatively high.
The larger the range of frequency response, the better the ability of the system to
respond to varying input.

Reliability:
It is the ratio between the number of times a system operates properly and the number
of times it is tried.
For continuous satisfactory operation, it is necessary to choose reliable sensors that last
long while considering the cost as well as other requirements.
Accuracy:
It shows how close the output of the sensor is to the expected value.
For a given input, certain expected output value is related to how close the sensor‘s
output value is to this value.

Repeatability:
is poor.
Also, a specific range is desirable for operational performance as the performance of
robots depends on sensors.
Repeatability is a random phenomenon and hence there is no compensation.

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Interfacing:
Direct interfacing of the sensor to the microcontroller/microprocessor is desirable
while some add-on circuit may be necessary in certain special sensors.
The type of the sensor output is equally important. An ADC is required for analogue
output sensors for example, potentiometer output to microcontroller.
Size, weight and volume:
Size is a critical consideration for joint displacement sensors.
When robots are used as dynamic machines, weight of the sensor is important.
Volume or spaces also critical to micro robots and mobile robots used for surveillance.
Cost is important especially when quantity involved is large in the end application.

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ACTUATORS

Actuators
Another type of transducer that you will encounter in many IoT systems is
an actuator. In simple terms, an actuator operates in the reverse direction of a
sensor. It takes an electrical input and turns it into physical action. For
instance, an electric motor, a hydraulic system, and a pneumatic system are all
different types of actuators.

Controller
In a typical IoT system, a sensor may collect information and route to a control center.
There, previously defined logic dictates the decision. As a result, a corresponding command
controls an actuator in response to that sensed input. Thus, sensors and actuators in IoT
work together from opposite ends. Later, we will discuss where the control center resides in
the greater IoT system.

An IoT device is made up of a Physical object (“thing”) + Controller

(“brain”) + Sensors + Actuators + Networks (Internet). An actuator is a
machine component or system that moves or controls the mechanism or
the system. Sensors in the device sense the environment, then control
signals are generated for the actuators according to the actions needed
to perform.

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A servo motor is an example of an actuator. They are linear or

rotatory actuators, can move to a given specified angular or linear
position. We can use servo motors for IoT applications and make the
motor rotate to 90 degrees, 180 degrees, etc., as per our need.
The following diagram shows what actuators do, the controller directs
the actuator based on the sensor data to do the work.

Working of IoT devices and use of Actuators

The control system acts upon an environment through the actuator. It requires a source
of energy and a control signal. When it receives a control signal, it converts the source
of energy to a mechanical operation. On this basis, on which form of energy it uses, it
has different types given below.
IoT actuator types
Actuators, as the name itself suggests, can act on their immediate environment to enable
correct operation of the machines or devices they are embedded into.
Small as they are, they are rarely visible during operation, but the effects of their work can
be felt in vehicles, industrial machines or any other electronic equipment involving
automation technologies. They can be separated into four main categories based on
their construction pattern and the role they play in a specific IoT environment:

 Linear actuators – these are used to enable motion of objects or

elements in a straight line.
 Motors – they enable precise rotational movements of device
components or whole objects.
 Relays – this category includes electromagnet-based actuators to

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operate power switches in lamps, heaters or even smart vehicles.

 Solenoids – most widely used in home appliances as part of locking or
triggering mechanisms, they also act as controllers in IoT-based gas and
water leak monitoring systems.

