TRIGGERING TECHNOLOGY. Defining IoT can get complicated — connecting, networking, hardware, software, infrastructure, real-time…what does all this mean? Foaad Khosmood, Ph.D., Forbes associate professor of Computer Engineering at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo, Calif., puts it simply: “IoT is connecting devices to the internet. It could be connecting your phone to the internet or a smart speaker — or a personal assistant like Alexa, or a doorknob or your locks, or moisture and climate control sensors.”
That’s lots of pieces-parts. But how do they work together to get stuff done?
Khosmood illustrates the connection by describing a class project, where his Cal Poly students designed and built a prototype for a smart trash collection system. “In the San Francisco area, we have a lot of rural trails, parks and hiking areas, and some of them are remote,” he says.
