IBM and Semtech unveiled new network technology LoRaWAN for M2M communications

IBM Research and Semtech introduced a new energy efficient WAN-based network technology that offers significant advantages over cellular networks and WiFi thanks to the ability to deploy machine-to-machine (M2M) communications.

For many years, the huge potential of the Internet of Things, which consists in collecting and analyzing user device data for further decision-making, was not revealed due to technical factors such as limited battery life, information transfer over short distances, high costs and lack of necessary standards. .

The technology, called LoRaWAN (Long Range wide-area networks), allows to overcome these difficulties. Using new specifications and a protocol for energy-saving WAN networks that employs an unlicensed wireless access spectrum, the technology can connect sensors that are located at a great distance from each other, while offering an optimal battery life and not requiring large infrastructure capabilities. All this allows for improved mobility, security, bidirectionality, localization and positioning, as well as cost reduction.
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To support LPWAN technology, IBM, Semtech and other companies also announced the creation of the LoRa Alliance , a new organization that will support, develop and standardize LoRaWAN technology.

The objective of the LoRa Alliance is to integrate hardware and software based on the LoRaWAN standard for telecommunications operators, providing them with the ability to provide the Internet of things to both commercial organizations and consumers. Thus, in the near future, connecting billions of devices, from sensors and individual mechanisms to monitors and wearable electronics, will become as easy a task as sending SMS messages through a local communications provider.

LoRaWAN sensors can transmit information over a distance of more than 100 km in a favorable environment, 15 km in provincial cities and more than 2 km in densely built cities, providing data exchange rates from 300 bps to 100 kbps. Sensors are ideal for transferring small amounts of information, for example, GPS coordinates and weather data (which is not well handled by broadband). Moreover, sensors require little energy; many of them can operate smoothly for up to 10 years, powered by a single AA battery. In turn, the AES128 encryption keys make hacking and tapping virtually impossible.

Telecommunication operators see many applications for LPWAN networks, for example: vending machines can send an automatic signal to distributors when goods are sold out or equipment needs to be repaired; city ​​administrations can offer solutions for reasonable energy savings, as well as applications that will help drivers find free parking spaces; animal lovers can study the migration of fauna, and pet owners can track the location of their pets; logistics companies can track the movement of trucks, ships and trains carrying containers; domestic liquid fuel manufacturers can receive automatic alerts when oil tanks are empty.

“We see promising opportunities for the development of LPWAN in South Africa, especially in the field of energy management,” commented John Myers, CEO of FastNet. - There are many areas of application of this technology, ranging from medical solutions and ending with agricultural systems. And this is another example of how Africa is driving innovation to develop new high-tech markets. ”

Combined with IBM Long Range Signaling and Control (LRSC) software and the IBM Internet of Things Foundation cloud service, LoRaWAN technology makes it easy to deploy M2M communications and implement IoT solutions. LRSC is middleware that allows users to connect, manage and scale a network of up to a million devices. IBM also opened the source code of the LoRaWAN protocol for application development, which was called "LoRaWAN in C".

“The Internet of Things is already changing the world around us, helping to improve traffic regulation, improve energy efficiency in buildings and manufacturing plants, and reduce street crime in cities,” said Thorsten Kramp, Master Investor IBM Research . “Technologies like LoRaWAN help significantly increase the penetration rate, range and durability of sensors that form the basis of the intellectual world.”

Currently, Senet, a M2M operator and network provider as a service (Network as a Service, NAAS) headquartered in New Hampshire, is deploying 20,000 LoRa sensors from Semtech with IBM LRSC software to track the level of propane fuel and oil tanks located in residential buildings and businesses on the west and east coasts of the United States. Every hour, the sensors collect and transmit information on the fuel level, the state of the measuring devices and the recalibration of the sensors to the fuel suppliers via secure communication channels, which subsequently make decisions about the need for replenishment.

"We stopped playing guessing game," said George Dannecker, general manager of Senet. “Thanks to LoRa technology, our measuring instruments function with extremely high accuracy over long distances, reducing infrastructure costs, which can be converted into savings and transferred to customers. Consumers, in turn, will never be left without fuel. ”