The Internet of Things (IoT) is a network of smart devices that communicate with each other, exchanging large amounts of data. This produces a huge amount of data that needs to be processed and analyzed. To make this happen more efficiently, edge computing is used. Edge computing is a strategy for computing on location where data is collected or used. It allows IoT data to be gathered and processed at the edge, rather than sending the data back to a datacenter or cloud. Together, IoT and edge computing are a powerful way of rapidly analyzing data in real-time.

Edge devices refer to physical hardware that is located in remote locations at the edge of the network. These devices have enough memory, computing resources, and processing power to collect data, process it, and execute upon it almost in real-time, without requiring much help from other parts of the network.

On the other hand, IoT devices are physical objects that have been connected to the internet and are the source of data. Edge devices are where the data is collected and processed.

Edge devices become part of the IoT when the object has enough compute and storage to make low-latency decisions and process data in milliseconds. Although the terms IoT device and edge device are sometimes used interchangeably, they refer to distinct concepts.

IoT devices benefit from having compute power closer to their physical location or data source. In order to analyze data faster and mitigate issues, it needs to be processed at the edge, rather than traveling back to a central site before the analysis can take place.

Edge computing provides a local source of processing and storage for the data and computing needs of IoT devices. Here are some benefits of using IoT and edge computing together:
– Reduced latency of communication between IoT devices and the central IT networks.
– Faster response times and increased operational efficiency.
– Improved network bandwidth.
– Continued systems operation offline when a network connection is lost.
– Local data processing, aggregation, and rapid decision making through analytics algorithms and machine learning.

An IoT gateway can send data from the edge to the cloud or centralized data center, or to the edge systems to be processed locally.