backgroundSigFox began in 2009, and the technology has a powerful impact on the 3GPP, which has long been a standard mobile phone interaction standard. SigFox solves multiple pain points in the device interconnection scenario:1 too complex;2 expensive equipment;3 power consumption is not durable;4 Short transmission distanceSigfox has been successful for a long time on the IoT platform, but operators with huge production value don't care much about it. In 2014, Huawei, China's mobile communications technology leader, acquired the UK Neul company, which has a certain research and breakthrough in long-distance wireless transmission technology. Huawei and Ericsson are now starting to push the technical standards for narrowband IoT, which is NB-IoT, also known as lte-m2 (versus lte-m1). based on the cellular IoT scenario, the current camp can be divided into NB-IoT and LTE-M1 definitionThe lte-m1 is the 3GPP response to the continued high heat of the IOT domain and the low Power Generalized network (LPWAN). This is aCompetitive Solutions, in addition to being able to be deployed in the current mobile network, have the advantage of low power consumption, which cannot be separated from the two lower-energy mouse schemes introduced by LTE-M1: Lte-edrx (discontinuous reception) and LTE-PSM lte-m2, also known as NB-IoT, is another option for 3GPP, but it does not work in the LTE architecture, but is based on DSSS (a highly anti-jamming, anti-eavesdropping scheme). Many communications giants, such as Huawei, Ericsson, Qualcomm and Vodafone, have started to push the standard together. NB-IoT can exist in the following three bands:1 Independent frequency bands;2 using the 200-khz band not used by GSM3 Allocating resources for NB-IoT operators on LTE base stations or LTE protection bands;These differences will determine the technical details of the difference, but also greatly affect the choice of mobile operators. Among us operators, Verizon and T will be more inclined to use LTE-M1, which has already invested a lot of money in the LTE network infrastructure;for regions that already have a large number of GSM network infrastructures and less LTE networks, they are more inclined to adopt NB-IoT, and T-mobile and sprint in the United States would prefer to deploy NB-IoT on existing GSM networks. AdvantagesAdvantages of Nbiot1 Low power consumption at runtimealmost all IoT technologies are extremely power-saving when they are not working;a small amount of power is required when the modem is started and requires signal processing. It is important to note that not all LTE-M1 chipsets have the same low power characteristics, such as the Sequans Monarch (a chip dedicated to LTE-M1). By comparison, Nbiot does not need to run on Linux or handle so many signal commands, which makes it more power-saving. 2 NB-IoT parts cost lessthe chips that support NB-IoT are cheaper because the manufacturing process is simpler. A 200kHz Nbiot front-end processor and a digital converter are much simpler than the 1.4MHz LTE resource module. At the same time LTE needs to deal with OFDM, which also requires more energy than the simple waveform processing of NB-IoT. As more chip makers tend to support both, a smooth transition should be possible in the future. 3 Nbiot enables more extensive deploymentbecause the lower the frequency, the better the connection quality. But there's been a lot of talk now that LTE-M1 has optimized the process through repetitive pages technology, which may also reduce the Nbiot advantage Advantages of LTE-M1having a higher data transfer rate will also determine that it can achieve more solutions;low power dissipation, LTE-M1 also supports LTE Edrx and PSM features;Lte-m1 is less of a barrier to deployment. Verizon has a separate LTE band across the US, which has removed many hurdles for the LTE-M1 solution, requiring simple antenna configuration and front-end module deployment. Comparative Analysis One, Nbiot deployment can become a bottleneck, because NB-IoT is not part of LTE, so it is necessary to use different software and make it run in the bypass band, which increases the operator's cost, and the other option is to deploy the GSM band that is about to be phased out. The majority of LTE-enabled operators are not planning to cut back on the resource modules allocated to LTE handsets for the simple reason that the outlook for the LTE handset market is broad. Therefore, the deployment of NB-IoT is still the biggest obstacle at this point. the complexity of the front-end module (analog signal-to-digital converter) may be higher than expected, Nbiot if the GSM 200KhZ band to deploy, because the frequency band is not widely used, which means that the modem front and the antenna will become more complex than imagined, there is a certain risk. There are license licensing issues with Nbiot applications, which are likely to be charged at present, such as Ericsson and Huawei. Second, the lte-m1 aspectLicense License cost from Interdigitals, Qualcomm, purchase IP license can;power issues remain unresolved, and EDRX/PSM are not actually deployed, and their effectiveness is only at the theoretical stage. in real-world scenarios, network conditions may not be perfectly adapted, including the performance requirements of operators, which can also lead to energy consumption issues. Deployment and application prospectslte-m1will be used in a number of new scenarios, from smart water meters to agricultural surveillance technology and so on. the uniqueness of LTE-M1 is that it can adapt to the very high demand for energy consumption scenarios, such as the transmission of only 10byte data a day, but also support high-speed data transmission, such as 1m/s, the application scenario is very broad. NB-IoTthe question for most people today is: Is there a scenario in which NB-IoT is necessary for LTE-M1 to be able to handle it? in fact, the two in the main market area should be similar, but do not rule out the existence of some scene differences, and these are likely to be SigFox not fully covered by the scene. Nbiot hit the banner of the use of the band, the remaining 200Khz GSM band is not used, supporters also want to nbiot use the band for deployment. In terms of market strategy, NB-IoT is a means of competition in the market of communications giants. Huawei and Ericsson have not taken the initiative in LTE IP patent development, so we must invest a lot of manpower and resources in order to win more words in Lpwan game. OpinionNbiot will always be the operators, communications industry giants of the plaything, for the vast number of developers and small and medium-sized enterprises, care for the following points:1 performance index;power consumption, transmission rate, quality and stability2 low cost;related to chip cost;3 uniform standards;easy to develop and upgradeWhile most chip development is still in the prototype stage, a large number of use will need to wait and see. from past experience, it is good to be divided into different technology camps, one is the competition will promote the technology upgrade, and the cost will be reduced. And the key point, as long as the flowers are not blooming good!
Some viewpoints on the nbiot of cellular IoT technology
