Smart Cities and IoT whitepaper
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The document discusses the concept of smart cities and their integration with IoT technology, which enhances urban management and improves citizen engagement. It highlights the historical development of smart communities and emphasizes the critical infrastructure needed for cities to evolve into smart cities capable of leveraging real-time data from interconnected devices. Additionally, it outlines the challenges cities face in implementing IoT solutions, particularly regarding data security and infrastructure readiness.
Smart Cities and IoT whitepaper
- 1. Smart Cities and IoT White Paper Richard Hatheway – Catalyst Strategic Marketing
- 2. Smart Cities and IoT white paper © Richard Hatheway - 2018 Page 2 SYNOPSIS Smart cities are the wave of the future. IoT is also the wave of the future. Together, smart cities that incorporate and take advantage of IoT technology will be at the leading edge of new urban environments. WHAT IS A SMART CITY? The concept of ”smart cities” was originally an outgrowth of the Smart Communities movement in the 1980s and 1990s. The Smart Communities movement was based on the need to increase the number of available skilled workers for an expanding information economy, combined with the need to revive and revitalize communities whose economic base had been destabilized by the information economy. The first example of a smart community was the Teleport, a joint venture of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey that combined two previously separate types of projects, real estate and telecommunications. The developers were concerned that the New York / New Jersey region might not be able to capitalize on these new telecommunications technologies due to the congestion of its airwaves, so the project on Staten Island included both the construction of a satellite uplink facility and a surrounding industrial park. According to the developers1 , Teleport was conceived "from the union of economic necessity and technological innovation". The intent was to stem the migration of jobs and industry from the area and help rebuild the economy from a technological base. Combined projects of this sort were one of the primary characteristics of the early Smart Communities movement. Teleport provided a commercially successful model for public/private partnerships involving information and communications technologies. Projects such as Teleport were described as “hubs of the intelligent city”2 , where intelligence is described as “attending to and investing in telecommunications infrastructure in city planning”, and where the infrastructure refers to a system of computers and networks that manage the flow of information in the city. Building a teleport project prepares cities for a coming explosion in network traffic that results from an increase in personal computer use. It also recognizes that residents of cities will compete for access to the network. Around this same time, cities developing projects like this began to develop new and different strategies for how they used and incorporated the information infrastructure. New projects began to combine technology with the economic interests of the cities, prompting a shift in focus from the purely technical benefits to including the societal benefits to be gained. About this time the term “smart city” came into use, referring to cities that were beginning to connect their communications and services infrastructures. Realistically though, all cities are, and have been, “smart”, at least to some degree.
- 3. Smart Cities and IoT white paper © Richard Hatheway - 2018 Page 3 As cities grow, they develop infrastructure such as roads, delivery systems for electricity, water and natural gas, telecommunications networks, sewage and waste removal, and so on. These systems all contribute to the city running more smoothly and efficiently, aka “smarter”, making it easier for the city to continue to grow, while making it more livable for the citizens. In the broadest sense of the word, this is a “smart” city. However, in today’s world smart city typically refers to cities that leverage and connect their infrastructure to a centralized network. Internet-connected devices and sensors are scattered throughout the metropolitan area and provide data that is analyzed by the city to help manage and control city functions and services. This information stream also makes it easier for city residents to access information and engage various city services. Devices and sensors that are internetworked, connected to and managed via the Internet are collectively known as the ”Internet of Things (IoT).” WHAT IS IoT? Although the idea of devices connected to the Internet has been around for several decades (in 1982, a modified Coke machine at Carnegie Mellon University was the first Internet-connected device6 ), the term the “Internet of Things (IoT)” is a relatively new term and concept, having been around less than 20 years. Prior to that, what we now refer to as IoT was more often referred to as “pervasive computing” or “embedded internet”. The term “Internet of Things” was coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton7 during a presentation he gave to Procter & Gamble. The presentation was based on his work at the Auto-ID Center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with the relatively new technology known as RFID (radio frequency identification). This presentation described a system that would link P&G’s supply chain to the Internet. Over time, IoT came to be generally defined as a system of interrelated, interconnected physical devices, sensors, actuators, machines, objects, or anything else that are connected to and send, receive or collect data via the Internet. These devices and sensors can be attached or connected to literally anything, from sensors in buildings to cameras on light posts to computing devices to vehicles, and even to human beings. IoT allows objects to be sensed and/or controlled remotely via the Internet. This process directly integrates the physical environment with the digital world and makes it possible to analyze, control, respond to, and manage a physical system remotely across existing network infrastructures, wired or wireless. The interconnection of these devices enables automation, increased command and control capabilities, and the ability to proactively monitor and respond to data on a real-time basis. For this to take place, all connected devices that transmit data and information via the Internet must have a unique identifier assigned. This unique identifier is known as a
