with the new requirements as Electronic Product Code (EPC) tags were pricey and seemed unnecessary. Walmart, subsequently, offered the suppliers to disclose point of sales information which led to a decreased merchandise thefts and labor requirements. Currently, EPC is one of the international standards, connecting billions of “things” worldwide.
The year 2005 witnessed the first Internet‐connected robot, the Nabaztag rabbit. The bunny‐shaped robot is capable of gathering weather reports, news, and stock market updates through Wi‐Fi connectivity and reading them to the consumer. Despite its retirement in 2015 due to technological impediments, Nabaztag proved that IoT can be integrated into everyday lives.
The First International Conference on the Internet of Things took place in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2008. The event was the first conference of its kind with participants from 23 countries. The same year marked the first time where more “things” are connected to the Internet than people. A year later, Google started the first testing of self‐driving cars while St. Jude Medical officially became an adopter of IoT for healthcare.
The year 2010 marks the first time IoT was recognized on a governmental level where China's head of government Wen Jiabao decided to pay special attention to IoT as one of the remedies to his country's financial crisis and adopting it across top strategic industries. The same year also marks the first implementation of machine learning techniques in IoT devices. Nest smart thermostat was the first IoT product to adapt to the user's habit and thus optimizing the air conditioning schedule.
By the year 2013, IoT had evolved into a system that utilizes multiple technologies, ranging from embedded systems and wireless communication to electromechanical sensors and control systems.
In 2014, Google Inc. acquires Nest after spotting the potential behind IoT and smart home devices in particular. Moreover, Google's self‐driving car prototype was ready for testing on public roads but would not perform the official test drive until the following year.
On the 6th November of the same year, Amazon releases Echo, the first commercially successful voice‐controlled ambient device and IoT hub. It is also anticipated that Amazon's device will be one of the most disruptive technologies in the next generation of enterprise IoT solutions.
The Global Standards Initiative on IoT takes place in 2015. The event's main objective was to establish a unified approach to the development of IoT technical standards and to support the adoption of the technology, globally.
In 2016, the automotive giant General Motors invests $500 million in Lyft aiming at developing a network of self‐driving cars. In the same year, Apple showcases HomeKit products at the Consumer Electronics show. HomeKit is a platform that allows developers to utilize a comprehensive list of software tools for smart home application. In the meantime Google releases Google Home, another smart ambient device competing with Amazon's Echo. This year also witnessed the emergence of the first IoT malware.
In 2017, Microsoft launches Azure IoT edge that allows IoT devices to deploy complex processing and analytics locally, while Amazon offers advanced security features, Google releases Cloud IoT Core which allows an easier connectivity to the cloud. Witnessing such initiatives from giant technology leaders, one can realize that IoT is here to stay.
1.1.4 Wearable Technology: Historical Background
The beginning of this decade has surely witnessed the increasing number of wearable devices where one can spot numerous variations of smart watches, health assistive gadgets, fitness trackers, and smart clothes on the shelves. The growing number of these sleek devices since then along with their expanding applications clearly indicates that wearables are thriving. But one may ask: When and how did it all begin?
Here, we are not discussing the first ubiquitous wearable technology: the eyeglasses, which dates back to the thirteenth century, nor the abacus ring which dates back to the early days of China's Qing dynasty in the seventeenth century. We are specifically addressing smart wearables that have digital computational power!
One may be surprised to learn that much of the history of wearables is found in a “smart” shoe used to cheat at roulette tables in casinos! In 1961, Edward Thorp and Claude Shannon3 built computing devices that could predict where the ball would land on a roulette wheel which could improve the chances of winning a bet by up to 44%. Obviously, Thorp and Shannon's apparatus was not illegal at the time of invention. One of devices was concealed in a shoe, while the other in a pack of cigarettes. It is worth mentioning that Edward Thorp credits himself as the inventor of the first wearable computing device. Other variations of such apparatus were designed and built in the 1960s and 1970s targeting the casino business, perhaps the most widely known is “George,” a shoe‐based wearable device designed by Keith Taft who used his toes to operate it. The smart shoe was used to gain an advantage at Blackjack tables.
Previously, in 1938, Aurex Corp., a Chicago‐based electronics firm, developed the first electronic hearing aid device, marking one of the first innovations in the biomedical wearables industry. In 1958, the world's first pacemaker was invented by Earl Bakken. One might argue that these are not “smart technologies” since they are not based on a digital computing system; however, they gave rise to their smart counterparts we know today.
On the other hand, the first “smart watch” was first launched in 1975 holding the brand name “Pulsar.” The smart watch was primarily a wearable calculator that also tells time in a digital format. The Pulsar became a widely adopted gadget by electronics enthusiasts and math geeks all over the world! Despite their drastic popularity decline, these watches are still being produced by many manufacturers to this day (Figure 1.5).
Some might argue that the iconic Walkman music player was the first ever wearable technology that truly went mainstream. The Japanese brand SONY launched the Walkman in 1979 and was followed by a triumphant commercial success as it significantly transformed the music listening routines for millions of consumers around the world. SONY's Walkman production line was discontinued indefinitely in 2010 with over 220 million machines sold worldwide.
Figure 1.5 The pulsar calculator LED watch released in 1975.
Source: Photo courtesy of Piotr Samulik.
In 1981, Steve Mann, a high school student, incorporated an Apple II (6502) computer into a steel‐framed backpack to control a photography apparatus attached to a helmet. It is also worth mentioning that Steve Mann is also known for creating the first wearable wireless webcam in 1994 and as the first lifelogger.4 He has also pioneered many innovations in the fields of wearable technology and digital photography (Figure 1.6).
In the realm of health care, the first practical and fully digital hearing aid device was invented by Engebretson, Morley, and Popelka. Their patent, “Hearing aids, signal supplying apparatus, systems for compensating hearing deficiencies, and methods” filed in 1984 served as the basis of all subsequent digital hearing aid devices, including those produced today.
The mid‐1990s marked the brainstorming period for wearable technology where conferences and expos on wearables and smart textiles began to see a rise in popularity. The DARPA held its forward‐thinking workshop in 1996 entitled “Wearables in 2005.” One of DARPA's galvanizing
