Sep 21 2016
Semtech Corporation, a leading supplier of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors, today announced its LoRa® Wireless RF Technology is featured in a new low power, wide area network (LPWAN) that currently covers more than half the population of New Zealand. The LoRaWAN™-based network, designed by Internet of Things (IoT) network and software providers KotahiNet and Loriot, uses gateways and sensors embedded with Semtech LoRa Technology, as well as network and application software, to create a smart sensing network infrastructure. This allows businesses, local governments and conservation groups to collect and analyze data from thousands of connected devices in a streamlined way enabling them to make intelligent decisions about their business operations.
Semtech LoRa Technology Selected for New IoT Network in New Zealand
“Our rapid deployment of a LoRaWAN-based network in New Zealand has really helped us prove the effectiveness of LoRa Technology for use in IoT applications,” said Vikram Kumar, Director of KotahiNet. “The network covers both urban and very remote rural areas, and in either situation, the LoRa-based sensors and gateways provide excellent coverage while using very low power to ensure sensor batteries last several years without needing to be replaced. By using network operations services from Loriot and LoRa Technology from Semtech, we were able to quickly and economically roll out a secure, standards-based network within a matter of months. Our goal is to continue expanding the network until it eventually covers all of New Zealand.”
The network originates in Wellington, New Zealand, the country’s capital, and is used for a wide range of IoT applications such as farmers receiving weather change alerts from the network to aid in protecting their crops from frost and tracking the location of lost boats and stolen beehives. EcoNode, a New Zealand-based company using IoT technology for conservation efforts, uses the LoRaWAN-based network to notify workers when predators threatening native species are caught in traps, eliminating the labor-intensive routine of manually inspecting these devices.
“The collaboration between KotahiNet and Loriot to quickly implement a public, LoRa-based LPWAN for New Zealand is an excellent example of how companies in the LoRa Alliance are working together to make the IoT a reality worldwide,” said Marc Pegulu, Vice President and General Manager, Wireless, and Sensing Product Group at Semtech. “Such collaboration also shows the value of the open LoRaWAN specification as it continues to bring hardware, software and networking companies together to drive innovative solutions for the IoT market and make the world a better place.”
Semtech, KotahiNet and Loriot are members of the LoRa Alliance™, a group of nearly 400 companies committed to driving and enhancing the LoRaWAN specification to ensure interoperability and scalability of LPWANs and IoT applications. Through its work with member companies and IoT industry groups, the LoRa Alliance is making LoRaWAN the standard for LPWANs focused on low-power, long-range IoT applications. To date, there are LoRaWAN public and private networks in more than 50 countries worldwide.
Key Features of LoRa RF Technology:
- Long Range: A single LoRa base station enables deep penetration capability for dense urban environments and indoor coverage, while also providing the ability to connect to sensors more than 15-30 miles away in rural areas.
- Low Power: The LoRaWAN protocol was developed specifically for low power and enables unprecedented battery lifetime of up to 20 years depending on the application.
- Low Cost: LoRa reduces up front infrastructure investments and operating costs, as well as end-node sensor costs.
- Standardized: LoRaWAN ensures interoperability among applications, IoT solution providers and telecom operators to speed adoption and deployment.