Otimização da seleção de parâmetros de transmissão de redes LORA Mesh de gateway single channel em ambientes rurais

Abstract

The Long Range (LoRa) technology has the characteristic of enabling wireless data transmission over long distances with limited rates, but using devices with reduced cost, a low power and, as a consequence, with a low energy consumption. The physical layer of this type of network is mainly configured by four parameters - the spreading factor, the code rate, the transmission power and the bandwidth. These parameters are responsible for adjusting the communication operation in relation to the transmission rate, noise and interference robustness, signal range and power consumption. Therefore, it is essential that the choice of values for these parameters is carried out in order to optimize the performance of the LoRa network in reference to the mentioned characteristics. For networks installed in certain locations, such as in rural environments, for example, this choice has even greater relevance, since, for applications of this type, transmitters are often located in scarcely accessible areas that make it difficult to carry out general maintenances of the device, such as a reconfiguration of parameters or a battery replacement. In this context, this work proposes to present the development of a method based on genetic algorithms, capable of define a configuration of transmission parameters of a single channel gateway LoRa Mesh network for rural environments that optimizes the transmission rate of the devices, conditioned not to exceed an established maximum energy consumption limit. Furthermore, using the Log-Distance propagation model as a basis, a path loss model for LoRa communications in rural areas was developed, enabling a representation that is more faithful to practice and, as a consequence, resulting in greater reliability of the performed analyzes.