5G, Cloud, IoT and Big Data
5G, Cloud, IoT, and Big Data: The New Convergence
Robots, wearables, home appliances, and connected devices: billions of objects are already generating enormous amounts of data. With the fifth generation of cellular networks—commonly called 5G—set to revolutionize our daily lives, the potential of the Internet of Things (IoT) will soon be limited only by our imagination.
The rapid expansion of disruptive technologies shows that IoT, with nearly 13 billion connected devices in use worldwide, is already an integral part of our daily lives, both at work and at home. Gartner predicts that by 2020, the number of connected devices in use globally will reach 20.4 billion, generating massive volumes of data.
These data are primarily generated by sensors embedded in connected devices and through machine-to-machine (M2M) communication. Designed for large-scale deployment, these sensors can equip vast numbers of devices. With 5G promising unprecedented data speeds, the volume of “sensory” information available is expected to grow exponentially.
5G: Fueling the Internet of Things
5G, the next generation of wireless networks, is expected to deliver speeds at least ten times higher than current 4G networks. While still largely conceptual, many technology companies are racing to play a key role in its development.
The consensus today is that commercial 5G networks will be ready for deployment by 2020, with numerous companies already demonstrating prototypes. Recent real-world tests by industry leaders such as Nokia, Ericsson, and Samsung show that 5G will impact not only mobile networks but the entire ecosystem—from smartphones to cloud services.
Massive and Convergent Data
Even though big data has been a hot topic for some time, the volumes IoT will produce in the coming years are unprecedented. Tomorrow, the volume, speed, and variety of data will far exceed anything we know today, as barriers to data collection and transmission continue to fall.
To fully harness the value of this data, businesses must develop efficient systems for real-time collection, storage, and analysis. IT departments will need infrastructures capable of handling both the volume and velocity of these data streams. The ability to manage data ingestion at massive scale will be a critical factor in unlocking the full potential of IoT over 5G networks.
The Power of the Cloud
Rapid data processing is essential for IoT applications like autonomous vehicles, robots, or connected medical equipment. For example, a self-driving car must make real-time decisions, which requires immediate access to processed data. Only a convergent data platform capable of handling billions of messages per second can ensure data is ingested at the speed required for critical services.
Such a platform must also manage historical data, whether in the cloud, on-premises, structured or unstructured. Combining 5G with convergent data platforms will also enable iterative development of new AI models.
Cloud infrastructure is crucial for managing massive data flows from diverse IoT sources and extracting meaningful insights. Databases will need to leverage the full power of cloud servers to process the wide variety of IoT-generated data efficiently.
A New Era of Convergence
5G is on track. Beyond significantly higher speeds, it promises to underpin a fully digital society and economy. The fifth-generation mobile network could serve as the backbone of a massively integrated telecommunications infrastructure, combining data processing, storage, and networking in a single system.
However, the full potential of IoT and 5G will only be realized when organizations combine these technologies with cloud computing and big data, creating a true era of convergence for information and communication technologies.
References
- Gartner defines IoT as “a network of physical objects containing embedded technology to communicate and sense, or interact with, their internal states or external environment.”
- Gartner forecast on IoT endpoints
- Data ingestion: the process of collecting, importing, and processing data for immediate or future use or storage in a database. Source: Hortonworks
- Convergent data platforms: solutions capable of managing and processing diverse internal and external data types and formats, including traditional internal data and interaction/observation data from IoT sensors. Source: Gartner
