Vision and Challenges for Realising the Internet of Things

Middleware and other software developments, including intelligent processing platforms to
support IoT functionality and services design.
3 Recommendations
In devising a plan of action for Europe to pursue the development of an IoT it is clear that ongoing
international cooperation is the key requirement.
Extending the number of international partners and gaining agreement on the structural, governance
and foundational features will help to better define and accommodate the development
of the IoT.
What can be seen from the CASAGRAS study and the CERP-IoT initiative is the substantial
investment that has already been made by the EC towards realising this IoT concept, and its
importance within the European strategy for ICT development.
However, there can also be seen a need for rationalising this and subsequent investment to
better utilise its potential.
Governments, industries and businesses are clearly unaware of what the IoT is and what it
offers. Awareness and education programmes are key requirements in creating a better understanding
of the potential and the benefits.
These programmes should be particularly directed to the SME community. Follow-up business
development initiatives will be critical in taking the IoT concept to effective reality.
The establishment of an overarching, internationally-partnered, organisational platform to
help to steer the IoT development. These partners should represent a cross section of interest
including Governmental and Standards agencies; industry, business and academe.
The development and delivery of a strategic migration plan for developing an IoT from a
minimalist model to a more inclusive model, including identity management and resolver
techniques
The development of a universal or federated data capture appliance protocol to accommodate
migratory inclusion of object-connectable technologies.
The development of an architectural platform for supporting and demonstrating IoT application
and services, and for addressing problems associated with IoT development, possibly
based upon the establishment of a generic top-level Internet domain.
The development of the rules for governance of the IoT with attention to social and economic
issues including privacy and security
The initiation of application and service pilot studies and demonstrators, particularly with
respect to pathway process applications exploiting extended process functionality and scalable
sensor-network applications.
International cooperation on pilot developments and promotional initiatives directed at
enhancing inclusion of national bodies in cooperative developments.
The establishment and pursuance of a strategic research and development roadmap for IoT
development, drawing upon the findings of the CERP-IoT group report, Internet of Things
Strategic Research Roadmap (2009).
In addition the CASAGRAS partners believe there is a need to:
Agree on a definition of the Internet of Things that can be used as a popular point of reference.
Reduce the number of overlapping and potentially conflicting projects.
Undertake major education, training and awareness programmes to explain the IoT. Ideally
this should be part of the next round of projects aiming at creating global understanding
and awareness.
Set up key European Centres or academies for AIDC and the Internet of Things, underlining
the importance or awareness, training and education. This foundational move will ensure
the involvement of academe in the educational process associated with IoT development
and will underpin further development of the principles in response to technological
change.
CASAGRAS has proved without doubt that there is the need and the will for international cooperation.
China, Japan, Korea and the USA are on board. Europe has taken the lead and now
needs to drive the initiative as a truly global partnership.
CERP-IoT – Cluster of European Research Projects on the Internet of Things
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