As a manufacturer, you don’t necessarily need to be an expert on the technology behind IIoT. You are most concerned with precisely how the technology will probably enable you to deliver quality products on time, keep costs contained, and improve productivity. It helps to be as informed as possible so you know enough to be an informed consumer of this technology.
 
With that in mind, here are key Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) terms that will be helpful for you:
 
Data Terms
 
The majority of Industrial IoT terminology revolves around data - mainly, the massive amounts of data that it generates:
 

• Big data. A very large data set that can be analyzed for patterns and trends.
• Streaming data. Data that is continuously generated by different sources.
• Sensor data. The output of a device that detects and responds to some type of input from the physical environment. The output may be used to provide information or input to another system, or to guide a process.
• Time-series data. Data that collectively represents how a system, process, or behavior changes over time.

 
Business Process Terms
 
You’ll also hear significant amounts of terminology that defines special business processes:
 

• Predictive maintenance. Techniques that are designed to help determine the condition of in-service equipment to predict when maintenance should be performed. This approach promises cost savings over routine or time-based preventive maintenance because tasks are performed only when warranted.
• Operational intelligence. A category of real-time, dynamic business analytics that delivers visibility and insight into data, streaming events, and business operations.
• Overall equipment effectiveness (OEE). A measure of how well a manufacturing operation is utilized (facilities, time, and material) compared to its full potential, during the periods when it is scheduled to run.
• Asset monitoring. The process of monitoring all activity associated with a particular machine. Including but not limited to production, performance, quality, health, etc.

 
Technical Terms
 
This is where the terms get somewhat technical so it’s good to educate yourself on these:
 

• Application Programming Interface (API). A set of functions or procedures that allow one application to access / interact with the features or data of another application or service
• Programmable Logic Controller (PLC). An industrial digital computer that continuously monitors the state of input devices to make decisions (to control manufacturing processes and equipment) based on pre-programmed logic. 
• Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). A wireless communication technology that uses radio frequency to power passive tags (small circuit antenna) to uniquely identify people or objects.
• Supervisory Control and Data Acquisition (SCADA). A control system architecture that uses computers and networked data communications to monitor and control factory floor equipment.

 
Security and Standards Terms
 
When your data is being stored in the cloud, security comes to be so very important. That’s why it is good to familiarize yourself with these terms:
 

• Identity and Access Management (IAM). A framework of business processes, policies, and technologies that manage digital identities (for e.g. used for authentication and access management)
• Message Queuing Telemetry Transport (MQTT). A messaging protocol that works on top of TCP/IP. Designed for use cases with a low code footprint or limited network bandwidth.
• Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). The language used to access the Internet.
• Ethernet IP. One of the manufacturing communication protocols used for transmitting information between electronic devices. Ethernet IP was originally developed by Rockwell Automation.
• Hyper Text Transfer Protocol (HTTP). The underlying protocol used by the World Wide Web. HTTP defines how messages are formatted and transmitted, and what actions Web servers and browsers should take in response to various commands.

 
With an understanding of these terms, you are well prepared to keep researching and determining your options.
 
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