IoT Network Definitions
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A
active RFID (active radio frequency identification)
Active RFID (radio frequency identification) tags are continuously operating, battery-powered sensors that gather and transmit data to a reading device.
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iBeacon
iBeacon is a small-scale network device that uses Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and acts as a transmitter to detect and track smartphones.
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B
Bluetooth Low Energy (Bluetooth LE)
Also marketed as Bluetooth Smart, Bluetooth LE was introduced in the Bluetooth 4.0 specification as an alternative to Bluetooth Classic. Like its predecessor, Bluetooth LE uses frequency hopping wireless technology in the 2.4 GHz unlicensed radio band to interconnect nearby devices.
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F
What is fog computing?
Fog computing is a decentralized computing infrastructure in which data, compute, storage and applications are located somewhere between the data source and the cloud.
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G
gateway
A gateway is a network node used in telecommunications that connects two networks with different transmission protocols together.
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I
Internet of Everything (IoE)
The Internet of Everything (IoE) is a concept that extends the Internet of Things (IoT) emphasis on machine-to-machine (M2M) communications to describe a more complex system that also encompasses people and processes.
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IoT gateway
An internet of things (IoT) gateway is a physical device or software program that serves as the connection point between the cloud and controllers, sensors and intelligent devices.
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IPv6 address
An IPv6 address is a 128-bit alphanumeric value that identifies an endpoint device in an Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) network.
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L
LPWAN (low-power wide area network)
Low-power WAN (LPWAN) is a wireless wide area network technology that interconnects low-bandwidth, battery-powered devices with low bit rates over long ranges.
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M
machine-to-machine (M2M)
Machine-to-machine, or M2M, is a broad label that can be used to describe any technology that enables networked devices to exchange information and perform actions without the manual assistance of humans.
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mesh network topology (mesh network)
A mesh network is a network in which devices -- or nodes -- are linked together, branching off other devices or nodes.
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microcontroller (MCU)
A microcontroller is a compact integrated circuit designed to govern a specific operation in an embedded system.
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P
pervasive computing (ubiquitous computing)
Pervasive computing, also called ubiquitous computing, is the growing trend of embedding computational capability (generally in the form of microprocessors) into everyday objects to make them effectively communicate and perform useful tasks in a way that minimizes the end user's need to interact with computers as computers.
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R
remote sensing
Remote sensing is the use of various technologies to make observations and measurements at a target that is usually at a distance or scale beyond those observable to the naked eye.
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RFID (radio frequency identification)
RFID (radio frequency identification) is a form of wireless communication that incorporates the use of electromagnetic or electrostatic coupling in the radio frequency portion of the electromagnetic spectrum to uniquely identify an object, animal or person.
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RFID tagging
RFID tagging uses small radio frequency identification devices to track and identify objects.
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S
smart streetlight
A smart streetlight is a public lighting fixture that incorporates technology, such as cameras, light-sensing photocells and other sensors, to introduce real-time monitoring functionalities.
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T
transponder
A transponder is a wireless communication, monitoring or control device that picks up and automatically responds to an incoming signal.
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U
unique identifier (UID)
A unique identifier (UID) is a numeric or alphanumeric string that is associated with a single entity within a given system.
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Z
Z-Wave
Z-Wave is a wireless communication protocol used primarily in smart home networks, allowing smart devices to connect and exchange control commands and data with each other.