Imagine a city where sensors monitor everything from temperature to traffic patterns; where street lights are activated and deactivated using motion sensors; where water pipes can shut off leaks remotely and where security can be improved using automated surveillance. Imagine a city where your sat nav not only tells you where to go, but also directs you to the nearest available parking space.
This reality is being enabled by the continually expanding Internet of Things (IoT), a web of objects and sensors connected to the internet which are able to seamlessly communicate with one another, in real-time. The city of the future will be able to communicate with itself, track and respond to the movement of its residents, and automatically optimise conditions.
Before this can happen however, we still have three hurdles to overcome:
1. Building an infrastructure fit for purpose
The first critical step towards shaping a smart city involves the creation of a reliable shared-services platform that aligns all of a city’s services. Acting as a foundation, it will connect all of a city’s smart technologies – from electricity grids through to water metres and, of course, all other utilities.
This works best when managed by a single large body. Take Dubai’s IoT infrastructure for example, where success comes largely from its ability to create a shared central IT organisation, called Dubai Smart Government (DSG) that joins all the other smart initiatives together, acting like an IT services enablement division for the rest of Dubai’s eGovernment.
2. Connecting Services
The sharing of information between services can be used for anything from easing traffic congestion to saving lives. Imagine that a reckless driver was to cause a traffic accident which badly injures the driver of another car. CCTV footage could be shared with the police and relevant insurance parties, a transportation service could reroute traffic based on real time data and a nearby ambulance could be alerted to the incident, immediately pulling up the driver’s medical history so that he/she receives the best possible medical care.
While we may not be quite there yet, certain elements are beginning to be put into practice. For example, VMware AirWatch already works closely with Tel Aviv Municipality to provide its traffic wardens with an AirWatch-managed Samsung Note 5, essentially providing them with a digital workspace that allows them to work from any location. They can use the devices for ticketing by logging tickets and filling reports that include pictures, time and GPS stamps of the parking contraventions, all while on the go.
3. Security
Cities becoming smart means deploying even more IoT devices to connect infrastructure and resources. Gartner projects that 6.4 billion connected things will be in use worldwide this year, and forecasts that the number will grow by more than three times, to nearly 21 billion by the year 2020. This surge in connected devices, and the amount of data being shared wirelessly, will provide huge opportunities, but could also pose serious risks. It’s not just personal data, such as medical records which is at risk, but also critical services such as transportation systems or electricity grids.
The Final Component…
One essential ingredient is needed in order to create a secure network of devices across a smart city: a robust enterprise mobility management (EMM) solution, that guarantees the end-to-end management of all connected devices. Think of the number of devices, used in the finance or healthcare sectors for example, which could have access to sensitive resources and information. It’s crucial that organizations in these have the ability to communicate securely with their networks of trusted devices.
The opportunities presented by smart cities for both citizens and businesses are both as exciting as they are endless. With proper implementation, a well-managed infrastructure, a robust EMM solution and plenty of imagination, smart cities will provide huge economic, cultural and social advantages for their residents, meaning each and every one of us has an exciting future ahead.