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Types of Actuators :
. Hydraulic Actuators –
A hydraulic actuator uses hydraulic power to perform a mechanical operation.
They are actuated by a cylinder or fluid motor. The mechanical motion is converted to rotary, linear,
or oscillatory motion, according to the need of the IoT device. Ex- construction equipment uses
hydraulic actuators because hydraulic actuators can generate a large amount of force.
Advantages :
 Hydraulic actuators can produce a large magnitude of force and high speed.
 Used in welding, clamping, etc.
 Used for lowering or raising the vehicles in car transport carriers.
Disadvantages :
 Hydraulic fluid leaks can cause efficiency loss and issues of cleaning.
 It is expensive.
 It requires noise reduction equipment, heat exchangers, and high maintenance systems.
2. Pneumatic Actuators –
A pneumatic actuator uses energy formed by vacuum or compressed air at high pressure
to convert into either linear or rotary motion. Example- Used in robotics, use sensors that work like
human fingers by using compressed air.
Advantages :
 They are a low-cost option and are used at extreme temperatures where using air is a safer
option than chemicals.
 They need low maintenance, are durable, and have a long operational life.
 It is very quick in starting and stopping the motion.
Disadvantages :
 Loss of pressure can make it less efficient.
 The air compressor should be running continuously.
 Air can be polluted, and it needs maintenance.
3. Electrical Actuators –
An electric actuator uses electrical energy, is usually actuated by a motor that
converts electrical energy into mechanical torque. An example of an electric actuator is a solenoid
based electric bell.
Advantages :
 It has many applications in various industries as it can automate industrial valves.
 It produces less noise and is safe to use since there are no fluid leakages.
 It can be re-programmed and it provides the highest control precision positioning.
Disadvantages :
 It is expensive.
 It depends a lot on environmental conditions.

Other actuators are –

 Thermal/Magnetic Actuators –
These are actuated by thermal or mechanical energy. Shape Memory Alloys (SMAs) or Magnetic

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Shape‐Memory Alloys (MSMAs) are used by these actuators. An example of a thermal/magnetic

actuator can be a piezo motor using SMA.
 Mechanical Actuators –
A mechanical actuator executes movement by converting rotary motion into linear motion. It
involves pulleys, chains, gears, rails, and other devices to operate. Example – A crankshaft.
 Soft Actuators
 Shape Memory Polymers
 Light Activated Polymers
 With the expanding world of IoT, sensors and actuators will find more usage in commercial and
domestic applications along with the pre-existing use in industry

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SENSOR NETWORKS

A wireless sensor network (WSN) is a network formed by a large number of sensor nodes where
each node is equipped with a sensor to detect physical phenomena such as light, heat, pressure, etc.
... With the rapid technological development of sensors, WSNs will become the key technology
for IoT.

Applications of wireless sensor network

Wireless sensor networks have gained considerable popularity due to their flexibility in
solving problems in different application domains and have the potential to change our
lives in many different ways. WSNs have been successfully applied in various application
domains

Military applications: Wireless sensor networks be likely an integral part of military

command, control, communications, computing, intelligence, battlefield surveillance,
reconnaissance and targeting systems.

Area monitoring: In area monitoring, the sensor nodes are deployed over a region where
some phenomenon is to be monitored. When the sensors detect the event being monitored
(heat, pressure etc), the event is reported to one of the base stations, which then takes
appropriate action.

Transportation: Real-time traffic information is being collected by WSNs to later feed

transportation models and alert drivers of congestion and traffic problems.

Health applications: Some of the health applications for sensor networks are supporting
interfaces for the disabled, integrated patient monitoring, diagnostics, and drug
administration in hospitals, tele-monitoring of human physiological data, and tracking &
monitoring doctors or patients inside a hospital.

Environmental sensing: The term Environmental Sensor Networks has developed to

cover many applications of WSNs to earth science research. This includes sensing
volcanoes, oceans, glaciers, forests etc. Some other major areas are listed below:

 Air pollution monitoring

 Forest fires detection
 Greenhouse monitoring
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 Landslide detection

Structural monitoring: Wireless sensors can be utilized to monitor the movement within
buildings and infrastructure such as bridges, flyovers, embankments, tunnels etc enabling
Engineering practices to monitor assets remotely with out the need for costly site visits.

Industrial monitoring: Wireless sensor networks have been developed for machinery
condition-based maintenance (CBM) as they offer significant cost savings and enable new
functionalities. In wired systems, the installation of enough sensors is often limited by the
cost of wiring.

Agricultural sector: using a wireless network frees the farmer from the maintenance of
wiring in a difficult environment. Irrigation automation enables more efficient water use
and reduces waste.

Structure of a wireless sensor network

Structure of a Wireless Sensor Network includes different topologies for radio

communications networks.

