Global interoperability – Designing for Interoperability

Many projects are currently working toward creating solutions for global interoperability; that is, solutions that allow devices and systems to universally communicate with one another seamlessly. Here, we discuss two projects that are currently working on this, which are as follows:

oneM2M: oneM2M is a global standards development organization focused on creating a standardized IoT architecture and promoting interoperability among IoT devices. The organization’s goal is to provide a common platform for IoT devices to exchange data and communicate with each other, regardless of the manufacturer or communication technology. oneM2M’s standardization efforts are aimed at creating a seamless and secure IoT environment where different devices can work together seamlessly.

Open Interconnect Consortium (OIC): OIC is a non-profit organization that is working to develop open source standards and specifications for IoT interoperability. The goal of OIC is to provide a unified and standardized approach to IoT, allowing devices from different vendors to communicate and work together. OIC’s efforts are aimed at creating an open and transparent IoT ecosystem where all devices can easily communicate with each other and access common services.

Now that we have seen a couple of global interoperability projects, we can now see how it is being done within the cloud.

Interoperability within the cloud

The cloud, as we have discussed, is a big community in and of itself in developing interoperability. There is much development that is made to try to utilize the cloud to create more interoperable platforms, both internally and externally. Next, we explore some open source projects that are currently prominent and looking to achieve this:

Eclipse Kura: Eclipse Kura is an open source Java/Open Service Gateway Initiative (OSGi) framework for IoT gateways. It provides a modular and scalable platform for building IoT applications that can run on a range of hardware platforms, including single-board computers and gateways. Kura supports interoperability between IoT devices and the cloud by providing a range of services and APIs for connecting devices, transmitting data, and processing data in the cloud.

Mosquitto: Mosquitto is an open source messaging broker that implements the MQTT protocol. MQTT is a popular communication protocol used in IoT, and Mosquitto provides a robust and scalable platform for connecting IoT devices and transmitting data to the cloud. The project provides a flexible and scalable platform for supporting interoperability between IoT devices and the cloud and is widely used in a range of IoT applications and services.

With knowledge of some popular interoperability projects, let’s take a look at a case study that puts such projects into practice.

E-health platform case study

A health platform provider wants to develop a system that integrates wearable devices, such as fitness trackers and smartwatches, with a patient’s EHR. The aim is to improve the accuracy and timeliness of patient health data and make it easier for healthcare providers to monitor and manage patient health. Here, we will discuss how there can be challenges and benefits and look at solutions that we can develop toward being able to appropriately handle them, as follows:

Challenges:

• Heterogeneous devices: The platform provider must contend with the fact that different wearable devices have different hardware and software specifications, making it difficult to integrate them with the EHR system
• Non-uniform communication protocols: The wearable devices may use different communication protocols, making it difficult for the platform to receive and process the data from all devices
• Lack of standardization: There is a lack of standardization in the wearable device industry, leading to fragmentation and complexity in the integration process

Solutions:

• Device agnosticism: The platform provider should design the system to be device agnostic, meaning it should be able to receive data from any wearable device, regardless of its hardware or software specifications
• Interoperable communication protocols: The platform should use widely accepted and standardized communication protocols to receive data from wearable devices, such as Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) or Health Level Seven (HL7) International standards
• Integration with EHR: The platform should be able to seamlessly integrate the data received from wearable devices into the patient’s EHR, making it easier for healthcare providers to access and use the data in their decision-making process

Benefits:

• Improved patient outcomes: Interoperable IoT devices in a health platform can provide more accurate and timely patient health data, leading to improved patient outcomes
• Better healthcare management: With interoperable IoT devices, healthcare providers can more easily monitor and manage patient health, leading to more effective treatment plans and outcomes
• Increased patient engagement: Interoperable IoT devices can also increase patient engagement by providing patients with real-time access to their health data and the ability to track their progress

And with that, we have seen such interoperability initiatives put into practice. Now, we can see how we can advance the interoperability of IoT platforms.