- 4. Smart Cities and IoT white paper © Richard Hatheway - 2018 Page 4 Uniform Resource Identifier (URI), and is a string of alphanumeric characters. This unique identifier then allows the resources to connect to the Internet and operate and interact across the network. The ability of literally any device to connect to the Internet is what facilitates the Internet of Things. THE CHANGING URBAN LANDSCAPE As of 2014, more than half of the world’s population (54%) lived in urban areas3 . As of 2015, Europe, South and North America already had 73%, 83% and 82% of their populations respectively living in towns, cities and urban areas4 . The World Health Organization predicts that by 2050, 75% of the global population will live in urban settings5 . In conjunction with the increase in urban population growth, rural populations are expected to see a corresponding decrease in population. The urban population explosion is driven by peoples’ desire to live closer to where they work. That trend is not likely to change in the near future. As the population in urban centers increases, the demand for existing and new services will see a corresponding increase. Cities are also under pressure to increase economic growth, engage more effectively with their citizens and introduce and utilize new technologies to make the urban landscape more accessible, livable, secure, sustainable and economically sound, while at the same time providing a vibrant community environment. What impact will this type of continued growth and demand for services have on the city? How can cities take advantage of and leverage IoT to ensure they can support this growth? To meet these expectations, cities must have the necessary infrastructure in place to support these new requirements and challenges. Cities must transform themselves into “smart cities”. Urban Area Growth “Managing urban areas has become one of the most important development challenges of the 21st century. Our success or failure in building sustainable cities will be a major factor in the success of the post-2015 UN development agenda” John Wilmoth Director of UN DESA’s Population Division - TrendMicro, ‘Securing Smart Cities’, May 30, 2017
- 5. Smart Cities and IoT white paper © Richard Hatheway - 2018 Page 5 THE IMPACT OF IoT ON CITIES The Internet of Things will change and impact cities in many ways, from how city services are delivered to how the city interacts with residents. Because the nature of this change is so significant, IoT is often referred to as the fourth industrial revolution. This new technology revolution means capabilities that were unimaginable only a few years ago are now becoming possible and ultimately, commonplace. IoT will make it possible for cities to provide new ways to connect and interact with city systems, services, devices and assets. The flow of data from IoT devices and sensors will provide the city with real-time awareness and allow control of functions that would previously have been unimaginable. IoT also provides the city with numerous benefits, chief among them the ability to connect to multiple city systems and monitor data in real- or near-real-time. This allows the city to analyze, control, manage and react to ever-changing conditions across the city in a proactive instead of reactive manner. Significant improvements in operational efficiency, economies of scale and cost reductions will also result from the city’s use of this data in real-time. The Internet of Things will also provide new ways for the city to provide new services, capabilities and information to city residents that were not possible before. An IoT transformation will likely impact city infrastructural areas first, such as those related to utilities (electricity, water, gas), sewage, waste disposal, street lighting and traffic control systems. These are the primary services and functions the city provides to residents that are critical to the health and well-being of the city. Optimizing their efficiency through Internet-connected sensors will allow the city to provide services more efficiently, respond to issues more quickly, and scale services in ways previously not possible. Once the basic city functions and services are Internet-enabled, cities and utilities can then collaborate to develop and deploy other functions and services that will further contribute to the health of the city. Services such as environmental and air pollution monitoring, urban noise level monitoring, electric vehicle charging, and crime monitoring will all become possible, along with other yet-to-be-determined functions and services. The Internet of Things will also enable cities to take advantage of advanced applications, such as enhanced communications, a smart grid, or real-time information distribution, along with expanding services to citizens. IoT results in improved efficiencies, responsiveness and accuracy due to the real-time nature of data that is now able to be transmitted across the Internet. CHALLENGES OF THE SMART CITY The use of IoT-enabled devices and sensors, while providing cities with multiple streams of data with which to develop new capabilities and services, also provides
- 6. Smart Cities and IoT white paper © Richard Hatheway - 2018 Page 6 numerous challenges. These challenges should be addressed prior to any implementation of IoT-enabled devices or sensors. The first and most critical challenge is ensuring the security of the system and data. Second is ensuring that the relevant data is tracked and captured. The third is that the data must be able to be analyzed and acted upon in a timely manner. Unless a city can manage these three challenges, the data may not be useful. To prevent that situation from occurring, cities must proactively analyze and realistically evaluate their IT and other relevant infrastructures. While an analysis of this type may initially result in delays in deployment and implementation of IoT-enabled equipment, the long-term benefit is that any weaknesses will be identified that could compromise their systems, the data and its usage. SUMMARY Smart cities use data from IoT and other networked devices to monitor and control city functions and services on a real-time basis. Unfortunately, the existing infrastructure in many cities is not able to take advantage of the new technologies and capabilities available in an IoT world. As a result, many cities are not prepared to take the next evolutionary step in becoming a smart city. As cities become “smart”, they will need to choose from a variety of technologies and services that can potentially be provided to their citizens and develop plans for their implementation. Proactive analysis of and planning for future city requirements and services will help ensure a smooth transition to becoming a smart city. 1 – Annunziata, Robert, and Robert Catlin, 1986, ‘Teleports and the Intelligent City’, ed. Andrew D. Lipman, Alan D. Sugarman and Robert F. Cushman. Homewood, IL: Dow Jones-Irwin 2 – Hanneman, Gerhard J., 1986, ‘Teleports and the Intelligent City’, ed. Andrew D. Lipman, Alan D. Sugarman and Robert F. Cushman. Homewood, IL: Dow Jones-Irwin. 3 – United Nations, ‘World’s population increasingly urban with more than half living in urban areas’, http://www.un.org/en/development/desa/news/population/world-urbanization-prospects-2014.html 4 – World Urbanisation Prospects/LSE Cities, ‘Cities in numbers: how patterns of urban growth change the world’, https://www.theguardian.com/cities/2015/nov/23/cities-in-numbers-how-patterns-of-urban- growth-change-the-world 5 – World Health Organization, Global Health Observatory (GHO) data, http://www.who.int/gho/urban_health/situation_trends/urban_population_growth_text/en/ 6 – ‘The "Only" Coke Machine on the Internet’, https://www.cs.cmu.edu/~coke/history_long.txt, Carnegie Mellon University 7 – Kevin Ashton, "That 'Internet of Things' Thing", RFID Journal, 22