ISO/IEC 21823-2:2020 - Internet of Things (IoT) - Transport interoperability
Standard reference: ISO/IEC 21823-2:2020
Organization: ISO/IEC (published by IEC)
Focus: Transport interoperability and network connectivity for IoT systems
Overview
ISO/IEC 21823-2:2020 defines a framework and requirements for transport interoperability to enable seamless communication and information exchange both between different IoT systems and among entities inside a single IoT system. The standard focuses on network connectivity as the transport facet of IoT interoperability, describing models, interfaces and a connectivity stack that allow devices, gateways, services and networks to interoperate across heterogeneous environments.
Key topics and technical requirements
The standard covers the following technical topics and requirements:
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Network connectivity models and stack model
- Definitions of connectivity between IoT systems and within an IoT system
- A layered network connectivity stack model to guide design of interoperable transport
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Interfaces for transport interoperability
- Network service interface - service-level connectivity semantics
- Network protocol translation interface - bridging differing protocol stacks
- Network resource interface - resource discovery, allocation and management
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Requirements for network connectivity
- Service-related and communication-related requirements for reliable end‑to‑end exchange
- Network resource and bandwidth requirements to support large-scale IoT
- Quality of Service (QoS) requirements (latency, throughput)
- Signalling and status monitoring requirements for operational visibility
- Security requirements to protect transport-level communication
- Time-dependent requirements for time-sensitive applications
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Network elements and gateways
- Role of gateways and network elements in enabling interoperability across access, proximity, service and user networks (as defined in ISO/IEC 30141)
Applications and who uses it
ISO/IEC 21823-2 is practical for organizations and professionals building or integrating IoT solutions that must interoperate across heterogeneous networks:
- IoT architects and system integrators designing cross-domain solutions
- Network engineers implementing end-to-end connectivity and QoS
- Gateway and device manufacturers implementing protocol translation and network interfaces
- Cloud and platform providers ensuring service-level transport interoperability
- Standards bodies and conformity/certification bodies evaluating transport interoperability
Typical applications include large-scale sensor/actuator deployments, cross-vendor smart city systems, industrial IoT (IIoT) installations requiring guaranteed QoS and time-sensitive networking, and multi-network consumer IoT ecosystems.
Related standards
Keywords: ISO/IEC 21823-2:2020, IoT interoperability, transport interoperability, network connectivity, network interfaces, IoT gateways, QoS, protocol translation.