Intermediary Bridge for LoRaWAN Node Communication
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Solution Overview
Problem
In long-range wireless networks, such as LoRaWAN, efficiently reaching a large number of endpoints with a minimal number of gateways is challenging, especially in geographical areas where direct communication between gateways and nodes is not feasible due to distance or quality issues, and maintaining these gateways is costly.
Innovation Solution
A bridge device operates between the LoRaWAN gateway and nodes, using a different communication protocol (RFV4) to facilitate communication with nodes that are out of range for the LoRaWAN gateway, allowing for on-demand two-way communication and extending battery life by intermittent listening and asynchronous hailing messages.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Area of stationary object
If long-range wireless gateways are deployed to enable communication between nodes and the network, then communication coverage is improved, but the cost of building, deploying, and maintaining these gateways increases significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces a bridge device as an intermediary component between the LoRaWAN gateway and RFV4 nodes. This bridge receives messages from the gateway via LoRaWAN protocol, converts them to RFV4 protocol, and forwards them to the appropriate nodes. This intermediary approach allows the system to extend communication coverage to remote areas without deploying additional expensive gateways, as the bridge can be placed closer to the nodes it serves.
2Reliability
If multiple gateways are deployed to reach all endpoints in a geographical area, then communication reliability is improved, but the cost and complexity of the network increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the network into two distinct parts: a LoRaWAN network for long-range communication between the gateway and bridge, and an RFV4 network for local communication between the bridge and nodes. This segmentation allows each protocol to be optimized for its specific function, maintaining communication reliability while reducing overall network complexity by avoiding the need for multiple overlapping LoRaWAN gateways.
3Device complexity
If nodes communicate directly with the gateway over long distances, then infrastructure cost is reduced, but communication reliability deteriorates due to distance and quality issues
Solution Approach 1:
The bridge acts as a mediator that receives messages from the LoRaWAN gateway and retransmits them to nodes using the RFV4 protocol. This two-hop communication path (gateway → bridge → node) improves reliability by using a more suitable protocol for the final leg of communication, while still maintaining relatively simple infrastructure by using only one gateway and multiple bridges/nodes.
Data Source
AI summary
Methods and systems of managing communications through a bridge between a gateway and a node in a long-range wireless wide area network include receiving at the bridge through a gateway a message with information for a node in accordance with a first communication protocol, identifying by the bridge the node to which the information is directed, and transmitting a message with at least a portion of the information to the identified node in accordance with a second communication protocol that is different from the first communication protocol.