UNIT II: Elements of IoT

IoT Hardware Devices

Hardware and software devices combine to form an IoT ecosystem. Hardware is a set of
devices that wire together to serve some functionality. Assume to build a drone, attach
sensors to this drone so that it can take photos of your agricultural crops to keep a track of
their growth. Or a smart watch that keeps a track of your entire schedule, count the number
of steps you take daily, measure your heart pulse. These examples will require connecting
small components, tracking the battery usage. IoT devices are a combination of hardware and
software. The two components integrated and perform a variety of functions.

Building blocks of IoT Hardware

Figure 1: Building blocks of IoT Hardware

1. “Things”: Things in IoT are any devices that are capable of connecting to the internet.
They can transmit, retrieve and store data that they collect from the surrounding. They
include home appliances such as geysers, microwaves, thermostats and refrigerators, etc.
2. Data Acquisition module: As the term suggests, this module is responsible for acquiring
data from the physical surroundings or environment (changes in the temperature, movement,
humidity and pressure) and convert the signal to digital from.
3. Data processing module: This module includes computers that process the data acquired
from the previous module. They analyse the data, store data for future references and other
purposes.
4. Communication module: This is the final building block and this module is responsible
for communication with third party vendors. This could include device to device, device to
server or device to user.

Types of IoT hardware

It is easier to develop an IoT application these days due to the ease in the availability of
boards, Integrated circuits, prototype kits and platforms. These hardware components are low
cost and reliable. they offer flexibility and the choice to design custom sensors with specific
applications. At the same time you can also specify the networking area, data management
and other functionalities as you want. There is a wide range of hardware components to
choose from and based on your requirements you can pick the one that matches your
proptype perfectly.
a. Microcontrollers
i. Microcontrollers are a type of SoC that provides data processing and storage units. They
contain a processor for processing, ROM for storage. When you start building an IoT system,
you must pick a microcontroller that fits your desired purpose. You might have to look at its
datasheet to understand the properties and specifications.

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ii. Microcontrollers have properties such as Datapath Bandwidth. Datapath Bandwidth
specifies the number of bits in the registers. More bits, more accurate results.
iii. Microcontrollers connect to all the components of the system and thus they must have
sufficient input/output pins. Microcontrollers must have performance depending on what
system you are developing.
iv. Microcontrollers use a communication protocol to communicate with one another. The
protocols are helpful when you are building bigger systems that require constant
communication with other devices.

b. Single-Board Computer(SBC)
i. Single Board Computers (SBC) that contain all the processing and computing properties of
a computer on a single board. SBCs have memory units to store code, data, input, output units
and microprocessors for computing. It also includes an in-built RAM.
ii. They are a preferred choice in IoT industrial applications as they improve the functionality
of a regular computer, they are easily available and reduce the cost of transportation.
iii. Based on the kind of project you are making, you choose a SBC that fits into all your
needs for that specific project. SBCs are ready made and available in the market at cheap
prices as compared to desktops and computers.
iv. The types of SBCs commonly available in the market are Raspberry Pis, Arduino,
Beagleboard and Qualcomm DragonBoard 410c.

IoT Software
A overview of IoT Softwares are-
1. C & C++: The C programming language has its roots in embedded systems—it even got
its start for programming telephone switches. It’s pretty universal, it can be used almost
everywhere and many programmers already know it. C++ is the object-oriented version of C,
which is a language popular for both the Linux OS and Arduino embedded IoT software
systems. These languages were basically written for the hardware systems, which makes
them so easy to use.
2. Java: While C and C++ are hardware specific, the code in JAVA is more portable. It is
more like a write once and read anywhere you want.
3. Python: There has been a recent surge in the number of python users and has now become
one of the “go-to” languages in Web development. It is slowly spreading to the embedded
control and IoT world—specially the Raspberry Pi processor. Python is an interpreted
language, which is, easy to read, quick to learn and quick to write. Also, it’s a powerhouse for
serving data-heavy applications.
4. B#: Unlike most of the languages mentioned so far, B# was specifically designed for
embedded systems having less memory size.

