eTech - IEC International Electrotechnical Commission
From smart
manufacturing and farming to healthcare, edge computing is enabling new ways
for companies to operate, while relying on IEC Standards.
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Edge computing is
revolutionizing the ways companies and businesses operate. A key enabling
technology of the digital transformation of our societies, edge computing
signifies moving computing power physically closer to where data is generated,
thereby reducing latency and network costs. A commonly
used definition for edge computing is all computing outside the cloud
happening at the edge of the network, and more specifically in applications
where real-time processing of data is required. It operates on "instant
data" that is real-time data generated by sensors.
According to the
IEC White Paper Edge intelligence, devices and sensors produce more data
than is economically or practically feasible to transmit to the centrally
shared cloud. To address this problem, analytical algorithms can be applied at
the edge to process the incoming sensor data and only send higher level
information to the central cloud. This also enables confidential or
privacy-related data to be kept near the data source so that the disclosure of
data can be limited. This process is called edge intelligence and is totally
dependent on edge computing.
The market for edge
computing is skyrocketing
Analysts across the
wide range of consultancies which focus on Internet of Things (IoT) markets forecast
a multi-billion-dollar surge in spending for infrastructure at the edge. As
soon as 2025, Gartner predicts that more than half of
enterprise-managed data will be created and processed outside the data centre
(or central cloud). Deloitte forecasts in its Technology, Media &
Telecommunications 2023 Predictions report an enterprise market growth of
22% for edge computing in 2023.
According to
another one of these consultancies, Accenture, what makes edge computing truly
exciting is its potential for transforming business across every industry and
function, from customer engagement to production and back-office operations.
“In all cases, edge computing helps make business functions proactive and
adaptive – often in real-time – leading to new, optimized experiences for
people,” the consultancy says.
Industry and
business applications
Key examples of the
way edge computing changes working practices can be found in smart
manufacturing. “Many manufacturers collect data on the shop floor via IoT
sensors and analyze that data to drive predictive maintenance and optimize
machine performance,” explains Greg Hookings, Director of Business Development
for Europe, the Middle East and Africa at a cloud computing provider.
“Every IoT device –
from robotic arms to assembly systems – collects data for processing and
analysis. Edge computing processes that data instantly and provides
manufacturers with the information to make faster, more informed decisions,
optimizing the supply chain, streamlining production and reducing costs,” he
adds. Other applications vary from smart farming to healthcare. Examples
include:
Oil rigs in the
middle of the ocean using IoT sensors and artificial intelligence (AI) to
quickly detect equipment malfunctions before they worsen
Irrigation systems
in remote farming locations which adjust the amount of water used in real time
by detecting soil moisture levels
Video feeds from
street cameras, analyzed to detect if accidents occur and alert the
authorities. Such traffic management scenarios are being worked upon by
the Barcelona City Council, for instance.
The latency
reduction resulting from edge computing can unlock applications like robotic
surgery that rely on the analysis of highly contextualised data to make
split-second decisions.
Retail stores
situated miles away from their companies’ primary data centres which use
wireless point-of-sale devices to instantly process payments
Paving the way for
the metaverse
The list of how
edge computing is transforming the world is endless and would not be complete
without looking at the huge benefits it can bring to the extended reality (XR)
environment and the metaverse. Cloud rendering at the edge, combined with
the maturation of 5G networks, is allowing for faster operations in an XR
environment, where data can move rapidly back and forth between eye tracking,
motion tracking tools and headsets. Manufacturers are introducing edge
cloud platforms to support real-time photorealistic virtual experiences,
for instance.
The metaverse
points to the evolution of the internet as a digital world that closely mirrors
our own. The experience is enhanced by being three dimensional and persistent across
applications and devices. Most experts agree that it will be built on a
decentralized architecture which combines edge computing with blockchain
technology to enable simultaneous streaming and management of content at scale.
While some view it
as overhyped, major companies are investing in this new 3D environment,
including one of the major social media platforms – even changing its name to
reflect the 3D universe. The company has partnered with a major US cellular
operator to create an edge computing and 5G environment for metaverse
universe development. The idea is to deliver metaverse experiences across all
screens, at home, at work, and on the go.
How the IEC helps
As more devices
become smarter and connected, the increased generation of data will require
faster networks and localized computing resources to manage it. This doesn’t
mean the death of the centralized cloud, but it does signify that we will
operate in a hybrid world where both central hubs and edge computing coexist.
The joint technical
subcommittee formed between ISO and IEC to publish standards in the areas of
cloud computing and distributed platforms, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 38, states
that the principles of cloud computing taking place in a centralized data
centre should be the same as cloud computing that takes place at the edge. In
other words, cloud computing and edge computing are both considered in the same
continuum.
“The fact is that
there will be multitudes of computing resources in multitudes of places and not
just many in one place,” says Frank Nash, VP of Technical Sales and Solutions
at a French multinational involved in many of the tech areas relating
to edge computing. “We are truly moving into the age of the internet of
everything.”
SC 38 has
published ISO/IEC TR 23188, which examines the concept of edge computing,
its relationship to cloud computing and IoT, and the technologies that are key
to the implementation of edge computing. IEC Technical Committee
47 publishes some of the key standards relating to sensors, including IEC
60747-14-1, which describes generic specifications for sensors.
ISO/IEC SC 41
prepares standards for the IoT and Digital Twin and has published an extensive
collection of standards relating to sensor networks. It issues ISO/IEC TR
30164 which describes the common concepts, terminologies, characteristics,
use cases and technologies (including data management, coordination,
processing, network functionality, heterogeneous computing, security, and
hardware/software optimization) of edge computing for IoT systems.
Lastly, the IEC has
recently formed a standardization evaluation group on the metaverse as there is
a requirement for global standards to systematically address interoperability
issues relating to this new 3D universe.
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