Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

IoT stands for Internet of Things and refers to the interconnected network of physical objects, devices, vehicles, buildings, and other items embedded with sensors, software, and connectivity. IoT enables these objects to collect and exchange data. This allows these "things" to be remotely monitored and controlled, creating opportunities for more efficient decision-making, automation, and improved experiences. The data is linked from these objects, via a gateway, to the appropriate endpoints and are then displayed in near real-time on a dashboard using message queues. Smart logic and workflows can be put in place on top of this data to tailor any set of data to a specific use case. Finally, the data can be stored and managed with a certain tool to provide business insights and ultimately, with Machine Learning tools and predictive analytics.

IoT has emerged in recent years as one of the most significant 21st-century technologies. Continuous communication between people, processes, and things is now possible thanks to the ability to connect ordinary items such as household appliances, automobiles, thermostats, baby monitors, the list goes to the internet via sensors and embedded systems. Low-cost computers, the cloud, big data, analytics, and mobile technologies enable the sharing and collection of data by physical objects with little human intervention. Digital systems can record, monitor, and modify every interaction between connected entities in today's hyper-connected environment. The physical and digital worlds collide, by working together.

IoT.nxt assists businesses in utilising technology to get visibility over, and understanding of the "things" and processes they use via our Application Enablement Platform, Commander™. Our concentration is on "Internet of Things" technologies, which include tools for monitoring most devices, from electric motors to refrigerators, conveyor belts to cars, and even animals. Numerous physically present but often intangible objects can be integrated into and connected using our state-of-the-art Raptor™ software technology. We connect these sensors/devices to Commander so you can engage with them and "see" them in a browser or on your phone. However, we don’t stop there. IoT.nxt doesn’t just connect devices and gather that data, but our Navigator™ product offers intelligent insights as well as a personal touch to any use case, using Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence to ultimately predict scenarios and provide solutions before problems even occur.

IoT.nxt thus offers a fully integrated end-to-end product range to assist businesses and people with visualisation, control, insights, and more all under one roof. This removes the struggle of signing up for multiple platforms to integrate them to create a full IoT solution. Additionally, with our no-code drag-and-drop user interface, users are further enabled to build solutions without coding experience.

Although the concept of IoT has been around for a while, it has only just become a reality thanks to a variety of recent technological advancements.

Availability of inexpensive, low-power sensor technology, more manufacturers may now use IoT technology thanks to reasonably priced and trustworthy sensors.

Connectivity - it is now simple to link sensors to the cloud and other "things" for effective data transfer thanks to a variety of network protocols for the internet. Cloud computing infrastructures - businesses and consumers may now get the infrastructure they need to ramp up without having to manage it all thanks to the expansion of cloud platforms.

Analytics using machine learning - businesses may acquire insights more quickly and easily thanks to improvements in machine learning and analytics, as well as access to diverse and enormous volumes of data stored in the cloud. The development of these complementary technologies pushes the limits of IoT, and the data generated by IoT feeds these complementary technologies. IoT.nxt has used these technologies to efficiently collect data across multiple devices, then streamline that data in a user-friendly format to give you deep insights into your entire business operation.

Raptor™ gateway software is designed to integrate all devices that make up the device layer. There are three sub-products (or brands) of the RaptorTM: Micro Raptor, Edge Raptor, and Virtual Raptor, each with its own specialities and integration languages. This integration gives these devices a level of intelligence, which allows for bi-directional communication not only between devices but also up and down the Commander-Raptor™ stack, creating a smart IoT ecosystem. Our Device and Integration Catalogues, available on the Community Portal, provide users with lists of approved and/or certified devices and protocols that can be used within the IoT.nxt ecosystem, where more devices and protocols are developed and approved constantly.

Commander™ is our Application Enablement Platform. It is cloud-agnostic, can be hosted in multiple cloud environments, and utilises a containerised microservice architecture running on Kubernetes. With Commanders Account Manager service, along with its state-of-the-art security, users are given the ability to create role-based access and permissions into all integrated applications, all behind a Single Sign-On. The Commander™ platform has two deployment models to cater for big and small implementations with the ability to migrate with solution/business growth.

Navigator™ ingests any type of data, from any source, storing it, and offers the ability to create analytics solutions using Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML), build Business Intelligence (BI) reports, and visualise data at scale. This is made simpler with the no-code drag-and-drop user interface, and by making use of selected ML models or, in the case of power users, creating personalised models depending on required use cases.

IoT solutions can be used in different industries to facilitate business growth by helping connect different devices, managing a variety of tasks, and analysing opportunities for improvement. All this helps reduce costs, maximize process efficiency, and eliminate risk by delivering real-time visibility, actionable insights, and control at scale without a proportional increase in cost.

