The Internet of Things became a regular topic in mainstream news during 2015, thanks in part to a series of connected car hacks, but also because industrial and commercial IoT applications generated considerable buzz about the technology’s transformative potential. So what do the next 12 months hold in store?
Usage-based insurance—enabled by IoT-enabled sensors—promises to benefit insurers and their customers, provided that privacy issues are properly addressed.
There is sufficient bandwidth in an EPC Gen 2 UHF backscatter link to enable the reading of a low-power analog sensor—resulting in an RFID sensor tag with a long read range.
IBM’s Watson Internet of Things HQ; Google, Nest and Apple release Afero IoT platform; Gooee’s new gateway device; Haselmeier’s NFC-enabled self-injection medication device.
Checkpoint RFID tags, readers and middleware enable the retailer to track when goods arrive at and leave its distribution center, as well as check inventory on store shelves.
The TracoVino system, which includes MyOmega’s sensor hardware and app and Ericsson’s cloud platform, provides data that can help winemakers decide when to water, fertilize and harvest their grapes.
Parisian shoppers say they enjoy using the NFC RFID system to get more info about perfumes they sample while in the store, and to fill a digital shopping cart with the products they want to buy.
Bluetooth beacons from Onyx tells passengers when their bus is arriving, and one operator is also using the technology to alert drivers when a passenger is waiting at a stop, and to provide other information and services.
An ad campaign for the Battersea Dogs and Cats Home utilized passive UHF tags and readers to make outdoor digital signs interactive, causing a dog displayed on the signs to follow shoppers as they walked by.
A segment on Good Morning America about Target’s Wonderland store in Manhattan portrays the technology in glowing terms.