Moving Application Logic from the Firmware to the Cloud: Towards the Thin Server Architecture for the Internet of Things

TLDR

The Internet of Things connects heterogeneous devices from many manufacturers, unlike traditional embedded systems. The authors aim to enable novel applications by decoupling application logic from devices through a common application layer. They propose that device logic runs on application servers while devices host thin servers exposing only basic functions via REST resources. Preliminary results using the Californium CoAP framework demonstrate the feasibility of this thin‑server architecture.

Abstract

Unlike traditional networked embedded systems, the Internet of Things interconnects heterogeneous devices from various manufacturers with diverse functionalities. To foster the emergence of novel applications, this vast infrastructure requires a common application layer. As a single global standard for all device types and application domains is impracticable, we propose an architecture where the infrastructure is agnostic of applications and application development is fully decoupled from the embedded domain. In our design, the application logic of devices is running on application servers, while thin servers embedded into devices export only their elementary functionality using REST resources. In this paper, we present our design goals and preliminary results of this approach, featuring the Californium (Cf) CoAP framework.