Arduino
i. Arduino is an open-source hardware and software company that designs and manufactures
single-board microcontrollers and microcontroller kits.
ii. In Arduino, each board has clear markings on the connection pins, sockets and in-circuit
connections. Thus, Arduino boards are easy to work for DIY (do-it-yourself) and simplify the
prototyping of embedded platforms for IoTs.
iii. The Arduino Integrated Development Environment or Arduino Software (IDE) are open
source for easy to program.

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iv. Uno is most used and documented board of the whole Arduino family at present. The
board’s analog input pins and PWM pins can connect sensors, actuators and analog circuits.
The board’s digital I/O pins can connect On-Off states, set of On-Off states, digital inputs
from sensors, digital outputs to actuators and other digital circuits.
v. A board with a shield inserted into it makes a wireless connection to a ZigBee, Bluetooth
LE, WiFi, GSM, or RF module or a wired connection to Ethernet LAN for the Internet.
vi. Development boards for IoT devices are the Arduino Ethernet, Arduino Wi-Fi and
Arduino GSM shields. Development boards for the wearable devices are Arduino Gemma,
LilyPad, LilyPad Simple/SimpleSnap and LilyPad USB.
Figure 8.2 shows architecture of Arduino Fio board with Ethernet shield.

Figure 2: Architecture of Arduino Fio board ford IoT devices development

Arduino types
Arduino Uno (R3), Arduino Nano, Arduino Micro, Arduino Due, LilyPad Arduino Board,
Arduino Bluetooth, Arduino Fio, Arduino Diecimila, RedBoard Arduino Board, Arduino
Mega (R3) Board Arduino Leonardo Board, Arduino Robot, Arduino Esplora, Arduino Pro
Mic Arduino Ethernet, Arduino Zero, Fastest Arduino Board
https://www.elprocus.com/different-types-of-arduino-boards/
https://www.elprocus.com/different-types-of-arduino-boards/

Raspberry Pi
Raspberry Pi is a low-cost mini-computer with the physical size of a credit card. Raspberry Pi
runs various flavours of Linux and can perform almost all tasks that a normal desktop
computer can do, In addition, Raspberry Pi also allows interfacing sensors and actuators
through the general purpose I/O pins. Since Raspberry Pi runs Linux operating system, it
supports Python "out of the box".
The different types of raspberry pi models are following
Raspberry Pi 1 model B
Raspberry Pi 1 model A
Raspberry Pi 1 model B+
Raspberry Pi 1model A+

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Raspberry Pi Zero
Raspberry Pi 2
Raspberry Pi 3 model B
Raspberry Pi Zero W

Figure 3: Raspberry Pi Model B+ layout

Types comparison https://www.efxkits.us/different-types-of-raspberry-pi-boards-its-
application/
Other information https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raspberry_Pi

i. Raspberry Pi is based on an ARM processor. The latest version of Raspberry Pi (Model B, Revision 2)
comes with 700 MHz Low Power ARM 1176JZ-F processor and 512 MB SDRAM,
ii. USB Ports : Raspberry Pi comes with two USB 2.0 ports. The USB ports on Raspberry Pi can provide a
current upto 100mA. For connecting devices that draw current more than 100mA an external USB
powered hub is required.
iii. Ethernet Ports : Raspberry Pi comes with a standard RJ45 Ethernet port. You can connect an
Ethernet cable or a USB Wifi adapter to provide Internet connectivity.
iv. HDMI Output : The HDMI port on Raspberry Pi provides both video and audio output. You can
connect the Raspberry Pi to a monitor using an EIDMI cable.
v. Composite Video Output : Raspberry Pi comes with a composite video output.
vi. Audio Output : Raspberry Pi has a 3.5mm audio output jack. The audio quality from this jack is
inferior to the HDMI output.
vii. GPIO Pins : Raspberry N comes with a number of general purpose input output pins. There are four
types of pins on Raspberry Pi - true GPIO pins. I2C interface pins, SPI interface pins and serial Rx and Tx
pins.

