Why it is that we are only now starting to appreciate the value of big data and where all this data comes from, asks Matthew Caffrey, general manager at Chesterfield-based embedded systems supplier, DSP Design.
With the advent of the cloud and storage options becoming less expensive, the rush towards big data and its use in business intelligence is increasingly rapidly.
According to IBM 90% of the world's data is less than two years old. When talking about big data we generally refer to the generic name given to unimaginably huge amounts of digitally held data, anything from a text message to temperature sensors or even the output from all those security cameras.
Subsequently many companies have now developed software tools to harness and interrogate this data. These business intelligence tools allow the data to be processed, analysed closely and reported.
A recent example of this as reported by the BBC was the Amsterdam Fire Service which uses business intelligence to provide an accurate risk assessment for Amsterdam to enable them to station their resources in the right place.
However, many rightly question where this data comes from.
The answer: think sensors, cameras, industrial controllers, control and monitoring systems, smart phones, etc.
In turn this provides valuable opportunities for electronic engineers as all these devices must be designed with data in mind.
Take a machine control system for example - does it control the machine? Naturally; however it also collects the data that can be used to improve production yields or marry up with global demand.
Certainly, the use of business intelligence packages and tools will surely change if not revolutionise the way we currently do business. But if the data is to be used it must be relevant, timely and available.
To satisfy this criteria we need robust reliable devices that can collect, locally store, format and deliver the data to where it is useful. Software on its own cannot gather data.
This is where embedded product design comes into its own. Not only does it provide the data for the business intelligence systems to analyse, it can also provide the competitive advantage every business seeks.
