IoT brings the idea of a smart city to life
Introduction
Smart technology is taking over progressively and transforming various aspects of our daily lives. The term «smart technology» encompasses a wide range of devices and systems that are connected, intelligent, and capable of collecting and exchanging data to provide enhanced functionality, convenience, and efficiency.
Technology has the power to do many things. It literally changes the world we live in and the way we live too, and this process seems to only be gaining momentum. We’re lucky to live in a period of technological boom when innovations make our lives easier and alter the ways we go about our routine tasks.
The future is unpredictable yet very promising! Technological advancements have the potential to completely reshape our lives forever over the coming decade and beyond.
The concept of a smart city
Global population growth is driving large-scale urbanization. As big cities’ population is sprawling in a very rapid way, providing sufficient comfort for all city residents is quite a challenge! However, with the aid of smart technology, this process can be simpler and way more efficient.
Talking about the impact of advanced technologies on our daily routine, we’re getting closer to the concept of a smart city. It may sound like something distant and fantastical yet it’s true.
Here’s the definition of a smart city offered by the European Commission:
“A smart city is a place where traditional networks and services are made more efficient with the use of digital solutions for the benefit of its inhabitants and business.”
In other words, smart cities, also known as digital cities, intelligent cities, and wired cities, are technologically modern urban areas that leverage the power of cutting-edge technology (IoT, AI, software solutions, communication networks, and more) and data to ensure high-quality life for citizens, enhance sustainability and efficiency, and streamline the delivery of essential public services while saving costs and valuable resources.
Why do we need to shift to smart cities? Digital cities are designed to meet the rising needs of citizens today and in the future.
The main purpose of a smart city is to boost livability and promote more economical and sustainable growth.
These days smart cities come in a variety of forms. However, usually, they are represented by one or a few such initiatives as intelligent transportation, smart buildings, smart energy grids and meters, smart governance, smart healthcare, smart public safety, and environmentally friendly policies.
What you should understand is that a smart city is not a single entity but a mixture of smart solutions integrated together for the best life quality.
Check out the most distinctive features of a smart city:
- Advanced technology-based infrastructure
- Good for environment
- Smart transportation solutions
- Integrated urban planning
- Heightened safety and security
- Waste management
- Smart healthcare system
- Ability to interact with the elements of a smart city
- Online government services
- Sustainability
According to Grand View Research, the smart cities market size is expected to grow at a 25.8% CAGR during the period between 2023 and 2030, reaching $6,965 billion in revenue by 2030.
Smart city technologies
The number of technologies involved in making cities smarter is almost endless and the list proceeds to grow crazily fast with innovations. We’re talking about ICT – Information and communication technology. It helps to achieve enhanced operational efficiency, communicate knowledge to the public, and take public services and citizen welfare to an entirely new level. As for now, smart city technologies include
- IoT
- Big data and analytics
- Edge computing
- Regional data centers
- 5G networks
- Cloud computing
- AI & ML
- Blockchain
- Application Programming Interfaces (APIs)
- Robotics
Smart cities are connected through numerous software, communication, and interface networks. Even though there’s such diversity, IoT is currently the ultimate leader for properly functioning digital cities as it creates possibilities for seamless communication and data exchange between devices.
How IoT Contributes to the Development of smart cities
A smart city is reasonably one of the most remarkable representations of the IoT’s potential worldwide.
As the urban population is sprawling at a large scale, city planners and authorities start taking advantage of IoT solutions to address new issues and challenges.
The percentage of people eager to live in urban areas is growing steadily. Globally, 1.3 million people are moving to cities each week – and by 2040, 65% of the world’s population is expected to live in cities.
As you already know, the concept of a smart city lies in the incorporation of Internet of Things technology. This means smart cities and IoT are inseparable. IoT is a kind of the technical backbone of every smart city. The technology brings in intelligence, interconnection, and instruments required for improving urban services, optimizing resources, and reducing costs. Through connected devices (sensors, cameras, etc), systems, and people, real-time data and insights on city operations and infrastructure are collected easily. But that’s not all! City’s residents can engage with smart cities via their smartphones or connected cars or homes. That is the idea of a smart city – to connect everything from vehicles and buildings to sensors and smart grids, therefore, making sure data flows seamlessly between devices.
IoT in smart cities: best use cases
As the Internet of Things experiences wide adoption in terms of smart city development, the number of use cases keeps getting longer. A myriad of connected devices such as Bluetooth sensors, RFID tags, and meters provide real-time data that helps to improve infrastructure, services, public utilities, and more.
IoT applications for smart cities vary but we’ve outlined some examples that stand out as continual trend-setters. Get ready to explore them!
Smart urban mobility
IoT has the power to solve the problem of traffic congestion with real-time data. Want to know how?
For example, smart traffic management solutions enable monitoring and analyzing traffic flows thus preventing congestion and ensuring road safety.
Smart parking apps make the process of finding available parking spaces faster and easier with the aid of IoT-powered sensors immediately notifying about a vacant nearby parking spot.
Smart lighting
City lighting systems are not only for special atmosphere creation but for the safety and convenience of all the residents. However, they often consume a significant amount of energy. IoT solutions are brought to solve this problem. IoT sensors are installed in streetlights to adjust the lighting level based on ambient light, manage a city’s lighting system autonomously, and boost efficiency to save energy and costs. Intelligent lighting provides situationally appropriate street-level illumination. This, on the one hand, results in an aesthetic appearance and, on the other hand, in minimized waste.
