IoT architecture and IoT product device design demand a comprehensive vision of both business and use-case factors. An article published in Rcrwireless.com stated it exceptionally well, “In an IoT context, the device is the embodiment of what strategic questions a business is considering as it pursues its use case, from cost strategy to security, to plans for what-if scenarios and how the device will be decommissioned at the end of its life.”
Besides these strategic questions, designers also need to consider:
- Battery life
- Connectivity
- Environment
- Application
- Deployment
- Operational costs
- Device lifecycle
Even further, designers must collaborate with line of business users or external end-users (e.g. consumers) to understand any time-sensitivities with gaining access to the collected data and resulting analytics. These decisions, among others involving gateways, protocols and such, can help define whether edge computing or cloud is most critical or both.
Addressing these questions upfront and capturing in a business case will help ensure effective coverage of the major user-case challenges. Small pilot projects will help uncover some issues but proper planning is the best approach for operating a successful IoT project launch.