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a. Serial: The serial interface on Raspberry Pi has receive (Rx) and transmit (Tx) pins for
communication with serial peripherals.
b. SPI: Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) is a synchronous serial data protocol used for communicating with
one or more peripheral devices. In an SPI connection, there is one master device and one or more
peripheral devices. There are five pins on Raspberry Pi for SPI interface:
 MISO (Master In Slave Out) : Master line for sending data to the peripherals.
 MOSI (Master Out Slave In) : Slave line for sending data to the master.
 SCI (Serial Clock) : Clock generated by master to synchronize data transmission
 CEO (Chip Enable 0) : To enable or disable devices.
 CEO (Chip Enable 1) : To enable or disable devices,
c. I2C: The. 12C interface pins on Raspberry Pi allow you to connect hardware modules. 12C interface
allows synchronous data transfer with just two pins - SDA (data line) and SCL (clock line).
viii. Display Serial Interface (1351) The DSI interface can be used to connect an LCD panel to
Raspberry Pi.
ix. Camera Serial interface (CSI) : The CSI interface can be used to connect a camera module to
Raspberry Pi.
x. Status LEDs : Raspberry Pi has live status LEDs, Table 7.1 lists Raspberry Pi status LEDs and their
functions.
xi. SD Card Slot : Raspberry Pi does not have a built in operating system and storage. You can plug-in
an SD card loaded with a Linux image to the SD card slot. Appendix-A provides instructions on setting up
New Out-of-the-Box Software (NOOBS) on Raspberry Pi. You will require at least an 80H SD card
for setting up NOOBS,
xii. Power Input : Raspberry Pi has a micro-USB connector for power input.

ARM Cortex-M class processor

Over the years, ARM has developed quite a number of different processor products. In the
following diagram (Figure 4), the ARM processors are divided between the classic ARM
processors and the newer Cortex processor product range. In addition, these processors are
divided into three groups:

Application Processors – High-end processors for mobile computing, smart phone, servers,
etc. These processors run at higher clock frequency (over 1GHz), and support Memory
Management Unit (MMU), which is required for full feature OS such as Linux, Android, MS
Windows and mobile OSs. If you are planning to develop a product that requires one of these
OSs, you need to use an application processor.

Real-time Processors – These are very high-performance processors for real-time

applications such as hard disk controller, automotive power train and base band control in
wireless communications. Most of these processors do not have MMU, and usually have
Memory Protection Unit (MPU), cache, and other memory features designed for industrial
applications. They can run at a fairly high clock frequency (e.g. 200MHz to >1GHz) and have
very low response latency. Although these processors cannot run full versions of Linux or
Windows, there are plenty of Real Time Operating Systems (RTOS) that can be used with
these processors.

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Microcontroller Processors – These processors are usually designed to have a much lower
silicon area, and much high-energy efficiency. Typically, they have shorter pipeline, and
usually lower maximum frequency (although you can find some of these processors running
at over 200MHz). At the same time, the newer Cortex-M processor family is designed to be
very easy to use; therefore, they are very popular in the microcontroller and deeply embedded
systems market.

Today, there are eight members in the ARM Cortex-M processor family. Different processors
can have different instruction set support, system features and performance.

Figure 4: ARM processor family

The Cortex-M processor family

The Cortex-M processor family is more focused on the lower end of the performance scale.
However, these processors are still quite powerful when compared to other typical processors
used in most microcontrollers. For example, the Cortex-M4 and Cortex-M7 processors are
being used in many high-performance microcontroller products, with maximum clock
frequency going up to 400MHz. Of course, performance is not the only factor when selecting
a processor. In many applications, low power and cost are the key selection criteria.
Therefore, the Cortex-M processor family contains various products to address different
needs:

Cortex-M0 A very small processor (starting from 12K gates) for low cost, ultra-low power
microcontrollers and deeply embedded applications.
Cortex-M0+ The most energy-efficient processor for small embedded system. Similar size
and programmer’s model to the Cortex-M0 processor, but with additional features like single
cycle I/O interface and vector table relocations.