1.Star Network

2.MeshNetwork

3.HybridStar-MeshNetwork

1.Star network (single point-to-multipoint)

A star network is a communications topology where a single base station can send and/or
receive a message to a number of remote nodes. The remote nodes are not permitted to send
messages to each other. The advantage of this type of network for wireless sensor networks
includes simplicity, ability to keep the remote node’s power consumption to a minimum. It also
allows low latency communications between the remote node and the base station. The
disadvantage of such a network is that the base station must be within radio transmission range
of all the individual nodes and is not as robust as other networks due to its dependency on a
single node to manage the network.

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2.Mesh network :

A mesh network allows transmitting data to one node to other node in the network
that is within its radio transmission range. This allows for what is known as multi-hop
communications, that is, if a node wants to send a message to another node that is out of radio
communications range, it can use an intermediate node to forward the message to the desired
node. This network topology has the advantage of redundancy and scalability. If an individual
node fails, a remote node still can communicate to any other node in its range, which in turn, can
forward the message to the desired location. In addition, the range of the network is not
necessarily limited by the range in between single nodes; it can simply be extended by adding
more nodes to the system. The disadvantage of this type of network is in power consumption for
the nodes that implement the multi-hop communications are generally higher than for the nodes
that don’t have this capability, often limiting the battery life. Additionally, as the number of
communication hops to a destination increases, the time to deliver the message also increases,
especially if low power operation of the nodes is a requirement .

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3.Hybrid star – Mesh network

A hybrid between the star and mesh network provides a robust and versatile communications
network, while maintaining the ability to keep the wireless sensor nodes power consumption to a
minimum. In this network topology, the sensor nodes with lowest power are not enabled with
the ability to forward messages. This allows for minimal power consumption to be maintained.
However, other nodes on the network are enabled with multi-hop capability, allowing them to
forward messages from the low power nodes to other nodes on the network. Generally, the
nodes with the multi-hop capability are higher power, and if possible, are often plugged into the
electrical mains line. This is the topology implemented by the up and coming mesh networking
standard known as ZigBee.

Structure of a wireless sensor node

A sensor node is made up of four basic components such as sensing unit, processing unit,
transceiver unit and a power unit which is shown in Fig. 5. It also has application dependent
additional components such as a location finding system, a power generator and a mobilizer.
Sensing units are usually composed of two subunits: sensors and analogue to digital converters
(ADCs) (Akyildiz et al., 2002). The analogue signals produced by the sensors are converted to
digital signals by the ADC, and then fed into the processing unit. The processing unit is
generally associated with a small storage unit and it can manage the procedures that make the
sensor node collaborate with the other nodes to carry out the assigned sensing tasks. A
transceiver unit connects the node to the network. One of the most important components of a
sensor node is the power unit. Power units can be supported by a power scavenging unit such as
solar cells. The other subunits, of the node are application dependent.

A functional block diagram of a versatile wireless sensing node is provided in Fig. 6. Modular
design approach provides a flexible and versatile platform to address the needs of a wide variety
of applications. For example, depending on the sensors to be deployed, the signal conditioning
block can be re-programmed or replaced. This allows for a wide variety of different sensors to
be used with the wireless sensing node. Similarly, the radio link may be swapped out as required

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for a given applications’ wireless range requirement and the need for bidirectional
communications.

The components of a sensor node

Functional block diagram of a sensor node

Using flash memory, the remote nodes acquire data on command from a base station, or by an event
sensed by one or more inputs to the node. Moreover, the embedded firmware can be upgraded through the
wireless network in the field.