Mining, Telecommunication, Smart Spaces, Utilities, Agriculture and Manufacturing.

In short, Radar enables users to visualise near real-time data, and BI Navigator is used for historic data visualisation and reactive decision-making. Radar Design Studio hosts a wide range of widgets, charts, graphs, and digital overlays in a widget toolbox from which custom dashboards can be created. These dashboards, displayed in Radar, displace at a glance the current state of any devices and sensors within the solution. This allows a user to view a particular instance in real-time and take appropriate action. By utilising a range of charts and widgets across several digital twin instances, BI Navigator enables users to visualise.

BI Navigator enables users to visualise historical data, such as trends or aggregates over a period of time. This enables users to spot trends or patterns in the data and take the appropriate actions.

A protocol refers to the methods, rules, and standards used to govern the communication between devices and networks, which allows for the transmission, formatting, and processing of data. IoT.nxt offers plug-and-play capabilities, supporting a wide variety of protocols for both industrial and smaller use cases while keeping information private. This includes, but is not limited to, MQTT, CoAP, HTTPs, Modbus, DLMS, SNMP, OPC UA, Sigfox, and more.

The software that operates on our edge and near-edge devices is referred to as Raptor. It hosts a variety of integrations to account for a number of approved devices with can be found in our Device Catalogue. The Raptor ecosystem then consists of 3 brand technologies, each with its own strengths and capabilities. The technology is device and protocol agnostic, interoperable and scalable, offering the ability to integrate with devices rapidly. (See more about Raptor).

Micro Raptor is a small and low-cost gateway that is portable, due to it being battery-powered that is used to connect a limited number of local edge devices for monitoring and control. The Micro Raptor is an embedded system where, unlike Edge and Virtual Raptor, hardware is part of the Micro Raptor’s design, using its own type of language too.

Edge Raptor makes use of wired integrations using generic protocols called plugins which work on a plug-and-play basis within the authenticated system. Edge Raptor provides at-the-edge workflows, device management and even audit tracking, to list a few features. The Edge Raptor is also able to extend the number of physical devices it can connect to.

Virtual Raptor is cloud- or on-prem-hosted Raptor software, providing similar perks to that of the Edge Raptor, except that it uses non-wired secure protocols called drivers, which equates to simpler scalable solutions. The Virtual Raptor is a modular gateway wherein one can rollout only that which is necessary for the solution to perform, allowing for scalable solutions without proportional cost increases. Additionally, multiple clients can be serviced through the same Virtual Raptor if required.

Both Dashboard and Radar are near real-time data visualisation applications hosted within the Commander Application Enablement Platform, where Dashboard is V3 and Radar is V4 of the User Interface (UI).

Navigator is the data platform which includes ingestion, pipelines, storage and a BI toolset. It is used for historical data visualisation, analysis and reactive decision making. Navigator goes further than that though, offering Machine Learning (ML) tools and Artificial Intelligent (AI) models to allow for predictive analysis and assist with smart business decisions.

IoT.nxt's microservice-based architecture allows for multiple integration points where we then enable customisation. This is done through the use of the multiple APIs, webhooks and SDKs offered.

IoT.nxt offers a variety of cloud or on-premise hosting capabilities. This could be a single hosting option selected by the user, or a mixture of many. A hybrid approach of on-premise and cloud-based hosting options is also possible, with the option to migrate and scale with solution growth.

IoT.nxt deployments match the solution requirements with respect to growth and demand. IoT.nxt's product stack can handle high telemetry throughput, a high number of devices or connections, high data storage demands keeping efficiency in mind, and highly complex solutions that host multiple device types.

IoT.nxt's Navigator product is designed for data storage and smart analytics. Navigator provides a competitive advantage by allowing users to develop and operate AI and IoT applications at scale, with a fraction of the effort and resources required by other approaches. It is a multi-faceted platform that offers a variety of services, tools and models to assist users in storing, managing, and analysing their data at scale.

IoT.nxt's Community Site offers comprehensive documentation, guides, and resources for developers to work with our IoT technology, including API and SDK information.

IoT.nxt won the CyberSecurity Breakthrough Award for Overall IoT Security Solution in 2021 due to the fact that the following measures are put in place:

• Conducting regular security assessments.
• Implementing secure development lifecycles (security is built into the platform from the start).
• Implementing secure authentication (such as MFA).
• Regularly update and patch platform and devices.
• Continuously monitoring the platform and devices to quickly identify and respond to security incidents.
• Following industry standards.
• Employee education and training

IoT.nxt is a one-stop-shop. In other words, everything you would need for an IoT solution is offered by us. Therefore, there is no need to source multiple IoT vendors for a full end-to-end solution. Additionally, the integration between the IoT layers is already done within the IoT.nxt product range.