How edge computing is transforming our world

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.

article here  

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.