The microprocessor has a number of functions including:

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 Managing data collection from the sensors

 performing power management functions
 interfacing the sensor data to the physical radio layer
 managing the radio network protocol

A key aspect of any wireless sensing node is to minimize the power consumed by the system. Usually, the radio
subsystem requires the largest amount of power. Therefore, data is sent over the radio network only when it is
required. An algorithm is to be loaded into the node to determine when to send data based on the sensed event.
Furthermore, it is important to minimize the power consumed by the sensor itself. Therefore, the hardware
should be designed to allow the microprocessor to judiciously control power to the radio, sensor, and sensor
signal conditioner

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BASICS OF NETWORKING

Switches, routers, and wireless access points are the essential networking basics.
Through them, devices connected to your network can communicate with one another and with
other networks, like the Internet. Switches, routers, and wireless access points perform very different
functions in a network.

switches
Switches are the foundation of most business networks. A switch acts as a
controller, connecting computers, printers, and servers to a network in a building or acampus.
Switches allow devices on your network to communicate with each other, as well as with
other networks, creating a network of shared resources. Through information sharing and
resource allocation, switches save money and increase productivity.

There are two basic types of switches to choose from as part of your networkingbasics: on-
premises and cloud-managed.
 A managed on-premises switch lets you configure and monitor your LAN,
giving you tighter control of your network traffic.
 Have a small IT team? A cloud-managed switch can simplify your network
management. You get a simple user interface, multisite full-stack
management, and automatic updates delivered directly to the switch.

ROUTERS

 Routers connect multiple networks together. They also connect computers on

those networks to the Internet. Routers enable all networked computers to share
a single Internet connection, which saves money.
 A router acts a dispatcher. It analyzes data being sent across a network,
chooses the best route for data to travel, and sends it on its way.
 Routers connect your business to the world, protect information from security
threats, and can even decide which computers receive priority over others.
 Beyond those basic networking functions, routers come with additional features
to make networking easier or more secure. Depending on your security needs,
for example, you can choose a router with a firewall, a virtual private network
(VPN), or an Internet Protocol (IP) communications system.

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ACCESS POINT

An access point* allows devices to connect to the wireless network without cables. A
wireless network makes it easy to bring new devices online and provides flexible
support to mobile workers.
An access point acts like an amplifier for your network. While a router provides the
bandwidth, an access point extends that bandwidth so that the network can support
many devices, and those devices can access the network from farther away.

WIRELESS NETWORKING

To create your wireless network, you can choose between three types of deployment:
centralized deployment, converged deployment, and cloud-based deployment

1. Centralized deployment

The most common type of wireless network system, centralized deployments are
traditionally used in campuses where buildings and networks are in close proximity. This
deployment consolidates the wireless network, which makes upgrades easier
and facilitates advanced wireless functionality. Controllers are based on-premises and
are installed in a centralized location.
2. Converged deployment

For small campuses or branch offices, converged deployments offer consistency in

wireless and wired connections. This deployment converges wired and wireless on one
network device—an access switch—and performs the dual role of both switch and
wireless controller.
3. Cloud-based deployment

This system uses the cloud to manage network devices deployed on-premises at
different locations. The solution requires Cisco Meraki cloud-managed devices, which
provide full visibility of the network through their dashboards.

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Types of Networks in Use Today

1. Personal Area Network (PAN)

The smallest and most basic type of network, a PAN is made up of a
wireless modem, a computer or two, phones, printers, tablets, etc., and
revolves around one person in one building. These types of networks are
typically found in small offices or residences, and aremanaged by one
person or organization from a single device.

2. Local Area Network (LAN)

LANs connect groups of computers and low-voltage devices together
across short distances (within a building or between a group of two or
three buildings in close proximityto each other) to share information and
resources. Enterprises typically manage and maintain LANs.

Using routers, LANs can connect to wide area networks (WANs, explained
below) to rapidlyand safely transfer data.
3. Metropolitan Area Network (MAN)
These types of networks are larger than LANs but smaller than WANs –
and incorporate elements from both types of networks. MANs span an
entire geographic area (typically a town or city, but sometimes a
campus). Ownership and maintenance is handled by either asingle
person or company (a local council, a large company, etc.).
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Wide Area Network (WAN)

Slightly more complex than a LAN, a WAN connects computers together
across longer physical distances. This allows computers and low-voltage
devices to be remotely connected to each other over one large network
to communicate even when they’re milesapart.

This concepts also related to Basics of Networking

IOT protocols

Communication models

Communication Api’s