A test methodology for evaluating architectural delays of LoRaWAN implementations

Abstract The Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWANs) have been proposed as viable wireless connection method for the implementation of the Internet of Things (IoT), thanks to their wide coverage, low complexity and low power consumption. In this scenario, LoRaWAN emerged as a de-facto leading technology, because of its openness and the current availability of many devices (like sensors and gateways). Several implementations of the LoRaWAN specifications have appeared in the market, each one showing support for different hardware, different software architectures, and different operating systems. Thus, the need of test procedures for comparing them is evident. In this paper, a test methodology for the experimental assessment of architectural delays of LoRaWAN implementations is presented. The new approach is composed of: a mapping phase, needed for highlighting the LoRaWAN blocks inside the implementation under test; followed by a measurement phase, in which the relevant timestamps are taken along the information path from LoRaWAN node to LoRaWAN customer application. The use and the effectiveness of the proposed methodology are shown by means of use cases that involve different LoRaWAN implementations and several hardware platforms. The experiments described in the paper are not intended to evaluate particular implementations but they are aimed to assess the suitability of the proposed methodology. The results demonstrate that the proposed approach can be used to compare the performance of entire LoRaWAN systems, helping the owner of the infrastructure and the user in making choices and optimizations.