By David Sprinzen,
VP of Marketing, Vantiq
A revolution is exploding all around us. It is happening at
the edge, where every second of every day, millions upon millions of sensors,
monitors, and other devices are streaming petabytes of data - in real time -
about nearly every aspect of our lives and environments. From nearby traffic
flow and road conditions, to the office's temperature and humidity levels, to
the real-time location of online deliveries, it's all being tracked at the
edge.
These data streams create huge opportunities for enterprises
that can harness the power of real-time data and create applications, services,
and products that enhance the physical world through digital assets - from
saving lives, to reshaping the retail experience, to improving safety and
security, and even protecting the planet through better resource management.
Enterprises that leverage this data to connect the digital
and physical worlds will not only control their environments more efficiently,
but also create more intimate connections with their customers and employees,
and expand or create entirely new business opportunities.
But seizing those opportunities will require a development platform
that is designed to meet the revolutionary demands of real-time edge data. The
next generation of applications will be developed on software platforms that
can meet the unique challenges of edge-native application development,
deployment, and management.
What is "the edge?"
Today's edge isn't a single device - or even class of
devices - neither is it an extension of the cloud, although the cloud plays an
important part. The edge is a dynamic, hybrid network of sensors, monitors,
devices, and legacy systems working together to enable the next generation of
business applications. In fact, the edge is now defined not so much by sensors
and devices as by the software that runs on them.
The massive demands of real-time data have increasingly
pushed computing power and intelligence to the edge - as close to the data as
possible, and that is changing the very nature of the applications that run on
these devices.
Edge applications must now be designed as distributed,
real-time, edge-native programs that
can deliver high performance, low latency, and geo-spatially and contextually
appropriate results nearly instantly.
Databases: The legacy
model
For decades, networked computing has been database centric.
But the traditional database model of record, store, query, recall, and analyze
is antithetical to the demands of an actionable, real-time environment: it's
too slow, and requires too much data movement, creating privacy and security
risks - especially when the data must be transmitted from the edge back to the
cloud. Today's edge applications target a response threshold of under 10
milliseconds, which legacy, hub, and spoke implementations cannot achieve.
And while it may be possible for organizations to create
enhanced, legacy solutions, such cobbled-together systems often show high
failure rates when deployed at scale.
What's needed is an entirely new development environment
designed for edge-native applications.
Modern, edge-native
software development
To leverage the edge infrastructure, next-generation, edge
applications must be created using development environments that are edge- and
real-time native. These environments will be characterized by supporting:
- Low-code for rapid development and deployment
- Agile integration, so individual applications can be
combined to support more complex, strategic needs
- Edge and mesh deployments that treat the edge as just
another compute node in a distributed environment
- Human-Machine collaboration, as well as machine-to-machine communication,
for applications like chatbots and NLP (natural language processing) systems
- Mission
critical systems with inherent security, stability, and scalability
The adoption of real-time native development environments is
the only way enterprises will truly leverage the power of real-time data at the
edge, enabling a digitally enhanced physical world that is safer, more secure,
and more sustainable.
Real-time, real-world
examples
To achieve the potential of real-time applications, they
must be designed for distributed deployments, not just so processing can be
handed off seamlessly in the event of a failure, but also because the same data
stream may need to be processed differently - simultaneously - to meet the
demands of rapidly changing conditions. For example:
- Emergency Services:
The same cameras that scan license plates for stolen vehicles could also report accidents - as they happen - and swiftly route
first responders through traffic to the accident scene.
- Retail: Shoppers could
receive personalized recommendations and offers from the store they're in - or
nearby - automatically, plus, once they're in the store, get guided shopping paths and grab-and-go checkouts to
complete their shopping as quickly as possible.
- Security and Safety:
Airport video surveillance could automatically notify TSA staff of both
suspicious packages and lost children, as well as help airport staff
guide travelers through congested areas and to their gates stress-free.
- Building Management:
Smart building technology can adjust environmental conditions dynamically, to
save energy and keep occupants comfortable, while simultaneously verifying that
only authorized personnel have access to restricted areas.
Winning the
revolution
To seize the infinite opportunities that the real-time, edge
revolution is creating, enterprises must transition from legacy, database
models to modern, edge-native development platforms that are designed for
distributed applications. Enterprises that embrace the real-time revolution
will delight their customers and expand their business opportunities with
services that are more responsive, relevant, resilient and reliable.
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ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Sprinzen heads marketing, training, and
industry solutions at Vantiq. He comes from a diverse technical background in
Electrical Engineering, Applied Physics, and Computational Neuroscience, and
brings this practical knowledge to the discussion around how technologies like
IoT, AI and edge computing can drive business transformation and address the
growing societal needs around sustainability and making the world operate more
efficiently.