MegaFon has tested NB-IoT for housing and communal services. Site-wide local area networks

PJSC MegaFon and Qualcomm Technologies Inc. successfully completed joint testing of Narrow technology capabilitiesBand IoT LTE (NB-IoT - narrowband Internet of things). The 900 MHz band was used for testing. MegaFon noted that the test made it possible to prepare formalized requirements for manufacturers of IoT modules, software developers, system integrators who plan to develop and implement their devices to operate on MegaFon's network in the NB-IoT standard. The introduction of NB-IoT technology is another step in preparing MegaFon's infrastructure for launching networks mobile communications fifth generation.

MegaFon and Qualcomm tested NB-IoT technology at the operator's Federal Research and Development Center in St. Petersburg. In testing NB-IoT, a test subscriber terminal based on a Qualcomm MDM9206 multi-mode modem was used as an end device, and Huawei equipment was used from the network side. Tested NB-IoT technology in the 900 MHz range.

"The test carried out makes it possible to prepare formalized requirements for a large number of IoT module manufacturers, software developers, system integrators who plan to develop and implement their devices to operate on the MegaFon network in the NB-IoT standard," MegaFon said.

MegaFon is actively preparing the infrastructure for mass connection of IoT devices. NB-IoT technology will provide massive network connectivity of various devices that are in hard-to-reach places and need to work for a long time without changing the battery. In addition, this technology assumes the use of a licensed frequency range, which guarantees reliability, security and continuity of data transmission. The introduction of NB-IoT technology is another step in preparing MegaFon's infrastructure for launching fifth-generation networks, which will increase not only data transfer rates, but also network capacity, effectively connecting devices different types"- said the head of the federal center for research and development" MegaFon "Nikolay Sidorov.

Vice President Business Development at Qualcomm Eastern Europe Yulia Klebanova said that NB-IoT and eMTC are the best technologies for efficiently connecting and connecting IoT devices, such as mobile payment devices (POS), pipelines, water, gas and electricity meters, as well as for creating asset management systems and smart "cities. "We are pleased with the results of joint testing of NB-IoT technology and various user scenarios with MegaFon. Our commercially available Qualcomm MDM9206 chipset makes it possible to solve all these problems now. This is another important step towards the emergence of new services and services for private and corporate subscribers in Russia ", - said Yulia Klebanova.

"Tele2 has not yet tested NB-IoT technology. We see great prospects for business development in the IoT field and will investigate it," Tele2 press secretary Olga Galushina told ComNews. The press services of Mobile TeleSystems PJSC and VimpelCom PJSC (Beeline brand) refrained from commenting yesterday.

As ComNews reported earlier, MTS and Nokia have already tested a comprehensive IoT solution. On the LTE network of MTS in the 1800 MHz range in Moscow, companies tested the NB-IoT radio interface with the ability to connect broadband and narrowband devices using a new radio chip (see ComNews dated November 3, 2016).

"Unfortunately, Russia was not included in the list of those countries where commercial NB-IoT networks have already been deployed or are being deployed - several European countries, South Korea and China," Vitaly, head of the wireless technology department at J`son & Partners Consulting, told ComNews Solonin.

According to him, in the optimistic scenario, the first fragments of NB-IoT networks in large cities of the Russian Federation may appear before the end of 2017 - in the first half of 2018.However, Vitaly Solonin added, national launches should be expected no earlier than in a year or two ...

Andrei Kolesnikov, President of the Association of the Internet of Things (AIV), thinks that Russian telecom operators will launch NB-IoT networks into commercial operation no earlier than autumn 2018. "And it will be fragmentary for a start, following the first massive IoT projects," he said.

According to forecasts of the GSMA, by 2020 the number of IoT connections over mobile networks and LPWA will exceed 3 billion. Resource counters, wrist Watch and bracelets, collars for pets, sensors in parking lots - each of the devices will need access to the network. To make this possible, MegaFon and Huawei are actively cooperating in promoting a new communication standard in the Russian market - NB-IoT (Narrow Band IoT). This communication technology for the Internet of Things significantly reduces the energy consumption of end devices, provides significantly better coverage and communication penetration, and increases the maximum number of devices connected to the network.

Also, MegaFon became a member of the GSMA NB-IoT Forum, which aims to cooperate in the development of NB-IoT technology around the world. The organization includes the largest operators (China Mobile, Deutsche Telekom, Vodafone, etc.), as well as leading manufacturers of technological solutions (Huawei, Intel, Qualcomm).

