LWS: A LoRaWAN Wireless Underground Sensor Network Simulator for Agriculture Applications

Abstract

Wireless Underground Sensor Networks (WUSNs) is an emerging area of IoT applications. However, the current wireless sensor networks yield results that are not feasible nor scalable for a real-world application due to their short transmission range in an underground environment. The emerging technology of Low Power Wide Area Network (LPWAN) which promises large numbers of devices at long range and low energy consumption offers a potential solution for WUSN applications. Among the existing LPWAN technologies, LoRa/LoRaWAN is one of the most popular choice providing a reasonable data rate at long range and low power consumption. This paper focuses specifically on LoRa/LoRaWAN technology as a potential solution for WUSNs in agriculture applications. A novel discrete event LoRaWAN WUSN simulator, LWS, is designed to incorporate a soil path loss model, which enables more accurate modelling of WUSNs in a real deployment. The feasibility and scalability of LoRaWAN in WUSN applications are investigated and demonstrated through simulations.