Key IOT Engineering Challenges

The many technologies involved in a top-to-bottom IOT system, creates a complex system that is challenging.

Key factors driving the potential of the IOT include data transportation and device costs and telecommunications services.

Device costs are on the downward trend, but have not reached the point where the absolute minimum cost allows extremely simple, low-cost devices to be implemented. Of course, with the passage of time, both of these areas will be addressed. Data transportation costs will come down, device costs will come down, and in a virtual cycle, the economies of scale will drive things forward.

Another area of concern relates to security and privacy. Many IOT systems are not secured properly, often for seeming valid reasons, but this has lead to unintended consequences. Consequences include people using IOT devices for hacking into systems, stealing data, controlling things in manners that are not intended, such as the large denial of service attacks that used unprotected IOT devices.

There are also community concerns relating to privacy. Large amounts of data being gathered by parties that not necessarily are known to the people whose data is being gathered. Engineers must take the lead in making sure that systems are in place to allow these community concerns to be addressed.

Another key challenge is that the field of IOT is so diverse, it is beyond the scope of any one individual to learn all of the skill sets required to become expert in all aspects of IOT.  many of which are not necessarily within the core competencies of the people who wish to implement the system. There is a problem to overcome in terms of the complexity

Sources:

• Presentation by Geoff Sizer, Chair of Engineers Australia’s ITEE College and  CEO, Genesys Electronics Design titled How the Internet of Things will affect every engineer