The new standard NB-IoT was developed by the 3GPP consortium with the operator's requirements in mind: IoT services must be carried over a transmission technology known as Low-Power and Wide-Area (LPWA) and leverage the operator's existing infrastructure. In terms of versatility, NB-IoT is the most suitable LPWA solution for enterprises of various industries, with which you can connect utility meters, monitoring sensors, object tracking systems and a lot of other devices to the operator's network. One of the features of the technology is the ability to connect up to 100 thousand devices to one cell of a base station, which is tens of times higher than the capabilities of existing mobile communication standards. The use of the low-frequency range will provide coverage for such hard-to-reach places as basements, basements, etc. In addition, when working in the new standard, the devices consume the battery more economically, which allows them to work without recharging for much longer. For example, a water meter with a self-contained battery, when operating in the NB-IoT standard, can serve up to 10 years without recharging and receive a signal when installed in a basement.

The first devices supporting NB-IoT technologies are expected to enter the market in late 2016 - early 2017. NB-IoT technology works in LTE networks and will be relevant in the future transition to the fifth generation 5G standards.

“MegaFon is one of the key players russian market The Internet of Things, using current technologies, our company has implemented many successful projects in the M2M / IoT field. And today, in partnership with Huawei, we are pleased to announce the transition to a qualitatively new level, the open NB-IoT standard, which allows a huge number of devices from various manufacturers to be connected to the MegaFon network with high energy efficiency. We are confident that the new technology will make the life of both our corporate customers and ordinary MegaFon subscribers more mobile, simpler and brighter ", - noted Alexander Bashmakov, Director for Infrastructure, MegaFon.

“Huawei, in cooperation with the world's largest operators, has already made a great contribution to the creation of NB-IoT technology around the world. We are glad that MegaFon is betting on the most advanced technologies, such as NB-IoT, bringing the Russian ICT market to the global level. This will allow MegaFon to offer its B2B clients efficient services, which will also benefit end consumers", - added Dmitry Alferov, VP of Service and maintenance of Huawei in Russia.

Prior to the final adoption of NB-IoT standards, Huawei worked with partners to prepare for application standardization and testing to better understand customer needs, accelerate upgrades and optimize technical solutions... In the first half of 2016 alone, Huawei completed many joint projects. For example, Huawei has tested smart parking services and applications with Etisalat; Together with Australian operators (VHA and Optus) and South East Water, it launched an intelligent water management system in testing, and entered into a strategic partnership with China Telecom and the Shenzhen Water Group to implement a similar system.

At the Innoprom exhibition, MegaFon and Huawei demonstrated one of the examples of the application of the new NB IoT standard - “smart parking”. The use of the smart parking solution will enable companies - owners of commercial parking lots - to more effectively control the parking space, optimize the cost of monitoring the occupancy of parking spaces, and will also provide end users with a convenient interface through a mobile application for booking, paying and navigating to a parking space.]]\u003e

MegaFon, Huawei and Big Three presented for the Russian market a comprehensive solution in the Internet of Things segment, which allows housing and communal services enterprises and management companies to quickly receive information on resource consumption, automatically control costs, instantly determine the balance and get rid of payment gaps. Residents who will start using the new technology in their apartments will no longer have to take readings manually, in addition, it will be possible to monitor the consumption of electricity, water and gas, as well as compare statistics of different months through a convenient mobile application.

What do company representatives say?

The product has significant advantages over alternatives existing on the market thanks to the use of the NB-IoT standard, which MegaFon is developing in Russia together with Huawei and plans to put it into commercial operation in 2017. Its energy efficiency allows connected devices to work for up to 10 years without replacing the battery, the range of the network ensures uninterrupted data transmission even in rooms with difficult reception of a mobile signal, and the low cost of the radio module ensures the availability of implementation.

The convenience of the solution also lies in its complexity: created jointly with a Russian developer information systems in the field of housing and communal services, by the Big Three Company, it solves all issues related to the transition to an intelligent measurement system - from the production of meters to the installation of a platform for collecting and analyzing readings through one window. The solution from MegaFon, Huawei and the Big Three will appear on the market immediately after the launch of the NB-IoT standard and will allow to comprehensively solve the problem of connecting metering devices to the network for management companies and housing and communal services enterprises.

What is NB-IoT?

