IBM’s “Intelligent Earth” is based on the Internet of Things (“IoT”), and the construction of an IoT platform is now even considered a matter that calls for a national-level strategy. US President Barrack Obama places both IoT and green energy on the same level of importance and believes that these two key strategies can bring about short and long term benefits. Premier Wen Jiabao also proposed the task of setting up “Experience China” centers. Premier Wen said that when computer and internet industries were developing on a mass scale, we ended up taking some long and winding roads because we did not grasp the core technologies; during the development of the Internet of Things we must plan for the future earlier and make a breakthrough in core technologies earlier. IT industry’s each and every step is not a technological invention by chance but is the result of national development strategies.

What should companies do as they ride on this big IoT current? An interview with Dato’ Lee Boon Han, the Executive Director and Deputy CEO of RCG Holdings Limited, a HK Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange AIM-listed company, regarding IoT reveals a lot of insights. Dato’ Lee talked about IoT and its future, and went over already existing IoT applications; he also revealed RCG’s future development plans.

Dato’ Lee believed that, first, through IoT, object and service functions experienced a significant improvement, and these new functions bring to users a higher degree of efficiency, convenience and safety, and will form emerging industries based on these new functions. Furthermore, these industries are not the current manufacturing industry and service industry. In the service economy-focused industry structure, there is already in display industry integration, and after the appearance of IoT it will achieve a more deep and more complete user experience. Second, IoT will become the engine to informatisation that drives industrialisation, and relying on this network technology will make production elements and supply chains undergo a deep level of reorganisation, by realising lower
investment which results in fewer waste, costs falling even lower and efficiency becoming even greater. The so-called new industrialisation is in fact industrialisation based on informatisation and service industrialisation, and is industrialisation with less waste, more energy efficiency and greater intelligence. During the process of new industrialisation a modern industrial system will be formed from an integrated agricultural, manufacturing and service industry. Although this industrial system still cannot be classified, it does in fact already exists.

According to Forrester Research, the world market value of technologies, products and applications related to IoT will increase from USD2 billion in 2008 to USD11.5 billion in 2015. The development prospect for IoT is very positive and the market potential is enormous, but this is not something that can be achieved overnight and cannot be dependent on only one or two companies to complete: it needs government, companies, industry associations, media and the public to work together. Dato’ Lee said that RCG is delighted that it can be a member of this united front and will do its utmost as always to contribute.

Excellent understanding

Dato’ Lee said that IOT is a type of network where information transmitting equipment such as RFID, infrared sensors, GPS, laser scanners and the like, (based on agreed agreement), links any object to the internet to perform information exchange and transmission by realising intelligent recognition, positioning, tracking, surveillance and management. There are three layers in IoT applications: first is the sensor network mainly consisting of barcode, RFID and sensors, which performs the identification of the “thing” or object; second is the transmission network; in other words, through the existing internet, broadcasting and TV network, telecommunication network or next-generation internet, which realises data transmission or calculation; third is the application network, namely terminals that control input/output including mobile phones. From the three layers of IoT application we can see that there is little difference between the transmission and application in the transmission network, application network and the internet and the key is the identification of the “thing” or object.

Fig 2. General concept of Iot.
(source: www.techcn.com.cn/index.php?doc-view-205)

He also believed the following two points: first, through IoT, object and service functions experienced a huge improvement, and these new functions bring to users a higher degree of efficiency, convenience and safety, and will ultimately create emerging industries based on these new functions; these industries are not the current manufacturing industry and service industry. In the service economy-focused industry structure already in display is industry integration; after the appearance of IoT it will achieve a deeper and more complete user experience. Second, IoT will become the engine to informatisation thus driving industrialisation, and relying on this network technology will make production elements and supply chains undergo a deep level of reorganisation, by realising lower investment which means fewer waste, even lower costs and greater efficiency. So-called new industrialisation is in fact industrialisation based on informatisation and service industrialisation, and is industrialisation with less waste, more energy efficiency and greater intelligence.  During the process of new industrialisation it will form a modern industrial system of an integrated agricultural, manufacturing and service industry. Although this industrial system has yet to be classified, it does in fact already exists.

According to Forrester Research, the world market value of technologies, products and applications related to IoT will increase from USD2 billion in 2008 to USD 11.5 billion in 2015. The development prospect for IoT is very positive, market potential is enormous, but this is not something that can be achieved overnight and cannot be dependent on only one or two companies to complete: it needs government, companies, industry associations, media and the public to work together. Dato Lee said that RCG is delighted that it can be a member of this united front and will do its utmost as always to contribute.

Practical Application

Dato’ Lee said that, as early as 2007, RCG offered the view that RFID’s influence on the China economy will eventually be greater than the Internet. The Internet is a platform for information sharing but RFID is the source of information collecting; RFID will have direct impact at the very forefront of the Chinese economy, collecting information automatically and in real-time. If the collection of the original data is inaccurate then the subsequent information would be worthless even if the information sharing were to proceed smoothly. The trillions of corporations are the source and destination of IoT. RCG realises the identification of things to satisfy the requirements of industries through developing the software, providing RFID solutions and integrating the system and technologies.

RCG, as a solution provider, always emphasises its principle of success: “We must achieve mastery through a comprehensive study of customer’s requirements, that’s the only way to build a good solution”. RCG is always devoted to going beyond the limitations of traditional technologies and providing customers with integrated solutions by using a variety of cutting-edge technologies and products as well as hardware and software.

