The Internet of Things (IoT) is vast. From smart cities and cars to smart stethoscopes and dog collars, Internet of Things examples are becoming more commonplace every day.
Former Google and Alphabet executive chairman Eric Schmidt made this bold IoT prediction during a panel at the World Economic Forum back in 2015: “[T]he Internet will disappear. There will be so many IP addresses, so many devices, sensors, things that you are wearing, things that you are interacting with, that you won’t even sense it. It will be part of your presence all the time.”
We’re not there yet, but we could be soon. With the number of connected devices expected to reach 27 billion by 2025, consumers will undoubtedly encounter IoT devices. To help understand how IoT works and how connected we really are, let’s take a look at real-life Internet of Things examples and the companies behind them.
Top Internet-of-Things (IoT) Examples to Know
- Connected cars.
- Smart appliances.
- Connected security systems.
- Smart agriculture equipment.
- Connected retail.
- Connected healthcare monitors.
- Connected manufacturing equipment.
- Connected cities.
Connected Cars and IoT
1. Airbiquity’s OTA Software Updates
Airbiquity is a software and engineering company that provides over-the-air (OTA) updates and data management services for connected cars. Airbiquity users can choose to have family or friends automatically and immediately notified in the event of a crash.
2. IoT Fleet Tracking from Zubie
Zubie offers real-time GPS for rent and business fleet tracking while monitoring vehicle health and driver performance. If a driver is in the habit of braking hard or accelerating rapidly, that information can be used to track maintenance and avoid potential accidents as well as increase fuel efficiency.
3. Tesla’s Connectivity Service
While Tesla is known for making strides in the electric vehicle market, connectivity plays a big part in Tesla’s cars too. All cars come with connectivity features that provide access to features through Wi-Fi only, in addition to basic maps, navigation and music streaming. Users can purchase Tesla’s Premium Connectivity to access all connectivity features through cellular-data as well as Wi-Fi.
Tesla also gives drivers the option to connect to their vehicle through the Tesla app, which can access the vehicle’s charging history and climate controls and be used to schedule service and roadside assistance.
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Smart Home Appliances and IoT
4. LG Electronics’ ThinQ Appliances
LG Electronics offers home appliances, consumer electronics and B2B solutions, as well as products ranging from digital signage and air conditioning to solar and vehicle components. LG’s ThinQ line of appliances incorporate machine learning and can easily connect to Google Assistant and Amazon’s Alexa. LG’s ThinQ app can also be used to connect to devices — and devices will notify you when maintenance is needed. Users can choose from smart appliances like refrigerators, washers, dryers and ovens.
5. Samsung Electronics’ Smart Appliances
While Samsung may be a recognizable name for its mobile devices, the electronics company also offers smart home appliances and TVs. Samsung products use seamless integration to allow users to connect phones, tablets and computers easily to one another. Samsung’s connected appliances can also be accessed through a mobile device where users can schedule cleanings with the Jet Cordless Stick Vacuum or get notifications when the fridge door is left open.
6. Energy-Saving Appliances From Electrolux
Electrolux is a home appliance company offering fridges, ovens, washers, dryers and more. Founded in 1919, Electrolux products are designed to be sustainable by using sensor technology that prevents excessive energy use in dryers and fridges.
7. Tovala’s Smart Oven
Tovala pairs its smart oven with a meal-kit delivery subscription service with the goal of providing users an effortless, mess-free way to cook food. Tovala’s smart oven works by scanning QR or bar codes and connecting to Wi-Fi, which it then uses to determine the best temperature and time to cook the food to avoid undercooking or burning.
Connected Security and IoT
8. Wyze’s Smart Security Cameras
Wyze makes a wide-range of IoT controlled devices and appliances to help people to control the products they interact with more seamlessly. Wyze’s smart security cameras offer both wired and wireless options and can be stacked on top of each other to provide more coverage. The Wyze app can connect to any of the company’s devices so users can view video feeds when they are away from home.
9. Josh.ai’s Integrated IoT System
JOSH.AI provides voice-controlled home automation that can connect to a variety of devices. The voice-based Josh OS can connect to smart devices like phones, watches, TVs and tablets. The options for home security range from doorbell cameras and door locks to ceiling and outdoor cameras. The Josh app lets users control their devices remotely.
10. Wink’s Remote Monitoring App
Using a single app, Wink users can monitor and control nearly everything in their homes. The Wink app allows users to control multiple products from various providers. For example, Wink can connect with the Dropcam Wireless Video Monitoring Camera and you can remotely monitor your property to check for damage or intruders.
11. IoT Security Systems from Verkada
Verkada operates a connected, around-the-clock security system that keeps buildings — and the people within them — safe. The company offers a variety of security cameras available in different sizes and configurations, as well as environmental sensors, integrated alarm panels and access control devices like door controllers, camera intercoms and door readers. Each Verkada device is controllable through the company’s Command platform, which delivers actionable insights in real-time and automatic updates to all cloud connected devices.
12. SimpliSafe’s Glass Break Sensors
SimpliSafe makes wireless and cellular home security systems that are disaster-ready, protected against power outages, operate on extra-secure networks and employ deep encryption. The company’s Glass Break Sensors can differentiate between types of shattering — say, a broken bottle versus a broken window pane.
13. Eyelock’s NanoIXT Security System
Eyelock creates iris-based identity authentication technology. Its suite of IoT products serves the automotive, financial, retail, mobile and healthcare sectors. Eyelock’s nanoIXT is a security system that can authenticate 30 people per minute. Designed for controlled access environments, the nanoIXT is equipped with verbal, multi-language support and auto-tilt cameras for scanning facial features and irises.
