An internet of things

= Definition =

There is no established term to describe the subject of this article. Until one emerges it will be referred to as object hyperlinking. The purpose of what is described below is to extend the internet to objects and locations in the real world; to create an internet of things. The current internet does not extend beyond the electronic world. Object hyperlinking aims to extend the internet to the real world by attaching tags with URLs to tangible objects or locations. These tags can then be read by a wireless connected mobile device and information about objects and locations retrieved and displayed.

= System components =

Linking an object or a location to the internet is a more involved process than linking two web pages. An object hyperlinking system requires seven components - #A physical or virtual tag to identify objects and locations. Some tagging systems are described below. To allow the smaller physical tags to be located they must be embedded in visual markers. For example, the [http://global.yellowarrow.net/index.php Yellow Arrow] scheme [see below] prints Short message service tags on large adhesive yellow arrows, which can then be stuck on buildings etc. #A means of reading physical tags, or locating virtual tags. #A mobile device such as a mobile telephone, a Personal digital assistant or a portable computer. #Additional software for the mobile device. #A digital wide area wireless network, such as the existing 2G and 3G networks, for communication between the portable device and the server containing the information linked to the tagged object. #Information on each linked object. This information could be in existing WWW pages, existing databases of price information etc, or have been specially created. #A display to view the information on the linked object. At the present time this is most likely to be the screen of a mobile telephone.

= Tags and tag readings systems =

There are a number of different competing tagging systems.

RFID tags a Radio Frequency Identification Device is a small transponder which can be read at short range by a transceiver [reader]. A RFID reader can be added to an existing mobile telephone as a shell. Nokia produce such a shell for their Nokia 3220 mobile phone. At the moment few mobiles have RFID capability but this may change, since such RFID enabled mobiles may be used for cashless payments and other purposes. From 2005 travelers in the city of Hanau, near Frankfurt, Germany will be able to pay for bus tickets by passing their Nokia phones over a smartcard reader installed on the buses. Other applications for RFID enabled mobiles include swapping electronic business cards between phones, and using a mobile to check in at an airport or hotel. Two RFID enabled devices may also be used to enable peer to peer transfer of data such as music, images or for synchronizing address books. Since RFID tags can be very small they are often embedded in a more visible marker to allow them to be located.

Graphical tags - a graphical tag consists of an image on a marker which can be read by a mobile telephone camera. There are a number of competing systems, including [http://te123st.blogspot.com/2005/08/semacodes.html Semacodes], s.

Short message service tags a SMS tag consists of a short alphanumerical code which can be printed on a marker [or chalked on a wall]. The Short Message Service is then used to send the code and return a message. [http://te123st.blogspot.com/2005/08/yellow-arrows.html Yellow Arrows] are an example of this form of tagging.

Virtual tags in a virtual tagging system there is no physical tag at a location. Instead a URL is associated with a set of geographical coordinates. When a Global Positioning System equipped mobile phone enters a particular area the phone can be used to retrieve all URLs associated with that area. The area can be set as a few metres or a much wider area. At the moment few mobiles are GPS enabled and GPS is not accurate in urban areas. The accuracy of GPS may improve when the European Union Galileo positioning system becomes operational in 2008.

= Applications for object hyperlinking =

The object hyperlinking systems described above will make it possible to link comprehensive and editable information to any object or location. How this capability can best be used remains to be seen. What has emerged so far is a mixture of social and commercial applications.

*The publishers of the Lonely Planet guide books are issuing yellow arrows with one of their guide books and encouraging travellers to leave tags to stories and comments wherever they go. *[http://www.siemens.com/index.jspsdc_p=cd1034230fi1034534lmn1034576o1241443ps4uz3&sdc_sid=30145731726&sdc_bcpath=1034576.s_4%2C& Siemens] see their virtual tagging system being used to tag tourist sites, and also leave messages for friends. They also suggest that virtual tags could be used to link advertisements with locations. [http://ludimate.com/products/geominder/ Geominder]also offer a virtual tagging service. *Nokia have demonstrated that when a 3220 phone with the RFID shell attached is tapped against an RFID-enabled advertisement, a URL can be read and information about the advertised product or service returned to the phone. *Japanese consumers are able to [http://www.thefeaturearchives.com/101242.html read barcodes] with their mobiles and download comparative prices from Amazon. *[http://www.scanbuy/com/ Scanbuy] has a system based on barcode tagging and tag reading by mobile telephone cameras. They see applications in price comparisons, the purchase and downloading of video, audio and games, and travel and entertainment ticket purchase. *[http://www.semapedia.org/ Semapedia] have created a system for linking physical objects and Wikipedia articles using the Semacode tagging scheme. Tags can be created on the web site that link to the URLs of individual Wikipedia articles. These can then be attached to physical objects. An article can be retrieved by reading the tag with camera phone. This creates the Mobile Wikipedia advocated by [http://www.mobile-weblog.com/archives/a_manifesto_for_taking_wikipedia_into_the_physical_world.html Mobile Weblog] and [http://addiator.blogspot.com/2005/06/mobile-wikipedia.html Eclectica].

= See also =

*Barcodes *Semacode *Datamatrix

= External links =

*[http://www.wired.com/news/technology/0,1282,63493,00.htmltw=wn_story_related Wired article on semacodes] *[http://www.csmonitor.com/2005/0707/p12s02-stin.html Christian Science Monitor article on object linking] *[http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2005/07/01/AR2005070102280.html Washington Post article on Yellow Arrow scheme]