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IoT, Volume 2, Issue 2 (June 2021) – 8 articles

Cover Story (view full-size image): Our conceptual decentralized IoT architecture leverages three peer-to-peer (P2P) shared services administered by the government. The computing overlay (e.g., Ethereum network) provides a secure and trusted computing platform while the storage overlay (e.g., IPFS network) maintains the saving of IoT raw data and application data. The networking overlay (e.g., OpenFlow network) controls the intra- and inter-domain connectivity through SDN switches and controllers. The domain owners operate their respective IoT domains independently and supply IoT resources to IoT users. Meanwhile, the Internet Service Provider (ISP) controls the data delivery across the IoT domains through an autonomous system (AS). All of those mentioned IoT entities have access to the envisioned P2P shared services to provide IoT workflows in their daily operational cases. View this paper
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14 pages, 1888 KiB  
Article
Rock-Paper-Scissors-Hammer: A Tie-Less Decentralized Protocol for IoT Resource Allocation
by Sandip Dutta
IoT 2021, 2(2), 341-354; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020018 - 31 May 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 3401
Abstract
With the rapid development of the autonomous world, local decision making between devices is becoming important. This article provides a new paradigm (Rock-Paper-Scissors-Hammer: RPSH) that can reduce the number of conflicts or decision draws and thus increase the throughput of autonomous devices while [...] Read more.
With the rapid development of the autonomous world, local decision making between devices is becoming important. This article provides a new paradigm (Rock-Paper-Scissors-Hammer: RPSH) that can reduce the number of conflicts or decision draws and thus increase the throughput of autonomous devices while reducing the kept number of records or transactions. The paradigm requires a sealed envelope protocol and sequential message passing between both parties to decide unanimously a winner between the two participants without a third-party mediation. The message passing proposes a detailed record in a blockchain-like format that is not corruptible and is verifiable for conflict resolution. A simulated IoT environment is created to show the advantage of the proposed protocol and it shows significant reduction in mean efforts due to the elimination of draws or undecided situations. Autonomous devices, such as cars, need to maintain meticulous, lightweight, but blockchain-like record keeping for insurance settlements or conflict resolutions; that archival data size is significantly reduced by the RPSH protocol. Full article
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15 pages, 1189 KiB  
Article
Secure Path: Block-Chaining IoT Information for Continuous Authentication in Smart Spaces
by Lorenzo Bracciale, Pierpaolo Loreti, Claudio Pisa and Alex Shahidi
IoT 2021, 2(2), 326-340; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020017 - 18 May 2021
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 3812
Abstract
The Internet of Things offers a wide range of possibilities that can be exploited more or less explicitly for user authentication, ranging from specifically designed systems including biometric devices to environmental sensors that can be opportunistically used to feed behavioural authentication systems. How [...] Read more.
The Internet of Things offers a wide range of possibilities that can be exploited more or less explicitly for user authentication, ranging from specifically designed systems including biometric devices to environmental sensors that can be opportunistically used to feed behavioural authentication systems. How to integrate all this information in a reliable way to get a continuous authentication service presents several open challenges. Among these: how to combine semi-trusted information coming from non-tamper-proof sensors, where to store such data avoiding a single point of failure, how to analyse data in a distributed way, which interface to use to provide an authentication service to a multitude of different services and applications. In this paper, we present a Blockchain-based architectural solution of a distributed system able to transform IoT interactions into useful data for an authentication system. The design includes: (i) a security procedure to certify users’ positions and identities, (ii) a secure storage to hold this information, and (iii) a service to dynamically assign a trust level to a user’s position. We call this system “Secure Path”. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cyber Security and Privacy in IoT)
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16 pages, 4066 KiB  
Article
Availability Modeling and Performance Improving of a Healthcare Internet of Things (IoT) System
by Shensheng Tang and Yi Xie
IoT 2021, 2(2), 310-325; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020016 - 14 May 2021
Cited by 13 | Viewed by 3207
Abstract
Internet of Things (IoT) is improving human life in a more convenient and simpler way. One of the most promising IoT applications is healthcare. In this paper, an availability model of a healthcare IoT system is proposed which is composed of two groups [...] Read more.