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Cortex-M1 A small processor design optimized for FPGA designs and provides Tightly
Coupled Memory (TCM) implementation using memory blocks on the FPGAs. Same
instruction set as the Cortex-M0.
Cortex-M3 A small but powerful embedded processor for low-power microcontrollers that
has a rich instruction set to enable it to handle complex tasks quicker. It has a hardware
divider and Multiply-Accumulate (MAC) instructions. In addition, it also has comprehensive
debug and trace features to enable software developers to develop their applications quicker.
Cortex-M4 It provides all the features on the Cortex-M3, with additional instructions target
at Digital Signal Processing (DSP) tasks, such as Single Instruction Multiple Data (SIMD)
and faster single cycle MAC operations. In addition, it also have an optional single precision
floating point unit that support IEEE 754 floating point standard.
Cortex-M7 High-performance processor for high-end microcontrollers and processing
intensive applications. It has all the ISA features available in Cortex-M4, with additional
support for double-precision floating point, as well as additional memory features like cache
and Tightly Coupled Memory (TCM).

Arm Cortex-M0 Processor Architecture

The ARMv6-M architecture that the Cortex-M0 processor implemented covers a number of
different areas. To use a Cortex-M0 device with C language, you only need to know the
memory map, the peripheral programming information, the exception handling mechanism,
and part of the programmer’s model. Most users of the Cortex-M0 processor will work in C
language; as a result, the underlying programmer’s model will not be visible in the program
code. However, it is still useful to know about the details, as this information is often needed
during debugging and it will also help readers to understand the rest of this book.

Programmer’s Model
1. Operation Modes and States
i. The Cortex-M0 processor has two operation modes (Thread mode or the Handler mode)
and two states (Thumb and Deburg stated) as in the Figure 5.

Figure 5: Processor modes and states in the Cortex-M0 processor

ii. When the processor is running a program, it is in the Thumb state. In this state, it can be
either in the Thread mode or the Handler mode. Both modes are almost the same. The only
difference is Thread mode have a special register called CONTROL.

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iii. The Debug state is used for debugging operation only. Halting the processor, stops the
instruction execution and enter debug state. This state allows the debugger to access or
change the processor register values.
iv. The debugger can access system memory locations in either the Thumb state or the Debug
state.
v. When the processor is powered up, it will be running in the Thumb state and Thread mode
by default.
2. Registers and Special Registers
i. To perform data processing and controls, a number of registers are required inside the
processor core. The data have to be loaded from the memory to a register in the register bank
then processed inside the processor, and then written back to the memory if needed. This is
commonly called as “load-store architecture.”
ii. By having a sufficient number of registers in the register bank, this mechanism is easy to
use. The register bank contains sixteen 32-bit registers. 13 are general-purpose registers,
remaining have special uses as shown in the Figure 6.

Figure 6: Registers in the Cortex-M0 processor

R0-R12: Registers R0 to R12 are for general uses. The Thumb instructions can only access
low registers (R0 to R7). Some instructions like MOV (move) can use all registers. The initial
values of R0 to R12 at reset are undefined.
R13, Stack Pointer (SP): R13 is the stack pointer. It is used for accessing the stack memory
via PUSH and POP operations. There are physically two different stack pointers in Cortex-
M0. The main stack pointer (MSP) is used for running unusual handlers mode and process
stack pointer (PSP) is used for usual Thread mode.
R14, Link Register (LR): R14 is the Link Register. The Link Register is used for storing the
return address of a function call.

