Browsing by Subject "Internet of Things"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Open Access
    A study into scalable transport networks for IoT deployment
    (2021) Sizamo, Yandisa; Ramotsoela, Daniel
    The growth of the internet towards the Internet of Things (IoT) has impacted the way we live. Intelligent (smart) devices which can act autonomously has resulted in new applications for example industrial automation, smart healthcare systems, autonomous transportation to name just a few. These applications have dramatically improved the way we live as citizens. While the internet is continuing to grow at an unprecedented rate, this has also been coupled with the growing demands for new services e.g. machine-to machine (M2M) communications, smart metering etc. Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) architecture was developed decades ago and was not prepared nor designed to meet these exponential demands. This has led to the complexity of the internet coupled with its inflexible and a rigid state. The challenges of reliability, scalability, interoperability, inflexibility and vendor lock-in amongst the many challenges still remain a concern over the existing (traditional) networks. In this study, an evolutionary approach into implementing a "Scalable IoT Data Transmission Network" (S-IoT-N) is proposed while leveraging on existing transport networks. Most Importantly, the proposed evolutionary approach attempts to address the above challenges by using open (existing) standards and by leveraging on the (traditional/existing) transport networks. The Proof-of-Concept (PoC) of the proposed S-IoT-N is attempted on a physical network testbed and is demonstrated along with basic network connectivity services over it. Finally, the results are validated by an experimental performance evaluation of the PoC physical network testbed along with the recommendations for improvement and future work.
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    Open Access
    Factors influencing user adherence towards privacy standards in the usage of Internet of Things devices in South Africa
    (2022) Bazanye, Kizito Philip; Uys, Walter; Chigona, Wallace
    Background: The Internet of Things (IoT) is considered an essential element of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR). IoT devices are vulnerable to attacks. These vulnerabilities affect all aspects of daily life including retail and home automation interconnected by basic networking. The vulnerable end nodes may be machines, human to machine interactions, and the integration points of human-to-human communication. Problem statement: The onset of the Covid-19 pandemic ushered in increased use of IoT devices. The increased use of IoT devices perpetuated negligent use and therefore cyber-attacks exposed South African IoT users' data harvested through these devices. Purpose of research: The objective of the study is to conceptualise and understand what factors influence IoT device users to adhere to recommended IoT device privacy standards in South Africa. Design/methodology/approach: This qualitative, interpretivist, cross-sectional exploratory research was guided by a three-phase approach using Activity Theory. The ontological stance adopted is subjectivism. The interview questions were derived from the Activity Theory model and themes identified in the literature reviewed. The qualitative data collected from the semistructured interviews was analysed using deductive thematic analysis by linking of elements to the six components of Activity Theory. Findings: The lack of privacy adherence is driven by a lack of trust in IoT devices and service providers as well as convenience and health factors. Additionally, users' personality, awareness and surroundings are major influencers to IoT device privacy standards' adherence. Contribution and implication: This study conceptualises how IoT device privacy standards adherence can further be promoted with the increased adoption of such technologies. Further research may need to examine the specific impact of legislation on users and IoT device privacy. Additionally, the impact of third-party IoT service providers on IoT privacy models in South Africa needs to be investigated.
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    Open Access
    Internet of Things (IoT) application for hydrological measurements: measuring the Urban Heat Island effect
    (2025) Alexander, Samuel; Okedi, John
    This study investigated the feasibility of employing Internet of Things (IoT) technology as an alternative data collection method for studying the Urban Heat Island Effect (UHIE). Urban Heat Islands (UHIs) are localised and typically built-up areas, that experience significantly higher temperatures than the surrounding undeveloped areas. This temperature difference is primarily due to increased heat absorption and reduced cooling from construction materials like concrete and asphalt, as well as the removal of shaded green spaces. An IoT Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) comprising 14 sensor nodes were implemented using readily available, ‘off-the-shelf' products in South Africa, resulting in a competitive build cost of R1523.14 per node. The sensor nodes were deployed at the University of Cape Town (UCT) campus in both shaded green spaces and unshaded paved areas to monitor temperature and humidity differences. Over the course of 116 days, from 7 September to 31 December 2023, the IoT WSN provided real-time temperature and humidity data, yielding 84 148 transmissions with only a 0.1% transmission error rate. The data was stored and managed using the MongoDB database. The investigation found that urban shaded green spaces were consistently cooler than unshaded paved areas; peak temperatures on the warmest days of each month reduced by 4°C on 28 September and by 2°C on 19 October, 15 November, and 27 December. This study demonstrates that IoT technology is highly capable of monitoring UHIE whilst remaining economically feasible to deploy.
