Business Strategy and Innovation Framework
considerations , on issues such as adherence to standards-based technologies and membership of industry ecosystems , when selecting IIoT platforms and service providers .
6.2.3 STANDARDS IN THE INDUSTRIAL IOT
The internet and mobile industries have demonstrated the importance of widely adopted open standards . They both benefit from a competitive supplier base that encourages innovation and economies of scale . As a result , business and consumer users have enjoyed affordable prices for communications products and services that have led to near-universal adoption . Standardization will play an equally important role in securing the long-term success of IIoT .
The number of standards that claim to support IoT runs to many dozens if not hundreds . Often they apply to specific industries or relate to different layers of the IIoT stack . OPC-UA , for example , is a specific communications protocol for process control applications , whereas CoAP ( IETF and OASIS ) and DDS ( OMG ) are general-purpose standards for communications and data management . Both CoAP and DDS were produced by recognized standards development organizations ( SDOs ).
Enterprise and industry alliances represent a less formal approach to standardization , achieving this through de facto solutions or individual certifications . In the smart home domain , examples include Google ’ s Thread solution and the approach proposed by the Open Connectivity Foundation ( OCF ). 1 In the healthcare sector , the Continua Alliance 2 has published an open implementation framework for interoperability between personalized , connected healthcare devices and solutions . This framework draws explicitly on communications and healthcare standards produced by SDOs . The Continua Alliance enforces this framework through a certification process .
CoAP , DDS , Google Thread and OCF are examples of standardization that build up from the networking protocol layer . To ensure end-to-end service quality , IIoT platforms must be able to operate across multiple devices and sensors using different networking protocols and application technologies .
The SDO community has begun to address this integration challenge through new IoT architecture and horizontal platform initiatives . The first step in this standardization process is usually a review of the market and existing standards . The following timeline maps the activities of several SDOs in terms of the three main milestones associated with initiating a new standard — opportunity discovery , IoT program launch , and release of a first deliverable .
1
Merger of AllSeen Alliance ( Qualcomm ) and OIC ( Intel , Samsung ) initiatives targeting the home and small-office segments .
2
The Continua Alliance recently merged with the mHealth Summit and HIMSS to form the Personal Connected Health Alliance ( PCHA ), which operates as a membership association .
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