Performance evaluation of LoRa technology for agricultural applications in rural areas

Abstract

This article presents the results obtained in the evaluation of the LoRa technology as an alternative communication protocol for agricultural applications, by making measurements in situ in a rural area between the municipalities of Sibaté and Granada in Cundinamarca, Colombia. The device for testing was selected using a document search, thus choosing the TTGO esp32 board. Additionally, a temperature sensor and a variable resistance were included to obtain measurements from a transmitter node whose data was sent using the LoRa protocol to a receiver node with a distance of 500 meters between them and an approximate elevation gradient of 4° difference between the points. Finally, the information collected in the tests was subjected to a descriptive statistical analysis that allowed establishing the most reliable parameters of the protocol and identifying the appropriate spreading factor and bandwidth.

Keywords

• LoRa technology
• rural testings
• wireless communication.