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Smart City Concepts and Dimensions

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DOI: 10.1145/3377170.3377189

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 Smart City Concepts and Dimensions
Weihua Duan Rouhollah Nasiri Sasan Karamizadeh
Governance and Social Management Iran Telecommunication Research Iran Telecommunication Research
Research Center of Northwest Ethnic Center (ITRC) Center (ITRC)
Regions, North Minzu University, Information and Communications Information and Communications
China, Technology Research Tehran, Iran Technology Research Tehran, Iran
+86 18395089012 +9884977300 +9884977300
nasiri@itrc.ac.ir s.karamizadeh@itrc.ac.ir
duanweihue@nun.edu.cn
ABSTRACT the information gathered [3].Before considering the details of a
In the fresh age of urbanization, and granted that the world's urban smart city as an innovation, we need to understand its basic
population encroaches 50 percent, the size and speed of conceptual elements. In fact, the first step to make a smart city is
urbanization are accelerating into what is referred to as the second realizing its meaning [4]. A brief recap of relevant literature in
wave of urbanization. In the meanwhile, the growth of this area indicates that the concept of smart city is extremely
urbanization has taken on a more rapid pace than in the past, since controversial. In fact, the rise of similar terms such as smart cities,
the start of the third millennium, which is the epoch of the rule of virtual cities, knowledge cities, digital cities and so on, has added
information technology in different fields of urban life, which to the conceptual confusion of the term. The concept of smart city
may be named the third wave of urbanization. In this article we has been developed in three principal areas namely academic,
will talk about the components that make a city smart. A set of industrial and governmental fields [5].
common multidimensional components is identified under the Table 1. S mart city definitions
concept of smart city and the key factors of smart city's successful
initiative are identified by studying the definitions of smart city's Definitions S ources
current work and the sort of concepts similar to smart city. This The smart city is considered as a develop ed, high- [6]
report introduces the strategic principles which aligned with the tech city where People combine information and
three main dimensions of the smart city namely (technology, urban elements with new technologies to create a
people, and institutions): The integration of technology-mediated sustainable, greener, more innovative and
infrastructures and services, social learning to strengthen human
competitive business and a high quality of life.
infrastructure and organization to improve institutional and citizen
interaction. Smart cities are the result of creative and [7]
knowledge-based strategies that aim to enhance the
CCS Concepts competitiveness, supportive, ecological, social and
• Human-centered computing→Visualization toolkits economic functioning of urban centers. Such smart
cities are founded on a combination of promising
Keywords human capital (skilled labor), infrastructure capital
Smart city; people; technology; urbanization.
(high-tech communication facilities, social capital
1. INTRODUCTION (open and intense network communications), and
Smart cities are no longer the future; we are today witnessing the entrepreneurial capital (risky and creative business
evolution of technologies like Internet of Things (IoT) that have activities).
increasingly influenced the way that cities work and control
The smart city is seen as a specific intellectual [8]
around the world [1]. The smart city industry is projected to
ability that addresses various aspects of economic,
receive a 400-billion-dollar market by 2040 covering more than
600 cities around the world. These urban centers are required to social and technical, and innovative (green and
grow more than 60 percent of the world's Gross Domestic Product connected) social development. These dimensions
by the year 2025 [2]. lead to the concept of smart city. As "green" refers
to urban infrastructure to protect the environment
While there are many definitions of a smart city, in general a and reduces greenhouse gas emissions,
smart city uses IoT sensors, and various technologies to connect "interconnected" refers to the development of the
elements within the urban centers that impresses on every layer of broadband economy. 'Intelligent or smart'
the metropolis, from the street level to the air that citizen’s breath. expresses the capability to generate value-added
Data for all sections are analyzed and patterns are derived from
information through real-time urban data
Permission to make digital or hard copies of all or part of this work for processing using sensors, while creative and
personal or classroom use is granted without fee provided that copies are knowledge-based cities work together to enhance
not made or distributed for profit or commercial advantage and that
cities' ability to innovate the foundation of creative
copies bear this notice and the full citation on the first page. Copyrights
for components of this work owned by others than ACM must be and knowledge-based human capital concerns.
honored. Abstracting with credit is permitted. To copy otherwise, or
republish, to post on servers or to redistribute to lists, requires prior People with higher education and creative planning [9]
