HOW WILL BIG DATA IMPACT THE INTERNET OF THINGS?
Introduction
To the internet savvy and technology-inclined, the terms- Big data and Internet of Things (IoT) are familiar words and they understand how (both) works. But this piece will unravel the mystery behind these words to the larger part of the populace and how they are related.
Big data means voluminous amounts of information generated from numerous sources most especially from connected devices used by different online users. And to reflect its overwhelming nature, Big data is measured in Petabytes, terabytes, and exabytes. On the other hand, IoT is a term used to describe a group of physical devices that are connected and designed to collect and exchange data via the internet. In general, IoT is centered around connected devices and their machine-generated data.
Big data and the Internet of Things are interwoven because they deal with(large) data and have similar working processes. Although they are complementary they also have distinct functions and usage. Read further to get an in-depth knowledge of the relationship between both of them and how IoT is impacted by big data.
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Relationships between big data and the Internet of Things
Soracom.io rightly described the relationship between the Internet of Things and big data when they likened IoT to a collection of streams and rivers that feeds into an ocean called big data. This theory proves that both terms have the basic function of converting a series of data into tangible and meaningful information that can be acted upon.
Here is an example of how big data and IoT relate: In the shipping industry, IoT devices enable fast, easy tracking and monitoring of cargo to determine the estimated time of delivery, location, and a host of other related issues. This data is then used to make informed decisions on how to improve service delivery in the shipping industry and carrying out ship maintenance. They also store the above information to be used for long-term planning and measuring the company’s performance over time.
While the function of IoT is to collect a stream of accurate data for a specific purpose, however, they have to be pre-loaded with big data to carry out that basic function of data collection. For instance, programmers need to load a series of data into the parts of a smart car to direct its behavior in whatever road situation it meets. That way, it will know when to slow down, when to turn right or left, and other things that smart cars do. A
Above all, IoT and big data compatibility stem from the ability of IoT devices to collect real-time data and use it to detect, optimize, predict results, and prevent a negative recurrence. Merging the two tools is an important step to being proactive with data and turning most operations into data-driven processes.
The Role of big data in the Internet of Things
Organizations, industries, and corporate bodies make use of IoT devices in the collection of data. Since the data stored by IoT devices are mostly in unstructured form, the role of Big Data is to process this collected data on a real-time basis and also store them using several storage devices. Therefore, the need for big data in IoT is compelling as a result of its huge roles, which includes;
Real-life data analyzing and transmission
The volume of data gathered by IoT devices increases constantly because of human interaction with these connected devices. So, while IoT devices are busy observing users’ preferences/ choices, big data concurrently analyzes this data and further transmits it to be used to make informed decisions. Hadoop MapReduce or Spark are some big data tools used for real-time analysis of data gathered by IoT devices. In general, big data tools sort and structure generated data accordingly then make them available in real-time once it receives a signal that there’s a need for them by an authorized user.
Data storage
The word “Big” in Big data means that it can provide enough storage for any amount of generated data across the internet. Here is a common example of how big data impacts IoT with data storage: search engines store relevant data in your web search history to give you a personalized service.
For instance, if you’ve searched for “how to gain muscles” more than once on a search engine, big data will interpret it as a human who is interested in keeping fit and store this information about you. Soon you’ll notice that Google and other apps on your phone are showing you ads, webinars, and apps about keeping fit and gaining muscles.
Furthermore, big data also prevents data loss and enables quick and easy accessibility of data and information. The most common storage device for big data is the Cloud -one of the most popular big data storage tools. Cloud is a computer storage model that stores digital data in off-site storage and logical pools spanning different servers, mostly managed and owned by third parties referred to as hosting companies. Cloud storage services include idrive, backbaze, icedrive, dropbox among others.
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Data security
Since data is sensitive and most of it should be kept secret, one of the huge roles of big data on IoT is data security. Data security entails protecting digital data from attacks, breaches, and unauthorized actions or persons. On that note, big data tools are programmed to prevent unauthorized access of data/ information in IoT devices whether incoming data, data-in-storage, or output data. Encryption, firewall, and access control are some of the ways through which big data tools ensure data security in the Internet of Things
Will big data be as impactful as business technology pundits believe it will be?
Yes, it will be, and here is why.
As of 2020, it was estimated that 1.7 megabytes of data were created every second from all over the world to be accessed by millions of people over the internet. Now imagine the impact that data had on internet users, businesses, and the society at large. Big data tools and devices have made it so easy that with just a click of a button, brands and businesses will be able to make (informed) long-term and short-term decisions that are sure to keep them on top of their game and ahead of their competitors. Big data will therefore be as impactful as business technology pundits have opined.
How much impact will big data have on the Internet of Things?
The Efficiency of “things”
With preloaded data, IoT devices can figure out how to operate in predefined situations. That way, there won’t be a breach in communication or total shutdown in a case where one IoT device breaks down or is tampered with. With big data, there is a reduction in the time spent for IoT devices to collect and retrieve data and communicate with each other.
Effective communication between things
Before big data, it was difficult to guarantee an effective communication path between internet-connected devices at different locations. All thanks to the impact of big data on IoT devices, there is now sound and real-time communication between connected devices and their users. And because of this, sending and receiving data and information is now easily done without hassle across different channels all over the world.
Data security between things
Since there’s a need to secure data as much as lives and properties are secured, big data tools ensure the security of data in IoT devices. This is how it does it: because of the data that was generated and stored about the legal user of an IoT device, unauthorized users will not be allowed access to that device if they do not provide some vital data that the legal user should know. Some of these data include passwords, usernames, email accounts, and the popular mother’s maiden name.
In summary, the relationship between two distinct technologies has never been as beneficial as the relationship between big data and IoT devices. While internet-connected devices gather data, big data tools analyze and transmit that data in real-time (and otherwise); store them, and make them readily available when needed.
