In today’s digital landscape, being interconnected is of paramount importance.
The need to ensure that diverse systems and processes communicate and interact effectively is very critical for enterprises. For this seamless interconnectedness, the ability of different systems, devices, applications, or products to work together seamlessly is referred to as interoperability. The capability to exchange and make use of the information that converges from different systems and business enterprises for a mutual objective is what interoperability is all about. In our previous blog, we focused on how Interoperability is essential for the Software Ecosystem.
In this article, we take you a step further into the future of interoperability and the trends around it that are leading up to what is known as the Industry 4.0 network or the fourth Industrial Revolution, impacting industries like healthcare, manufacturing, automotive, IT, and construction.
Interoperability has been around for ages and is visible via the internet, especially the changes that have evolved around the internet itself. The standards the websites must adhere to, the URL standards, and the popular formats like XML and SQL, have all worked towards building and integrating the conventional with the new systems to ensure a seamless. Another example of how interoperability works is through the one simple but often taken-for-granted device, the USB. Plug and read, play, work with the data, etc. is an enormous technical feat, yet downplayed. Further, with intelligent automation and GenAI, interoperability will soon be the pivot around which enterprises, big or small, can scale up and align themselves in the competitive market.
Data exchange and its storage in electronic form have emerged as the industry standard for managing sensitive information and are crucial functions for all businesses. Various types of interoperability have now been standardized for seamless communication of protocols.
Syntactic Interoperability: refers to systems using mutually compatible file formats and protocol standards.
Semantic interoperability: refers to the ability of the computers to interpret and share data seamlessly especially when consistently structured and encoded.
Structural Interoperability: refers to the formatting of data messages from one system to another, like our email systems that can be sent from any email host. For example, data exchange from Gmail and read by any other host email services like Hotmail or Outlook.
For interoperability to progress, the above 3 types need to be adopted across the IT ecosystem, and only then the process of interoperability bring in seamless communication and higher productivity.
Moreover, the presence of an Interoperability API allows two unrelated computers or programs to communicate data. The digital landscape has led to the emergence of a new generation of API-based interoperability standards. The new standards are focused on the reuse of standardized APIs and various other coded blocks to re-combine and re-use without reinventing the wheel for each new use case.
However, before proceeding toward the desired interoperability, certain challenges exist in implementing interoperability in systems and processes. It is essential to handle these challenges.
The Challenges in Implementing Interoperability
For interoperability to be seamless, leading to better communication between applications and devices, there are a few challenges that the digital world will need to encounter.
Standards and protocols:
Every industry across various domains has its standards and protocols that need to be followed to ensure basic interoperability between different systems and devices. The health industry has its standards and protocols that are different from the manufacturing industries. However, when healthcare devices are manufactured, they must adhere to both their standards and protocols as well as meet those of the health industry standards and protocols, often leaving small device industries reeling under the financial burdens that ensue.
However, standards are essential for interoperability to work seamlessly and enable the different systems to communicate with each other. For instance, there are certain common communication protocols and data formats that the digital world has set down for these standards to operate seamlessly and effectively. Some of the communication protocols are HTTP or TCP/IP, whereas for the data formats we have XML, JSON, and CSV.
When these above standard formats are adhered enterprises can integrate different systems with efficiency and reduced costs, thus avoiding vendor lock-ins, and leading to enhanced productivity as data is accessible across space and time.
Cloud Storage and Automation
Today, every organization is struggling to find the right Cloud storage service space, be it AWS or Google. And this involves cloud automation for a quicker turnaround and real-time data analysis. The Cloud, and all its components and environs, also includes Distributed Cloud, Data Mobility, and Network resilience, and thus becomes both a challenge as well a driver for interoperability being brought into play.
Data Integrity
This is a very crucial element of interoperability. Once standards and protocols are in place, the integrity of data, especially coupled with Gen AI models will be crucial for a seamless experience for both the organization and the end customers.
