IoT as a Backbone of the Metaverse

October 25, 2022

The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network that allows everyday objects like thermostats, voice-activated speakers, and medical gadgets to share and access information with one another and the outside world. Now that IoT can easily link a wide variety of physical objects to the 3D world, the Metaverse is poised to undergo a radical transformation.

Just like the Metaverse, the Internet of Things (IoT) is a vast and multifaceted idea.

As we see it, the Internet of Things (IoT) is an expansive digital network of interconnected physical devices. It takes advantage of a channel connecting the material and digital worlds. Through the Internet of Things, billions of electronic devices can communicate with one another over wired or wireless networks to exchange data and take advantage of shared computing resources. 

The full promise of the Metaverse cannot be realized without IoT as a foundational component of the system supporting it. The Internet of Things and the Metaverse will most likely create brand-new possibilities for innovation in the technological sector. And this article reveals why.

Why is IoT important for the Metaverse?

Expert predictions and industry reports suggest that the combination of Metaverse and IoT will fundamentally alter the technological landscape. New possibilities for the industrial domain, individual wants, and societal necessities will be unlocked when the Metaverse and IoT are brought together. This collaboration has the potential to help Metaverse go beyond its current limitations and into new, more widely applicable areas. 

The Internet of Things (IoT) will make it possible for digital environments to interact with and access the physical world. At the same time, the Metaverse visualization potential will provide the 3D user interface for the IoT device cluster, bringing it to the next level. As a result, users will have an IoT and metaverse experience tailored to their own needs. With this combination, data streams may flow more smoothly, and AI-powered decisions can be made with minimal effort and training.

Shanghai digital twin built on IoT data
See how 51World created a digital twin of the entire city of Shanghai based on IoT data @unrealengine.com

Data as an Essence of the Metaverse

Data is a new worldwide accepted currency. In the realm of digital reality, it is the gateway to the value of information. The Metaverse is merely a blank canvas depicting the universe in the form of an online forum if there is no data.

It is quite likely that the capacity to capture data from the “actual” world, especially the vast absorption of data from IoT devices, will be the deciding factor in whether or not the Metaverse is successful. This data not only needs to be represented in the Metaverse in a meaningful fashion, but it also needs to be responsive and appropriately secured.

In order to support their metaverse strategy, 84% of leaders across the IT, telecom, and technology industries have said that they intend to look at procurement data intelligence solutions that can be deployed inside virtual worlds within the next two years.

Everything Goes to the Cloud

Cloud computing is essential for establishing a reliable link between the Internet of Things and the Metaverse. AWS and Microsoft, two of the industry’s forerunners in the cloud computing space, have made it possible for businesses to have infinitely expandable access to the cloud and the vast computing resources it offers.

In the future years, cloud-native platforms will promote innovation by empowering developers to create new application architectures that are durable and responsive to change, allowing for rapid adoption of the Metaverse.

Data collected by Internet of Things devices couldn’t be transmitted to the Metaverse in real-time without the processing power and speed made possible by cloud technologies. Having a real-time avatar in the Metaverse (not just a preprogrammed online game hero) is only possible by the cloud-based architecture of Internet of Things (IoT) devices, data analytics, and services.

Digital twins

The digital twins in the Metaverse will be pushed forward by the interconnected and powerful IoT architecture and data analytics built on top of cloud technologies.

A digital twin, in the simplest definition, is a virtual duplicate that accurately represents the physical characteristics and state of an individual physical object. The ideal reflection would be functional and near to real-time. 

One of the IoT’s applications - condition monitoring - has been around for some time and widely used for digital twins creation. The purpose of a digital twin is to provide a digital representation of the dynamic properties of an object under observation. Consider indicators like your pulse, body temperature, and blood pressure. These are not characteristics that you have always had. In contrast to the hue of your eyes, they are dynamic and respond to internal and external influential factors. Another example: vibration, impeller speed, and motor temperature are dynamic properties that could be measured on a gas pump for its monitoring.

Visualizing dynamic IoT-generated digital twins, the Metaverse can offer more lifelike simulations of humans and other digital representations for a wider range of applications and experiences.

Here, IoT will serve as a catalyst for the metaverse area, making virtual commerce, real estate transactions, gaming, and other activities more accessible and more enjoyable for users.

Companies are spending money on R&D to figure out how to test products on virtual avatars in a metaverse environment instead of real people. The Internet of Things (IoT) will play a crucial role in this by simulating and modeling real-world scenarios to create immersive experiences for consumers.

IoT based Digital Twins used in Aviation
Digital Twins in Aviation @pvplive.net

Discovering the Metaverse through AR lenses of IoT

In order to construct the Metaverse and a more immersive, interconnected environment, IoT systems and the data streams they deliver must accelerate. The underlying value of the Metaverse is augmented reality (AR) integration, or the capacity to integrate and overlay digital content onto physical locations, but this is often lost in the hype around virtual reality (VR) and fancy goggles.

However, the success of the Metaverse will depend on the seamless integration of AR and IoT data to enable cutting-edge new applications that address critical issues in the real world. This might imply that architects and engineers use virtual models of real-world construction sites to test out different design options and get instantaneous feedback. Data overlays could be used to enhance field service operations and equipment repairs for manufacturers. Through augmented reality and the Internet of Things, the Metaverse will set a new standard for business operations, allowing companies to function at unprecedented rates and on a grander scale.

AR lenses of IoT

Bottomline

Due to the fact that the Metaverse is still developing, its capabilities and characteristics remain vague. Meanwhile, IoT has been around for a while, thus, combining the two is bound to benefit both ideas. The Internet of Things stands to gain new functional capacities from the collaboration, while the Metaverse stands to benefit from increased access. But despite this, we must continue to be concerned about the cyber threats that can increase the weaknesses in the metaverse ecosystem.

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