An Analysis of CoAP as Transport in an Internet of Things Environment

Internet of Things (IoT) is a concept where the physical world is integrated into the digital world. In IoT, Internet connected devices are able to observe and act. Furthermore, data observations from these devices are linked with cloud based digital services to enable smart decision-making. IoT is seen as the underpinning for smart cities, with multiple services including intelligent traffic management, and effective resource management (e.g. energy or water). The benefits and potential of IoT are clear, resulting in significant uptake. However, numerous factors still hamper its growth. These factors include performance of networks and edge sensing devices, up to developing appropriate applications, all done in a secure and reliable manner. Data communication can typically occur over various networks and protocols, depending on the context of deployment and operation. This paper focuses on validating the Constrained Application Protocol (CoAP) in a low power personal area network to determine if CoAP is an effective application protocol in an IoT environment. Experiments were conducted in the context of the TRESCIMO testbed through which CoAP enabled devices and gateways communicate to IoT platforms. The experiments focused on measuring the efficiency of communication in an environment with poor connectivity. Experimental results show that CoAP is an efficient transport in low signal strength environments.