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    Open Access
    Internet of Things in organisations: artefactual characteristics that influence adoption
    (2025) Tshilenge, Henry Busaka; Brown, Irwin
    Background: The Internet of Things (IoT) has gained significant attention from businesses and academia. IoT promises are ambitious: creating, collecting, and sharing information independently of time, place, and motion. Things are rendered autonomous, able to identify themselves, network with other objects, and analyse the data they produce. IoT systems are used in some organisations to improve efficiency and facilitate trade in commodities and services. These systems help prevent errors, monitor operations, track assets, deter theft, and integrate complex systems through real-time data collection and analysis. Problem Statement: IoT promises many benefits, which are already tangible in the agriculture, logistics, retail, and supply chain sectors. However, some organisations still adopt IoT hesitantly, while others still hold a conservative stance. Little is known about its adoption in organisations based on its artefactual characteristics. Purpose: This study explores the artefactual characteristics of the Internet of Things that lead to its adoption and implementation in organisations. The focus is on the impact of identified IoT characteristics on its adoption as reflected by the continuance intention. Methodology: The study adopted a quantitative survey strategy and collected data via the Academic Prolific Online Panel1, with a sample of 293 participants from South Africa, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Findings: The results indicate that IoT characteristics closely aligned with business needs, such as relative advantage (profitability), Compatibility (alignment with values), seamless integration, and self-adaptation (intelligent, efficient operation and future growth), significantly influence IoT adoption as reflected by the continuance intention in organisations. The study went beyond the traditional Technology-Organisational-Environment (TOE) framework technology characteristics adapted from the Diffusion of Innovation framework, such as relative advantage, complexity, and compatibility. In addition, the findings revealed that integration and self-adaptation (i.e., intelligence) significantly influence technology adoption, as reflected by continuance intention. The research contributes to the knowledge of IoT. The study recommends that future research look further into the technocentric characteristics such as connectivity, security and interoperability, which were unexpectedly found not to influence adoption as reflected by the continuance intention.
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    Open Access
    The impact of disruptive innovation on the demand for coworking space
    (2020) Bronkhorst, Johan; Michell, Kathleen
    This thesis investigates whether the phenomenon of companies that seek to disrupt markets through innovation play a role in the rise of coworking spaces. The city of Cape Town in South Africa was selected as the location for this study due to an increase in the establishment of coworking spaces and the appearance of the aforementioned phenomenon. The premise for this thesis is based on the demands for commercial real estate, which has changed as a result of the implementation of new technologies and the sharing economy. This change is argued to have altered the way companies utilise working environments which, in turn, amended the requirements of these companies. The study seeks to establish whether coworking spaces serve as adequate supply to these demands or whether the increase in the establishment of coworking spaces is unaffiliated. Grounded theory was used as the research method in this study. Semi-structured interviews were conducted with seven respondents that were all active founders of coworking spaces at the time of the study. Additional documentary evidence was collected in cases where it was available. An analysis of the responses indicates that there is a strong relationship correlation between the rise of disruptive innovation and the increase in available coworking spaces. This relationship correlation was based on the value that flexibility, affordability and community facilitation held for companies that associate with disruptive innovation. These companies were mainly start-ups, skunkworks teams, research and development departments and other forms of companies that primarily work within the industry of technology. Limitations to the study included that additional documentary evidence was limited due to poor record-keeping of active memberships by coworking space operators, in addition to restrictions that were placed on accessing company information such as revenue statements. The research findings provide academic support and market-related evidence to developers and investors within the real estate sector that could enable them to make more informed decisions relating to the supply of coworking spaces. Moreover, the findings shed light on the general views shared by the founders of the coworking spaces. These views should provide insight to those interested in the industry, and more specifically within the Cape Town region.
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    Open Access
    Transition to novel Internet of things technology for measurement in hydrology? case study in Cape Town, South Africa
    (2023) De Oliveira, Roberto; Okedi, John
    In this study, an investigation was undertaken to determine the viability of novel Internet of Things (IoT) technology application in hydrology with a case study in Cape Town, South Africa. The IoT system that collected hydrological data was built with the use of low-cost, off-the-shelf components and was investigated as a pilot study in a catchment around the University of Cape Town's (UCT) Upper Campus. The demand for this type of monitoring system in South Africa is largely due to poor and unreliable hydrological data collection and monitoring. The main aim of this study was to show that novel IoT technology for hydrological data collection can replace conventional systems and determine the viability of transitioning to novel IoT technology for hydrological measurements. In the study, hydrological monitoring systems were built using sensors and a gateway that collected data from various points of measurement which were then conveyed from the network to an internet database. The data was accessed and visually displayed to an end user in a user-friendly manner. The systems contained multiple layers of architecture that connected with one another through the different hardware and software components used in the design. The hardware of the system was involved in controlling and managing the sensors to transmit data to the internet. The software throughout each layer prepared the data and sent it to the internet where it could be displayed to an end-user. The hardware components of the system were selected based on cost, power consumption and applicability to hydrological monitoring. The hardware and software components were integrated to create two separate hydrological monitoring nodes, namely the Water Monitoring Node (WMN) and the Soil-Air Monitoring Node (SAMN). The WMN measured water level and water temperature, while the SAMN measured soil moisture, soil temperature, air temperature and relative humidity. Once created, the systems were experimentally tested to determine its ability to provide real-time hydrological data. Using these results, they were evaluated based on reliability and performance for application as a real-time hydrological monitoring system. The systems were housed in weatherproof containers and mounted on a level gauge within the UCT dam and on a tree located above the New Engineering Building (NEB) on the university's Upper Campus. The testing period for the sensor nodes in totality lasted 4 months and 6 days with the last data point retrieved on the 01 of November 2022. The WMN transmitted 4049 messages across a total of 42 days, while the SAMN transmitted 10366 messages across 128 days. The data outputted by the nodes were visually displayed through the Things Speak platform and the results produced from the experimental deployment were used to investigate the reliability and performance of the nodes. The reliability analysis looked at the robustness and network communication of the system while performance analysis looked at load testing and power consumption. Initial deployment of the node was disrupted by theft and vandalism. The WMN and SAMN were then deployed and proved to be robust towards harsh environmental conditions during the 170 days and communicated with the Transition to novel Internet of Things technology for measurement in hydrology – case study in Cape Town, South Africa.