Enhancing Logistics With the Internet of Things: A Secured and Efficient Distribution and Storage Model Utilizing Blockchain Innovations and Interplanetary File System

Abstract

Logistics is defined as the process of transporting, storing, and delivering goods from the producer to the final user. In today’s globalized world, logistics have become increasingly complex, making it imperative to address challenges related to data integrity, transparency, and secure storage. The incorporation of IoT devices in logistics allows for real-time monitoring of goods, vehicles, and environmental conditions. However, this generates vast amounts of data, which necessitates a reliable and secure data storage and management system. These aforementioned issues can be addressed by deploying a blockchain-based solution. Blockchain is an innovative technology that operates on a decentralized database system and it has different applications which include finance, healthcare, and so on. This research proposed a blockchain-IoT-based model for enhancing the logistics process. The proposed model utilized the Interplanetary file system for the secured and efficient storage of logistics data on a distributed and decentralized network and the SHA-256 hashing algorithm to ensure the anonymity of users’ private information. The model also establishes rules by using smart contracts, which increases efficiency. The performance evaluation of the proposed model was done based on the security, latency, cost, and throughput of the transaction. The experimental results and performance evaluation show that the proposed model is more efficient and secure than the existing blockchain-based systems. Additionally, the proposed model offers the real-time monitoring of goods while in transit. The proposed model offers the solution to the security, storage, and interoperability challenges in the IoT logistics system. It also provides recommendations to logistics stakeholders to adopt blockchain technology. Despite the implications, the limitation of this study is that it was tested in a controlled environment.