Unit II: Communication Technologies, Data Management, and
Security in IoT
1. Communication Technologies in IoT
IoT relies on a variety of communication technologies to transfer data between devices, sensors,
gateways, and cloud platforms. These technologies can be classified broadly into wireless
communication standards and application layer protocols.
a. Wireless Communication Protocols
1. Wi-Fi (Wireless Fidelity)
- Standard: IEEE 802.11
- Range: ~50 meters indoors
- Data Rate: Up to several Gbps with Wi-Fi 6
- Frequency: 2.4 GHz, 5 GHz
- Pros: High-speed, widely available infrastructure
- Cons: High power consumption, potential interference
- Use Cases: Smart homes, video streaming, office IoT systems
2. Bluetooth
- Standard: IEEE 802.15.1
- Range: ~10 meters (up to 100m with Bluetooth 5)
- Data Rate: Up to 2 Mbps
- Pros: Low energy usage, ease of integration
- Cons: Short range, lower throughput
- Use Cases: Wearables, fitness devices, headphones
3. Zigbee
- Standard: IEEE 802.15.4
- Range: 10-100 meters
- Data Rate: 250 Kbps
- Pros: Mesh networking, low power, robust
- Cons: Limited bandwidth
- Use Cases: Smart lighting, home automation, industrial sensors
4. LoRa (Long Range)
- Range: 2-15 kilometers depending on environment
- Data Rate: 0.3-50 Kbps
- Frequency: Sub-GHz (e.g., 868 MHz, 915 MHz)
- Pros: Very long range, low power
- Cons: Very low bandwidth
- Use Cases: Smart cities, environmental monitoring
5. Cellular (3G/4G/5G)
- Range: Nationwide
- Data Rate: 1 Mbps to Gbps depending on generation
- Pros: Reliable, broad coverage
- Cons: High cost, high power
- Use Cases: Vehicle tracking, industrial IoT
b. IoT Protocols
1. MQTT (Message Queuing Telemetry Transport)
- Architecture: Publish/Subscribe
- Transport: TCP/IP
- Lightweight and efficient for small sensors
- Components: Clients, Broker (central server)
- Use Case: Remote monitoring, telemetry, home automation
2. HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol)
- Architecture: Request/Response
- Transport: TCP
- Pros: Universally supported
- Cons: Heavy, unsuitable for constrained devices
- Use Case: Web APIs for IoT dashboards
3. CoAP (Constrained Application Protocol)
- Transport: UDP
- Architecture: Similar to HTTP (RESTful)
- Lightweight for constrained environments
- Use Case: Resource-constrained sensors, embedded systems
2. Data Management and Analytics in IoT
IoT generates massive volumes of structured and unstructured data. Proper data management
ensures efficient storage, processing, and analysis.
a. Data Storage in IoT
1. On-Device Storage: Temporary data buffers, limited due to device constraints
2. Edge Storage: Local servers or gateways, enables low-latency decision making
3. Cloud Storage: Scalable and centralized (e.g., AWS IoT Core, Google Cloud IoT)
4. Distributed Storage: Redundant, high-availability systems for large-scale apps
b. Data Processing Types
1. Real-Time Processing: Immediate action (e.g., fire alert)
2. Batch Processing: Periodic processing (e.g., daily logs)
3. Stream Processing: Continuous data flow (e.g., traffic monitoring)
c. Big Data Analytics in IoT
- Uses: Descriptive, Predictive, Prescriptive analytics
- Tools: Apache Hadoop, Apache Spark
d. Edge Computing
- Local computation to reduce latency, improve response, and save bandwidth
- Examples: Smart cameras with motion detection
3. Security and Privacy in IoT
IoT systems are vulnerable due to distributed nature and resource constraints.
a. Threats and Vulnerabilities
1. Physical Attacks: Tampering, theft
2. Network Attacks: Eavesdropping, MitM, DDoS
3. Software Attacks: Malware, insecure firmware
b. Authentication and Access Control
- Authentication Methods: Passwords, certificates, biometrics
- Access Control: RBAC and ABAC models
c. Encryption and Data Integrity
1. Encryption: AES (symmetric), RSA (asymmetric)
2. Integrity: Checksums, SHA-256
3. Secure Communication: HTTPS, TLS, DTLS
