The Brain of the LoRaWAN Network: LoRa Network Server
There is no wonder in the statement “The LoRaWAN technology is the key to a Smart & Sustainable Future”. There are so many case studies through which we can justify the statement. We can go far beyond the advancement to achieve the We are so involved in new innovations & development, in order to update ourselves with the changing or demanding future growth. Such contributions can be advanced by having in-depth knowledge of the technology. The LoRa technology utilizes the telecommunication network called LoRaWAN which routes the data from the endpoints to the centralized Network Server & then to the required entities via LoRaWAN Gateway. Since LoRaWAN® network architecture is deployed in a star-of-stars topology in which gateways are the centralized unit that relays messages between end-devices and a central network server. The gateways are connected to the LoRa Network Server via standard IP connections and act as a transparent bridge, simply converting RF packets to IP packets and vice versa. The LoRaWAN Network Server is connected via the IP backbone with the Gateways. The IP traffic from a Gateway to the Network Server can be backhauled via Wifi or Ethernet. The Gateway here acts as LoRa Radio Message Forwarders. The LoRaWAN Gateway then checks the data integrity of the data/messages sent by the multiple End devices within its hearing range called uplink. This also reduces the packet error rate. For the downlink, a LoRaWAN Gateway executes transmission requests from the LoRa Network Server. LoRa Network Server performs data deduplication & deletes all copies & selects the Gateway that received the message with the best RSSI. The LoRaWAN Network Server has the following features:
MAC layer management of uplinks & downlinks, including service messages.
Network and application layer symmetric AES 128-bit encryption ensuring optimal and integrated security
Depending on the use case, different classes can be assigned to devices to control power consumption.
Every network management function, including data exposure, can be accessed through a set of open & documented APIs
On selected LoRaWAN devices, the network server can apply decoders to extract application layer data and send it to the relevant application
Providing acknowledgments of confirmed uplink data messages.
Forwarding uplink application payloads to the appropriate Application Servers
Routing uplink application payloads to the appropriate Application Server.
For downlinks, the best gateway selection is based on availability and radio parameters.
Adaptive Data Rate is used to control spreading factors, power emissions, and retransmits to optimize network capacity
Thus it can be concluded that the LoRaWAN Network Server acts as the brain of the LoRaWAN Architecture which controls the complete LoRaWAN Network. The LoRaWAN Network Server connects the gateways, sensors, and end-user applications and ensures reliable & secure data routing for the overall LoRa Network.
