Design and implementation of hybrid low power wide area network architecture for IoT applications

Abstract

The rapid proliferation of Internet of Things (IoT) devices and applications has resulted in an increasing demand for Low Power and Wide Area Network (LPWAN) solutions. The adoption of IoT networks still faces several challenges, despite the rapid advancement of low-power communication technology. Homogenizing this sector requires allowing interoperability between many technologies, which is now one of the largest obstacles. In this article, we present the design and implementation of the hybrid LPWAN architecture that can accomplish wide-area communication coverage and low-power consumption for IoT applications by leveraging two LPWAN technologies, Wireless Smart Ubiquitous Network (Wi-SUN) and Long Range (LoRa). In particular, LoRa is used for long-range communication, and Wi-SUN for a low-latency mesh network. Additionally, we implemented smart street light controlling system as a real-world deployment at the university campus to showcase the efficiency of the hybrid network. Our results demonstrate that the hybrid LPWAN architecture provides a better coverage and capacity while consuming less power than that of the LoRa or Wi-SUN network. The results of this study demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed hybrid LPWAN architecture as a viable solution for next-generation IoT applications.