UPDATED: Recent Developments in Long Range IoT

LoRaWAN® has become a leading wireless protocol for many Internet of Things (IoT) applications that require long range wireless connectivity in combination with ultra-low power consumption. Many massive IoT applications are only economically viable when the batteries in the sensors, trackers or other devices can last years , in some cases even more than 10 years.

One real advantage of LoRaWAN is that the power consumption of devices is, by-design, extremely low. Not only that, but these devices can transmit sensor data over several kilometers.

An interesting, and related, technological breakthrough is the emergence of satellite connectivity. Several satellite service providers now offer LoRaWAN connectivity in a ubiquitous way around the globe, solving the issue of network availability in very remote areas and making it possible to track objects as they move around the world. This type of connectivity solution can be used to enable solutions such as tracking assets that are transported via ships on the ocean.

Semtech has also recently launched its third generation of LoRa® chipsets. These chips allow for secure provisioning of devices by using Semtech’s LoRa Cloud™ services, which provide (among other services) geolocation capabilities for both indoor and outdoor applications using GNSS and Wi-Fi scanning at ultra-low power consumption. This is a game-changer for many tracking applications, since a separate GPS module is no longer required when building a device. Rather, Semtech’s LoRa Cloud services can calculate the geoposition of a tracker based on data transmitted by LoRa Edge™ chipsets, thereby offloading the power-consumption from the device. Such tracker devices can last several years, have a lower bill of materials cost than the usual GPS trackers, and do not need cellular networks (4G or 5G) to connect to a cloud application.  

In this interview at ThinkWirelessIoT Days, I go into more depth about these happenings.

Watch the Video (35 minutes)

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