The Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) is the use of networked sensors, instruments, machines, and other devices to improve industrial and manufacturing processes. These connected systems let equipment and processes generate and exchange information that people or automated systems can use for monitoring, analysis, and operational control. IIoT does not require every device to connect directly to the public internet, and it has no single mandatory architecture.
What is the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT)?
NIST defines IIoT as “the sensors, instruments, machines, and other devices that are networked together and use Internet connectivity to enhance industrial and manufacturing business processes and applications.” The definition appears in NIST’s Industrial Internet of Things glossary, which cites NIST SP 800-172.
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In practical terms, IIoT applies Internet of Things technologies to industrial operations. Those operations include factory automation and process automation. The goal is not simply to put machines online: it is to connect physical equipment with communications and computing so its information can support industrial work.
How does IIoT work?
An IIoT system carries information between physical operations and the people or systems responsible for using it. A typical information path is:
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- Observe: Sensors and instruments collect information about equipment or an industrial process.
- Communicate: Networked devices and industrial systems transfer that information to other devices or computing resources.
- Use the information: Computing and analysis help operators or automated systems monitor conditions, make decisions, or support control of the process.
This is a way to understand the flow, not a required layer diagram. The arrangement depends on the operation: processing may happen near equipment at the edge, in cloud computing resources, or through a combination of approaches. NIST’s 2018 survey treats industrial control, networking, and computing as important IIoT concerns and discusses both edge and cloud approaches; it does not prescribe one design for every deployment. Read the NIST-listed survey, “A Survey on Industrial Internet of Things: A Cyber-Physical Systems Perspective.”
What is IIoT used for?
Factory and process automation
Factory automation and process automation are explicit application areas in the NIST survey. In these settings, connected equipment and instruments provide information that can support monitoring and operational activity. The survey frames IIoT in manufacturing around goals such as productivity, efficiency, safety, and intelligence; those are the paper’s framing, not a guarantee that every IIoT installation achieves each outcome.
Distributed energy resources
IIoT also applies beyond factories. In a NIST cybersecurity example, distributed energy resources such as solar photovoltaic systems use sensors, data-transfer and communications systems, instruments, and other devices to exchange information with a utility’s electric distribution control system. That information exchange can help manage grid energy flows. It is one specific critical-infrastructure application, not a definition of all IIoT systems. NIST SP 1800-32: Securing Distributed Energy Resources describes the example.
What should guide an IIoT system design?
There is no universal IIoT blueprint or numeric threshold that fits every industrial system. When comparing approaches, start with the operating requirements:
- Process and purpose: Identify what equipment or process the system will monitor or control, and what information is useful to its operators.
- Control, timing, reliability, and safety: Establish what the operation requires before deciding where information is processed or how devices communicate.
- Interoperability: Determine which devices and networks need to exchange information and whether they can work together.
- Computing location: Consider whether information should be processed locally at the edge, remotely in the cloud, or in both places.
- Security properties: Define the protections needed for communications, data, devices, and access to operational systems.
These are practical comparison questions drawn from the system concerns covered by NIST and ISO/IEC, not a formal checklist issued by either organization. ISO/IEC TR 30166:2020 describes general IIoT systems and landscapes, including their characteristics, technical aspects, functional and non-functional elements, and standardization considerations. It is an Edition 1 technical report published in April 2020; consult the ISO/IEC TR 30166:2020 page for its current status.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Why does security matter in IIoT?
IIoT links information technology with equipment and processes that perform industrial work. Protecting those connections therefore involves more than securing data in isolation: operators need to consider the integrity of communications and data, detect suspicious activity, and control who and what can access systems.
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In its distributed-energy reference architecture, NIST demonstrates capabilities including communications and data integrity, malware detection, network monitoring, authentication, access control, and cloud-based analysis and visualization. These are capabilities in that example architecture, not an exhaustive security checklist or a guarantee that copying the architecture alone will secure another system. The right protections depend on the equipment, network, process, and operational requirements involved. See the NIST SP 1800-32 guide.
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