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A Survey of Blockchain and Its Applications

Conference Paper · February 2019

DOI: 10.1109/ICAIIC.2019.8669067

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 A Survey of Blockchain and Its Applications
Qalab E Abbas Jang Sung-Bong*
Department of IT-Convergence Kumoh National Department of Industry-Academy Kumoh National
Institute of Technology Institute of Technology
Gumi, Korea Gumi, Korea
qalabeabbas49@kumoh.ac.kr sungbong.jang@kumoh.ac.kr
*Correspondence Author

Abstract—Blockchain is one of the technologies which

B. Blockchain Structure
appeared in the last decade and brought a lot of promise
with it. Much researches are being conducted actively to Simply put, blockchain can be imagined as a chain of
explore the full capabilities of Blockchain. Some believe blocks (Nodes) that are connected to each other. The
that Blockchain is key for a decentralized society. transactions are stored throughout the network. Whenever a
Especially, we are considering blockchain as the security new transaction is or there is a change in any transaction, It
scheme to protect the privacies of the objects to be has to be verified. The verification is via consensus between
augmented in intelligent mobile augmented reality (IMAR) the nodes, there are different methods to achieve consensus.
project. To do that, this paper describe an overview of an Information in Blockchain cannot be added or modified until
blockchain. the consensus is reached which makes it fraud-proof [2].
Framework of Blockchain can be divided into three
Keywords—Blockchain, Artificial Intelligence, Internet of layers namely Network Layer, Data Layer and Application
Things, IoT, Decentralization Layer, for understanding sake. The Network Layer enables
the Blockchain to connect and interact with the surroundings
I. INTRODUCTION and the users. It also makes the entire system decentralized
using peer-to-peer network and IP protocols.One of the most
The Blockchain is one of the technologies which appeared important task, consensus is achieved in this layer. Data layer
in the last decade and brought a lot of promise with it. Work is what makes the blocks in Blockchian. All the data and
is still being done to explore the full capabilities of
algorithms and other mechanisms like digital signature,
Blockchain and where it can be used. Some believe that
Blockchain is the key for a decentralized society. Our current Merkle tree and hash pointers are defined here. These
ecosystem is completely centralized, meaning the power to algorithms and data structures help in making the Blockchain
make decisions is in the hands of a few [1]. For example our transparent and decentralized. The Application layer
entire financial system is controlled by government represents different application that can use Blockchain and
authorized banks and in organizations decisions are made its features like smart contracts and cryptocurrency for their
only by a few members of the board. Even giants like Google purpose [2].
and Facebook, used by billions of users everyday decide what
they want us to see.
Whereas a decentralized is with any authority, the power is
distributed among all the members of the network [1]. Bitcoin
is an example where there is no need of a bank or any
middleman for the transactions because all the transactions
are visible to all the parties and blockchain keeps the history
as well which allows anyone in the network to trace back any
transaction to its origin. This paper will discuss What is
Blockchain and some areas where it is being implemented.

II. BLOCKCHAIN

A. Definition
Nowadays, blockchain is regarded as
cryptocurrencies like bitcoin, ripple etc. but in reality,
application of Blockchain are not at all limited to finance. As
defined above blockchain is a decentralized digital ledger,
and ledgers are used to the keep record of important stuff, Figure.1. Framework of Blockchain
financial or otherwise. Now imagine a ledger that cannot be
stolen, corrupted or influenced by anyone, it can change our
economy and our business structure as we know it [2].

978-1-5386-7822-0/19/$31.00 ©2019 IEEE 001 ICAIIC 2019

 III. APPLICATIONS OF BLOCKCHAIN been an issue, Blockchain can help secure and manage this
Since the emergence of Blockchain, a lot of research is data.
being done to explore what more can we do with this amazing Fig.3 lists some challenges faced by IoT that can be
technology. Applications of Blockchain are still being potentially fixed by Blockchain features.
discovered, a few of those will be discussed here.
A. Financial Application of Blockchain
The first and largest use of
Blockchain is in finance. It all started with bitcoin where
blockchain was used to keep a record of the financial
transaction, eliminating the middleman. Since bitcoin,
different Blockchain technologies have given birth to
different cryptocurrencies so much so there are hundreds of
cryptocurrencies are being traded in the world right now [3].
Figure 2 shows us a bitcoin Blockchain. Whenever a new
transaction is made it is broadcasted across the network. Fig.3 Blockchain based solutions for IoT
Miners record these transactions and after the verification, the
transaction is cryptographically sealed and becomes a block. D. Blockchain in Developing countries
Now this block is attached with the previous block by hashing
[4]. Blockchain can help eliminate or at
least decrease the corruption in developing countries. It can
help make all the transactions transparent and available to the
public which in turn makes it hard for records to be modified.
The transparency will make the system trustworthy and rights
of the people will be protected [6].

