IoT for Defense and National Security

Introduction: IoT for Defense and National Security

Robert Douglass

Alta Montes, Inc., Sandy, Utah, USA

1 An Introduction to the Topic of IoT for Defense and National Security

The Internet of Things, IoT, connects physical objects through digital networks. It fuses sensors, processors, data storage, smart algorithms, and actuators to observe and physically alter the world and the people in it. In the winter of 2022, IoT weapons wielded by badly outnumbered but determined and courageous Ukrainian light infantry won the battle of Kyiv, destroying hundreds of Russian tanks and perhaps thousands of military vehicles along with the Russian soldiers in them. Javelin anti‐tank missiles and Switchblade loitering missiles were instrumental in securing Ukraine's victory. Javelins are nascent IoT weapons while Switchblade missiles are quintessential IoT systems. They move their human operators back from the most hazardous combat zones. They operate with a diverse collection of sensors and actuators, wired and wireless tied together. They coordinate and share their attack across a network connecting reconnaissance drones, command nodes, and other soldiers. They function both as weapons receiving off‐board intelligence and as a source of intelligence. They put soldiers in top‐level supervisory control while moving them out of the real‐time control loop, allowing their weapons to find, track, attack, and destroy their targets in a highly autonomous manner. They turbocharge the tempo of combat. ...