This glossary defines the core terms used in IoT shipment monitoring, condition monitoring, and supply-chain integrity. Whether you’re evaluating a monitoring solution or building the internal case for one, these definitions explain the concepts behind protecting high-value and sensitive assets in transit.
Monitoring the location and movement of an asset across its journey. Asset tracking answers where something is, and is distinct from condition monitoring, which captures what is happening to it; leading shipment-integrity programs combine both.
A documented, unbroken record of who handled an asset and under what conditions throughout its journey. A defensible chain of custody is essential for high-value, regulated, or security-sensitive shipments, and for resolving disputes and insurance claims.
A temperature-controlled supply chain that keeps perishable or temperature-sensitive products within a required range from origin to destination. Pharmaceuticals, biologics, vaccines, and certain foods depend on an unbroken cold chain to remain safe and effective. Biotech & Life Sciences monitoring
The continuous tracking of an asset's physical environment and handling — such as temperature, humidity, shock, tilt, and light exposure — to detect events that could damage or degrade it. Unlike location tracking, which answers where an asset is, condition monitoring answers what is happening to it. Technical Specifications
A device that records environmental conditions, often temperature, to internal memory for review after a shipment is complete. Traditional data loggers are passive and retrospective: they confirm what happened only once the data is downloaded at the destination, with no opportunity to intervene in transit.
A unit expressing acceleration relative to Earth's gravity, used to quantify the intensity of an impact or shock. A higher G-force reading indicates a more severe impact, and sensitive electronics or instruments can be damaged by impacts well below the threshold a person would notice.
A virtual boundary around a physical location that triggers an event — such as an alert or a status change — when an asset enters or leaves it. Geofencing is used to confirm arrivals and departures, flag unauthorized detours, and automate chain-of-custody milestones.
A set of regulatory standards governing how pharmaceutical and medical products are stored, transported, and handled to ensure their quality and integrity through the supply chain. GDP compliance typically requires documented temperature control and monitoring across the entire distribution journey. Biotech & Life Sciences monitoring
Tracking the moisture level in an asset's surrounding environment. Excess humidity can cause corrosion, condensation, mold, and moisture damage to electronics and packaging.
The ability to see the location and condition of a shipment while it is moving, rather than only at origin and destination. Greater in-transit visibility shortens response time to problems and reduces the blind spot where most undetected damage occurs.
Sensing when an asset is exposed to light, which typically indicates that a sealed container or package has been opened. Light events are a simple, powerful signal of tampering, unauthorized access, or a breach of a sealed environment.
A single calculated temperature that summarizes the cumulative thermal stress on a product over time, weighting higher temperatures more heavily. MKT is used in pharmaceutical and biologic cold chains to assess whether temperature excursions have meaningfully affected product quality.
Continuously transmitting an asset's condition data during transit so issues can be detected and acted on while the shipment is still in motion, rather than discovered after delivery. Real-time visibility enables intervention — rerouting, recovery, or interception — before a problem becomes a total loss.
The practice of combining data from multiple sensors — such as shock, temperature, tilt, light, and location — into a single, correlated view of what happened to an asset. Fusion turns isolated readings into a coherent event timeline, distinguishing, for example, a harmless bump from a drop that coincided with a temperature spike and an opened door. About Intelyt
The detection and measurement of sudden physical impacts or drops experienced by an asset, typically expressed in G-force. Shock monitoring reveals mishandling events — a dropped crate, a hard landing, a collision — that can cause hidden damage even when packaging looks intact. iTAG product page
The G-force level above which an impact is considered significant enough to record or trigger an alert. Setting an appropriate threshold lets a monitoring system capture damaging events while filtering out the routine bumps of normal transport.
Indicators that reveal whether an asset or its container has been opened, accessed, or interfered with during transit. Electronic tamper evidence — from light, door, or access sensors — provides a time-stamped record of when a breach occurred, not just that one did. Aerospace & Defense monitoring
The automated collection and remote transmission of measurement data from a device to a central system. In shipment monitoring, telemetry is what makes condition data available in real time without physically retrieving the asset or its sensors.
Any deviation of an asset's temperature outside its defined acceptable range. In regulated cold chains — pharmaceuticals, biologics, and certain chemicals — even a brief excursion can compromise product safety, efficacy, or compliance. Biotech & Life Sciences monitoring
Tracking the angle and orientation of an asset to detect when it has been tipped, inverted, or stored in a prohibited position. Many goods — liquids, batteries, calibrated instruments, and “this side up” freight — can be damaged by improper orientation even without any impact. Industrial Automation monitoring
The measurement of sustained oscillation or resonance an asset experiences during transport. Prolonged vibration can loosen fasteners, fatigue materials, and degrade sensitive components in ways a single shock event would not.
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