IoT Communication

Standards
LoRa
2ECDE65 Internet of Things
Reading Material
• Book 1: Introduction to IoT by Sudip Misra, Anandarup Mukherjee,
Arijit Roy, Cambridge University Press
• Chapter 7 IoT connectivity Technologies
• Online References:
• https://lora-developers.semtech.com/documentation
Long Range Communication
• Long range communication standards are wireless communication technologies
that allow devices to communicate over distances of several kilometres or more.
These standards are typically used for applications where low power
consumption and long range are more important than high data rates.

• LoRaWAN: LoRaWAN is a low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) standard

that uses the LoRa modulation scheme.
• SigFox: SigFox is another LPWAN standard that uses a narrowband
modulation scheme.
• LTE-M: Long Term Evolution for Machines is a cellular standard that is
designed for low-power IoT devices.
• NB-IoT: Narrow Band-IoT is another cellular standard that is designed for
low-power IoT devices.
LoRaWAN
• LoRaWAN, which stands for Long Range Wide Area Network, is a
wireless communication protocol designed for low-power, long-range
communication in IoT (Internet of Things) and M2M (Machine-to-
Machine) applications.
• It is one of the key technologies used to connect a wide range of
devices and sensors to the Internet, particularly in scenarios where
traditional cellular or Wi-Fi networks may be impractical due to
factors like power consumption, cost, or coverage range.
LoRaWAN Features
Long Range (Kilometers) Secure Communication
Low Power Consumption Scalable Architecture
Wide Area Coverage Bidirectional Communication
Multiple Operating Low Data Rate
Frequencies
LoRaWAN is used in various IoT applications including smart agriculture,
smart cities, asset tracking, environmental monitoring, industrial
automation etc. Its versatility and long-range capabilities make it
suitable for a wide range of scenarios.
Think – Pair - Share
• Which are the main standards used for Long Range Communication?

• Discuss the main features of LoRaWAN.

• What are the main applications of LoRaWAN?

Long Range (LoRa) Protocol
• LoRa, which stands for Long Range, is a wireless communication
protocol and technology designed for long-range, low-power
communication in IoT (Internet of Things) and M2M (Machine-to-
Machine) applications.
• It is often associated with LoRaWAN, which is the networking
protocol that operates on top of LoRa technology.
 Basic Concept
• LoRa is based on spread spectrum modulation, specifically a proprietary modulation scheme
called Chirp Spread Spectrum (CSS). CSS allows the transmission of data over long distances while
consuming very little power.

• Unlike traditional wireless communication technologies that use a fixed carrier frequency, LoRa
devices transmit data by varying the frequency of the carrier signal in a specific pattern.

• LoRa devices use CSS to spread the signal over a wide range of frequencies. This makes the signal
more resistant to interference and fading, and it also allows LoRa devices to transmit at very low
power levels.

• LoRa devices typically communicate with a LoRa gateway, which is a device that relays messages
between the LoRa devices and a central network server. The network server is responsible for
routing messages between the LoRa devices and the application servers.
 Characteristics
• Long Range: LoRa is capable of transmitting data over distances of several kilometers to tens
of kilometers in rural areas and several hundred meters to a few kilometers in urban
environments. The range largely depends on factors like terrain, interference and antenna
height.

• Low Power: LoRa devices are designed to operate on low power, making them suitable for
battery-powered or energy-efficient applications. Many LoRa devices can run on a single
battery for years.

• Low Data Rates: LoRa is optimized for transmitting small packets of data at relatively low data
rates, which is suitable for IoT applications where periodic, small data updates are common.

• Bidirectional Communication: LoRa supports bidirectional communication, allowing devices to

both transmit data to a central gateway (uplink) and receive data from the gateway
(downlink). This enables remote device management and control.
 Features
• LoRa is typically used in conjunction with the LoRaWAN protocol, which is responsible for
the network layer and data-link layer of the communication stack. LoRaWAN provides
features like authentication, security, and scalability for large-scale IoT deployments.
• LoRaWAN networks consist of end devices, gateways and a network server. End devices
communicate with gateways and gateways forward the data to the network server, which
then routes the data to the appropriate application or service.
• LoRa operates in unlicensed frequency bands, primarily in the sub-GHz range. Common
bands include 868 MHz in Europe, 915 MHz in North America, and 433 MHz in some
regions.
• LoRa modulation uses chirp signals to encode data. Chirp signals are continuous frequency
sweeps over time. The receiver can correlate the received signal with an expected chirp
pattern to recover the transmitted data.
Think – Pair - Share
• What is basic working principle of LoRa?

• What are the main characteristics of LoRa?

• Discuss the main features of LoRa.

