A survey of Internet of Things communication using ICN: A use case perspective

Abstract Internet of Things (IoT) has gained extensive attention from industry and academia alike in past decade. The connectivity of each and every piece of technology in the environment with Internet, has opened many avenues of research and development. Applications, algorithms, trust models, devices, all have evolved to accommodate the demands of user needs in the most optimal way possible. However, one thing still remains constant: host-centric communication. It is the most predominant way of communication in Internet today. With evolution of everything else, host based communication has been stretched to limits, and exploration of new models have been underway for sometime. Information Centric Networking (ICN) is a major contender for the future Internet architecture, where content is the basic element regardless of its location (host). It intends to offer in-network caching, inherent mobility, multicast support, and content based security as part of design and not add-on functionality. In recent years, numerous efforts have been made to integrate IoT with ICN as the communication model. In this paper, we provide a detailed and systematic review of IoT–ICN research. We investigate ICN as communication enabler for IoT domain specific use cases, and the use of ICN features for the benefit of IoT networks. These include IoT device & content naming, discovery, and caching. We also survey synchronization, interoperability, publish/subscribe communication, quality of service, security, and mobility of IoT devices with ICN perspectives. The paper also presents challenges and possible research directions for the benefit of community.