“Enterprise systems, including smartphones, will have to deal with the devices both locally (via Bluetooth, standalone access points and so on) and in the cloud,” Reilly explains.
“It’s a golden opportunity to catch the IoT wave early and actually steer how the new technology is integrated and managed in your company and industry.”
According to Reilly, desktop, network and other enterprise IT admins are in a prime position to learn about the technology and to design management processes.
“A good place to start is to dip a toe into the microcontroller world and get your hands dirty with one or two projects of your own. The [Atmel-powered] Arduino Yún is affordable, has a huge user community and is a great way to jump into learning the technology,” says Reilly.
“The Yún is a small, embedded Linux microprocessor system bolted onto the back of an Arduino microcontroller, with on-board Wi-Fi and wired Ethernet. The $75, roughly 2-by-3-in. board can act as a Wi-Fi client or its own self-contained wireless access point. It [helps] provide a wireless bridge between the physical computing world and networked devices and services.”
As Reily points out, the IoT is “marching relentlessly” into all aspects of modern society, including the enterprise.
“Desktop managers will certainly be able to heavily influence how IoT is integrated and secured – if they are proactive now,” he adds. ”You can literally write the book for your organization on how IoT brought in and operated, once you understand the hows and whys of the technology. I think a modest investment of time and effort will ensure your relevance as the IoT goes mainstream.”
As we’ve previously discussed on Bits & Pieces, the Atmel-powered Yún has been used in a wide variety of Maker projects that we’ve recently covered, including an electricity monitor, mesh extender platform, Foursquare soap bubble machine, a Gmail (alert) lamp and water heater regulator.
Interested in learning more about Atmel and the IoT? You can check out our article archive on the subject here.
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