ABSTRACT
The Internet of things (IoT) has gained rapid attention as a comprehensive paradigm that is driven by an expansion of the Internet in which every device and physical object is uniquely identified and accessible [1]. Technological developments in the fields of item identification and wireless sensor networks (WSNs) define the characteristics of this ultra-large topology in which things are tagged and sensed instantaneously [1–3]. The IoT embodies all forms of wireless telecommunication and directly influences supply chain management, transportation, health care, and disaster alerting, among many other disciplines. Hence, the IoT is considered to be the most ambitious and disruptive phase of the Internet revolution [4], with a reach that includes hundreds of billions of objects [5,6] as well as living entities [7] that are augmented with sensing, processing, and networking capabilities. This implies significant design requirements and challenges stemming from the levels of heterogeneity and desired connectivity among the objects involved.
