Geo IoT is an exciting system that not only determines the location of a tool but also informs if it is currently in use, and the duration a tool remains at a particular position.
The data gathered using Geo IoT system can be used to further trigger events and grant permission for using the tool. Data collected using a Geo IoT system needs context to make sense and derive value out of it. The context enriched services using the data help to anticipate user’s needs and provide relevant service, product and content.
Geo IoT is positively impacting human life across many verticals. It is anticipated that Geo IoT will move beyond commercial applications to more critical applications such as security and privacy of the users.
Key findings in a report by Research and Markets suggest:
- Geo IoT global revenue is expected to reach $49 billion by 2021
- Location aware applications for retail sector
- Combination of LAN, WAN and PAN for effective Geo IoT application
- Mobile phone used as beacons for in-store retail
- IoT location and presence through next-generation wearables
- Determining location and detecting presence will be critical area of IoT applications focusing on security, user preference and privacy.
Advantages of Geo IoT
The scope of Geo IoT applications is vast when data collected via geographical information systems is combined with geoanalytics. Opportunities spring up and risks reveal themselves via patterns, correlations and prevalent trends. Service providers can use this information to provide location-based services and enhance customer experience.
Here are some interesting Geo IoT applications and their advantages:
- Weather Forecasting: When hurricane Sandy hit US in 2012, rescue teams used geolocation to retrieve vehicles submerged in underground parking.
The technology could have been put to better use by identifying the risk to the building and move those vehicles to safer grounds.
- Service Disruption: Service providers can employ geoanalytics to offer location-based tailor-made services to customers at different locations. Service providers can notify their employees and customers about service outages and expected time when it can be restored, address grievances quicker, and thereby satisfy customers.
- Health Arena: Geoanalytics is playing an important role in digital health arena by employing disease prediction, and controlling it by tracking patients, assets and healthcare providers, monitoring patients, and allocating resources based on demand and requirement.
Wearable devices to track and monitor exercise and diet, managing mobile staff and emergency responders, maintain electronic records, monitoring environmental effects on health are few of exciting applications of Geo IoT in healthcare.
- Efficient Power Management: Using geoanalytics, utility service providers can track consumption based on location and accordingly distribute resources. Locating damages, directing repair crew for damage control using smart meters, identifying consumption area for future planning are few efficient applications for Geo IoT tools.
- Smart Cities: Cities offer a huge scope application of Geo IoT tools in various fields such as health, environment, energy, education, transportation etc. Some of the interesting applications for smart city are traffic monitoring, parking allocation, construction and building development, street lightening and waste management.
- Emergency Management: Geo IoT tools can help in emergency situations by triggering request-based on location that will notify disaster response system and enable deployment of required resources and personnel. Maintaining and tracking reports based on headcount and last location in face of disaster, maintain records for hazardous work area, tracking occupants residing in hazardous buildings and deploying quick response if emergency situation arise are few applications Geo IoT tools can provide.
- Security Management: Radio frequency identification (RFID) allows security department to track and manage employee activities and visitor access. Location-based tracking enables controlled entry into restricted areas. Any unwanted activity can be picked by triggering alarms and alerting security personnel. An employee attendance record can be maintained and rules to access restricted zones can be set.
- Asset Tracking: Real time location of equipment as well as their movement can be tracked using Geo IoT tools. If the equipment is moved to a restricted area, an alarm is triggered to alert the security personnel in charge. In case of a loss, the equipment can be tracked, and unwanted events like theft of the equipment can be averted.
Geo IoT tools and systems are evolving at fast pace and opening up wider horizons for technological applications to make it easy to manage resources, assets and providing solutions for a better life.