Internet of Things (IoT) is improving human life in a more convenient and simpler way. One of the most promising IoT applications is healthcare. In this paper, an availability model of a healthcare IoT system is proposed which is composed of two groups of structures described by separate Markov state-space models. The two separate models are analyzed and combined to implement the whole IoT system modeling. The system balance equations are solved under a given scenario and some performance metrics of interest, such as probabilities of full service, degraded service, and the system unavailability, are derived. Detailed numerical evaluation of selected metrics is provided for further understanding and verification of the analytic results. An availability performance improving (API) method is also proposed for increasing the probability of system full service and decreasing the system unavailability. The proposed system modeling and performance improving method can serve as a useful reference for general IoT system design and evaluation. Full article
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35 pages, 6738 KiB  
Article
Using Citizen Science to Complement IoT Data Collection: A Survey of Motivational and Engagement Factors in Technology-Centric Citizen Science Projects
by Muhammad Uzar Ali, Bhupesh Kumar Mishra, Dhavalkumar Thakker, Suvodeep Mazumdar and Sydney Simpson
IoT 2021, 2(2), 275-309; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020015 - 04 May 2021
Cited by 6 | Viewed by 5173
Abstract
A key aspect of the development of Smart Cities involves the efficient and effective management of resources to improve liveability. Achieving this requires large volumes of sensors strategically deployed across urban areas. In many cases, however, it is not feasible to install devices [...] Read more.
A key aspect of the development of Smart Cities involves the efficient and effective management of resources to improve liveability. Achieving this requires large volumes of sensors strategically deployed across urban areas. In many cases, however, it is not feasible to install devices in remote and inaccessible areas, resulting in incomplete data coverage. In such situations, citizens can often play a crucial role in filling this data collection gap. A popular complimentary science to traditional sensor-based data collection is to design Citizen Science (CS) activities in collaboration with citizens and local communities. Such activities are also designed with a feedback loop where the Citizens benefit from their participation by gaining a greater sense of awareness of their local issues while also influencing how the activities can align best with their local contexts. The participation and engagement of citizens are vital and yet often a real challenge in ensuring the long-term continuity of CS projects. In this paper, we explore engagement factors, factors that help keeping engagement high, in technology-centric CS projects where technology is a key enabler to support CS activities. We outline a literature review of exploring and understanding various motivational and engagement factors that influence the participation of citizens in technology-driven CS activities. Based on this literature, we present a mobile-based flood monitoring citizen science application aimed at supporting data collection activities in a real-world CS project as part of an EU project. We discuss the results of a user evaluation of this app, and finally discuss our findings within the context of citizens’ engagement. Full article
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26 pages, 3458 KiB  
Article
A Greedy Scheduling Approach for Peripheral Mobile Intelligent Systems
by Ghassan Fadlallah, Djamal Rebaine and Hamid Mcheick
IoT 2021, 2(2), 249-274; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020014 - 30 Apr 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 3198
Abstract
Smart, pervasive devices have recently experienced accelerated technological development in the fields of hardware, software, and wireless connections. The promotion of various kinds of collaborative mobile computing requires an upgrade in network connectivity with wireless technologies, as well as enhanced peer-to-peer communication. Mobile [...] Read more.
Smart, pervasive devices have recently experienced accelerated technological development in the fields of hardware, software, and wireless connections. The promotion of various kinds of collaborative mobile computing requires an upgrade in network connectivity with wireless technologies, as well as enhanced peer-to-peer communication. Mobile computing also requires appropriate scheduling methods to speed up the implementation and processing of various computing applications by better managing network resources. Scheduling techniques are relevant to the modern architectural models that support the IoT paradigm, particularly smart collaborative mobile computing architectures at the network periphery. In this regard, load-balancing techniques have also become necessary to exploit all the available capabilities and thus the speed of implementation. However, since the problem of scheduling and load-balancing, which we addressed in this study, is known to be NP-hard, the heuristic approach is well justified. We thus designed and validated a greedy scheduling and load-balancing algorithm to improve the utilization of resources. We conducted a comparison study with the longest cloudlet fact processing (LCFP), shortest cloudlet fact processing (SCFP), and Min-Min heuristic algorithms. The choice of those three algorithms is based on the efficiency and simplicity of their mechanisms, as reported in the literature, for allocating tasks to devices. The simulation we conducted showed the superiority of our approach over those algorithms with respect to the overall completion time criterion. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Internet of Things Technologies for Smart Cities)
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13 pages, 4145 KiB  
Article
Enabling Secure Guest Access for Command-and-Control of Internet of Things Devices
by Andrew John Poulter and Simon J. Cox
IoT 2021, 2(2), 236-248; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020013 - 29 Apr 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2959
Abstract
Internet of Things (IoT) devices are becoming ubiquitous, and may be arranged to form formal or ad hoc Command and Control (C2) networks. Such networks typically do not have a mechanism to facilitate the sharing of either data or control inputs. This paper [...] Read more.
