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Section: New Software and Platforms
RIOT
Keywords: Internet of things - Operating system - Sensors - Iot - Wireless Sensor Networks - Internet protocols
Scientific Description
While requiring as low as 1,5kB of RAM and 5kB or ROM, RIOT offers real time and energy efficiency capabilities, as well as a powerful API (partially POSIX compliant) that is consistent across heterogeneous low-end IoT hardware (8-bit, 16-bit and 32-bit architectures). This API is developer-friendly in that it enables multi-threading, standard C and C++ application programming (as well as scripting) and the use of standard debugging tools – all of which was not possible so far for such embedded programming. On top of this, RIOT supports a large number of software libraries (e.g. crypto, maths, drivers...) and aggregates in a simple manner a wide variety of third-party open source software packages. In particular, various network stacks are available with RIOT, such as a standard IPv6/6LoWPAN stack and a information-centric network stack (based on CCN).
Functional Description
RIOT is an Open Source operating system that provides standard protocols for embedded systems. RIOT allows, for example, the development of applications that collect sensor data and transmit it to a central node (e.g. a server). This data can then be used for smart energy management for instance. Other use-cases include also IoT-enabled low-cost robots.
RIOT is specially designed for embedded systems, which are strongly constrained in memory and energy. Further, RIOT can easily be ported to different hardware devices and follows the latest evolution of IP standards.
RIOT applications can readily be tested in the FIT IoT-Lab, which provides a large-scale infrastructure facility with 3000 nodes for testing remotely small wireless devices.