INTERNET OF THINGS AND END USER VALUE-ADDED ANALYSIS

Če smo še pred nekaj leti govorili o svetovnem spletu kot o revoluciji, danes vemo, da to še nikakor ni vse. Priča smo novemu valu tehnološkega napredka, ki transformira naše okolje in vsakodnevne predmete v ekosistem informacij. Internet stvari je skupek tehnologij, ki povezujejo stvarnost z digitalnimi svetom preko senzorjev in značk, vgrajenih v naprave za vsakodnevno rabo. Čeprav si strokovnjaki o potencialni velikosti trga, ki ga ta fenomen odpira, niso povsem enotni, pa so vsi prepričani, da smo na pragu nove prelomnice, ki bo spremenila vse – nas same, naše vsakdanjike in bo zabrisala mejo med resničnostjo in domišljijo. Kljub globalni popularnosti tega trenda v Sloveniji termin internet stvari še vedno ni znan širši množici, prav tako pa primanjkuje tudi strokovne literature, zato v magistrski nalogi predstavljamo različne poglede, definicije ter tehnologijo, ki je potrebna za nemoteno delovanje interneta stvari. Kot ključno slabost izpostavljamo varnost, ki ima za posledico nezaupanje in počasnejše privajanje uporabnikov. Predstavljamo pravne okvire, ki urejajo področje interneta stvari na evropski ravni ter domače zakone, ki se posredno dotikajo področij, ki jih internet stvari zadeva. Podajamo primere uspešne vpeljave interneta stvari v družbene projekte na različnih področjih – od pametnih mest, porabe energije in prometa do gospodarstva. Internet stvari omogoča znatne stroškovne prihranke in avtomatizacijo procesov, kar vodi v večjo produktivnost in preusmeritev človeških resursov iz operativnih opravil v bolj kreativne. S prerazporeditvijo resursov spreminja poslovne procese ter ustvarja dodano vrednost tako za podjetja kot za končne uporabnike. Omogoča optimizacijo časa in oddaljen nadzor s spremljanjem v realnem času ter nam s pomočjo podatkov, ki jih zbirajo senzorji in značke, daje na voljo podatke za boljše odločanje. Preden pa bomo lahko v popolnosti želi koristi interneta stvari, moramo ljudje ta revolucionaren pojav sprejeti in se znebiti strahu pred njegovo uporabo. Brez tega namreč tovrstna naprava, v primerjavi s klasično, nepovezano, ne prinaša dodane vrednosti končnemu uporabniku. Zaradi preverjanja našega sklepanja o poznavanju pojma v slovenski družbi in karakteristike, ki pretehta, da se uporabniki raje odločijo za nakup (praviloma dražje) pametne naprave kot primerljive, nepovezane, smo izvedli spletno anketo, s katero smo preverili zastavljene hipoteze ter jih potrdili oziroma ovrgli. Ugotovili smo korelacijsko povezavo med poznavanjem tehnoloških trendov in zaupanjem v uporabo pametnih naprav, storitev ter produktov in hkrati potrdili, da smo Slovenci še precej slabo seznanjeni z t. i. internetom nove dobe. Ena od glavnih ovir je dvom o varnosti, ta pa izhaja iz slabe informiranosti bodisi o delovanju naprave, zbiranju podatkov ali celo o njenem obstoju. Dodana vrednost, ki jo internet stvari prinaša napravam za vsakodnevno rabo, je v tem, da postajajo bolj osebne, hitrejše in boljše ter da uporabniku omogočajo oddaljen dostop, kar se odraža v časovni optimizaciji in v našem primeru, kjer obravnavamo pameten elektronski monitor za dojenčke, tudi v pomirjenosti staršev. Čeprav je cena še vedno pomemben faktor, pa je potrebno v prvi vrsti informirati potencialne uporabnike in kupce kakšne možnosti obstajajo, kako delujejo in za hitrejšo adaptacijo vgraditi koncept varnosti že v sam razvoj produkta.A few years ago we considered the World Wide Web as a revolution, but today we know there is yet much more to come. We are witnessing a new wave of technological progress, which is transforming our environment and everyday objects to an information ecosystem. Internet of Things (further on as IoT) is a set of technologies that connect reality with digital world by using sensors and tags, embedded in devices for everyday use. Although experts have diverse predictions about the potential size of the market, enabled by the phenomenon, they are all convinced we are on the threshold of a new turning point that will change everything – not only ourselves, but also our daily lives and will blur the boundary between reality and imagination. Despite global popularity of this trend, the term IoT it is still not widely known in Slovenia, furthermore there is a lack of professional literature. Due to this the thesis summarizes different views, definitions and describes technology, which is necessary for the Internet of Things to function. As a key weakness we emphasize data safety, which leads to distrust and slows down the adaptation process. The thesis also cites legal frameworks governing the field of IoT at European level as well as domestic laws. We give examples of successful IoT implementation in social projects all over various fields - from smart cities, energy and transport to economy itself. The Internet of things enables major cost savings and process automation, leading to increased productivity and diverting human resources from operational tasks to more creative ones. Reallocating resources is changing business processes and creating value-added for both sides – companies and end users. It also provides time optimization, remote control and monitoring in real time. Using data collected by sensors and tags, decision-making is much easier. But before we can fully reap the benefits of IoT, people need to adapt to the phenomenon and lose fear of its use. Without it no smart device, compared to a conventional one, will bring value-added to an end user. In order to test our hypothesis about the perception of IoT in Slovenian society and to find out, which is the one characteristic that outweighs and makes users prefer to buy (usually a more expensive) smart device rather than a conventional one, we carried out an online survey. We found a correlation link between significance of technology trends and confidence in using smart devices, services, and products and at the same time confirmed that Slovenians are still quite poorly familiar with the so-called “Internet of the new era”. One of the main obstacles is the question of security, which stems from poor information available. The value-added offered by IoT makes devices more personal, faster, better and enables remote access, which reflects in time optimization and in our case, where we discuss smart electronic monitor for babies, in calming the parents. Although the price is still an important factor, it is firstly necessary to inform potential customers what options exist and how they work. In order to accelerate the adaptation, the concept of security needs to be integrated in the development of product / service