Bringing AI to the edge: a formal M&S specification to deploy effective IoT architectures

Internet of Things applications are based on ubiquitous networks of multiple distributed devices, with limited computing resources and power, capable of collecting and storing data from heterogeneous sources in real-time. To avoid network saturation and delays, new architectures are needed to provide real-time Big Data and data analytics capabilities at the edge of the network, where energy efficiency needs to be considered to ensure a sustainable and effective deployment in areas of human activity. In this research, we present an IoT model based on the principles of Model-Based Systems Engineering. It covers the description of the entire architecture, from IoT devices to the processing units in edge data centres, and includes the location-awareness of user equipment, network, and computing infrastructures to optimise federated resource management in terms of delay and power consumption. We present a framework to assist the dimensioning and the dynamic operation of IoT data stream analytics applications.