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R15, Program Counter (PC): R15 is the Program Counter. It is readable and writeable. Call
the Program Counter, using either “R15” or “PC,” in either upper or lower case (e.g., “r15” or
“pc”).
xPSR, combined Program Status Register
The combined Program Status Register provides information about program execution and
the ALU flags. It is consists of the following three Program Status Registers (PSRs) as in
Figure 7:
• Application PSR (APSR): Contains the ALU flags: N (negative flag), Z (zero flag), C (carry
or borrow flag), and V (overflow flag). These bits are at the top 4 bits of the APSR.
• Interrupt PSR (IPSR): Contains the current executing interrupt service routine (ISR)
number.
• Execution PSR (EPSR): Contains the T-bit, which indicates that the processor is in the
Thumb state.

Figure 7: APSR, IPSR, and EPSR.

These three registers can be accessed as one register called xPSR as given in Figure 8.

Figure 8: xPSR

PRIMASK: Interrupt Mask Special Register

The PRIMASK register is a 1-bit-wide interrupt mask register as in Figure 9. When set, it
blocks all interrupts apart from the non-maskable interrupt (NMI) and the hard fault
exception. Effectively it raises the current interrupt priority level to 0, which is the highest
value for a programmable exception. The PRIMASK register can be accessed using special
register access instructions (MSR, MRS) as well as using an instruction called the Change
Processor State (CPS). This is commonly used for handling time-critical routines.

Figure 9: PRIMASK

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CONTROL: Special Register
i. Physically there are two stack pointers in the Cortex-M0 processor, but only one of them is
used at one time, depending on the current value of the CONTROL register as shown in the
Figure 10.

Figure 10: CONTROL

ii. After reset, the main stack pointer (MSP) is used, but can be switched to the process stack
pointer (PSP) in Thread mode by setting bit [1] in the CONTROL register as shown in the
Figure 11.
iii. During running of an exception handler (when the processor is in Handler mode), only the
MSP is used, and the CONTROL register reads as zero.
iv. Bit 0 of the CONTROL register is reserved to maintain compatibility with the Cortex-M3
processor.

Figure 11: Stack pointer selection

3. Memory System Overview

The Cortex-M0 processor has 4 GB of memory address space. The memory space is
architecturally defined as a number of regions, with each region having a recommended
usage to help software porting between different devices as shown in the Figure 12.

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 Figure 12: Memory map
Stack Memory Operations
Stack memory is a memory usage mechanism that allows the system memory to be used as
temporary data storage. The main element of stack memory operation is a register called the
stack pointer. The stack pointer is adjusted automatically each time a stack operation is
carried out. In common terms, storing data to the stack is called pushing (using the PUSH
instruction) and restoring data from the stack is called popping (using the POP instruction) as
shown in the Figure 13.

Figure 13: Stack PUSH and POP in the Cortex-M0 processor.

4. Exceptions and Interrupts
i. Exceptions are events that cause change to program control: instead of continuing program
execution, the processor suspends the current executing task and executes a part of the

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program code called the exception handler. After the exception handler is completed, it will
then resume the normal program execution.
ii. There are various types of exceptions. Interrupts are a subset of exceptions. They are 32
external interrupts (commonly referred as interrupt request, IRQs) and an additional special
interrupt called the nonmaskable interrupt (NMI).
iii. The exception handlers for interrupt events are commonly known as interrupt service
routines (ISRs).

