Four technologies which can turn a city into a "smart city"

Today, more and more people are moving to metropolitan cities in search of better lives. And this will continue to happen in future. According to the United Nations, 68 percent of the global population will live in cities by 2050, which means around 2.5 billion more people will be joining. This will lead to a serious problem with urbanization.

To address this issue and improve urban living, city planners are taking important initiatives. They are transforming cities into smart cities.

What does smart city mean?

As per Wikipedia, a smart city is a framework that encompasses information and communication technologies (ICT) to develop, organize, and endorse sustainable development practices and address increasing urbanization challenges. But, in a layman language, a smart city is all about providing smart services to citizens, which can help them to lead their life in a better and safer way.

How city planners are creating smart cities?

Though city planners are implementing various strategies to construct a smart city, the highly influential one is — taking an integrated approach to various technologies. Today, in this article, we will see the contribution of various technologies in transforming a city into a smart city. Here is the list:

Information and communication technology (ICT): ICT is playing a pivotal role in building a smart city. It is helping city planners in creating a two-way communication channel by building a bridge between the citizens and the government. Citizens can interact with the government and in return, the government can construct a smart city that is best for the citizens.
Internet of Things: Internet of Things is one of the important technologies which is spread all across the city and connects each device. This enables devices to talk to each other and take decisions, ultimately manage resources. IoT helps city planners to prepare a perfect pattern of a body for communicating devices and solve regular problems.
Artificial Intelligence: Another technology, which has an equal contribution in transforming a city into a smart city, is Artificial Technology (AI).

AI can process a huge amount of data that generates vital information, quickly and smoothly. It allows machines to interact with each other to process the data and extract information from it. Moreover, AI plays an important role in intelligent traffic management and the facility.

Sensors: Sensors are the crucial component of any intelligent control system. Sensors are hidden technology but ubiquitous in almost every device. These can be used to monitor things, including weather, air quality, traffic, radiation, and water levels— important elements of a smart city. It can also be used to automate the function of fundamental services like traffic and street lights, security systems, and emergency alerts.

Last Thought

Technologies have become so advanced that they have the potential to turn our dream into reality. By transforming cities into smart cities, technologies are not only solving the problems of urbanization, but also bringing security, comfort, and entertainment into citizens’ lives.

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