NB-IoT, aka Narrowband IoT, is a special case of Low-Power Wide-area Network or energy efficient long-range network. This is a wireless technology for transmitting small data over long distances, focused on collecting data from various sensors, counters and sensors. The key disadvantage of the Low-Power Wide-area Network over the ten years of this technology has been the significant fragmentation of existing equipment and the lack of standardization.

The new NB-IoT technology, which is used by MegaFon, Huawei and the Big Three, solves the problems of all previous products in the long-range energy efficient network segment and retains its advantages. Firstly, NB-IoT has been successfully tested in devices, applications and services of the Internet of Things, and secondly, it has received the approval of the 3rd Generation Partnership Project and will be used in the licensed frequency range, and most importantly, it will be supported by major mobile operators. In addition, sensors using NB-IoT technology are very compact and reliable, and most importantly, they are of low interest to vandals and robbers.

As we said, NB-IoT provides a wide coverage area, low power consumption and long lifespan, the ability to quickly upgrade the existing network, low cost terminal, high reliability and safety. The cost of an NB-IoT sensor for metering the flow of water, gas, electricity and tracking objects is about $ 5, and due to the small amount of transmitted data, up to 50,000 such sensors can be connected per cell.

Is using NB-IoT in apartments expensive?

Even if we imagine that the cost of installing the sensors will be fully borne by the owner of the apartment, the cost of the apartment equipment itself, according to our estimate, may be about 1,500-3,000 rubles, depending on the layout of communications. According to experts, the price of one NB-IoT is about five dollars. Taking into account the connection, the transition to a new technology of the Internet of Things can cost residents up to 5000 thousand rubles. It is possible that in fact the cost of installing sensors and the equipment itself may be subsidized by the municipality, as well as third parties interested in obtaining big data on the use of resources.

NB-IoT is only data collection?

First of all, the project of MegaFon, Huawei and the Big Three will improve the accuracy of data collection for companies in the housing sector and increase their efficiency through automation and standardization of data, as well as the ability to control in real time. In the second, it will provide the convenience of residents who will be able to track the consumption of water, heat, gas and electricity at any time, and also to refuse the monthly need to write off and transfer data from metering devices.

And if you dream up?

Going further, you can easily imagine the possibility not only to receive information about the expense, but also to increase the safety of the apartment in case of force majeure and significantly reduce costs by monitoring the services provided. For example, users can receive information about a sudden spike in water flow while no one is in the apartment. This can signal a leak in the pipes, but with the help of the application, the user could shut off the water supply to the apartment. An atypical power consumption would become an indicator of an unplugged electrical appliance, which could lead to a fire. In addition, connecting metering devices to the Internet and the further addition of sensors from the Internet of Things segment to communication systems could allow remote control of water supply, electricity and heat in an apartment. Namely, to start using smart thermostats of the Nest type, which are not common in Russia, to control the climate in homes and remotely change the temperature regimes of radiators, underfloor heating and air conditioning systems in different rooms.

Let's get back to reality.

The centralized installation of sensors to control appliances in apartments is a story from a more distant future. At the moment, we are talking only about equipping with sensors for electricity, water and gas meters. However, the very fact of the implementation of the Internet of Things in apartments at the level of housing and communal services enterprises and management companies indicates the approach of significant progress and the availability of more and more new technologies of the IoT segment in houses and apartments. In addition, this once again demonstrates how quickly massive newest technologies: development of mobile communications and quality mobile internet, Availability Wi-Fi networks in the Moscow metro and public transport, the prevalence of contactless payments in retail outlets and the development of mobile payment systems such as Apple Pay and Samsung Pay.

A presentation of the first comprehensive IoT solution for housing and communal services took place in the office of the MegaFon branch in the capital. This is the product of joint efforts of MegaFon operator, Huawei equipment supplier and the developer of the Big Three telemetry data collection and analysis platform. The roles in the project were distributed as follows. MegaFon deployed an NB-IoT network based on Huawei equipment, and the Big Three developed a device that collects data from water and electricity meters and transmits it to the server via the NB-IoT network. The customer of such a solution has access to an Internet interface through which all data from the meters can be obtained. The solution is intended for service, resource and management companies. At the moment there are no clients, but according to representatives of MegaFon, this year in one of the regions, in which it is not disclosed, a pilot zone will be deployed.