Waste management
Why do we like IoT so much? Because it can streamline tough jobs no one likes doing! IoT-enabled solutions are applied to track the level of waste in garbage cans and recycling containers, and therefore, optimize collection schedules and routes. Why is it better than just deciding on fixed days for disposing of waste? Smart waste management leads to reducing costs and environmental impact significantly.
Public safety
Public safety is a topical issue that requires considerable attention. It’s essential to ensure maximum convenience and security for all citizens wherever they go. IoT-enabled cameras and sensors are installed in public spaces for monitoring any kind of suspicious activity. These innovative solutions are integrated with analytics, real-time tracking, and decision-making capabilities. This results in potential threats predicting and quicker responses to criminal actions.
Utility management
IoT can make essential resource consumption as efficient as ever before! This is possible with unified platforms that incorporate smart electricity, water, and gas meters. Smart meters are IoT devices that are attached to buildings and connected to a smart energy grid. By using these tools, utility companies manage energy flow more effectively, and citizens, in turn, save expenses on home utilities with smart energy, gas, and water management. Besides optimized consumption and cut costs, there are a few more benefits like reduced emissions, damage prevention, and leak detection.
Smart healthcare system
What else IoT can do? It contributes to the citizens’ health and wellness improvement! The technology controls air quality, detects environmental hazards, and tracks health trends.
Healthcare is one of the main sectors to embrace smart technology. IoT solutions in healthcare make it possible to monitor patients remotely, reducing the strain on hospitals and other medical providers and saving time and costs related to transportation. Click here to find out more details about the impact of advanced technology on the healthcare industry.
Pollution level control
Environmental pollution is one of the biggest current problems. We must not ignore it until it becomes critical – necessary actions must be taken immediately!
How can IoT help? For instance, IoT air quality sensors are utilized to monitor pollution levels and identify the areas that have the highest pollution to impose the requested regulations.
The ability to reduce the detrimental impact on the environment makes a smart city an even more attractive technology.
Building automation system
A building automation system (BAS) is a centralized system that controls and monitors various building functions and systems to optimize energy efficiency, comfort, and operational performance. It integrates and automates the control of various building components, such as HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning), lighting, security, fire safety, power systems, and other critical systems. The system typically consists of sensors and actuators, controllers, UI, and communication networks. IoT technology enables seamless integration of various devices and systems of the building and efficient management. This way a unified network is created and then controlled remotely.
Should you implement BAS and IoT, you’ll get great perks such as
- Energy savings
- Better occupant comfort
- High safety and security level
- Enhanced maintenance and equipment performance
- Access to real-time data and analytics
The ultimate benefits of IoT-based smart cities
Modern problems require modern solutions! In 2023, people have much higher demands for public services, living and working conditions, etc. Optimization is what we all must strive for.
IoT-based smart cities offer solutions to numerous problems by leveraging the power of advanced apps, connected systems, buildings, devices, and more. The benefits of IoT smart cities are countless. Moreover, this number is growing continuously. Here are some of the major advantages that IoT-based city residents enjoy:
- The more efficient activity of city officials. With IoT and cloud-based big data analytics for smart cities, the local government can achieve better and more effective decision-making, identify high-risk areas quicker, meet the needs of citizens, and so on.
- Advanced infrastructure management. City officials can monitor and manage the city’s infrastructure through IoT technology, this way detecting maintenance needs, reducing downtime, and ensuring safety for all the residents.
- The optimized transportation system. There are numerous IoT solutions developed to achieve better public transportation routes, solve the problem of congestion, and improve traffic flow. The idea lies in connecting vehicles with each other and with traffic systems.
- Lower crime rates. What if we say that IoT solutions create a safer environment for citizens? Yes, that’s true! Such technologies as connected crime centers and internet-connected body cameras help police officers be more efficient and thus contribute to reducing crime.
- Better environment. Environmental pollution must be the number 1 problem to solve. Well, IoT-based smart cities are on the right way to a healthier and safer environment. Renewable energy sources and energy-efficient buildings are implemented to reduce the negative impact on the environment. Air quality is also permanently controlled so areas with the highest pollution are managed properly by rerouting traffic, etc.
- Streamlining public services delivery. People expect what they need to be done quickly and seamlessly. And this is one of the key benefits of living in an IoT-based smart city. This includes enhanced transportation, healthcare, and other essential systems. Besides, IoT-enabled platforms give citizens the opportunity to take an active part in city planning, provide feedback on urban services, and report issues in real-time. This drives citizen engagement.
Be ready to accept challenges
As you can see, the concept of a smart city is reshaping urban life by offering convenient, safe, and efficient conditions for life and work. Numerous advantages make it a great option and quite a promising trend. However, we should not ignore the drawbacks and challenges.
Even though very popular, IoT-based smart cities still need certain improvements. The biggest concerns relate to privacy and security issues as systems deal with massive amounts of personal data.
Financial capacity is another challenge. The implementation of such projects requires significant investments since smart technology deployment and maintenance come pricey.
Government agreements need attention as well. A smart city means citizens’ active participation and cooperation with local officials. It’s important to trigger residents’ engagement and create a properly organized collaboration model.
Endnotes
Should we say that IoT-based smart cities are shaping the future? Indeed, these smart solutions have the potential to completely transform the future of urban development and improve the quality of life for citizens. By leveraging the power of the Internet of Things as a pivotal technology and integrating various other innovations, smart cities aim to enhance efficiency, sustainability, and connectivity across different sectors.
Due to the continued success of these projects, we expect this trend to only accelerate in the coming years with more and more cities all around the world becoming smart and therefore more comfortable to live in.
We believe the most impressive advancements are yet to come!