LoRaWAN Room Monitoring

Room condition monitoring has always been an essential component of a commercial building, and has typically fallen under the dependancy of a Building Controls / HVAC contractor to maintain and expand upon. However with the growth of IoT devices in the market, especially those using LPWAN wireless technologies, there are now cost-effective alternatives to begin considering for the right situations.

The headline image above shows an Elsys ERS LoRaWAN compatible room sensor that measures temperature, humidity, light and motion in a single device for less than $250. It runs on two 3.6V AA lithium batteries (replaceable) allowing it to last up to 10 years. Installation was a breeze, using double-sided tape, however there are mounting holes for a more permanent install. Software configuration was done in less than 3 minutes using a smart phone and the NFC programming capabilities, connecting this device onto The Things Network with a tap of a phone.

Using MQTT and ThingsBoard (an open source IoT visualisation platform) these sensors can be easily monitored without any associated licensing fees. Alternatively, they can be connected into an existing Building Management System using our TTN driver for Niagara 4 (contact for more info).

There will always be a need for wired sensors to perform reliable and precise HVAC control, however when considering an average cost of $600-$800 per point for traditional solutions, these are a cost-effective alternative for basic monitoring of occupancy or condition reporting, to supplement a BMS or provide a solution where no BMS exists.

There are a wide variety of LoRaWAN sensors coming onto the market, Elsys also have CO2 and Sound monitoring sensors available. It's inevitable that the price of LoRaWAN sensors will drop even further over the next 1-2 years as more manufacturers enter and demand increases.