Month: November 2022

The proliferation and popularity of IoT devices have led to the rise of low-power, wide-area networks (LP-WAN) options such as SigFox, LoRa, and Weightless.
Traditional cellular options such as 4G and LTE networks consume too much power. Furthermore, they are not suitable for applications that rarely transmit small amounts of data, such as meters used to read water levels, gas consumption, or electricity consumption. Тестовые наборы
Cellular IoT attempts to respond to the constant search for better low-power, long-range applications.
Cat-1
Cat-1 represents an early push to connect IoT devices using existing LTE networks. While not as performant as 3G networks, it’s an excellent choice for IoT applications that require a browser interface or voice. The main appeal is that it’s standardized, and more importantly, it’s easy to transition to Cat-1 networks. Experts predict that Cat-1 (and Cat-M1) networks will replace it as 3G technology and eventually 4G technology becomes obsolete.
Cat-0
For LTE-based IoT networks to be successful, they need to have the following characteristics:
1) Long battery life;
2) Low cost;
3) Support a large number of devices;
4) Enhanced coverage (e.g. better signal penetration through walls)
5) Long range/broad spectrum.
Cat-0 optimizes cost by eliminating features (dual receiver chains, duplex filters) that support the high data rate requirements of Cat-1. While Cat-1 replaced 3G, Cat-0 was the protocol that laid the groundwork for Cat-M to replace 2G as a cheaper option.
Cat-M1 / Cat-M / LTE-M
Cat-M (formally known as LTE Cat-M1) is often seen as the second generation of LTE chips built for IoT applications. It completes the cost and power reductions that Cat-0 originally laid the foundation for. By limiting the maximum system bandwidth to 1.4 MHz (instead of Cat-0’s 20 MHz), Cat-M has specific use cases in LPWAN applications, such as smart metering, where only a small amount of data transfer is required.
But the real advantage of Cat-M over other options is that Cat-M is compatible with existing LTE networks. That’s good news for carriers like Verizon and AT&T because they don’t have to spend money to build new antennas, although software patches are required to get Cat-M into LTE networks. Verizon and AT&T’s existing customer base will likely conclude that Cat-M is by far the best option. Finally, 5G and LTE technologies will almost certainly coexist in the 2020s, so Cat-M’s backward compatibility is a big plus.
NB-IoT /Cat-M2
The goals of NB-IoT (also known as Cat-M2) are similar to Cat-M. However, it uses DSSS modulation instead of LTE radio. Therefore, NB-IoT cannot operate in the LTE frequency band, which means that providers need to spend higher upfront costs to deploy NB-IoT.
Still, NB-IoT has been touted as a potentially cheaper option because it eliminates the need for a gateway. Other infrastructures often have gateways that aggregate sensor data and then communicate with the main server. (Here’s a more in-depth explanation of the gateway). However, with NB-IoT, sensor data is sent directly to the main server. Therefore, Huawei, Ericsson, Qualcomm, and Vodafone are actively investing in the commercial application of NB-IoT. Sierra Wireless predicts that by the end of 2018, NB-IoT and LTE-M will be available in many regions of the world. конвертировать ethernet в wi-fi
EC-GSM (formerly EC-EGPRS)
EC stands for Extended Range. EC-GSM is an IoT-optimized GSM network, and 80% of the world’s smartphones use the wireless protocol. As the name suggests, EC-GSM can be deployed in existing GSM networks – a huge advantage in terms of practicality and modularity, as a single piece of software, enables EC-GSM connectivity in 2G, 3G, and 4G networks. EC-GSM also has specific use cases in non-Western regions such as Malaysia, Africa, and Middle Eastern countries, where 2G is still the prevalent standard. Ericsson, Intel, and Orange are said to have completed field testing of EC-GSM earlier this year. However, EC-GSM doesn’t produce the same buzz as Cat-M or NB-IoT.