Nested Vectored Interrupt Controller (NVIC)

To prioritize the interrupt requests and handle other exceptions, the Cortex-M0 processor has
a built-in interrupt controller called the Nested Vectored Interrupt Controller (NVIC). The
interrupt management function is controlled by a number of programmable registers in the
NVIC. These registers are memory mapped, with the addresses located within the System
Control Space (SCS) as illustrated in Figure 12.
The NVIC supports a number of features:
• Flexible interrupt management: each external interrupt can be enabled or disabled. It can
also accept exception requests at external peripheral, at 1cycle.
• Nested interrupt support: each exception has a priority level. The priority level can be fixed
or programmable.
• Vectored exception entry: When an exception occurs, the processor will need to locate the
starting point of the corresponding exception handler.
• Interrupt masking

Interrupt Masking
The NVIC in the Cortex-M0 processor provides an interrupt masking feature via the
PRIMASK special register. This can disable all exceptions except hard fault and NMI (non-
maskable interrupt, hardware failure). This masking is useful for operations that should not
be interrupted such as time critical control tasks.

5. System Control Block (SCB)

Apart from the NVIC, the System Control Space (SCS) also contains a number of other
registers for system management. This is called the System Control Block (SCB). It contains
registers for sleep mode features and system exception configurations, as well as a register
containing the processor identification code.

Block Diagram
i. A simplified block diagram of the Cortex-M0 is shown in Figure 14. The processor core
contains the register banks, ALU, data path, and control logic. It is a three stage pipeline
design with fetch stage, decode stage, and execution stage. The register bank has sixteen 32-
bit registers. A few registers have special usages.
ii. The Nested Vectored Interrupt Controller (NVIC) accepts up to 32 interrupt request signals
and a non-maskable interrupt (NMI) input.
iii. It contains the functionality required for comparing priority between interrupt requests
and the current priority level so that nested interrupts can be handled automatically.

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iv. If an interrupt is accepted, it communicates with the processor so that the processor can
execute the correct interrupt handler. The Wakeup Interrupt Controller (WIC) is an optional
unit.
iv. In low-power applications, the microcontroller can enter standby state with most of the
processor powered down. In this situation, the WIC can perform the function of interrupt
masking.
v. When an interrupt request is detected, the WIC informs the power management to power
up the system so that the NVIC and the processor core can then handle the rest of the
interrupt processing. The debug subsystem contains various functional blocks to handle
debug control, program breakpoints, and data watch points.
vi. The serial wire protocol is a newer communication protocol that only requires two wires,
but it can handle the same debug functionalities as JTAG (Joint Test Action Group). The
internal bus system, the data path in the processor core, and the AHB LITE bus interface are
all 32 bits wide.
vii. AHB-Lite is an on-chip bus protocol used in many ARM processors. This bus protocol is
part of the Advanced Microcontroller Bus Architecture (AMBA) specification, a bus
architecture developed by ARM that is widely used in the IC design industry.

Figure 14: Simplified block diagram of the Cortex-M0 processor

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 CHAPTER 5

Instruction Set

Background of ARM and Thumb Instruction Set

The early ARM processors use a 32-bit instruction set called the ARM instructions. The
32-bit ARM instruction set is powerful and provides good performance, but at the same time
it often requires larger program memory when compared to 8-bit and 16-bit processors. This
was and still is an issue, as memory is expensive and could consume a considerable amount
of power.
In 1995, ARM introduced the ARM7TDMI processor, adding a new 16-bit instruction set
called the Thumb instruction set. The ARM7TDMI supports both ARM instructions and
Thumb instructions, and a state-switching mechanism is used to allow the processor to decide
which instruction decode scheme should be used (Figure 5.1). The Thumb instruction set
provides a subset of the ARM instructions. By itself it can perform most of the normal
functions, but interrupt entry sequence and boot code must still be in ARM state. Nevertheless,
most processing can be carried out using Thumb instructions and interrupt handlers could
switch themselves to use the Thumb state, so the ARM7TDMI processor provides excellent
code density when compared to other 32-bit RISC architectures.

Instruction decode
format selection
.----------a
ARM
Incoming Execution
instruction
Instructions stage
decoder
Thumb remap
to ARM

T bit (0 = ARM,
1 = Thumb)

Figure 5.1:
ARM7TDMI design supports both ARM and the Thumb instruction set.