Today there is no single standard for the Internet of Things ecosystem, while IoT solutions themselves are widely used both in housing and communal services and in other industries. By and large, IoT is an organic evolution of m2m solutions, the only difference is in the cost and data transfer technology. Traditional m2m services use the existing mobile network to aggregate telemetry data. This is beneficial for launching such solutions, since the investment in the start is minimal. But in the long term, the IoT will need its own data network. There are several standards evolving in parallel. The most notable and supported are NB-IoT and LoRa. It is noteworthy that these standards are mostly supported by the same companies. MegaFon chose NB-IoT technology, but it is unlikely that this happened for any other reason than the support of this particular standard by the operator's main partner in construction and infrastructure development, Huawei.

NB-IoT really has every chance of becoming the real and only networking standard for the Internet of Things. But even now, when NB-IoT is being launched in many countries, there are many questions about how quickly vendors are trying to impose equipment purchase on operators. For example, one of the benefits of NB-IoT is the low power consumption required to transmit telemetry data. Allegedly, one battery is enough for uninterrupted operation of the device for ten years. Only now AAA batteries are used in such devices, not from a good life, of course, they are simply cheaper. But the physical life of an alkaline AAA battery is limited to three, maximum five years. And why then "10 years from one battery"?

Another problem is the telemetry data collection device itself. MegaFon's decision assumes that such a center will be installed in each apartment, it will collect data from electricity and water supply meters. But in the demo solution, all meters were connected to the central metering device with wires. It is interesting to see how many residents of city apartments will agree to run wires over the renovation done. If the meters are equipped with a wireless data transmission module, then, firstly, they will become much more expensive and the battery in them will have to be changed much more often, and, secondly, the problem of signal shielding by the walls of the bathrooms and pipes will have to be solved. Whatever one may say, but the solution in the current version can be installed in apartment buildings before moving in. This is money that management companies are unlikely to be eager to spend.

Surprisingly, Moscow already has a lot of launched projects to automate the collection of data on electricity and water consumption by residents. Some of them use electricity meters with SIM cards, while others use more complex solutions. Basically, we are talking about elite development blocks, where such "smart housing and communal services" is part of a large package of additional services available to residents. Representatives of the Big Three, developers of the platform and devices for the MegaFon project, indicate that the owner of the apartment will pay for all the pleasure as a result. In their opinion, tenants will only be happy that they will be forced to spend money on installing new meters, because then they will stop overpaying for utilities... Why on earth they are overpaying now is not specified. All the difference from the current situation lies in the fact that today the residents themselves hand over the meter readings, which are used to calculate their utility bills. And so that the tenants do not cheat, the workers management company check the readings at regular intervals. It is almost impossible for a resident of a new apartment to cheat public utilities, and those who are used to placing bugs and clinging magnets are unlikely to agree to change their "correct" meters for advanced ones. And even more so - for your own money.

The launch of NB-IoT is a big step towards the development of the Internet of Things. It remains to launch projects that are really in demand here and now, and not in the distant and naive future. To do this, MegaFon should find more mature partners, not startups with glowing eyes. Otherwise, the impression can be made only on those who first heard about the Internet of Things and its penetration into housing and communal services. You will not have to pull out the mayor of Innopolis, a certain representative of the management company and other sent Cossacks who ask the correct questions from the point of view of the company at a press conference. Moreover, in Moscow there are already real companies interested in such solutions. These are developers who monthly rent tens of thousands of meters of new housing and already know the price of "smart housing and communal services". If the vector of the project's development is aimed at the populist "modernizing housing and communal services throughout the country", then everything will end in about the same way as almost all of MegaFon's latest projects end.

NarrowBand Internet of Things, NB-IoT is a wireless technology of the LPWAN family for the Internet of Things, implemented on the basis of cellular network infrastructure and standardized by the 3GPP consortium with release 13: LTE-Advanced Pro.

Manufacturers of equipment for cellular operators participated in the creation of the release: Huawei, Ericsson, Qualcomm and Vodafone. Each of them pursued their own interests and offered beneficial technical solutions.

Due to its widespread use and apt name, NB-IoT often refers to three different technologies adopted by 3GPP Release 13:

EC-GSM (EC-GSM-IoT)

Extended Coverage - GSM - Internet of Things (EC-GSM-IoT) technology is based on the eGPRS standard. The changes made to eGPRS allow most of the installed base stations to be used to communicate with EC-GSM-IoT devices without replacing or upgrading hardware. At the same time, it is stated that for the operation of EC-GSM-IoT, a software update of existing equipment is required.

