Smart Objects
From Horizon Project
2009 Short List
[edit] Time-to-Adoption: One year or Less[edit] Time-to-Adoption: Two to Three Years[edit] Time-to-Adoption: Four to Five Years[edit] Critical Challenges[edit] Key Trends |
Beginning with radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags and smartcards, objects that carry information with them have been used for point-of-sale purchases, passport tracking, inventory management, and other uses. RFID tags and smartcards “know” about a certain kind of information, like how much money is available in a user’s account and how to transfer the correct amount to a retailer for a given purchase, or which book is being checked out at a library.
Similarly, chips embedded in small household appliances “know” where they are located and can access local information: your coffeepot can tell you about the weather while you pour yourself a cup. The next step in smart object technology is just over the horizon: not only will objects know what and where they are, but they will also be able to sense and communicate with other objects, report and update their own status, and carry information about their entire history, from creation and distribution all the way through disposal.
Current applications for smart objects include wireless location of library materials, retrieval of lost or missing items, and tracking of material usage. The vision for smart object technology is a blending of the digital Internet with the physical world. With recent developments in mobile technology, it is not difficult to imagine mobile applications that tap into “the Internet of things,” as this vision is called. Finding physical objects such as reference materials, household goods, or sports equipment could become as easy as finding information is now. The idea of tiny chips that communicate their location and other information raises evident questions about privacy and security, and the time when we will see them commonly used in educational settings is still distant, but smart object technology promises to transform the way we perceive and interact with physical objects – in time.
[edit] Relevance for Teaching, Learning & Creative Expression
While many consumer and business applications for smart object technology can be found, learning and creative applications have been slower to appear, and no current examples could be found.
[edit] Examples
There are numerous examples of RFID, smartcard, and contactless payment applications. However, smart object technology is still very much in development.
At this very early stage, we could find no direct examples of how they might affect teaching and learning.
[edit] For Further Reading
- The Network of Everything
http://cordis.europa.eu/ictresults/index.cfm/section/news/tpl/article/id/90199
Wireless experts believe that, by 2017, personal networks will have to cope with at least a thousand devices, like laptops, telephones, mp3 players, games, sensors and other technology. To link these devices will require a ‘Network of Everything’. It represents an astonishing challenge, but European researchers believe that they are moving towards the solution. European researchers have just completed work on a networking project to perfect what will become known, perhaps, as the Smart Personal Network. Personal Networks, or PNs, are seen as essential for a world where many different devices must work in sync together, known as 4G (fourth generation). It will mean personalised services, low power devices with cheap, ubiquitous and broadband connectivity
- The Net Shapes Up to Get Physical
http://www.guardian.co.uk/technology/2008/oct/16/internet-of-things-ipv6
(Sean Dodson, Guardian.co.uk, October 2008.) This article describes the “Internet of things” and discusses the technologies involved, as well as considering potential applications for networked smart objects.
- New Industry Alliance Promotes Use of IP in Networks of ‘Smart Objects’
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2008/prod_091608.html
(Cisco Press Release, Cisco.com, September 2008.) This press release describes the IP for Smart Objects (IPSO) Alliance, whose goal is to promote the Internet Protocol (IP) as the most suitable networking technology for smart object technology.
- When Blobjects Rule the Earth
http://boingboing.net/images/blobjects.htm
(Bruce Sterling, SIGGRAPH 2004, August 2004.) Bruce Sterling’s speech at SIGGRAPH 2004 describes a vision of objects that are connected to information related to their design, creation, and use; end-user reviews, ideas, and improvements; and where they are at all times.
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