A multi-cloud service mesh approach applied to Internet of Things

The joined use of cloud computing and Internet of Things (IoT) led to the definition of Cloud of Things (CoT), a powerful combination which builds on the strengths of both technologies. Active research in this field provides brand new solutions or improves the ones already in place, but it is hampered by the lack of standardization and by the heterogeneity of adopted technologies. The focus of this work is on the application of a service mesh network to include IoT edge devices in a multi-cloud cluster federation. As the adoption of multi-cloud is rising day by day, the integration of IoT applications in it will surely follow. Available solutions are often restricted to specific use cases and technologies or require IoT middleware to work. The goal of this paper is to propose an architecture which can be used to achieve connectivity, interaction and data exchange between multiple IoT edge devices hosted in distinct environments, through the realisation of a network service mesh. A logical architecture is proposed, defining the components needed, discussing potential applications. An implementation is realised to demonstrate the feasibility of the system. Measurements show that with a negligible increase of computational resources and time, the benefits of a service mesh can be extended to IoT edge devices and the applications deployed on them.