What is Edge Computing | Why We Need It

By deploying IoT devices and the arrival of 5G fast wireless, placing estimates and analytics close to where data is created is making a case for edge computing. Edge computing technology is changing the way data is being handled, processed, and delivered from millions of devices worldwide.

The volatile growth of internet-connected devices- the IoT – and new applications that need real-time computing powers continue to drive edge computing systems. More active networking technologies, such as 5g wireless, allow for edge computing technology systems to accelerate the creation or maintenance of real-time applications.

Like edge computing, such as video processing and analytics, self-driving cars, artificial intelligence, and robotics, while the early goals of edge computing accessing the cost of bandwidth for data covering long distances due to the growth of IoT-generated data, the rise of real-time applications that required processing at the edge will encourage the technology ahead.

What is Edge Computing and Why Does it Matter?

Gartner describes computation to be part of a distributed topology in which data processing is located close to the edge of the information generated or used by people and items. 

Basic levels of edge cloud computing bring computation and data storage closer to the devices where it is being gathered instead of relying on a central location that could be thousands of miles away. 

It is performed so that data, especially real-time data, do not experience latency issues that could affect an application’s performance. Companies also save money by performing the processing locally and reducing the amount of data required to be processed in a centralized or cloud-based location.

How Does Edge Computing Work

IoT devices’ exponential growth developed an edge network that connects to the internet for either receiving information from the cloud or transferring data back into the cloud. The majority of IoT devices produce tremendous amounts of data during their operations. 

Suppose we think about devices that control manufacturing equipment or a factory floor or an internet-connected video camera that transmits live footage from a remote office. A single wireless device producing data could easily transfer it across a network; problems will arise when the number of devices transmitting data simultaneously rises. 

Alternatively, if one video camera shares footage, we can multiply that by hundreds or thousands of devices. Not only quality but also bandwidth could be tremendous due to latency.

What are the Technicalities by Edge Network

Edge computing hardware and services help solve this problem by being a local source of processing and storage for many of these systems. For example, an edge network could process data from an edge device and send only the appropriate data back through the cloud, reducing bandwidth requirements. 

It can also send data back to the edge device in the case of real-time application requirements. The systems will include numerous items like IoT sensors and tablets, their newest smartphones, surveillance cameras, and even the office breakroom with an Internet-connected microwave. Gateways themselves are considered devices with an edge computing infrastructure.

Why is Edge Computing Important?

Most of the company’s cost savings alone could be a driver for deploying an edge-computing architecture. Companies that adopted the cloud for many of their applications have discovered that bandwidth costs were higher than expected. 

Frequently, the biggest benefit of edge computing is the capacity to process and store data faster, enabling more effective real-time applications of edge computing that are significant to two companies. 

Before edge computing, a smartphone scanning a person’s face for facial recognition would require running the facial recognition algorithm through a cloud-based service, which will take a lot of time to process. 

With the edge computing application model, the algorithm can run locally on the edge server or gateway or even on the smartphone itself by increasing the smartphone’s power.

Applications of Edge Computing

Applications such as virtual and augmented reality, self-driving cars, smart cities, and even building automation systems need fast processing and response. Edge computing has developed significantly from the days of finding it at remote office branch office locations, as Kuba Stolarski, the research director at IDC, in the worldwide edge infrastructure 2019-23 report. 

With improved interconnectivity providing improved access to more applications and newer IoT and industry-specific business use cases and infrastructure, it is poised to be one of the main growth gents in the server and storage market for the next decade.

Companies like NVIDIA have recognized the requirement for more processing at the edge, so we are seeing a new system module that includes artificial intelligence functionality built into them. 

For example, the company’s most advanced Jetson Xavier NX module is smaller than a credit card and could be made into smaller devices such as drones, robots, and medical devices. A large amount of processing power is required by algorithms, so most of them are run by cloud services. 

The evolution of chipsets can handle processing at the edge, which will allow for better real-time responses within applications requiring ready-to-use computing.

What are the Two Primary Benefits of Edge Computing?

Below are the benefits of edge computing:

Privacy and Security

Nevertheless, as is the problem with many new technologies, solving one can create others. From a security standpoint, data at the edge could be troublesome, especially when handled by different devices that may not be as secure as a centralized or cloud-based system. 

As the number of IoT devices is growing, IT must understand the potential security issues around these devices and make sure these can secure systems. It includes ensuring that the data present is encrypted and the correct access control methods and even VPN tunnelling are utilized.

Besides different device requirements for processing power, electricity and network connectivity can affect an edge device’s reliability. It makes data redundancy important for devices that process data at the edge to ensure that data is delivered and processed accurately when a single node goes down.

Expansion of 5G

Carriers are expanding 5g wireless technologies worldwide that promise the benefits of high bandwidth and low latency for applications, empowering companies to move from a garden hose to a fire hose with their data bandwidth. 

Rather than just offering faster speeds and up to continue processing data in the cloud, most carriers are working with edge computing technology in their 5G deployments to provide quicker and real-time processing, especially for mobile devices, connected, and self-driving cars.

In the recent report “5G, IoT, and Edge Compute Trends” by Futuriom, it is said that 5G would be a catalyst for edge computing technology. Using 5G technology will increase traffic demand patterns, implementing the biggest driver for edge cloud computing in mobile-cellular networks. 

It indicates low latency applications, including IoT analytics, machine learning, virtual reality, and autonomous vehicles, as those with new bandwidth and latency properties need support from edge computing applications.

Conclusion

Although the primary goal for edge computing was reducing bandwidth costs of IoT systems over long distances, in the coming years, the production of real-time applications involving local processing and storage capabilities will advance the technology. Hope the article has solved all your doubts regarding Edge Computing Technology.

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