The internet of things is a term that most of us have heard before, but what does it really mean? Just as the web connects information, and social networking intertwines people's lives and opinions, the internet of things links various forms of technology to one another, and uses the constant updating of data to create the best user experience. The internet of things is, in essence, centered around smart tech – a collaboration of sensors and data recievers that together reach past individual product’s original implications.
This use of existing technology in order to build webs of machines implies the discovery of new uses for current devices. The transmittance of data, video, and sound through visible light waves, rather than wires or radio waves, opens up new doors for LED light bulbs. Rather than being employed for decorative lighting, they can be used to simultaneously light rooms and transmit data through essentially unnoticeable fluctuations in intensity.
Wildlife tracking gear, cameras, and microphones, placed in remote locations in order to gather information on both endangered species and illegal poaching have been in place for years. Now, these can be accessed remotely with other machines – drones flying overhead take photos from above these remote parts and can wirelessly receive data gathered from technology on the ground. These basic data recording devices, whether they be gathering sound, video, or location information, are all able to be integrated into an information network, easily analyzing, updating, and responding.
Interactive projectors, rather than screens, are also something that is being pursued as an option for allowing communication between devices and humans. A display of light that creates an image on a preexisting surface is something that feels more natural than staring at a backlit screen. Movements and actions that happen all the time and go unnoticed can be recorded and put to use, making sense of the information that is constantly around us.
Taking that information is integral in enhancing the human experience. Sensors in concrete can help engineers determine when a structure is unstable or needs maintenance, or they can be used in interactive architecture, where a structure defined by streaming water can open and change shape depending on where a person is standing around it. The internet of things is not only a connection of machines and sensors, it is the connection of data gatherers, data organizers, and us.
