Читать книгу Fundamentals of IoT and Wearable Technology Design - Haider Raad - Страница 21

Despite the commonalities, it is clear that there are substantial differences when we speak about wearable technology in the context of fitness trackers as opposed to when IoT is used in the context of manufacturing processes or smart cities. In fact, many experts in the field argue that wearables fall under the umbrella of IoT. One key difference worth highlighting here is that most wearables rely on a gateway device, such as a smartphone, for configuration and connectivity, and in most cases to enable features and process data. It is this M2M aspect that makes wearables a separate class of devices, and that's why we prefer to treat these as two technologies with two sets of characteristics.

It is also worth noting that not all wearable devices require connectivity, for example, a simple pedometer and an ultraviolet monitor could operate offline. Other wearables require minimal connectivity only.

Although IoT and wearable devices have a lot in common in terms of design aspects, components, and technologies and protocols used, there are still some real differences that architects and designers need to be aware of. Figure 1.4 shows a table summarizing the main differences between M2M, IoT, and Wearable Technology.

Figure 1.4 A summary of the main differences between M2M, IoT, and Wearable Technology.