specific permission and/or a fee. Request permissions from systems are required, In order to have a smart city
Permissions@acm.org. with high productivity
ICIT 2019, December 20–23, 2019, Shanghai, China
© 2019 Association for Computing Machinery. Academic literature has a holistic approach and encompasses a
ACM ISBN 978-1-4503-7663-1/19/12…$15.00 broad spectrum of characteristics like self-configuration, self-
https://doi.org/10.1145/3377170.3377189
488
restoration, self-protection and self-optimization, with a keen standards and innovative services to meet the needs of
interest in the development of intelligent knowledge and governments and their employees, citizens and businesses. Its goal
information. In industrial literature, with a focus on business and is to create an environment for information sharing,
industrial tools, the concept of smart refers to intelligent products interoperability with others, and integrated experiences for all
and services, artificial intelligence, and thought-provoking devices. residents in every section of the metropolis [15]. The concept of
Ultimately, government documents aimed at managing urban the smart city emerges at the intersection of the knowledge society
development are interpreted in conjunction with the "smart (a society where knowledge and creativity are emphasized and
growth" urban planning theory that emerged decades ago to human and social capital are the most valuable assets). A smart
prevent dispersal. Despite this variety, the utilization of city can be defined as a city that holds all the information
technology and social innovation seems to be key to this concept. technology infrastructure, the latest telecommunications
Table 1 provides some definitions of smart city . technology and electronic [11].
The ultimate goal of Smart City is to provide smart services in all 2.2 People Dimension
the vital capabilities of the metropolis. 1. Carbon reduction, 2. As the main driver of the smart city, creativity can be recognized,
Achieving energy efficiency, 3. The Impact of ICT on the hence people, education, learning and knowledge are central to the
Development of Specific Industries in the M ultimedia or importance of the smart city. The broad concept of smart city
Knowledge-Based Industries, 4. Development of Available includes creating the right climate for an emerging creative class.
Information Infrastructure, 5. Achieving economic growth and The creative city is one of the perspectives of the smart city [4].
quality of life simultaneously, 6. Ensuring social adjustment All-important fields for city growth are human infrastructure such
among different groups of residents, 7. Significant reductions in as creative jobs and labor, knowledge networks, crime-free
work time and administrative processes, 8. Reduce the patronage voluntary organizations, the economy and entertainment. Smart
of individuals playing a part in legal affairs, 9. Increase people benefit from social capital. Smart City is a blend of
transparency of employees and managers in various government education, culture, art and commerce as well as a mix of social,
agencies, 10. Increase of trust among stakeholders in different ethnic and economic companies [16]. First Page Copyright Notice
companies, 11. Facilitate communication between citizens and
government and create a bridge between the parties, 12. 2.3 Society Dimension
Increasing closeness and empathy between the government and Smart forums were formed in the 1990s, a strategy for expanding
the public, 13. A significant decrease in operating costs, 14. users of information technology [17]. The smart society should be
Increasing public participation in urban work and creating a sense determined as a community ranging from a small neighborhood to
of responsibility among the people, 15. Improving the level and a community of public or shared interests, in which members,
quality of life of citizens, 16. Reducing the likelihood of crime by organizations and governing institutions participate in order to use
citizens. In general, smart city is a multidimensional concept with information technology to change their conditions to their own
multiple destinations. style [18].
There are differing views in the literature. Some authors have 3. COMPONENTS OF SMART CITY
focused on producing better policy outcomes in terms of wealth, The smart city is believed to be a large organization consisting of
health, and sustainability. This survey concentrates on the content components called subsystems. Urban subsets and subsystems
of government action, while the second concentrates on the with defined goals and objectives perform the roles and operations
processes of ruling. However, the reality is that the goals of cities defined in their domain and are integrated with communication
depend on what matters to the urban population. and interaction to achieve the ultimate goal of the smart city
system [19]. As depicted in Figure 1.
2. SMART CITY RELATED CONCEPTS
We necessitate to take a lot of look at the concepts of smart city,
to establish a set of common multidimensional components. The Smart
Management
types of labels can be broadly categorized into three dimensions,
namely the technology, people, and society that depicted in Table
Smart citizen Smart Energy
2. Or else of being independent of each other, the types of
concepts have fundamental communication to complex definitions Components of
smart city
and applications.
Smart
Table 2. Dimensions of S mart City Concepts Smart health
Transportation