Thumb code provides a code size reduction of approximately 30% compared to the equivalent
ARM code. However, it has some impact on the performance and can reduce the performance
by 20%. On the other hand, in many applications, the reduction of program memory size and
The Definitive Guide to the ARM Cortex-MO. DOI: 10.1016/B978-0-12-385477-3.10005-9
Copyright © 2011 Man Cheung Joseph Yiu. Published by Elsevier Joe. All rights reserved.
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Additional data
Embedded Systems
An Embedded System is a computer system that has computer hardware and software
embedded to perform specific tasks. In contrast to general purpose computers or personal
computers (PCs)' wbich can perform various types of tasks, embedded systems are designed
to perform a specific set of tasks. Key components of an embedded system include.
microprocessor or microcontroller, memory (RAM, ROM, cache), networking units
(Etllemet, WiFi adapters), input/output units (display, keyboard, etc.) and storage (such as
Hash memory). Some embedded systems have specialized processors such as digital signal
processors (DSPs), graphics processors and application specific processors. Embedded
systems run embedded operating systems such as real-time operating systems (RTOS).
Embedded systems range from low-cost miniaturized devices such as digital watches to
devices such as digital cameras, point of vending machines, appliances (such as washing
machines), etc.

IoT Hardware Devices

1. Sensors: A sensor is an IoT device that senses physical changes in the environment and
sends the data for manipulation via a network. Clouds store the data for future references.
Sensors monitor data and collect information constantly.
2. Microcontrollers: A microcontroller is a small computer that is capable of performing
operations. It sits on a semiconductor integrated circuit chip. Microcontollers usually operate
on a single function and hence differ from regular computers. They perform a variety of tasks
in a relatively simpler manner.
3. Wearable devices: Wearable devices are a benchmark revolution of the IoT industry. These
are Iot devices that humans can wear on their bodies to regulate and perform a variety of
tasks. These wearables are capable of tracking glucose levels, monitor heart attack risks,
coagulation and asthma monitoring, daily step and calorie consumption tracking.
4. Basic devices: Traditional computers such as desktops, tablets and cellphones are still an
integral part of any IoT ecosystem. Desktops offer users with simple access to a lot of
information and cell phones allow remote access to Iot devices using APIs.
5. Datasheets: Datasheets give the details about the functionality of any hardware
components. It is important to study the datasheet of any hardware before making a purchase
to make sure you are buying the right product.
Datasheets offer you detailed information on the parameters of the hardware, its physical
size, different voltage and electrical parameters, maximum current usage and the number of
input/output pins. Datasheets are highly useful as they give you all the information you need
before buying complicated hardware components.
6. Integrated circuits: Integrated circuits are chips. They are microcontrollers. You can buy
empty chips in the market and download any kind of design into the chip. They are made
using Silicon and it is packaged into shapes of rectangles. These chips contain complicated
logic circuits, gates, registers, switches, I/O terminals and flip flops.
Integrated circuits do a variety of functions, they can perform arithmetic and logical
calculations. They act as processors too. They contain binary coded information which is
programmed to perform a set of tasks.
Standard chips are available in the market that perform a fixed set of operations. You can also
construct chips to perform your desired set of functions and these are known as custom made
chips.

IoT Hardware Providers

Various companies have come up with their own personalized IoT hardware and software
and many emerging companies are adapting to these policies. However, the most common Iot
hardware providers are listed below:
a. Adafruit is best if you want to get hands-on experience with IoT. The company sells IoT
DIY kits with an online guide to help you through the initial setting up. You can interact,
manipulate and store your data.
b. Raspberry Pi is best at student level to get hands-on experience with IoT. You can interact,
manipulate and store your data.
b. Arduino, the company brands microcontrollers, IoT kits and software tools.
c. Lantronix provides solutions for the IoT such as smart hardware, networking, engineering
and artificial intelligence.
d. Espressif can interconnect with the system to provide wifi and bluetooth. It has high level
integration. It uses low power and has a robust design.