Communication Challenges in the IoT

The articles in this special section focus on communication challenges in the Internet of Things industry. The computing industry has seen several “waves:” major shifts in the design of computing systems, coupled with changes in how, when and by whom they are used. Innovations in both hardware and software were key to each successive wave, a trend which seems likely to continue. However, the latest wave to emerge is different from the earlier transitions in one key regard: rather than being focused on one particular type of hardware device like a server, PC, smartphone or tablet, it relies on interactions with and between a sea of smart, connected devices. This sea of devices, which we call the Internet of Things (IoT), is increasingly prevalent at all scales and in all application domains. When goods, machinery, and processes are integrated with the IoT, significant new business opportunities are enabled. Some pundits refer to this process of “digital transformation” as the fourth industrial revolution.