Field Deployment Requires Strategic Thinking, not Just Tactical

The IoT Evolution Expo is coming up fast, and we interviewed our speakers to get a bit of a preview of what to expect from the conferences.

Here, we spoke to Mario Proietti, co-founder and CEO of LocationSmart, who will be a featured speaker in the following session during the week of education:

Planning Field Deployments: Your company has done its research and identified the benefits of IoT for your operations, but now comes the questions about implementation. It’s time to look at the location of your assets and determine the best strategy. Where does LoRA fit in? Should gateways act as aggregation points? This panel looks at how to determine and build upon the right strategy. 

Here is a little preview of his thoughts:

IoT Evolution: What will be some key points you plan to hit in your session?
Mario Proietti: I plan to discuss the importance of multi-source location for implementation of IoT. Access to a multitude of location sources helps provide the broadest match to the widest variety of use cases and business needs.

IoTE: What new insights can attendees expect to take home from your session?
MP: There is not a “catchall” or one-size-fits-all solution for locating connected devices. GPS is powerful but it is not a fit for every situation. For example, Wi-Fi location could be better for indoors or cell tower location may consume less battery power when GPS accuracy is not needed or satellite signals are not receivable. There are also times when several different location services are required to deliver the most accurate or reliable data.

IoTE: Can you identify a few important trends influencing your sector of the IoT which will shape the path of the industry? Why these?
MP: The increasing use of mobile solutions is and will continue to influence the path for location-based services in IoT. Wireless connectivity is making more devices mobile so keeping track of assets becomes a greater challenge. As a result, the ubiquity of mobile devices and mobile solutions are making location increasingly important.

IoTE: What are the biggest challenges facing the IoT? What are some important tools needed to overcome them?
MP: Data management, organization and security are major challenges for the IoT.  IoT devices can generate countless data points and that data needs to be organized into a human-intelligible form. There are already billions of IoT devices in operation generating trillions of data points and we are still in the early stages of IoT evolution and adoption. Also, securing this data and the processes used for its transmission to various destinations will present a host of other challenges.

IoTE: Which vertical markets have the most to gain from IoT implementation? Which are leading and which are still behind the adoption curve?
MP: The healthcare market is poised to take advantage of IoT and may have the most to gain. IoT has the potential to enable remote monitoring of the body and its responses to different medications or treatments. It could help automate important functions like the dosing of medication. IoT can also provide real-time and precise feedback that can be used by healthcare professionals.

IoTE: What session(s) (other than yours) are you most looking forward to attending at the Expo? Why?
MP: I’m interested in sessions in the IoT Security track because security is going to become an ever-increasing challenge. Tuesday’s session titled “Security at the Edge of IoT” looks to be particularly interesting. Additionally, location-based services have immediate utility for Industrial IoT and fleet/logistics so I also look forward to sessions that revolve around these topics. Sessions addressing healthcare topics will be interesting because of the potential for growth in that sector.

To join Mario and all our other speakers at IoT Evolution Expo, January 22 to 25 at the Disney Contemporary Resort in Orlando, Florida, click here to register now.