E. Communication
Blockchain offers security and cannot be corrupted. These
features have a major role in securing our communication and
Fig.2. Bitcoin Blockchain networks. Personal or individual communication aside,
imagine what Blockchain can do for sensitive government
institutes like army, police and Intelligence Agencies.

F. Medical Data
B. Smart Contracts
Medical Industry is very much
Exactly like the name says,
interested in Blockchain technology to secure and track
Blockchain with smart contracts can eliminate the need for
medical data collected from the patient. Medical data is
lawyers and intermediaries. Smart contracts will be available
extremely important, and any mistake or modification can
to all the parties and any change in the contract must be done
lead to extreme results. With Blockchain data can be publicly
after reaching Conesus. Smart contracts can be helpful in
available for use without the fear of mutation [2].
business as well as private dealing [2].

G. Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence

C. Blockchain and Internet of things
Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence
The Internet is a big part of
(AI) are leading the innovations today. Both are making crazy
everyone’s life now, sometimes we don’t even know how
strides in different domains. The recent breakthrough in
much connected everything is. All the devices like smart
Machine Learning (ML), particularly in the field of Deep
watches, smart fridges, cameras and your mobile phone etc.
Learning (DL) are being used for prediction, classification,
are connected to the internet. Internet of things(IoT) is
Natural Language Processing and Image recognition etc.
basically a web of smart sensors and devise that is connected
It suffices to say that both AI and Blockchain have
to the internet and are sharing information with each other to
their strengths, but they also have some weaknesses.
make our lives easier. There is no denying that IoTs has made
Blockchain faces issues like scalability, efficiency and
our environment smarter for us, but they also make us
security and the concerns regarding AI are the creation of
vulnerable too. Imagine you live in a smart home, where
fake news, privacy issues and monopolization of AI by
every this connected and all the devices are tracking and
giants. AI and Blockchain can help each other over their
watching you, to help but all your data are on the internet,
weaknesses.
which is not secure [5].
Blockchain can provide decentralized platforms for AI
Blockchain as a decentralized and temper proof is very
like data, computing power and make the decisions of AI
attractive for the Internet of things(IoTs) industry. The
more transparent as data in Blockchain is public and contains
number of nodes in IoT is increasing day by day and so is the
all the records, thus making AI less intimidating [7].
data that are being gathered. The security of data has always

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In turn AI can help in the design and operation of Blockchain
for scalability and can also automate and optimize the
Blockchain for better performance. And Since data on the
Blockchain is public, AI can help in the protection of user
confidentiality and privacy [7].

V. CONCLUSION
The paper discusses what is Blockchain and how this
Fig.4 Blockchain and AI
technology is being implemented and integrated with other
technologies to strengthen different sectors. A lot of
IV. CONCERNS ABOUT BLOCKCHAIN research is still needed to explore the full protentional of
Blockchain and its possible applications.
Even though Blockchain has a lot to offer and can
help a lot of technologies by adding some value, there are still VI. ACKNOWLEDGMENT
some concerns about it. It is a new technology and the more
This research was supported by Basic Science Research
researchers explore it new and different sides of Blockchain
Program through the National Research Foundation of
are showing up. The major concerns about Blockchain are
Korea(NRF) funded by the Ministry of Education (NRF-
listed below [2].
2018R1D1A1B07045589).
VII. REFERENCES

[1] A. Kaushik, A. Choudhary, C. Ektare, D. Thomas and

S. Akram, "Blockchain – Literature Survey," in 2nd
IEEE International Conference On Recent Trends in
Electronics Information & Communication Technology
(RTEICT), India, 2017.
[2] W. Gao, W. G. Hatcher and W. Yu, "A Survey of
Blockchain: Techniques, Applications, and Challenges,"
in 27th International Conference on Computer
Communication and Networks (ICCCN), Hangzhou,
China, 2018.
[3] P. Tasatanattakool and C. Techapanupreeda,
"Blockchain: Challenges and Applications," in
International Conference on Information Networking
(ICOIN), Chiang Mai, Thailand, 2018.
[4] T. D. M. Tomaso Aste and Paolo Tasca, " Blockchain
Technologies: The Foreseeable Impact on Society and
Industry," COMPUTER, pp. 18-28, 2017.
[5] Y. Gupta, R. Shorey, D. Kulkarni and J. Tew, "The
Applicability of Blockchain in the Internet of Things,"
in 10th International Conference on Communication
Systems & Networks (COMSNETS), Bengaluru, India,
2018.
[6] K. Nir and J. Voas, "Blockchain in Developing
Countries," IT Professional, pp. 11-14, 2018.
[7] T. N. Dinh and M. T. Thai, "AI and Blockchain: A
Disruptive Integration," COMPUTER, pp. 48-53,
September 2018.

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