1. A system, comprising: a hardware platform, wherein the hardware platform is adapted to be communicably connected to an active object, wherein the active object is selected from the group consisting of a device comprising a sensor, a device comprising an actuator, and a device comprising both a sensor and an actuator; a middleware module, wherein at least a portion of the middleware module resides in and/or is executed on the hardware platform; and at least one software service generated by the middleware module, wherein each of the at least one software service represents the active object, wherein the active object is a device comprising an actuator and wherein the middleware module is configured to: receive commands from one or more applications written in a high level language via each of the at least one software service; convert the commands into low-level commands that can be understood by the active object, and transmit the low-level commands to the active object via the hardware platform, wherein the low-level commands are capable of controlling the active object wherein the active object is a device comprising a sensor and wherein the hardware platform is configured to receive raw data from the active object and pass the raw data to the middleware module, and the middleware module is configured to convert the raw data into useable data and pass the usable data to the at least one software service, further comprising one or more applications written in a higher level language, wherein at least one of the one or more applications is configured to receive the useable data from one or more of the at least one software service, wherein the hardware platform is adapted to be communicably connected to at least one additional active object, wherein each of the at least one additional active object is selected from the group consisting of a device comprising a sensor, a device comprising an actuator, and a device comprising both a sensor and an actuator, wherein the middleware module generates at least one additional software service, wherein each of the at least one additional software service represents one or more of the at least one additional active object and wherein each of the at least one additional active object is represented by one or more of the at least one additional software service, wherein the at least one additional active object comprises one or more devices comprising an actuator, wherein the middleware module is configured to: receive commands from one or more applications written in a high level language via each of the at least one additional software service representing the one or more devices comprising an actuator; convert the commands into low-level commands that can be understood by at least one of the one or more devices comprising an actuator; and transmit the low-level commands to the at least one of the one or more devices comprising an actuator via the hardware platform, wherein the low-level commands are capable of controlling the at least one of the one or more devices comprising an actuator.