LoRaWAN Network Architecture
 LoRa-based End Devices
• A sensor or an actuator which is wirelessly connected to a LoRaWAN network
through radio gateways using modulated RF signal
• An autonomous, battery-operated sensor that digitizes physical conditions and
environmental events.
• Actuator can be: street lighting, wireless locks, water valve shut off, leak
prevention, among others.
• When manufactured, LoRa-based devices are assigned several unique identifiers.
• These identifiers are used to securely activate and administer device, to ensure
the safe transport of packets over a private or public network and to deliver
encrypted data to the Cloud.
 LoRaWAN Gateways
• A LoRaWAN gateway receives LoRa modulated RF messages from any
end device in hearing distance and forwards these data messages to
the LoRaWAN network server (LNS), which is connected through an IP
backbone.
• There is no fixed association between an end device and a specific
gateway.
• Instead, the end device can be served by multiple gateways in the area
• The IP traffic from a gateway to the network server can be backhauled
via Wi-Fi, wired Ethernet, or Cellular connection.
 Network Server
• Establishes secure 128-bit AES connections for transport of both end to end data
(from end device to the end users Application in the Cloud) as well as for the control
of traffic that flows from end device to server (and back).
• Ensures authenticity of every sensor on network and integrity of every message.
• End Device address checking
• Frame authentication and frame counter management
• Acknowledgements of received messages from end devices
• Forwarding uplink application payloads to the appropriate application servers
• Queuing of downlink payloads coming from any Application Server to any device
connected to the network
• Forwarding Join-request and Join-accept messages between the devices and the
join server
 Application Servers
• Responsible for securely handling, managing and interpreting
sensor application data.
• Generate the application-layer downlink payloads to
connected end devices (get information about the data from
IoT nodes in devices with dashboard e.g. read meter
readings on mobile phone)
 Join Server
• Manages over-the-air activation process for end devices to be
added to the network.
• Contains information required to process uplink join-request
frames (device to network) and generate the downlink join-
accept frames.
• It signals to network server which application server should be
connected to the end-device
Think – Pair - Share
• Explain LoRaWAN Network architecture?

• What are the main functions of LoRa Gateways?

• What is the main application of Join Server?

Spread Spectrum
• Spread spectrum modulation spreads the signal energy over a wider frequency
band than the original signal's bandwidth. This spreading is achieved by using a
specific coding or modulation scheme. The original data signal is modulated with
a spreading code, which results in a signal that appears as noise to an
unauthorized receiver, but it can be correctly demodulated by a receiver
equipped with the same spreading code.
 Types of Spread Spectrum
• Direct Sequence Spread Spectrum (DSSS): In DSSS, each data bit is modulated by a spreading
code. The spreading code is a sequence of chips (binary code symbols) that have a much higher
data rate than the original signal. The spread signal is then transmitted over a wide bandwidth.
At the receiver, the same spreading code is used to despread and recover the original data
signal.

• Frequency Hopping Spread Spectrum (FHSS):In FHSS, the carrier frequency rapidly changes
(hops) over a set of predetermined frequencies according to a hopping sequence. The
transmitter and receiver both follow the same hopping pattern. This technique makes it
difficult for an eavesdropper to intercept the entire signal since they would need to hop
between frequencies at the same rate to capture all the data.

• Chirp Spread Spectrum (CSS):CSS is a modulation technique where the frequency of the carrier
signal continuously varies over time, creating a chirp signal. It offers advantages in terms of
range and resistance to interference.
Chirp Spread Spectrum
• Chirp stands for 'Compressed High Intensity Radar Pulse'. It is a signal
which frequency either increase or decrease with time. It is very
common is sonar and radar. It is also used in spread spectrum.

• Chirp spread spectrum (CSS) is a spread spectrum modulation

technique that uses linear frequency modulated (LFM) chirp pulses to
encode information. A chirp is a sinusoidal signal whose frequency
increases or decreases over time. CSS spreads the signal over a wide
range of frequencies by varying the frequency of the chirp pulses.
 Chirp Spread Spectrum
• LoRa is a chirp spread spectrum modulation based wireless networking
standard
• Chirp Spread Spectrum:
• Chirp signals have constant amplitude
• If the frequency changes from lowest to highest, it is call up-chirp
• If the frequency changes from highest to lowest, we call it down-chirp
• Advantages:
• resistance to interference and multipath fading
• consumes very little power
• long-range performance with high-reliability

Example of linear up-chirp

CSS Steps
• CSS is a powerful and versatile spread spectrum technique that can be used
for a wide range of applications. It is particularly well-suited for
applications where low power consumption, long range, and resistance to
interference are important.
1. The data to be transmitted is converted into a digital signal.
2. The digital signal is used to modulate a chirp pulse.
3. The chirp pulse is transmitted over the air.
4. The receiver demodulates the chirp pulse to recover the original data
signal.
 LoRA Symbols

5 modulated symbols, jump in

frequency represents modulated
symbols

8 up-chirp symbols - preamble symbols 2 down-chirp symbols –

time synchronization
Comparison

Large number of messages