Research Method on the Topic IoT in Smart Cities

Chapter 3: Research Method
Study Procedures
Data for the study will be collected through machine to machine communication. During the installation of the smart machines in the households under study, the researchers will connect all these devices to a central system, which each house having a unique code that will be used to record the information for electricity consumption, water consumption and garbage dumped. While each member of the households will have a device that they can use to monitor their respective processes and consumption at their homes, the overall monthly readings will be recorded and transferred through to the cloud, where the researcher will be able to remotely assess the consumption patterns of the different homes. The researchers will also monitor the trends in the usage of water and the amount of dirt being dumped on a monthly basis.
A total of three tables will be used to record the information. The electricity consumption values will be recorded in kilowatts (kW). The values will be recorded for every month to allow the reader note the electricity consumption patterns of each household. The table will be classified into two main groups, values obtained before the intervention and those obtained after the intervention. The average consumption of each household for the first three months, a period before the intervention will be calculated. The households will then be subjected to a thorough training about usage of electricity and how the members can help reduce electricity consumption by ensuring minimal usage. After the first measurement, there will be a one week training session, in which each household will be taught about efficiency. They will be guided on how to use these watches to monitor their electricity.
A line graph will be constructed to provide a clear picture of the trend in electricity consumption for the given period. The vertical axis will contain the number of units of electricity consumed in kilowatts, whereas the horizontal axis will contain the number of months from when the measurements were taken. Based on the trend, one will be able to know whether their consumption worsened or became better courtesy of the technology.
The same thing will happen for water measurement and conservation. The participants will be taught how to read the signals from their smart devices. During the first three months, the amount of water consumed will be noted in a table. The researcher will observe the trends for consistency. There will also be a week’s break, in which the respondents will be trained on efficient water usage and how to monitor their usage using the technologies. A line graph will be drawn to show the trend in water consumption across the households based on the data received. The vertical axis will contain the number of units of the water consumed in litres for each month, whereas the horizontal axis will contain the number of months when the details were recorded. Each household will, therefore, have an opportunity to see their trend in water usage for the given period.
The role of smart technology in garbage collection will be assessed by measuring the amount of garbage collected each month. The amount of garbage collected in each instance will be determined by finding th...