Linda Rosencrance for TechTarget:  Global internet of things spending is expected to reach $1.29 trillion in 2020, according to IDC. The research firm also believes a substantial portion of that spending will come from the manufacturing industry, which is investing heavily in the industrial internet of things. It's an assessment also held by P.K. Agarwal, regional dean and CEO of Northeastern University Silicon Valley in San Jose, Calif.

"Given [this information], every vendor is trying to position itself to be the platform provider, the cloud provider, the data provider," said Agarwal, who was also the chief technology officer for California under former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. "But I don't see a clear dominant player emerging yet. It's still kind of a Wild West out there."

To get a sense of some of the technology being created as vendors try to stake their claim in this Wild West of the industrial internet of things (IIoT), here's a look at three emerging platforms.  Full Article: