SiteWatch 360 uses a LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network) system, which operates on the industrial, scientific, and medical radio band (centered on 915 MHz in North America).
Unlike Wi-Fi, which can be used for transmitting large volumes of data over short distances (typically 150-300ft), LoRaWAN can be used for transmitting small volumes of data — such as power data or other engineering variables — over much longer distances, which is ideal for transmitting customer data to the SiteWatch 360 cloud.
It can be used in many different applications such as to:
- Monitor whether traffic lights or streetlights are working or not
- Indicate whether filters are clogged and need cleaning/replacing
- Issue an alert if there's a water leak
- Check the status of, or activate, an automatic gate
- Track vehicles (e.g., taxis)
- Monitor the status of parking spaces
- Read utility meters
Typical ranges indoors are 300-900ft, depending on walls, floors and other obstructions, and outdoors about 1-3 miles, depending on signal optimization. That said, the world record for a LoRaWAN connection set in 2017 between two 'base stations' is an astounding 131 miles apart. Later that year, a balloon launched in the Netherlands was able to communicate from over 435 miles away!
SiteWatch 360 typically takes measurements of energy use every 10 seconds and transmits the data every few minutes. LoRaWAN is the ideal protocol for transmitting small amounts of data over longer distances. A large commercial building or an average manufacturing facility would probably need only one or two gateways to receive data from sensors and transmit it to the cloud.