Recently we took a look at the IoT as it relates to transportation. We touched on connected cars, automobiles as sensors, connected infrastructure, and a few more specific factors. In this post we want to follow up with how the Internet of Things is being integrated with some popular vehicles, from bicycles to airplanes, in everyday life.
The IoT In Bicycles
There hasn’t been too much written about how the Internet of Things can work with bicycles, and in fact many of us think of bicycles almost as a kind of escape from technology and machines. There’s something pleasant about the idea of a purely mechanical transportation system that can still get you from point A to point B in 2016. And yet, a bike has been unveiled in London that uses the power of the IoT to provide information to the rider about the surrounding city. That means reaching out to other devices and systems to gather information about everything from weather to traffic patterns, all in the interest of providing a safer and more pleasurable cycling experience. Incidentally, these bicycles can also collect environmental data (such as air pollution levels) and send it out to relevant organizations, effectively turning cyclists into IoT nodes for city and environmental management.
The IoT In Fleet Trucks & Vans
We largely covered the impact of the IoT in ordinary cars in our previous piece. But many people don’t realize the extent to which the Internet of Things is already active in some of the other most popular vehicles on the road: trucks and vans operating in shipping fleets. By outfitting these trucks and vans with WiFi and advanced GPS, fleet managers can now monitor vehicle diagnostics, routing, tracking, and more. It’s not something that impacts us all directly, but having this kind of understanding of the shipping process is making the roads safer, making companies more efficient, and ultimately keeping customers happy. But the biggest impact is on the fleet drivers themselves, who can now enjoy more efficient routes and more reliable vehicles all thanks to the influence of technology.
The IoT In Airplanes
Very little seems to be written about the potential impact of the IoT in airplanes, and perhaps that’s because we don’t truly perceive ourselves as interacting with them that much. We simply go along for the ride, accepting whatever the pilots and crew need to do to make that ride comfortable, safe, and efficient. However, airlines are tapping into the IoT as well, even if it’s less about the actual transportation process and more about the details that surround it. Various IoT sensors and methods are being used, for instance, to improve the passenger experience and baggage handling, track pets during flights, and monitor the diagnostics and fueling needs of aircrafts. These add up to a pretty significant effort by which automated IoT technologies can have a major impact on air travel.
These are just a few things to keep in mind as we move forward into the next few years of IoT integration. When we hear about how it all relates to transportation, it’s not just about smart cars and city sensors.
