FAQs About IoT Terminology

MCA CNS TeamMCA News

What Is the Internet of Things (IoT)?

The concept of the Internet of Things (IoT) involves connecting various objects - such as street lights, drones, smart meters, water treatment systems, electric vehicle chargers, air compressors, and more - through the use of embedded modules, routers, and other edge devices to the internet. This connection allows for data collection and transfer, providing an opportunity to monitor, manage, control, and optimize their functions beyond what was previously achievable.

The IoT is revolutionizing the economy and driving industries towards a subscription-based model. Its numerous applications contribute to improving farming methods, making the power grid more efficient, enhancing supply chains, increasing the reliability of industrial equipment, and ensuring safer roads and sidewalks. Furthermore, the IoT enables manufacturers to build relationships with end-users.

What are M2M communications?

M2M (machine-to-machine) generally denotes wired or wireless communication between machines. IoT solutions also belong to the M2M category, but unlike traditional M2M solutions, they leverage the internet or the Internet Protocol (IP) to transmit data.

What is a Band?

In telecommunication, a band - sometimes called a frequency band - is a specific range of frequencies in the radio frequency (RF) spectrum, which is divided among ranges from very low frequencies (vlf) to extremely high frequencies (ehf). Each band has a defined upper and lower frequency limit.

What Are SIM Cards?

In traditional cellular-connected devices, the Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) contains the necessary credentials or subscriptions for accessing the services of a specific Mobile Network Operator (MNO) or Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO). This created a lock-in effect, where the carrier owned the SIM, and changing carriers required changing the SIM card as well.

What is Firmware Over-the-Air (FOTA)?

Firmware Over-The-Air (FOTA) is a technology that allows for wireless updates of a mobile device's operating firmware. This technology provides organizations with a cost-effective and convenient way to maintain the health of their edge devices. By improving security and reducing the need for hands-on maintenance or device replacement, FOTA allows devices to remain in the field for longer periods of time.

What is a Positioning System?

A positioning system is a system for determining the position of an object in space. One of the most well-known and commonly used positioning systems is the Global Positioning System (GPS). Positioning system technologies exist ranging from worldwide coverage with meter accuracy to workspace coverage with sub-millimeter accuracy.

What is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)?

The term Industrial IoT encompasses IoT technologies that, when combined with emerging cloud, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and other advancements, empower manufacturing, energy, agriculture, and other industrial sectors to merge our physical, digital, and biological universes in ways that enhance operational efficiency and create novel forms of value. This shift, commonly referred to as Industry 4.0, is leading to implementing an array of groundbreaking applications that link industrial machinery to the cloud, including innovative predictive maintenance, equipment-as-a-service (EaaS), asset tracking, and factory process control applications.

What is a Low-Power Wide-Area (LPWA) network?

LPWA, also known as mobile IoT, utilizes low-power, wide-area networking technologies like LTE-M and NB-IoT to transmit data at slower rates than other cellular technologies. However, LPWA is more cost-effective, energy-efficient and provides better wireless coverage in buildings, underground, and rural locations. It can also support more devices within a small area than other cellular technologies.

As a result, LPWA is an ideal option for IoT applications that require minimal data transmission, such as asset tracking, smart home battery monitoring, and safety shoe management.

What is LTE (Long-Term Evolution)?

LTE (Long-Term Evolution) is a wireless communication technology standard for mobile devices that offers high-speed connectivity and increased capacity compared to 3G technology.

What is 5G?

The fifth generation wireless cellular technology standard is 5G and succeeds the previously known 3G and 4G standards that are widely used today. This new standard allows smartphones, wireless gateways, embedded modules, and other wireless communication devices to operate across different networks as long as they support the common technology standard.

The 3rd Generation Partnership Project (3GPP), a global organization responsible for setting wireless standards, published 5G, which comprises two different technologies: 5G Long Term Evolution (5G LTE) and 5 New Radio (5G NR).

What is Data Orchestration?

Data orchestration technologies play a crucial role in the IoT ecosystem by distributing business logic and processing capabilities across the cloud, local networks, and edge devices. This allows companies to manage data transmission from edge devices to the cloud more efficiently and cost-effectively, streamlining IoT application deployment, management, and security. This is particularly beneficial for applications that rely on power, bandwidth, and processing-constrained edge devices.

What are Edge-to-Cloud IoT solutions?

End-to-end IoT solutions that connect edge devices to the cloud enable companies to seamlessly build, deploy, manage, and update their IoT applications. These solutions cover everything from edge devices such as modules, routers, and gateways, to the networks they use, like cellular and Wi-Fi, and up to the cloud. This includes managing wireless connectivity and over-the-air firmware updates for edge devices.

By combining these end-to-end solutions with data orchestration technologies, businesses can enhance their IoT applications by refining how data is collected, filtered, and prioritized. This data can then be integrated into various cloud-based IT systems like ERP, CRM, and data analytics. With edge-to-cloud IoT solutions, companies can securely access and act on all the asset data generated by their IoT applications.

What is NB-IoT?

NB-IoT is a Low-Power Wide-Area (LPWA) technology standard defined by the 3GPP that enables data transmission at rates of up to 65kbps. This technology is well-suited for static sensor IoT applications, such as agricultural or pipeline monitoring. It is also known as NB1 or Cat-M2.

About USAT

USAT specializes in designing and deploying mobile wireless data connectivity solutions for organizations of all sizes — complete with implementation, training, proof of concept (POC), system auditing, and on-site RF surveying services with optional engineering maintenance contracts. Our team not only helps you select, provision, and activate devices, we make sure they work in practical applications and real-life situations.
AT&T FirstNet Launches Innovative Public Safety Solutions
Contact Us >>

For over 25 years, USAT has provided mobile communications solutions for various retail applications across the USA. With our extensive catalog of world-class routers, gateways, and software designed for remote monitoring and management in even the harshest environments — you can count on us to get and keep you connected.

Better mobile connectivity translates to less manual equipment maintenance, reduced downtime, and an overall increase in your business's ROI. Contact the experts at USAT to learn how our wireless networking solutions can help meet your organization's exacting needs.

Share this Post