This paper introduces the Internet-of-Things (IoT) and describes its evolution from a concept proposed by Kevin Ashton in 1999 through its public emergence in 2005 in a United Nations ITU report entitled “The Internet of Things”, to the present day where IoT devices are available as off-the-shelf products from major manufacturers. Using a systematic study of public literature, the paper presents a five-phase categorisation of the development of the Internet-of-Things from its beginnings to the present day. Four mini case studies are included to illustrate some of the issues involved. Finally, the paper discusses some of the big issues facing future developers and marketers of Internet-of-Things based products ranging from artificial intelligence (AI) through to customer privacy and acceptance finishing with an optimistic assessment of the future of the Internet-of-Things.

中文翻译：

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物联网：从以用户为中心的智能环境角度思考过去，现在和未来

本文介绍了物联网（IoT），并描述了它从凯文·阿什顿（Kevin Ashton）于1999年提出的概念到2005年在联合国国际电联题为“物联网”的报告中的公开出现所经历的演变。物联网设备可从主要制造商处以现成的产品形式获得。本文通过对公共文献的系统研究，对物联网从开始到今天的发展进行了五个阶段的分类。其中包括四个小型案例研究，以说明其中涉及的一些问题。最后，