IoT Level-4

A Level-4 IoT system has multiple nodes that perform local analysis. Data is stored in the cloud and application is cloud-based as shown in Figure 1.9. Level-4 contains local and cloud-based processing of IoT data. Observer nodes can process information and use it for various applications; however, observer nodes do not perform any control functions. Level-4 IoT systems are suitable for solutions where multiple nodes are required, the data involved is big, and the analysis requirements are computationally intensive.

Fig. 1.9: IoT Level-4.

Working of IoT Level-4

A Level-4 IoT system consists of multiple independent IoT nodes deployed at different locations. Each node performs sensing and local analysis before transmitting data to the cloud.

The cloud acts as a centralized platform for storing data from all the nodes, performing advanced analytics, and providing a unified application for monitoring and visualization.

Observer nodes process the sensed information locally and forward it to the cloud, but they do not perform any control operations. This architecture enables distributed data collection while taking advantage of the computational power of cloud computing for large-scale analysis.

Example: Noise Monitoring System

Let us consider an example of a Level-4 IoT system for noise monitoring.

The system consists of multiple nodes placed in different locations for monitoring noise levels in an area. The nodes in this example are equipped with sound sensors.

Nodes are independent of each other. Each node runs its own controller service that sends the data to the cloud. The data is stored in a cloud database.

The analysis of data collected from several nodes is done in the cloud. A cloud-based application is used for visualizing the aggregated data.

Features of IoT Level-4

• Multiple independent IoT nodes
• Local data processing at each node
• Cloud-based data storage
• Cloud-based data analysis
• Cloud-based application
• Aggregation of data from multiple devices
• Observer nodes perform monitoring only
• Suitable for large-scale distributed IoT deployments
• Supports computationally intensive analytics

Applications of IoT Level-4

Some common applications of IoT Level-4 include:

• Noise pollution monitoring
• Air quality monitoring
• Environmental monitoring
• Smart agriculture with distributed sensor nodes
• Water quality monitoring
• Industrial condition monitoring
• Smart city sensing applications

IoT Level-4 combines distributed sensing with centralized cloud analytics, making it suitable for applications where multiple geographically distributed devices continuously generate large volumes of data that require aggregation and advanced analysis.