Components Concept S ources Smart

infrastructure
Technology Digital City, Smart City, [10, 11]
Information City
People Creative City, Learning [12, 13] Figure 1. Components of S mart City.
City, Knowledge City Smart M anagement: In order to achieve a 'smart city' according to
Society Smart communication [3, 14] world standards, in addition to the creative architects and urban
planners, the city also needs IT professionals so that we can create
an up-to-date city for life by combining urban management
2.1 Technology Dimension knowledge and information technology knowledge [20].
Technologically, there are different meanings of the concept of Smart Energy: Smart energy systems monitor and manage energy
smart city; A digital city is a connected community that refers to consumption more efficiently. Cities can reduce pollution and
combination of broadband communications infrastructure with a consume less energy by using renewable energy sources,
flexible computing infrastructure based on open industry

489
managing water reserves and having a waste management management
system[21].
M alta Become an industrial urban center with
Smart Transportation: The purpose of smart transportation is to advanced ICT, skills development and IT staff
provide choices for sustainable transportation. With the rapid training.
growth of cities, new styles of transfer must be introduced to stay Barcelona Using Collaborative Intelligent Transportation
dynamic. Walking, cycling and other methods of moving are some System to Reduce Carbon and Focus on Solar
of the solutions that can partially solve the traffic and Thermal Energy
transportation problem[22]. Discovering new and better solutions London M anage traffic and public transportation and
can reduce costs and have a positive impact on the environment. develop health services and the smart economy.
Smart infrastructure: Smart infrastructure provides the foundation Vienna Urban innovation, green city area, quality of
for all smart solutions. Applying new technologies to convert raw life and digital city as well as level of prosperity
data into information, urban and regional planning can be tailored and having the least quantity of harmful effects
to meet the demands of the future [23]. Current systems can also on the environments.
be improved by examining data, traffic patterns, and tracking Toronto Reduce carbon by innovating intelligent
systems. transportation systems and enhancing
transportation efficiency
Health and smart health care: M ore intelligent health services Berlin The development of smart economy, focus on
must be provided to adapt to alterations in the urban population. the environment.
Smarter ways to provide treatment services can reduce costs, Hong Kong Public transportation, library and public
communicate effectively with healthcare professionals, and building access, shopping and parking.
provide essential patient information [24]. When nurses and
physicians have access to patient information, they can work
together in new ways to best care for patients. 5. SMART CITY CHALLENGES
The Smart City Initiative is not only an innovation driver, but also
Smart Citizen: Provides a high degree of citizen-friendly training
simply an endeavor to handle the perils of introduction. The
and also describes the quality of social interactions, open thinking,
failure in high risk management has directed to a complete failure
cultural awareness and citizen participation in social life[24].
in public sector innovation projects. 85% of IT projects have died
These urban centers are planned based on electronic life due to challenges arising from the non-technological aspects of
infrastructures; People's needs are met in a smart way using the innovation in large fields of risk, policy, governance and
latest technologies in the world. Although physical infrastructures management. Common reasons include poor preparation, weak
are one of the most significant demands of smart urban life business cases, lack of top management support and lack of
development, today, cities are increasingly in need of modern leadership, lack of professional accomplishments, lack of
technology based communication tools. consistency between organizational and design goals,
vulnerability to political fluctuations, over-enthusiasm for
4. SMART CITY GOALS technology and over-political pragmatism, the incompatibility
A smart city is much determined by its goals, and smarter is between new and previous management systems is a lack of
defined as more efficient, sustainable, fair and livable. The technology knowledge. In addition, public sector innovation can
concept of smart city primarily examines the urban center as a be a paradoxical combination. Government agencies create
scheme with multiple subsystems. As the city is a complex resistance or disruption without competitive pressure for
organization of diverse and unpredictable interactions between its innovation as well as a structured bureaucracy against change.
subsystems, this operation of the subsystem as a whole ultimately The presence of more risks necessitates a more transcendent view
allows them to behave in a smart and harmonious manner [25]. of technology for effective policy and management tools to
The goal of the smart city model is to determine appropriate counter the dangers facing smart cities .
resolutions to handle this complexity, in particular by addressing
the negative effects of global urbanization and higher quality of The most important challenges facing smart cities:
life for the urban population. Table 3 outlines some countries' Equal competitiveness and inability of cities to compete on a
goals for the smart city. global scale due to global interconnectedness of cities.
Table 3. Outlines some countries' goals for the smart city. Essential financial incapacity for smart city projects.
S mart Goals The complex context and the need for political agendas.
Cities Innovative projects and small-scale developments do not
Amsterdam Focus on carbon reduction, energy efficiency necessarily guarantee effective realization on a larger scale of the
and behavior modification. A set of financial urban center.
technologies, energy efficiency and cultural
status. The possibility of failing investments and ignoring local needs and
Singapore Developing urban infrastructure, becoming an priorities.
intelligent island with modern information Slow advancement of tasks due to budget issues and failure to
infrastructure around the universe, attract residents or capital.
interconnected computers in nearly every A singular focus on productivity can yield a limited p erspective of
house, office, school and factory, enhancing societal values such as social cohesion and character of liveliness
quality of life and economic development
in the city and sustainability dimensions.
Yokohama Address urban issues, including pollution,
traffic congestion, floods and waste

