History

By: Riya Kanwar

The Term "Internet of Things"

Coined in 1999 comes from Kevon Ashton, MIT executive director of Auto ID Labs.

In 1926, Nicola Tesla imagined a wirelessly connected world where devices used would be small enough to fit in a pocket.
IoT grew rapidly, starting its early inception in the 80s. Researchers began to develop early applications with the limited technology available. At the time IoT was not available to daily users or in common household appliances.
One of the first examples of an IoT is from the early 1980s when programmers at Carnegie Mellon would connect through the internet of a refrigerator to see if any drinks were available before purchasing one.
In 1989, Tim Berners-Lee invented the World Wide Web while working at CERN.
In 1990, John Romkey created the first IoT device: a toaster that could be turned on and off by the internet.
By the mid 90s researchers and technologists developed explorations into finding ways to integrate IoT in daily life.

In the early 2000s IoT became accessible.
In 2000 LG introduces the first smart fridge which helps monitor the devices contents but the price point of 20,000 was unaffordable at the time.
Walmart and US department of defense were the first to use IoT to track inventory via tagging in the mid 2000s.
By 2008 there are more connected devices than there are people in the world, marking the birth of IoT.
In 2010 China announced a five year plan to implement the internet of things.
In the early 2010s IoT had become used in multiple technologies, especially in cars. GPS, weather reports, and changes to routes became accessible in newer vehicles.
Sensors also became popular. This allowed homeowners to control their home lighting, garage doors, and thermostats.
In the mid to late 2015s IoT went mobile, smartphones became more widely accessible than ever.
IoT devices started being used in healthcare around this time. According to a Goldman Sachs study in 2015, the firm reported that about 300 million dollars in savings could be generated through these devices.
Smart watches and other tech wearables became more and more mainstream in the late 2010s . People wore items such as Apple Watches and Fitbits to track their health and sleep.
Amazon Alexa, Google Home, and Siri became popular virtual technology assistants.
Barcodes and menu's started being scannable via cellular devices, saving paper and plastic resources.

Nowadays IoT has been put into most parts of daily household items. Ring, a doorbell device that links to your smartphone has grown in popularity.
Many mobile applications can link them from your smartphone to real life appliances. MyQ is another application that allows its user to open their garage door in one click.
Today, almost any household appliance can be to connect to customer's mobile devices.
Self driving cars are a fairly new technology but have been deployed to customers on the road.
The integration of the IoT with AI in industries such as healthcare is driving research focused on product development.

Watch these videos to learn more about the history of IoT.

Websites

IT Planet. "The Evolution of the Internet of Things (IoT)." IT Planet Blog, 2022,

Appleton Innovations. “Internet of Things History.” YouTube, 24 Feb. 2021,

Bolt IoT. “History of Internet of Things.” YouTube, 1 Feb. 2021,

Greengard, Samuel. "Internet of Things." Encyclopedia Britannica, 25 Nov. 2024,

Foote, Keith. "A Brief History of the Internet of Things." DATAVERSITY, DATAVERSITY Education, 14 Jan. 2022,

Images

"Image of a Modern Smart Home Concept." TechRadar, Future Publishing, https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/XJt8jxNnRWMm9uiYB3JZzf-1200-80.jpg.webp. Accessed 9 Dec. 2024.

"Internet of Things (IoT): History, Present, and Future." Global Tech Council, Global Tech Council, https://www.globaltechcouncil.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/05/Internet-of-Things-IoT-History-Present-Future-01-768x402.png. Accessed 9 Dec. 2024.

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