From watches and suitcases to vacuum cleaners and bicycles, since 2010, connected devices have been revolutionizing our lives and playing an increasingly important role in our daily routines. Faced with this surge, the networks responsible for this connectivity must adapt. While everyone is talking about the arrival of 5G, another technology is quietly making headway behind the scenes: the LoRa (long-range) network, developed in Neuchâtel.
Small data packets but wide coverage
Most often, when we talk about connected devices, we think of 3G, Wi-Fi, 4G, or any other traditional mobile network. However, most of these technologies are expensive and energy-intensive. In response to these limitations, an alternative has emerged: the LoRa network. This was driven by the American company Semtech, which is based in Neuchâtel.
Unlike traditional telecommunications networks, LoRa relies on radio wave modulation technology. This approach allows information to be transmitted over longer distances, more quickly, using very little energy—all while ensuring security. This radio signal, which minimizes the risk of interference and passes through walls, is also used for space and military communications. However, only small data packets can be transmitted using this method.
With a range of up to 1 kilometer in urban areas and 20 kilometers in rural areas, LoRa antennas form an extensive network of stations. As a result, nearby smart devices simply need to be equipped with a LoRa chip to connect periodically to the network and send or receive information.
Other advantages of LoRa M2M (Machine-to-Machine) technology: it allows battery-powered devices to connect and track their location. It is energy-efficient—since it transmits at a power level equivalent to that of a garage door opener—and requires one-hundredth the energy of 3G, making it four times cheaper.
Unlimited scope of application
While there is no shortage of benefits to this new technology, one key question remains: What is LoRa used for? In practical terms, it gives companies the ability to offer new services. For example, by purchasing a LoRa-connected bike, a customer can track its location, how long they’ve been riding, and all sorts of other information about it—all without having to recharge any batteries.
In addition to its economic benefits, the LoRa network has even greater ambitions, according to Semtech: to address some of the biggest challenges facing our planet. Energy management, pollution control, infrastructure efficiency, and more. To date, LoRa has amassed more than 600 known use cases in cities, agriculture, smart homes,and beyond. With more than 50 million devices connected to networks in 51 countries, LoRa technology is on track to create a smarter planet.
This growth is primarily due to the LoRa Alliance. Founded in 2015 to drive global standardization and harmonization, this community has approximately 500 members, including industry giants Alibaba and IBM. The organization has enabled Semtech to deploy nearly 80 million LoRa sensors worldwide.
Neuchâtel Takes the First Step
Within this alliance, the operator Swisscom was one of the first to expand its LoRa network and now has the densest network on the planet. As a commercial pioneer, it played a key role in integrating Switzerland into the development of this technology. But it is not alone. Long before that, the canton of Neuchâtel was involved in the early stages of LoRa.
Let’s go back to 1997, when the spin-off XEMICS was founded at the Swiss Center for Electronics and Microtechnology (CSEM) in Neuchâtel. This developer of ultra-low-power radio frequency and analog components was eventually acquired a few years later by the semiconductor manufacturer Semtech. LoRa was then officially launched in 2012.
This development will once again rely on the CSEM. This time, Semtech is calling on the center’s scientists to develop a geolocation system. This technology calculates the location of connected devices on the LoRa network, adding significant value to the product. But it wasn’t until 2015 that the crucial phase of experimentation and prototyping began. Led by François Farquet, a founding member of the EcoReg (Regional Ecosystem) LoRa project, a consortium of four Neuchâtel-based companies was formed.
Semtech for the software platform and antennas, Ingecom for the data transmission button, Tetraedre as the field tester, and finally Uditis for information management. Together, these four companies serve as LoRa demonstrators for the entire world.
“We developed a kit to provide to the industry,” explains François Farquet. “The test allowed us to install antennas throughout the canton and verify that the system was working properly. It was a world first.” The canton of Neuchâtel supported this project to promote the region. Unfortunately, in 2017, the experiment ended on a mixed note.
Conquering Switzerland
While the EcoReg LoRa project was beneficial for Semtech and the commercialization of its technology, its benefits were less noticeable for the region.
The problem lies in the cumbersome and complicated administrative procedures. The antennas are installed in public spaces, which has slowed our progress,
says François Farquet.
For his part, CSEM project manager Martin Sénéclauze offers a more positive assessment of this experience.
EcoReg LoRa has created synergies among partners in the region, and each has benefited from the outcome in its own way. For example, CSEM was approached to work with an Italian electric car brand.
Ingecom is no exception, as it now uses its data transmission button in South Africa, in mines for emergency evacuations. Tetraedre, for its part, continues to use LoRa technology for its electric meters. Uditis offers its expertise, and Semtech does business worldwide.
But while LoRa has yielded modest results in Neuchâtel, it offers new opportunities for Switzerland with the arrival of 5G. Since the two technologies are complementary, a new market awaits the Swiss. Nevertheless, there is still a long way to go before LoRa definitively establishes itself as a low-data-rate network. Sigfox, its direct competitor, is entering the Swiss market. The French provider recently partnered with the Lausanne-based startup Heliot as a partner operator. The duo has already begun deploying its network of antennas, which will eventually comprise between 350 and 400 sites. However, LoRa can rest assured, as it has two Swiss giants on its side: La Poste and Swisscom.
Key Dates
1997: Founding of Xemics, a spin-off of CSEM
2005: Semtech acquires Xemics
2012: The Beginnings of LoRa Technology
2015: Founding of the LoRa Alliance
2015: Launch of the EcoReg LoRa project
2017: Completion of the EcoReg LoRa Project
2019: LoRa is available in 51 countries and connects 50 million devices
Video
LoRa Technology:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UlWioQbHDmg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=66&v=l1GmBP2zMhU
LoRa Alliance:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m6IvwcjcxQc
Article by Julie Müller