490
Repeating technology solutions requires risk. The same solution with its own address and communicating with each other on a
may not be suitable for all cities. standardized basis. This novel scheme of remote control and
intelligent control of objects and devices is widely applied today
The complex ecosystem of people, institutions, and stakeholders
in developed countries in office systems as good as household
require a heavy deal of organization and discipline.
appliances. Internet of Things saves time in the first place, which
The existing smart city infrastructure can be outdated and obstruct also results in energy savings. This technology can be used in
the realization of the smart city vision. large buildings and complexes to properly utilize and regulate
Existing cities have many problems competing for a share of energy consumption, to control intelligent systems, health, traffic,
resources in cities. Therefore, it is not possible to address all agriculture, transportation, and so on.
aspects of a smart city so strategies need to be prioritized. 8. CONCLUSION
The Risk of Social Disparities (Social Inequalities) Among Establishing a smart city requires integrated actions at different
Population Groups, Knowledge and Unequal Access to urban and social levels. Smart City is a general concept that aims
Information and Communication Technology in the Digital Gap, to tackle contemporary challenges and take advantage of recent
Widening the Social Gap and Strengthening Spatial Polarity. opportunities offered by ICT advances and urbanization. Despite
The technological advances and complexity of cyberspace the broad literature on the concept of smart city, there is even no
perpetuate inequality within parts of society. open understanding and general consensus on this study, and
scholars have proposed a change of content. While some have
Issues and problems related to privacy and the collection of considered smart technology as the only or at least the most
personal information, security, and excessive surveillance and significant portion of smart city, others have proposed definitions
control over citizens. that go beyond technology and think that technology adoption is
Lack of trained staff and the need for frequent updates. not the goal. Technologies can be practiced in urban centers to
Lack of equal access to cyberspace and unreliability of large empower citizens by adapting these technologies to their demands
rather than conforming their lives to technology requirements. An
quantities of data and information.
examination of the vast array of literature indicates that the
6. BENEFITS OF SMART CITY significance of a smart city is multifaceted. The results of the
In Smart City, while enhancing citizen participation in decision analysis of Smart City definitions and concepts suggest that there
making, the following can be achieved through smart data are three key issues:
structures and an efficient citizenship education organization: Infrastructures are central to the concept of smart city.
A lot of the burden of responsibility and workplace pressure is Technology is an enabling factor in a smart city, but it's not
borne by managers and government agencies transferred to the necessarily the most critical. The combination, interconnection
people themselves. and integration of systems and bases are all important to creating a
city smart. The core systems are not discrete and distinct, and
It decreases redoing, trial-and-error decisions, and wasting time
have become a complex, multidimensional network of diverse,
and resources. interconnected systems in a synergistic manner that delivers better
The costs of adapting the city to events are minimized, and the and optimal performance.
city has the flexibility and the ability to deal with unexpected
events. Processes (how a smart city comes into being) are important in
business definitions. A key component of smart city is the cardinal
The speed of data collection is maximized. modification in the way services are pitched, and smart city
The gradual establishment of a new social class "creative class" is presentation is not about technology but about improving services.
taking place, which helps the city compete intensively in
Increasing citizen participation in decision making, through
attracting capital and generating surplus value.
intelligent information structures and an efficient citizenship
The urban center will be integrated into a world without borders. education system, reduce the burden of responsibility and
The city's economic and social opportunities will increase workload on managers and government agencies, prevent re-
dramatically. employment, reduce trial and error decisions, and The waste of
The smart city can be the foundation for the establishment of time and resources has led to the gradual establishment of a new
sustainable urban development processes. social class “creative class” that aids the city in the intense
competition to attract capital and produce value added. As a
7. IOT AND SMART CITY consequence, many approaches to smart city are the consequence
The smart city is constructed up of diverse roles that make the IoT of specific city surveys.
an important infrastructure for optimizing process automation Expectations are important for a better time to come. A smart city
functions. We create optimum utilization of usable resources, In must anticipate the intelligent economy, smart management, smart
the smart city, and automated processes make it more comfortable energy, smart transport, smart infrastructure and intelligent life
for people to improve their quality of aliveness. Smart City and its and how they interact. Only possessing a visual modality is not
definitions are nearly linked to the concepts of the Internet of adequate to be smart and actions are needed in the field of
Things, but not restricted to it. Internet of Things and Smart City legislation, policy and organizational change. On the other hand,
are two words that will be addressed more and more as companies the infiltration of intelligence into each subsystem of a single city
in the sphere of scientific discipline and technology today are is not enough to produce an intelligent city, but rather to be seen
collaborating with telecommunications operators and they require as an organic whole. The central detail is that cities must respond
to make the aspiration of a smart city where all the targets and to alterations in the contexts in which they operate and what is to
devices are internet-enabled and things can be answered very be considered smart depends on the conditions of the various
rapidly. IoT means a global network of connected objects, each areas (text and context) such as political organizations,

491
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