The idea of a network of smart devices was first discussed in 1982, with a modified Coca-Cola vending machine at Carnegie Mellon University becoming the first Internet-connected appliance. This machine was able to report on its stock and whether newly loaded drinks were cold or not. However, it was Mark Weiser’s 1991 paper, ‘The Computer of the 21st Century,’ as well as work at places such as UbiComp and PerCom that produced the contemporary vision of the Internet of Things. This vision was expanded upon through the 1990s before the term ‘The Internet of Things’ was coined in 1999 by Kevin Ashton who worked at both Procter and Gamble and MIT’s Auto-ID Centre. Although he actually preferred the term, ‘The Internet for Things,’ Ashton believed that rado frequency identification (RFID) was essential for the IoT, in order to allow computers to manage each device or object. While the IoT was not fully realised until around 2008-2009 (see below), it could be argued that it was conceived of by Weiser and Ashton, building on past work such as the Coca-Cola machine, even if they didn’t fully ‘invent’ it.