2014 was an interesting year for ruff chain. They realized that there was a gap in IoT devices. The gap was between the hardware and software. There wasn't a standard that unified the development of IoT devices. They started with proposing and developing Ruff OS to fill that gap. The OS was developed in Javascript and is meant to fill the gap mentioned earlier. They were able to develop such an OS after numerous talks with IoT users and creators.
Just like how the internet was able to advance to where it is now through standardization and unification (HTTP, UDP, ...etc) different parties are able to communicate and connect. IoT could achieve the same and RUFF chain has taken the first steps towards that.
They have been active on various events; recently in 24th May 2018 they attended and showcased at the blockchain festival in Vietnam to more than 1500 visitors where many investors showed up; followed by the Tsinghua University Blockchain Industry Innovation Summit that was held in Beijing and Roy the founder gave another speech under the title “How to realize enterprise level application of IoT”. They are active in creating exposure and showcasing to wider audience. Which begets the exchange listing. They were listed earlier this year and are currently trading on various big exchange like Gate and Huobi.
Before we proceed on what makes ruff chain let us explore the problem that made such a solution come to life. Recall earlier we said that ruff chain is meant to fill the gap between hardware and software for IoT but what is that mean?
IoT devices as we know them represent any device that connects to the internet. The term came to life in the 90s. Ever since and IoT are in constant progression however they still lack in some dimensions starting with data.
As with any system data is always in its core. However with IoT data is quite costly; Acquiring data off those devices usually require a cost overhead/investment in proper infrastructure to handle, manage and maintain the data. Imagine having to invest in servers to handle the data coming off those devices? it is a real pain. With the blockchain that is actually not a concern given you have multiple nodes within the network doing the work rather than a single centralized server(s) somewhere.
The other problem that exist with IoT is the security; heard of Mirai botnet attack (Dyn attack?), No? That was the largest DDos attack launched using only IoT botnet. There are many other attacks like the Owlet Wifi Baby hear Monitor case and many other examples.
I believe you also heard of Snowden? I bet you did. We have seen how IoT devices were used to tap into calls and web cams; being centralized can never guarantee privacy and security of the data collected hence the need for decentralization.
Ruff Chain solves those two pains by default by going with the blockchain as that is the nature of blockchains. Ruff Chain adds a layer to that which is customized development using Javascript over the blockchain.
So now manufacturers or suppliers can develop IoT applications over the blockchain and use the Ruff OS to function the hardware; collectively filling the gap between hardware and software.
Their progression goes beyond the development of the echo system. They have actually partnered with Schneider and WPG Holdings limited, the latter are actually cooperating for RUFF in chips. There are also many other partners which you can read more about in the whitepaper.
Unlike bitcoin and ethereum where there are mainly a main node and a light node Ruff Chain consist of four nodes: Light Node, Full Node, Representative Node and a Control node. The light node does not do any storage operations; it is focused on verification and authentication of input streams coming off the internet. Full Nodes do most processing in that they do operations meant for storage; these nodes are the recording nodes and control Representative nodes. Representative nodes are responsible for ensuring that blocks conform the network rules. The Control nodes have the computing power and they handle headers storage and authentication. These nodes are operated using the token RUFF.
It is interesting concept and implementation; I know you are probably curious to know more; here is where you can get more details:
Website: http://ruffchain.com/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Ruff_Chain
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/RuffChainProject/
Telegram：https://t.me/ruffchain
Medium https://medium.com/@ruffchain
Reddit https://www.reddit.com/r/ruffchain/
Quora https://ruffchain.quora.com/
Steemit https://steemit.com/@ruffchain