IBM and Semtech have announced a new technology which is aimed at improving long range communications for sensors and enabling large-scale M2M and IoT deployments.
The LoRaWAN technology is based upon low-power, wide-area networks and should offer significant advantages over cellular networks and WiFi for providing M2M communications.
LoRaWAN looks to overcome the challenges of limited battery life, short communication distances, high costs and a lack of standards.
It is based upon a new specification which that taps an unlicensed wireless spectrum. This will allow for connections to sensors over long distances while requiring minimal infrastructure.
To support the development of software and hardware on LoRaWAN, the establishment of the LoRa Alliance has been announced, which is aimed at setting a standard for telecom and network operators.
The benefit of this is that it enables these operators to be able to offer IoT services to both businesses and consumers.
Thorsten Kramp, Master Inventor, IBM Research, said: "The Internet of Things is already changing our world – from better traffic control on our highways, to greater energy efficiency in buildings and manufacturing operations, to reduced crime on our city streets."
"Technology advancements like the one we’re announcing today will help significantly advance that vision by extending the range and longevity of sensors that make up an intelligent world."
The sensors’ capabilities allow for communication over distances of more than 62 miles in ‘favourable environments.’ While also offering communication in dense urban areas of 1.2 miles at data rates from 300 bit/s up to 100 kbit/s.
John Myers, CEO of FastNet, said: "We see a tremendous opportunity for LPWAN in South Africa, particularly for energy management applications."
"There is a vast range of applications for this technology ranging from medical solutions to agricultural systems. This is another example of Africa being on the cutting-edge of innovation to drive new hi-tech markets."
"When combined with IBM’s Long Range Signaling and Control (LRSC) software and the IBM Internet of Things Foundation cloud hosted service, LoRaWAN enables easy, large-scale M2M/IoT deployments."
"The LRSC is the middleware layer or glue enabling users to connect, manage and scale to millions of devices. IBM has also made the LoRaWAN protocol open source (Eclipse Public License) for end-node development known as "LoRaWAN in C".