LTE Cat-M1

LTE Cat-M1 is an addition to the LTE standard with higher energy efficiency parameters. It is stated that LTE Cat-M1 end devices will be able to work in the LTE network without upgrading base stations.

NB-IoT

The essence of NarrowBand Internet of Things (NB-IoT) is the use of chips that can work in cellular networks, but have a relatively simple logic.

Instead of working out a compromise solution, 3GPP included three competing technologies in the release, the choice of which is left to the mercy of chip manufacturers or cellular operators.

Russian operators use equipment that supports three technologies of release 13 3GPP, but equipment from Qualcomm prevails - cellular operators Megafon and VimpelCom work with it.

In 2016, Megafon announced its strategy for the development of NB-IoT solutions on its equipment.

NB-IoT technology

The business model of cellular operators operating on NB-IoT technology is to develop the market for end-to-end IoT devices and provide commercial data transfer services for Internet of Things solutions.

Thus, Megafon offers 3 models of partnership between operators and suppliers of IoT devices:

Selling a vertical solution directly to a customer.
Selling IoT services to customers jointly with or through a partner.
Sale of communication services to a partner without interaction with the client.

NB-IoT acts as a "transport" - delivering data from the device to the BS. The technology was created as an add-on to work on the existing infrastructure.

In Russia, only licensed frequencies in the range: 890-915 MHz and 935-960 MHz can be used for NB-IoT broadcasting with a transmitter power of up to 200 mW.

The use of the allocated spectrum ensures the stability of communication and protects the network from interference from "foreign" networks. Billions of costs for the purchase of licensed frequencies are covered by revenues from the business of mobile operators.

In December 2018, the SCRF plans to allow the "big four" cellular operators to use frequencies in the NB-IoT mode.

In case of a positive decision of the SCRF, operators will be able to use old GSM networks for NB-IoT and save on the purchase of new frequencies. For broadcasting in GSM networks, it is likely that the modernization of GSM base stations (BS) will be required, which will result in the need for additional investments.

The width of the NB-IoT radio channel is equal to the width of the LTE resource block - 180 kHz. This is a relatively high value compared to narrowband LPWAN technologies.

Such a channel allows NB-IoT to be used for applications with speeds ranging from 20,000 to 250,000 bps.
Relatively high speeds in practice, they look redundant for many IoT applications, in particular, for one of the most massive markets - dispatching metering devices in housing and communal services.

High, relatively narrow-band LPWAN-protocols, speed negatively affects other characteristics: communication range, scalability of solutions, penetration capacity.

XNB technology from "STRIZH"

The commercial activity of "STRIZH" today is based on:

selling ready-made IoT solutions to both small and medium-sized and large industrial clients directly;
selling ready-made IoT solutions through regional dealers and partners;
complex sale of devices and LPWAN communication services for an integrator implementing his own IoT solutions.

XNB protocol logo

STRIZH has developed a full stack of technologies for the Internet of Things: radio protocol, end devices, base stations and server software.

The STRIZH technology stack is based on the XNB (Extended Narrow Band) protocol, which is narrow-band, energy-efficient and optimized for machine-to-machine (M2M) data exchange over long distances. The XNB was originally designed to transmit radio signals in the 868.8 MHz spectrum (no licensing required) at transmit power up to 25 mW. At the same time, the XNB can operate at licensed sub-GHz frequencies, if available.

Due to the fact that base stations and STRIZH end devices "communicate" in an unlicensed range, where hundreds of devices from other networks go on the air, it is necessary to protect against interference and collisions - signal overlaps.

To eliminate them, "STRIZH" uses an ultra-narrowband signal and special reception-transmission algorithms:

scheduling of communication sessions: the transmission-reception algorithm, hardwired into the device itself and the base station;
use of anti-jamming coding of the radio signal;
mathematical methods and CRC checks, which significantly increase the likelihood of correct delivery.

The signal transmitted by the device in a 100 Hz band and high energy per bit of transmitted information, coupled with high receiver sensitivity, provide an excellent communication channel budget of 174 dBm and high noise immunity.

The speed of data exchange in the STRIZH network is from 100 to 9600 bit / sec. Since the XNB protocol was originally developed for the removal and transmission of a small amount of data from metering devices and sensors, the specified speed is more than enough to accomplish the target tasks. Large-scale projects implemented by "STRIZH" require high autonomy of end devices, long range of reception and transmission, scalability and relatively low cost of implementation.

