Internet of Things (IoT) Platforms for Smart City Implementation in Rural and Urban Communities: A comprehensive Review

Abstract

Transportation agencies in urban, sub-urban, and rural areas have started to plan or actually implement their first smart city projects. A major element of these systems includes an Internet of Things (IoT) smart city platform to help manage data exchange and flows and run the analytics needed to handle user data and monitor system performance. For many agencies, IoT platform selection is very challenging, given the limited technical resources of most of these agencies. Several of these IoT solutions have proprietary, vendor-specific attributes that lock agencies into specific vendors’ solutions. IoT platforms developed by smaller vendors, while they may come with strong customer support and a higher degree of openness, face many challenges related to system integration and scalability. The primary objective of this comprehensive review study was to improve the understanding among transportation agencies policy makers and professionals regarding IoT platform operational characteristics. This study conducted an in-depth evaluation of three smart city projects developed and funded through public-private partnerships and four smart city implementations funded through the U.S Department of Transportation (USDOT). The study also covered three IoT platforms currently available from different vendors. The seven smart city projects (public and private) were evaluated with the criteria of system functionalities, interoperability, integrability, usability, security, and survivability. The three IoT platforms were evaluated on comprehensiveness, total cost, expertise and smart city focus, openness, and ease of integration. This evaluation used industry-based criteria to help both rural and urban transportation agencies understand the technical opportunities, challenges, and barriers related to existing smart city implementation projects. The projects and vendors evaluated in this report provided valuable insight into the current reality of smart city projects.