‘Smart’ loT market to grow
The 2017 Consumer Electronics Show was awash in “smart” IoT products. There were car dashboard integration from Ford; an LG refrigerator with an Echo-smart screen that shows you what’s in stock and then allows you to add, via voice command, more eggs or pickles to your Amazon shopping list; and the introduction of a Withings smart hairbrush (which has “advanced sensors and L’Oreal’s patentpending signal analysis algorithms to score the quality of hair and monitor the effects of different hair care routines,” according to a L’Oreal release).
Also on the market this year: the Willow breast pump, the Simplehuman trash can with voice control and, from Mattel, “Aristotle,” a combination baby monitor/personal assistant that “learns” and “grows” with your child.
“You know there’s got to be a roomful of MBAs saying, ‘How do we put Android on all these refrigerators? And we’re going to get the milk people in here and do a partnership,” said Wombat’s Mr. Hawthorn, who jokes about such out-there innovation but obviously takes cyber security seriously.
Whereas just a few years ago, the Consumer Electronics Show and other trade events were jammed with new product designs, Mr. Byrne said there was a “huge uptick” in more incremental tweaks on existing products: “Maybe 40 or 50 smart lightbulbs, where just two years ago it was primarily just a few.”
Although difficult to predict, a number of industry reports predict there will be about 50 billion connected devices by 2020. Home goods will be part of it, of course, but the bigger part of the IoT will involve industry use.
Many IoT devices are hardly frivolous. A French company has an IndieGoGo project called Leka, which is a tiny round robot. This interactive, multisensory toy “talks” to children through subtle vibrations, music and colors and has a screen that displays facial expressions. It’s developed for children with special needs, especially those for whom social interactions are difficult.
Companion IoT devices already on the market include PARO. The robotic baby harp seal has a soothing effect when stroked and responds with snuggly movements and squeals. It’s used in hospitals and nursing homes.