The thingosity of automated test systems in the Internet of Things

Automated Test Systems (ATSs) can join the Internet of Things (IoT) at multiple layers and benefit both the overall IoT concept as well as advance the goals of ATSs. Logistics and sustainment are traditionally brought into the IoT conversation through asset tracking, transportation, and Health and Usage Monitoring Systems (HUMS). However the IoT has additional aspects that can be related to logistics information systems and automated test. In relation to Automated Test Systems, the IoT can be a valuable component while an ATS may also use IoT concepts and capabilities within its own architecture. ATSs are applicable in all layers of the IoT: sensing, networking / communications, and applications. An ATS can be a sensor in the IoT serving to inform sustaining engineering, product support management, maintenance planning, and supply chain decisions through its test and diagnostic data. In addition, many ATSs consist of a network of instrumentation and measurement devices that can serve as part of the IoT network / communication layer. And finally an automated test and diagnostic application can be used in the IoT to expand the scale of testing beyond standard automated test capability. This paper describes and analyzes the implementation of Automated Test Systems in all three IoT layers. The described ATS / IoT interactions elicit multiple benefits and challenges. The ubiquity and diversity of sensors in the Internet of Things allows for a new scope of testing across an enterprise, correlation of asset usage and repair, supply chain prognostics, and opportunities for deep learning. Challenges inevitably include cybersecurity and the analysis of overwhelming data. The paper also outlines how these concepts extend to related topics such as Cyber-Physical Systems (CPS) and the Internet of Everything (IoE). In many ways Automated Test Systems presage the Internet of Things and certainly earn a high degree of thingosity.