As a solution provider, RCG has accumulated rich experience in system integration and also accumulated strong technology know-how on RFID-related hardware and tags and developed a strong knowledge-base for different industries. All of them will play an important role in achieving the identification of things.

“Leverage RCG’s professional knowledge and practical experience to meet customer requirements”: this is the standard that RCG provides as a one-stop service to customers. As a solution provider, RCG is the link that is the closest to the client in the business-relationship chain and can fully grasp customer requirements; we are the link that is closest to the source and destination of IoT.

Fig 3. Concept usage of IoT technology
(source:www.american.com/graphics/2007/november)

We gather the objects’ data by automatic identification then make physical objects as active participants of the business process through network transmission; thereby we can accomplish the automation of the business work flow. We can make customers fully understand the convenience and efficiency brought about by IoT and enhance their understanding of IoT. Expanding the applications for requirements is the key to the industry’s development. RCG is right at the forefront of promoting IoT application development. Requirements create applications, through applications we generate requirements and thus propel the establishment of standards and industry development; industry development in turn brings about further creation of requirements – this creates a healthy cycle for the industry. Medical, financial, entertainment, logistics and construction industries are verticals we intend to focus on.

Dato’ Lee said that in fact there are many RFID applications that fall under IoT applications such as those deployed in asset management in a bank’s datacenter, document management system in government and corporations, container management in ports and docks. He explained a bit about the document management system: the system identifies objects by affixing them with RFID tags, such as tagging important documents / reports; data communication through the Internet notifies the relevant party about document properties and deadlines, allow remote control and workflow management of the document being identified via email and at the end enable improvement of business process efficiency by decreasing submission of late reports and preventing document misplacement. The following shows the actual work flow:

Stage 1: Object’s automatic identification
– Tag important documents / reports with RFID tags
– Embed information related to the document in RFID chip (e.g. scheduling, reviewer, actions required etc)
– Place in tray equipped with RFID readers

Stage 2: Data communication or calculation through Internet or mobile network
– A software application will consolidate the activities of the document
– Send to the centralised server via Internet

Stage 3: Remote control or management of the workflow of the recognised objects via mobile devices or computer
– Inform end-user on the status of the document via email
– Users remotely control the action via a web page
Stage 4: Enabling business process automation and decision-making

Continue to further promote

RCG has always endeavored to maintain a good working relationship with companies at all levels, and Dato Lee has revealed the company will further develop in terms of business expansion and that plans are underway. RCG will cooperate with government departments and share with industry RCG’s experience in IoT applications, and provide guidance in the education and cultivation of markets; with regard to creating IoT requirements, RCG will continue to maintain close ties with its local customers by fully understanding their needs to create relevant IoT applications; during the application process steadily deliver well each project, and present to customers a reliable solution, and by using applications to push forward requirements, speed up establishment of industry standards in order to promote the development of the entire industry. At the same time, RCG will further strengthen its cooperation with other companies linked to the industry such as Motorola, HP and IBM, thereby providing satisfactory solutions to customers by deploying a greater spread of good resources.

Dato’ Lee directly expressed his great expectations for the China market: “We are greatly appreciative of the Chinese government’s determination and efforts in the development of IoT, and we believe that with the government’s great support the prospect for IoT’s development in China is extremely positive. We hope that government departments and industry associations aggressively work toward the establishment of industry standards. On the other hand, with currently no one unifying standard for the industry, we hope that the government can actively promote some pilot runs so that applications in a closed environment can further kick start IoT application and allow more people to appreciate the benefits of IoT.

Fig 4. Global activities connected through internet.
(source: http://sustain.cs.washington.edu/blog/wp-content/uploads/2009/11)

At the end of the interview, Dato’ Lee said that as a leading provider of RFID solutions, RCG has responsibility in educating the public about IoT. He introduced RCG’s latest effort in promoting IoT: on 16 December 2009, RCG organised in Beijing The 2009 Forum on Development and Application of Internet of Things that invites experts from the government, industry associations, R&D organisations, IoT-related companies and the media to discuss the current and future development of IoT application in China. This forum will cover the current situation of China’s IoT development, potential problems, development bottlenecks, market prospects, industry partners, competitive circumstances as topics in a friendly and constructive exchange of views among participants. From different angles interpreting IoT, the summit will allow the public to have a more comprehensive understanding of IoT and from there help to promote the development of IoT usage in China.

In 2007, RCG, together with the State Golden Card Project Office and RFID China Alliance organised an RFID roadshow that took place in major cities around China. This RFID roadshow became a platform to promote the concept of RFID and share actual RFID applications. In 2008, with the cooperation of the China Association for Healthcare Industry, Beijing Municipal Health Bureau, RCG organised “The New Wave in the Informatisation Drive of China’s Healthcare Industry Summit”. The summit established the platform for government associations, hospitals and enterprises to share and discuss the healthcare industry and informatisation in China. RCG delved into the process of health informatisation and shared its experiences in overseas health informatisation. In 2009, after Premier Wen Jiabao proposed the task of establishing “Experience China” centres, RCG as the promoter of IoT application was at the forefront of the industry again. We wish The 2009 Forum on Development and Application of Internet of Things every success.