IoT and electronics

MQTT is a lightweight messaging protocol designed for devices with limited resources and unreliable connections. Devices publish messages to topics, and other devices or servers subscribe to them — for example, a sensor publishes the temperature and the system receives it immediately. It is one of the most widely used IoT protocols.

The Internet of Things (IoT) means physical devices — sensors, equipment, machines — that are connected to the internet and exchange data. They can send measurements to the cloud, receive commands and work together with company software, for example reporting a fault or ordering materials automatically.

Businesses use IoT to collect data from the physical world automatically and act on it: monitoring equipment and consumption, controlling temperature, measuring stock, running self-service equipment and reducing manual work in stocktaking and inspections.

Start with a clear task and the measurements, choose a microcontroller and sensors, build the first version with development boards, add a cloud connection and a simple app, test in real conditions, then design the PCB and enclosure (often 3D-printed) and prepare the device for a small production run.

Sensors are installed on equipment to measure, for example, running time, current, temperature, vibration or output. The data is sent to a system that shows downtime, utilisation and anomalies, and alerts are sent. Over time the data can be used to predict failures.

The cost has three parts: hardware (sensors, electronics, enclosure, manufacturing), software (device firmware, cloud, app or portal, integrations) and maintenance (connectivity, servers, updates). If off-the-shelf sensors can be used, the solution is cheaper than developing an entirely new device.