Knowledge base

Knowledge base

Welcome to the IoT Knowledge Base, your central source for everything you need to know about the Internet of Things (IoT), from basic principles and technologies to advanced applications and innovation in the IoT ecosystem.

Knowledge base

PSM

Using a Power Saving Mode (PSM) makes it so the cellular module in a device can be put to sleep. During that sleep time, the energy consumption is a few microamperes. The device will not communicate with the network during that time. If the device does want to send data, the cellular module will automatically come out of sleep mode and immediately send the desired data over the network. By arranging this sleeping time as optimally as possible, energy consumption is kept to a minimum. PSM is available with LTE M and NB-IOT.  
Knowledge base

FQDN

FQDN is an abbreviation of Fully Qualified Domain Name, and it stands for the most complete domain name for a specific website, computer or server on the Internet. It is also known as the absolute domain name. Where a domain name consists of a registered name plus a domain extension (top level domains), an FQDN is the full name including any subdomains such as “www” in the FQDN “www.thingsdata.nl”. In combination with a protocol such as HTTP(S) and a possible file location, an FQDN forms a URL. The IP address associated with an FQDN is looked up via the Domain Name System (DNS). For example, it is possible to set up a connection to a server on the basis of an FQDN.  
Knowledge base

Mobile Terminating

Mobile Terminating (MT) refers to a message that is sent to a device (hardware). The message is terminated on the device side.    
Knowledge base

Mobile Originating

Mobile Originated (MO) refers to a message sent from a device (hardware). The message was originally sent from the device side.
Knowledge base

Geolocation

Geolocation is the ability to determine the location of a LoRa sensor without using GPS. This is an add-on and does not have to be available on every LoRaWAN network. The LoRa sensor does not need to implement additional functionalities for this. The location of a sensor can already be determined when an uplink message is received by three or more LoRaWAN gateways. Geolocation how does it work? The LoRaWAN network is able to determine the position of a sensor by analyzing the times when an uplink message is received on the different gateways. A location can be derived by calculating the difference in reception times of the different gateways. To do this, special gateways are needed that support the geolocation functionality.
Knowledge base

LPWAN

LPWAN stands for Low Power Wide Area Network. An LPWAN network meets the following criteria: it is a wireless network, which allows communication with the network with low energy consumption. The network has a large range (several kilometers) with a low bit rate. An LPWAN's main purpose is to collect information. Although it is often possible to send information in both directions. There are different types of networks that meet these criteria and thus fall under the name LPWAN, such as LoRaWAN, NB-IOT and LTE M.
Knowledge base

LoRaWAN

LoRaWAN stands for Long-Range Wide-Area Network. LoRaWAN is very suitable for battery-powered mobile devices with the aim of providing an efficient way for bi-directional communication. LoRaWAN is divided into different parts, it consists of a LoRa sensor, a LoRaWAN gateway and a LoRaWAN network server. With LoRaWAN it is possible to send information in two directions. Information sent from the LoRa sensor is called an uplink message. Information from the network to the sensor is called a downlink message. LoRaWAN how does it work? LoRaWAN focuses on low power consumption while allowing information to be transmitted over long distances. The low energy consumption is achieved by accurately specifying when information can be exchanged. This makes it possible for a LoRa sensor to wake up only to send a message while the sensor is in an energy-efficient sleep mode the rest of the time. To save even more energy, the network is able to adjust settings of the sensor, the term for this is Adaptive Data Rate (ADR). This gives the network the ability to tune the sensor so that it does not transmit longer than is necessary for reliable communication.
Knowledge base

LoRa Alliance

The LoRa Alliance is a non-profit organization behind the standardization of the LoRaWAN network. The organization consists of all kinds of members from different industries (from operators and multinationals to sensor manufacturers). The members work together to drive a successful global rollout of the LoRa (Long Range Low Power) protocol, by sharing knowledge and experience and establishing collaboration between operators worldwide. The organization is responsible for the LoRaWAN standard and the issuance of certificates. The certificate indicates that a sensor functions according to the LoRaWAN standard and is compatible with all LoRaWAN networks (apart from the fact that the frequency can differ per country).  
Knowledge base

TTN

TTN (The Things Network) has announced the LoRaWAN technology by offering a free LoRaWAN network server that is accessible to everyone. The principle is to build an open LoRaWAN network with international coverage. It is a community where all members agree that their own infrastructure (LoRaWAN gateways) can be used by everyone. It is a free service provided that all data from all available sensors in the vicinity can use your gateways to communicate with third-party applications. There is no guarantee for the availability of different nodes of the network, except for the LoRaWAN gateways that you add yourself. Thingsdata offers standard integration with The Things Network.
Knowledge base

LoRaWAN network server

When using sensors that communicate via a LoRaWAN network, the LoRaWAN network server is a central element. The LoRaWAN network server is responsible for the management of the connected LoRaWAN Gateways (Radio Access Network), the authorization of the sensors and the exchange of data (uplink, downlink) between the sensors and the applications.
Knowledge base

LoRaWAN classes

LoRaWAN sensors can work with three classes: Class A, Class B and Class C. Class A, first class: Send a message as set in the LoRaWAN sensor. A downlink message is only possible within two receiving slots above the LoRaWAN sensor that has sent a message. Most energy efficient. Mandatory to any LoRaWAN sensor. Class B Extension to Class A. The LoRaWAN sensor listens at a large interval. The network sends beacons to the LoRaWAN sensors that determine the interval. Less energy efficient than class A. Class C Extension to Class A. Download messages possible at any time. LoRaWAN sensor listens continuously. Not energy efficient Few LoRaWAN sensors are still available with Class C.
Knowledge base

OTAA

Over The Air Activation (OTAA) is a method by which a LoRa sensor is linked to a LoRaWAN network. Another method by which a LoRa sensor can be linked to a network is Activation By Personalization (ABP). Before a sensor can participate in a LoRaWAN network, the following data must be known to both the sensor and the network: the DevAddr, NwkSKey and the AppSKey. The DevAddr is a unique address within the LoRaWAN network, which identifies the sensor. The NwkSKey and AppSKey are required for the encryption of the messages. In OTAA, these three data are generated and exchanged between the network and the sensor by means of a join procedure. OTAA and the join procedure During the join procedure, the security keys (NwkSKey and AppSKey) are determined dynamically and the network distributes a free DevAddr to the sensor. This means that every time the sensor opens a new session, new encryption keys are also generated. For security reasons, it can be decided to open a new session every once in a while, so that the security keys are refreshed. To perform the join procedure with the OTAA method, three data are required (this is different data than the above data), this concerns the DevEUI, AppEUI and AppKey. When this data is configured on both the sensor side and the network side, it is possible to run the join procedure and dynamically calculate the aforementioned DevAddr, NwkSKey and AppSKey. Because this data is generated dynamically, it is possible to have the sensor switch networks. This is in contrast to the ABP method.