sigfox - why all the fuss
Post on 25-Jan-2015
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SigfoxWhy all the fuss ?
What is Sigfox ?
not only a buzzword
more than a buzzword
Buzz Buzz Buzz
•Raised €15M this spring (3rd round) •Anne Lauvergeon appointed as head of the board of directors in april
Anne Lauvergeon ?
•Former CEO of Areva •Member of the board of EADS, Total, .. •Good political connections
Anne Lauvergeon ?
•Former CEO of Areva •Member of the board of EADS, Total, .. •Good political connections •#bigcompanies #bigmoney #influence
So, what is it ?
A radio communication network.
Technology
Ground-breaking technology ?
Ground-breaking technology ?
No.
Basics
• Radio waves
• Free-to-use frequencies : 868MHz in the EU, 902MHz in the US
• Ultra Narrow Band
• Upstream only
Basics
• Radio waves
• Free-to-use frequencies : 868MHz in the EU, 902MHz in the US
• Ultra Narrow Band
• Upstream only for the moment
Basics
• Subscription model
• 140 messages per unit per day
• 12 bytes per message
Basics
• Broadband
• Broadcast
• Polling
• NONE OF IT
Basics
• Broadband
• Broadcast
• Polling
• NONE OF IT
Pros / Cons
Bandwidth
A message contains up to 12 bytes Definitely not suitable when you need to transmit heavy loads of data
Quantity
Standard contract allow up to 140 messages per day (~1 every 10 mins) To be discussed with them if you need more frequent transmissions
Transmission Ack
There is none.
2-way communicationShould be coming *very* soon. !
Won’t be a real 2-way communication, as it would ruin the energy-saving model. !
Basically, your device will keep “listening” for a few minutes after emission instead of getting back to sleep mode instantly. This will allow to send back a Ack or a tiny piece of info
Energy
Chip is not active unless a message is sent. Great deal when battery life is an important concern.
Subscription costs
Up to €15 per unit per year
Coverage• France • Spain • Netherlands • UK • München, Milano, Warszaw, .. • San Francisco (coming soon ?)
Coverage• France • Spain • Netherlands • UK • München, Milano, Warszaw, .. • San Francisco (coming soon ?)
Coverage
Rely on Sigfox’s own network/antennas, or on the implication of a partner (SNO) Range ~15km
Callback
When registering on the Sigfox platform, you can provide a callback to be called when a message is received Quick to set up & plug to your own backend.
Security
Radio communications are not secure by nature. Man in the middle can read your communications.
Security
Replayed messages should be rejected by Sigfox’s platform A device private key is used to sign messages
Security
If your message bears a strong value, you must implement some encryption on your side before sending it.
Alternatives ?
Wifi• High bandwidth • No added cost • Important energy consumption • Availability unknown • Configuration is not user-friendly
Wifi• High bandwidth • No added cost • Important energy consumption • Availability unknown • Configuration is not user-friendly
BLE• Buzzwords fight • Low Energy, but consumption is still
higher than Sigfox • No added connection cost • Needs a smartphone, with BLE
compatibility
GSM / GPRS / M2M• More advanced coverage • Similar network reception issues • More expensive
• Energy • Subscriptions • Relative complexity
Zigbee• Local radio communications • Mesh networks • 2.4GHz (crowded ..) • No internet access
LoRa• Local radio network • Mesh networks • No internet access
Competitors
Competitors• Not so much … yet • Latest announce : Orange POPS, using
the cellphone network, with low-power devices. Don’t know much more than that right now :)
Use cases*
*That I was able to think of
Where to use• Low-powered devices • TinyData (pending ©) • No need to “listen” the network • Frequent communications, but no
permanent broadcast
Where to use• Low-powered devices • TinyData (pending ©) • No need to “listen” the network • Frequent communications, but no
permanent broadcast
Sensors / Monitoring• Pretty straightforward.. • Whatever you need to monitor
• Pressure • Light • °C/°F • Volume • Humidity • Presence • Gas / Smoke • Name it
Get me a manager !• Think ”Hotel Bell 2.0 IoT edition” • Ask to be called back by Brand
Customer Service • Contact emergency services right after
an accident (be it first aid, cops, your insurance..)
After-theft• Lots of Kickstarter projects around BLE
Locks • Nice to prevent theft.. but useless after • Coupling a GPS with a Sigfox modem
make a great after-theft solution, monitoring the location of the bike, car, pet, whatever..
Getting started
Large companies only ?• www.sigfox.com is just a corporate
website. • developer.sigfox.com ?
Large companies only ?• www.sigfox.com is just a corporate
website. • developer.sigfox.com
NO. Keep trying !Really easy to set up & start using … once you managed to get a dev kit
Dev kit ?Check out :
• Snootlab’s Akeru : Arduino clone + Sigfox modem (~€100)
• TelecomDesign : Evaluation Board ~€150
How to Sigfox
TelecomDesign’s user guide is a good starting point
How to Sigfox 1.Register a user account on Sigfox
platform (or TD’s own) 2.Plug using a FTDI cable
Transmission test#Send two hex bytes: 0x54 & 0x44 !
AT$SS=54 44<CR> OK
Stats
Location (unreliable)
Demo *
*May be not
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