The Top 10 Must-Have Components of IoT Architecture in 2024
Implementing an Internet of Things (IoT) solution requires bringing together a diverse set of technologies and infrastructure. In this comprehensive guide, we‘ll walk through the 10 foundation components that make up a robust, scalable IoT architecture in 2024.
Understanding these key building blocks will empower you to design and deploy IoT systems optimized for your specific use cases and business goals. Let‘s dive in!
1. Devices & Sensors
IoT devices equipped with sensors are the eyes and ears of an IoT system. They collect and transmit data on environmental conditions, user behaviors, machine performance, and more.
The installed base of IoT devices is exploding. There will be over 30 billion IoT devices by 2025, up from 12.5 billion in 2021 according to IoT Analytics.
Source: IoT Analytics 2021
Choosing the right sensors and devices based on variables like power, cost, connectivity protocols, and latency will be critical for your project‘s success.
2. Actuators
Actuators enable an IoT system to take physical action based on data inputs from sensors or other sources. They transduce electronic controls into real-world motion.
Common examples include motors, linear actuators, valves, relays, and robots. The growing capabilities of actuators are expanding the possibilities for IoT autonomous systems.
The global IoT actuator market is forecasted to grow from $45.2 billion in 2021 to over $90 billion by 2028 at a CAGR of 10.3%. (Source: Fortune Business Insights)
3. Connectivity & Gateways
Gateways transmit data between IoT devices in the field and backend systems via wired or wireless connectivity. Gateways play a vital role in enabling IoT devices to communicate.
There are tradeoffs between wired and wireless connectivity:
| Wired | Wireless |
|---|---|
| Faster data speeds | Flexible mobility |
| Higher reliability | Easier scalability |
| Lower latency | Higher cost at scale |
Popular wired protocols include Ethernet, Modbus, RS485. Leading wireless protocols include WiFi, Bluetooth, LoRaWAN, NB-IoT, 5G.
Carefully evaluate connectivity and gateway options to meet reliability, latency, bandwidth, and cost requirements.
4. Cloud & Edge Gateways
Cloud and edge gateways provide bridges between field devices and cloud/edge computing resources. They optimize and secure data flows:
- Cloud gateways aggregate, filter, and encrypt data before routing it to the cloud
- Edge gateways preprocess data and execute logic at the edge before sending insights to the cloud
According to MarketsandMarkets, the IoT gateway market will grow from $3.2 billion in 2021 to $13.7 billion by 2026 at a CAGR of 33.9%.
Gateways will continue playing a crucial role in 2024 and beyond as more data shifts from cloud to edge.
5. Data Storage – Lakes & Warehouses
IoT generates massive volumes of time series data from sensors and devices. This raw data gets stored in a data lake which provides scalable cloud object storage.
Relevant subsets of the data are then moved to a data warehouse for analysis. Data warehouses apply structure and context to raw data sets.
| Data Lake | Data Warehouse |
|---|---|
| Stores raw data at scale | Holds processed, structured data |
| Schema-less | Organized by schema |
| Low cost to ingest data | Higher cost for queries |
A robust data pipeline from lake to warehouse enables deriving value from IoT data.
6. Analytics & Visualization
Making sense of the data deluge from IoT deployments requires analytics tools ranging from dashboards to advanced machine learning.
Descriptive analytics turn data into insights like totals, averages, trends etc. Diagnostic analytics find the root causes of issues. Predictive analytics identify patterns to forecast future outcomes.
According to MarketsandMarkets, the IoT analytics market will grow from $27.4 billion in 2021 to $77.5 billion by 2026.
Continually expanding analytics capabilities will be crucial for extracting value from IoT data as deployments scale up.
7. Control Applications
Control applications contain the logic for how IoT systems respond to data inputs and events. They define rules like:
If {condition detected} then {take this action}
Control apps interpret analytics and send corresponding commands to actuators and other endpoints. They turn insights into automated, real-world actions.
No code application platforms enable faster development and iteration of control logic without programming.
8. User Applications
User applications provide interfaces for humans to monitor and interact with an IoT system. This includes:
- Dashboards for visualizing data and analytics
- Mobile/web apps for remote monitoring and manual control
- Voice assistants and chatbots for natural interaction
According to MarketsandMarkets, the IoT user interface market will grow from $4.3 billion in 2021 to $25.2 billion by 2026 at 32.3% CAGR.
User experience design will be increasingly critical for IoT solutions as they expand beyond purely machine-to-machine use cases.
9. Device Management
At scale, effectively managing thousands or millions of IoT devices becomes complex. Device management platforms provide capabilities like:
- Remote monitoring, diagnostics, and control
- Automatic device provisioning and authentication
- Software/firmware updates and configuration
- Real-time health dashboards and alerts
Top IoT device management vendors include Microsoft, IBM, AWS, and Google. The market is forecasted to reach $12.5 billion by 2025. (Source: IoT Analytics)
10. Machine Learning
Infusing machine learning throughout an IoT architecture opens the door to deeper insights and more responsive automation.
ML techniques enable IoT systems to:
- Continuously optimize analytics algorithms
- Forecast trends and future system states
- Guide real-time decision making at the edge
- Adapt control logic based on changing conditions
- Discover hidden correlations and patterns
According to MarketsandMarkets, the IoT ML market will grow at a 32.2% CAGR from $5.2 billion in 2021 to over $20 billion by 2026.
So in summary, these are 10 essential ingredients for cooking up a fully-featured IoT solution. The exact architecture will vary across use cases – a smart city vs a smart factory vs a connected vehicle all have unique requirements.
But thoughtfully combining devices, connectivity, data and analytics, automation, and human interfaces using the right core components enables building IoT systems that are robust, flexible, and scalable. The continued maturation of IoT platforms, software and embedded ML will drive more organizations to take advantage of IoT in 2024 and beyond.
