Cellular IoT Data Plan Evaluation for Low-Power Telemetry Modules
Evaluate cellular IoT data plans by measuring session rounding floors, protocol encapsulation overhead, and transceiver radio attachment current on the test bench.
Narrowband IoT
Meaning
Low power wide area network technologies connect high densities of simple sensors that transmit infrequent bursts of data. The narrowband iot standard is designed for stationary devices that do not require high throughput or mobility. It utilizes a very narrow carrier bandwidth of one hundred and eighty kilohertz to maximize signal penetration.
This standard is optimized for battery powered devices that must operate for over a decade without maintenance.
Carrier Deployment
Flexible spectrum usage allows operators to deploy this technology alongside existing mobile networks. The narrowband iot standard can be deployed within a guard band of an active lte carrier or in standalone spectrum. This flexibility protects the operator from needing dedicated spectrum allocations.
It also allows rapid deployment since the existing cellular antennas can be upgraded with software changes.
Energy Efficiency
Sleep states are designed to minimize power consumption when the device is inactive. The narrowband iot standard disables radio circuits when there is no data to send. This allows the sensor to run on simple AA batteries.
Data Limitation
Simplifying the communication protocol comes at the cost of limited payload sizes and high latency. The narrowband iot standard does not support seamless handovers between cell towers, meaning that moving devices must reestablish their connections if they travel outside a tower’s range. It is therefore unsuitable for real time tracking of fast moving vehicles.
This limitation restricts the technology to static or slow moving applications such as smart parking and agriculture.