14. IoT Home Devices from AI Home Solutions
AI Home Solutions offers consultation and installation services to homeowners interested in integrating IoT technology in their home. The company provides solutions for home security and crime prevention with products from partner brands like Google, Ring, Nest and Amazon, according to its website.
Further ReadingHow Will the Internet of Things (IoT) Evolve?
Smart Agriculture and IoT
15. John Deere’s Precision Farming Equipment
John Deere acquired tech startup Blue River Technology in 2017 to further the company’s goal of applying IoT and machine learning to agriculture. Deere’s equipment monitors important agricultural factors like moisture levels, air and soil temperature and wind speed and relays the collected data to farmers. The company’s tractors and other equipment are outfitted with satellite-connected guidance and tracking systems that collect data allowing for what’s called “precision farming,” which greatly increases the efficiency of fertilizers and pesticides.
16. IoT Herd Tracking from HerdDogg
HerdDogg makes lightweight sensors that are attached to the ears of herd animals to collect herd data and transmit it to the cloud, where it can then be accessed via the company’s app. HerdDogg also offers a drone that taps into the GPS location of herd animals so farmers and ranchers can oversee their herds remotely.
Connected Retail and IoT
17. IoT Price Predictions from Engage3
Engage3’s Price Image tool helps retailers set prices and evaluate competitive costs by using machine learning to combine in-store audits, web scraping and point of sales data. Its platform provides predictive analytics, historical pricing data and a product database containing millions of UPCs and billions of annual price updates.
18. Enevo’s Waste Management Sensors
Enevo uses IoT-enabled container sensors to manage waste and recycling services for a variety of sectors, including retail. The company’s sensors collect dumpster data that can then be compared with collection schedules so waste haulers can’t bill customers for collections that weren’t made.
19. SPECTRALINK’s Mobile IoT Devices
Spectralink uses IoT-linked technology to help mobile workers improve customer care, operational efficiency, omni-channel sales and sales associate knowledge. The company provides solutions for retailers to equip mobile workers, like delivery drivers, with devices and apps that are connected to its AMIE platform. Spectralink’s AMIE provides a central location to manage deployment, analytics and diagnostics as well as alert users when issues arise.
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Connected Healthcare and IoT
20. Endotronix’s IoT Heart Monitor
Endotronix’s Cordella Heart Failure System connects patients and doctors through proactive monitoring with goals like the early detection of heart failure, better informed medical interventions and more efficient patient management. Doctors implant a tiny Endotronix sensor to monitor pulmonary arterial pressure instead of doing a much more invasive heart catheterization.
21. Nexleaf Analytics’ IoT Data Collection
Nexleaf provides data analytics tools and lightweight sensor services to those in the global public health and climate change sectors. A nonprofit company, its team of computer scientists, software engineers, public health experts and many others works extensively in low-and middle-income countries.
NexLeaf’s StoveTrace project facilitates loans for Indian women in the state of Odisha to buy clean-burning (and therefore less harmful), more energy-efficient stoves that register usage via thermal sensors and send data to a wall-mounted monitor, from which it is later downloaded via bluetooth.
22. Propeller Health’s Inhaler Sensor
By attaching Propeller’s sensor to an inhaler, users can learn more about what triggers asthma attacks while staying connected to friends, family and healthcare providers through an online app. According to its website, using digital data to assess asthma control has been shown to more accurately determine how many inhaler puffs were needed to control an attack, which in turn could influence usage guidelines and improve patient health.
Connected Manufacturing and IoT
23. IoT Production Insights from Tulip
Tulip’s platform is designed to help frontline operations teams build functional and user-friendly apps that integrate with hardware throughout the factory. Its I/O Gateway and Edge MC facilitate easy connection to devices, sensors and machines in any factory, allowing them to provide real-time production insights and visualizations of shop floor data. The platform allows users to create and customize reports, dashboards and visualizations to best fit their needs with the self-service analytics tool, allowing production managers to stay consistently on top of their operations.
24. IoT Safety Management from StrongArm Technologies
StrongArm Technologies makes IoT-connected safety wearables that use a massive industrial data set to provide workers with athlete-level attention and keep them safe while on the job. The company’s wearables collect gigabytes of data per day from each worker, calculating metrics on motion, time at work, machine data and CCTV activity to form a safety score that can uncover weaknesses or blind spots.
25. IoT Production Monitoring From Amper
Amper’s production monitoring system uses machine learning, data science and IoT sensors to enhance the manufacturing process. The sensors register a variety of factors, including energy use and downtime, so factory owners and supervisors can plan schedules, cut costs and pinpoint areas of growth.
26. PalleTech’s IoT Connected Pallets
PalleTech makes cloud-connected pallets for manufacturing and shipping. Pallet providers can keep track of their products and recycling opportunities while users can receive important data such as temperature and shock reading via a smartphone app.
27. Axzon’s Temperature and Moisture Sensors
Axzon sensors provide real-time data on temperature and moisture during the automotive manufacturing process, and its predictive maintenance technology monitors the condition of factory equipment to help prevent breakdowns and time-consuming repairs. The sensors keep tabs on equipment temperature, which can prevent overheating, melted motor windings or cause bearings to break.
Connected Cities and IoT
28. IoT Connected Scooters and Bikes from Superpedestrian
Superpedestrian develops human-powered mobility for cities. The company offers e-scooters, bikes as well as wheelchair-compatible bikes that users can link to via a smartphone app. Superpedestrian aims to be sustainable as its vehicles charge less often with a 61 mile range and are recycled after their lifecycle.
29. UrbanFootprint’s City Planning Software
UrbanFootprint’s urban planning software is used to design sustainable cities and evaluate energy-usage. The city of Madison, Wisconsin enlisted the company to model the impacts and benefits (on things like transit accessibility, public health and emissions) of enhancing its bus rapid transit system as part of a 2040 Comprehensive Plan update.
