Use cases and related business models for smart cities infrastructures

Abstract

With the advances in information and communication technologies (ICT), physical objects are now augmented with sensing, processing and network capabilities, enabling them not only to intercommunicate with one another, but also to exchange information with people and react to their environment. With such capabilities, these physical objects are referred to as “smart objects”. This research is about the identification of areas of application of smart objects in smart cities. Through specific use cases, this research paints a clearer picture of the advantages of integrating smart objects into our everyday lives. A use case is a list of steps defining a system’s behaviour as it responds to a series of requests from an actor. For each use case a related business model is described. A business model describes the value proposition, market segment, and cost structure, position in the network of competitors, the competitive advantage and the infrastructure of a business entity. This research started off with a literature review on smart cities that led to the identification of related use cases. The identified smart city environments fall under the categories of smart transport, smart energy, waste disposal, water management and environmental management.