Other Challenges
Legacy systems and proprietary formats can pose significant challenges to organizations. These affect both large and small enterprises, especially when implementing interoperability systems.
However, there are several strategies that organizations can use to overcome these challenges.
Initially, upgrading hardware and/or software can be very expensive as well as time-consuming. However, modernization systems have great benefits in the long run like improved system performance, reduced maintenance costs, and enhanced security, which are crucial as companies grow. However, with adept planning and prioritization of critical components, advantages can be beneficial in the long term.
It becomes significant for growing organizations to implement open standards to stay competitive in the digital landscape. Open standards are publicly available to use by anyone without restriction. When open standards are implemented, there is no vendor lock-in and thus ensures system compatibility in the long run.
Overall, overcoming challenges related to legacy systems, proprietary formats, and conflicting standards requires careful planning, collaboration, and a willingness to embrace change. By adopting innovative strategies, using open standards, and collaborating with others, organizations can overcome these challenges and achieve their goals.
The Future Trends
Let’s delve into the key trends to realize interoperability for well-designed strategies and analytics.
Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI): Generative AI is here to stay and evolve every single day! AI models based on data provided offer predictive information and analysis that speed up the delivery process, improve system performance, and reduce errors. Real-time access to better marketing strategies and product improvements for better customer experiences will require interoperability between systems and better communication channels.
Centralized Access but Decentralized Systems: Today we see the requirements for Cloud-based storage and automation being widely implemented. As organizations expand in geo-space and time, accessibility of data from a centralized place in real-time is the need of the hour. Simultaneously, decentralized systems are required to help organizations reduce their dependency on centralized systems which can lock in their data and cause heavy dependence. With decentralized systems, security can be better managed, with reduced costs and enhanced scalability. However, interoperability between these decentralized systems will provide better developer design and product life cycles.
Evolving Standards: With evolving technology, standards, and protocols also need to evolve. This is crucial in healthcare and financial systems particularly where security risks are high. Interoperability between devices and systems works best with standards and protocols including those related to blockchain, IoT, and cloud computing.
To be effective in the fast-paced digital landscape, enterprises need to embrace the best practices that interoperability brings to reduce costs and enhance productivity.
The Metaverse and Digital Twins: Exciting Revolutionary Trends to Follow
Interoperability has a major and critical role in two vital technology areas that are currently sweeping across the globe, the Metaverse and Digital Twins.
Interoperability is stated to be an important component for the metaverse to unlock its potential as a “safe and inclusive platform and has a market with an estimated value of $800 billion in 2024”.
Interoperability in the metaverse will be crucial for its success, but the challenges that are present in today’s digital environment need to be addressed before it becomes a reality.
Further, with AI and the Internet of Things (IoT), the interconnectedness and real-time data collating and responses have brought about a whole new technology known as Digital Twins. This new technology is seen to be part of the Industrial Revolution 4.0 and brings the much-needed transformation eagerly awaited across industries from healthcare to manufacturing, both of which have lagged in the AI world.
Conclusion
Exciting times ahead! We have seen what simulations in games can do and now, imagine the same from building an entire city virtually with live interactions using avatars, buying the necessities, walking virtually across the streets, etc. For all this to merge and converge, interoperability will be the critical factor. However, standardizations and protocols, Data integrity and Cloud storage, and automation all have a major role to play for the interoperable systems to communicate effectively and exchange information in real-time. Developers, coders, and CXOs will need to work towards a more creative and transformative environment wherein information and knowledge will be the powerful driving force.
Calsoft, being a Technology-First company and a pioneer in software product engineering services, with its expertise in Product modernization ensures your systems are interoperable for an effective digital transformation.
References
[1] Metaverse interoperability challenges and impact, TechTarget
[2] The Role of Artificial Intelligence in Enhancing Digital Twin Capabilities, toobler.com
[3] Digital Twin Use cases, toobler.com