Internet of Things (IoT) devices are becoming ubiquitous, and may be arranged to form formal or ad hoc Command and Control (C2) networks. Such networks typically do not have a mechanism to facilitate the sharing of either data or control inputs. This paper examines this problem in the context of IoT devices operating within C2 systems which do not have a trusted relationship with each other. We propose a solution which we call syndication, to provide a controlled mechanism to share data between C2 systems of devices without a fully trusted relationship. This paper builds upon previous work which established a lightweight protocol for secure C2 operations within the IoT. Using the proposed approach enables not only sharing of data but also permits the external controller to submit moderated requests for actions to be performed. The paper concludes by examining how this approach could also be adopted to provide secure guest access to connected systems in a domestic or commercial context. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Cyber Security and Privacy in IoT)
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14 pages, 346 KiB  
Article
ThriftyNets: Convolutional Neural Networks with Tiny Parameter Budget
by Guillaume Coiffier, Ghouthi Boukli Hacene and Vincent Gripon
IoT 2021, 2(2), 222-235; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020012 - 30 Mar 2021
Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2825
Abstract
Deep Neural Networks are state-of-the-art in a large number of challenges in machine learning. However, to reach the best performance they require a huge pool of parameters. Indeed, typical deep convolutional architectures present an increasing number of feature maps as we go deeper [...] Read more.
Deep Neural Networks are state-of-the-art in a large number of challenges in machine learning. However, to reach the best performance they require a huge pool of parameters. Indeed, typical deep convolutional architectures present an increasing number of feature maps as we go deeper in the network, whereas spatial resolution of inputs is decreased through downsampling operations. This means that most of the parameters lay in the final layers, while a large portion of the computations are performed by a small fraction of the total parameters in the first layers. In an effort to use every parameter of a network at its maximum, we propose a new convolutional neural network architecture, called ThriftyNet. In ThriftyNet, only one convolutional layer is defined and used recursively, leading to a maximal parameter factorization. In complement, normalization, non-linearities, downsamplings and shortcut ensure sufficient expressivity of the model. ThriftyNet achieves competitive performance on a tiny parameters budget, exceeding 91% accuracy on CIFAR-10 with less than 40 k parameters in total, 74.3% on CIFAR-100 with less than 600 k parameters, and 67.1% On ImageNet ILSVRC 2012 with no more than 4.15 M parameters. However, the proposed method typically requires more computations than existing counterparts. Full article
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17 pages, 3038 KiB  
Article
A Conceptual Architecture in Decentralizing Computing, Storage, and Networking Aspect of IoT Infrastructure
by Yustus Eko Oktian, Elizabeth Nathania Witanto and Sang-Gon Lee
IoT 2021, 2(2), 205-221; https://doi.org/10.3390/iot2020011 - 28 Mar 2021
Cited by 18 | Viewed by 5609
Abstract
Since the inception of the Internet of Things (IoT), we have adopted centralized architecture for decades. With the vastly growing number of IoT devices and gateways, this architecture struggles to cope with the high demands of state-of-the-art IoT services, which require scalable and [...] Read more.
Since the inception of the Internet of Things (IoT), we have adopted centralized architecture for decades. With the vastly growing number of IoT devices and gateways, this architecture struggles to cope with the high demands of state-of-the-art IoT services, which require scalable and responsive infrastructure. In response, decentralization becomes a considerable interest among IoT adopters. Following a similar trajectory, this paper introduces an IoT architecture re-work that enables three spheres of IoT workflows (i.e., computing, storage, and networking) to be run in a distributed manner. In particular, we employ the blockchain and smart contract to provide a secure computing platform. The distributed storage network maintains the saving of IoT raw data and application data. The software-defined networking (SDN) controllers and SDN switches exist in the architecture to provide connectivity across multiple IoT domains. We envision all of those services in the form of separate yet integrated peer-to-peer (P2P) overlay networks, which IoT actors such as IoT domain owners, IoT users, Internet Service Provider (ISP), and government can cultivate. We also present several IoT workflow examples showing how IoT developers can adapt to this new proposed architecture. Based on the presented workflows, the IoT computing can be performed in a trusted and privacy-preserving manner, the IoT storage can be made robust and verifiable, and finally, we can react to the network events automatically and quickly. Our discussions in this paper can be beneficial for many people ranging from academia, industries, and investors that are interested in the future of IoT in general. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Industrial IoT as IT and OT Convergence: Challenges and Opportunities)
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