Accelerate Your IoT Testing with Cigniti’s IoT Lab-as-a-Service

The Internet of Things (IoT) is expanding at an unprecedented pace. As IoT solutions become more complex, the need for comprehensive and efficient IoT testing increases.

IoT Testing involves the process of testing the functionality, performance, and security of an IoT solution developed using IoT devices and platforms. IoT testing spans multiple layers, including the application layer, data management layer, network layer, and device layer, and involves a variety of test activities specific to each layer. Some of the key test activities include functional testing, usability testing, compatibility testing, data integration and validation testing, connectivity testing, protocol testing, and performance and security testing. However, there are several challenges associated with IoT testing.

Key Challenges in IoT Testing

Following are the top challenges faced by IoT testing teams across organizations

• High dependence on field testing. Sub-optimal adoption of field vs lab tests
• Minimal test automation. A Manual testing approach is followed impacting GTM timelines
• Simulation of multiple communication protocols and a multitude of devices
• Simulation of device loads and network conditions
• Data volume, data variety, and data velocity
• Availability of IoT testing skilled personnel
• Tools to support testing of all test activities across all IoT layers.

These shortcomings can impact customers in a variety of ways, including customer escalations, delayed go-to-market, brand erosion, product recalls, loss of revenue and market share, and reduced customer satisfaction and loyalty.

To mitigate these challenges, organizations need to adopt a comprehensive approach to IoT testing that leverages both lab and field testing, incorporates test automation and simulation tools, and includes skilled personnel with experience in IoT testing. This will help to ensure that IoT solutions are tested thoroughly, perform as expected, and meet the needs of customers.

How is Cigniti’s IoT Lab-as-a-Service addressing these challenges?

Cigniti, a global leader in software testing services, is addressing these challenges with IoT Lab-as-a-Service. This offering provides easy and on-demand access to an IoT test environment, tools, test automation, accelerators, and testing expertise for the testing of IoT solutions. The current lab setup includes a test environment, a comprehensive suite of tools and services, and expertise to support test activities across the application layer, data management, and network layers. Device layer-related test activities can be supported on a need basis.

There are several market drivers for IoT Lab as a Service. The primary drivers include accelerating time to market, improving test coverage by testing a wide suite of business, data, and network scenarios, cost-effective access to best-of-breed testing tools, test environment, and IoT testing experts, lower testing cost by a shift-left testing approach, increased test automation, and reducing building and maintaining homegrown simulators, an alternative to high-cost dedicated physical lab setup, and scalability.

Use Cases Covered by Cigniti IoT Lab-as-a-Service

Here are the major use cases covered by Cigniti IoT Lab-as-a-Service

• Alternate or complementary options to Field tests
• Vertical – Simulate all vertical-specific scenarios including network conditions. IoT Lab can be leveraged to validate all Vertical specific IoT solutions including Automobile, Healthcare, Insurance, Retail, and Manufacturing.
• Applications – IoT Cloud App and IoT Edge App
• Test activities – All test activities spanning across application, data management, and network layer
• Test Automation across all layers
• On-demand scaling to support high coverage and high-load IoT testing

There are several vertical-specific use cases that Cigniti IoT Lab as a Service can support.

For example, the automotive industry can use this service to simulate advanced production planning and scheduling, asset health management, autonomous robots, autonomous transportation and transport systems, collaborative robotics, factory operations visibility and intelligence, fleet management, inventory management, manufacturing system automation, predictive maintenance, and vehicle telematics.

The chemicals industry can use IoT Lab as a Service for continuous emission monitoring systems, indoor air quality monitoring, and process control and optimization. Similarly, other industries such as construction and buildings, consumer products, equipment and machinery, energy, general, healthcare and life sciences, mining, retail, software, and transportation can leverage this service for their vertical-specific IoT testing requirements.

Different Layers and Testing Types covered as a part of IoT Lab-as-a-Service

IoT Lab as a Service covers different layers and testing types to support comprehensive IoT testing. The current Cigniti IoT lab setup includes a test environment, a comprehensive suite of tools and services, and expertise to support test activities across the application layer, data management, and network layers. Device layer-related test activity requirements can be supported on a case-by-case basis. Testing activities covered by the service include functional testing, usability testing, compatibility testing, localization testing, API testing, NFT – performance and security testing, compliance testing, test automation, and test data management.

In terms of protocols, IoT testing related to all leading protocols, including MQTT(S), HTTP(S), AMQP, Websocket, and TCP/TLS, is readily supported. Additional protocols can be supported on a case-by-case basis.

Tools Available in Cigniti’s IoT Testing Lab

Cigniti’s IoT Testing Lab offers several licensed and open-source testing tools. The current toolset includes Doppelio, IoTIFY, and Hitachi Vantara Lumada platform, among others. Non-commercial licenses related to all commercial tools are readily available in the lab. Clients can leverage these tools for a demo, PoC, training, and solution development. Cigniti considers onboarding additional tools based on client preferences and project requirements on a case-by-case basis.

Cigniti has developed base accelerators and utilities related to IoT testing that can be readily leveraged by delivery teams. This includes the IoT Testing platform, IoT Assurance Framework, and other existing Application testing-related test accelerators and utilities that can be projected as part of Cigniti’s differentiators. These are all available as part of the IoT testing lab and can be used by clients who are developing custom IoT solutions, automotive OEMs and Tier-1s, equipment OEMs in industrial, electrical, and mechanical industries, IoT platform vendors, software vendors with IoT applications and platforms, and major SI’s exploring sub-contracting options.

Key Benefits that Clients get from Cigniti IoT Lab-as-a-Service

Following are the key benefits that clients get from Cigniti IoT Lab as a Service:

• Easy access to industry-grade IoT testing Lab that supports 15+ IoT testing activities spanning multiple layers
• Best-of-breed licensed and open-source tools for effective and efficient testing
• Improve time to test by 5x to 9x resulting in faster GTM
• High test coverage results in reduced risk of failure. Test all popular protocols and simulate high load. Loads up to 1 million devices can be simulated using partner tool
• Virtualization of the system of things
• Low code Automation capabilities to ensure the best quality in the shortest possible time
• IoT Experience lab supporting popular use cases across Industries.
• Flexible licensing & pricing model that assures lower cost of quality

While this blog post offered an overview of Cigniti’s IoT Lab-as-a-Service, in the subsequent posts of this series, we will delve deeper into each aspect of the service and provide a comprehensive understanding of it.