IoT and Mobile App Integration

Blog on IoT and Mobile App Integration

Gartner predicts $2.5M per minute in IoT spending and 1M new IoT devices to be sold every hour by 2021.

Internet of Things, commonly known as IoT is already proving to be a game-changing IT innovation. The revolution in cloud computing, mobile and wireless technology over the last decade has made IoT a dominant player in the new age techworld. Mobile apps are influencing the growth of IoT while opening up new business opportunities for enterprises big to small.

The incredible popularity of IoT anchors the scope of new app development: IOT apps. The exponential growth of mobile app market is enriching the IoT experience through IoT enabled smart devices. From smartphones connecting to your smart watches like Fitbit, industrial robots assembling cars to a smart home controller like Google Home is dramatically changing the IOT ecosystem. Through mobile connectivity, there will be a time when there will be a thin line between the virtual world and real world.

The IoT app integration is leveraging the benefits of digital technologies to connect business, industries and it’s consumers in a new way.

Benefits of IoT
  • Integrate with your business process to create new business opportunities
  • Enhance efficiency and eventually increase productivity
  • Use the benefits of flexibility and speed in data transfer process
  • Use technology to reach more targeted users
  • Utilize the power of technology to solve the complex problem and offer a simple solution
Major Industries with huge Impact of IoT:
  • Technology and Software
  • Healthcare and Fitness
  • Retail and E-commerce
  • Transportation and Mobility
  • Infrastructure
  • Manufacturing

Key Challenges and Opportunities for IoT and Mobile App Integration:

Integration:

Innovation is quickly moving from the smartphones in our hands, to the smarter devices connecting our world. IoT is just not one thing but an integration of several other things which requires advanced integration skills and end-to-end solution. While deploying an IoT solution, software companies are encountered with some inevitable issues like the integration of edge devices to the IoT platform, integration to enterprise applications and services especially security, identity and operational applications. IT organizations must develop IoT solutions teams, led by an IoT architect and a niche variety of subject matter experts who can diagnose and solve these challenges across the IoT solution landscape.

Privacy:

If your data is trackable, it’s hackable. As beacons, sensors, cameras, smart glasses are applied everywhere; it is very much possible to track down the data at the very moment. Information can be used for good and bad, so implementing the right security technology is the key when dealing with so much data. Companies that integrate IoT in their core mobile apps should separate personal identifiers from personal data if possible. For example, a static device IP-address may not be used, and it looks like the personal data is secure. But if the data from the event logs, phone calls and text messages, time stamps of cellular base stations, points of payment and computers, as well as details of credit cards operations are analyzed, then the identification of the person is simple enough. With the improvement of computing devices and system algorithms, user behavior can be predicted with increasing accuracy.

Expertise in Industrials:

Industrial operational workflow and data supply chain variables are key to building apps that deliver real value. Now the million dollar question is how to build domain expertise? Well, partnerships between industrial experts and software development companies have become imperative. App developers can work closely with industrial process experts during concept, design and test phases to come up with the perfect IOT compatible app.

Industrial Security:

According to Gartner, in 2017 75% of mobile app security breaches will be caused by misconfigurations.

Security of personal data is a major concern in today’s virtual world. Cloud computing and storage allow industrial apps to improve performance and reduce costs. But cloud-based app platforms must upgrade cyber security sufficiently to build operators’ confidence in using third-party apps on the cloud. Enterprise apps require on-device or cloud storage capabilities like on-device encryption of data and cloud storage APIs. Security must be integral at every stage, from app platform and design to install, including usage of intrusion detection tools, password enforcement, access control, sandboxing apps and conformance to industry standards and government regulations.

User-friendly Design and Real-time Performance:

Industrial operations are way more complex than consumer and retail. Besides, industrial users are comfortable handling data in different ways. UX design has to carefully plan a user-friendly interface and easy access to data.

Connected assets generate large volumes of time-series data demanding real-time processing. Apps must scale and be flexible enough to handle and present large data sets and analytics-based insights to enable their users to act faster.

A connected world accelerates the overall growth of an enterprise. There is no doubt about the fact that integration between IoT and Mobile app development will open up new doors with less scope of failure. Mobile apps are acting as stepping stones for future ready brands that are working to develop smarter devices to improve efficiencies while measuring more nuanced customer journeys at scale. TULI eServices has skilled mobile app development teams to deliver breakthrough IoT solutions with innovative business models that improve productivity and operational excellence while achieving high-efficiency business value.