Base stations

NB-IoT

The key characteristics of base stations are sensitivity, communication range and capacity.

The estimated communication range of the NB-IoT station is up to 15 kilometers per countryside... However, judging by the communication budget indicator - 164 dB and low receiver sensitivity: -127 dBm, the base station is unlikely to be able to “hear” “smart” devices at a distance of more than 2-3 kilometers in urban conditions.

In cities, according to operators, the limiting factor will be not the distance, but the capacity of the network (the ability to receive and process signals from subscriber devices). To level it, it is planned to bring the network density in the city to 1 base station per square kilometer, which have only a few thousand sensors (up to 4000 according to the calculations of specialists).

This task will be solved either through the use of a GSM network (in the case of a positive decision by the SCRF), or by spending on new BSs with NB-IoT support.

Probably, the operators will face the task of modernizing some of the equipment: GSM base stations released earlier than 2015 do not support the NB-IoT standard and need a hardware "upgrade". GSM equipment released after 2015 is updated by software.

Infrastructure modernization for NB-IoT networks will be highly dependent on the commercial prospects of specific territories.

The short communication range will be a limiting factor for the penetration of traditional cellular networks in sparsely populated areas: villages, highways, fields.

Given the factors described above, the prospects for NB-IoT expansion outside of large cities appear to be limited.

XNB from "STRIZH"

Due to the fact that the base station "STRIZH" is capable of simultaneously processing up to 5,000 channels in the unlicensed 500 kHz range, its capacity is up to 1,000,000 devices per day. The confirmed range of the BS is up to 10 kilometers in urban areas and up to 50 kilometers in open areas.

The base station "STRIZH" is distinguished by a high budget of the communication channel of 174 dBm. A 10dB advantage over NB-IoT budget gives 3x the communication distance or 2 additional concrete walls in the house.

The improvements made to the XNB protocol do not affect the hardware of the stations and are made at the software level. The software update takes place centrally from the server and takes no more than a minute.

Output

Due to the lower sensitivity, as well as the "fixed", stationary location of cell towers, the NB-IoT station may not "hear" all signals, which leads to "blind spots" of coverage, especially in hard-to-reach places. "Smart" meters cannot be placed in a basement or an iron cabinet, which is critical for organizing large-scale resource accounting solutions in housing and communal services.

In practice, this means that the cellular operator's BS will not accept readings from 20 out of 100 meters installed on the first floors of the house. The effectiveness and feasibility of such a solution from the point of view of the user is reduced to zero. At the same time, the telecom operator will not install an additional expensive NB-IoT station to eliminate a relatively small "blank spot" on the coverage map.

This approach will not recoup the cost of purchasing a new BS, the procedure for equipment approval and installation.

IoT Network Deployment Cost

In Russia, since 2014, frequencies for the provision of mobile services have been allocated at auctions.

Base stations "STRIZH" do not require licensing and installation approvals. Whether a business with 120 temperature sensors in a remote area or a developer with 5,000 smart meters

The project of federal coverage with the STRIZH telematics network for the Internet of Things in transport can be implemented using mobile BSs embedded in vehicles, and deployment of a network of stationary base stations - their low cost allows you to do this.

The project of federal coverage with the STRIZH telematic network for the Internet of Things in transport can be implemented using mobile BSs built into vehicles and deploying a network of stationary base stations - their low cost allows this.

The costs of maintaining the "STRIZH" base station are about 400 rubles a month: payment for Internet traffic and 11 kilowatt-hours of electricity - this is how much one fluorescent lamp consumes.

Output

The high cost of equipment, its maintenance and the unaffordable price for licensing radio frequencies for small and medium-sized businesses will further hinder the development of NB-IoT technology.

Deployment of the network in the territory undeveloped by operators: in rural areas, roads will entail costs for infrastructure, communication and various approvals (capital construction of cell towers). Remote areas, obviously, cannot be covered by NB-IoT network operators for at least the next 7 years. Only large cellular operators will be able to deploy cellular networks supporting NB-IoT technologies, and where it can be economically justified: in large cities with reliable coverage and a developed new infrastructure of cellular networks.

An IoT network based on STRIZH technology can be deployed by a profile entrepreneur or organization: a company that manages a residential area, a farm, or a resource supplying organization.

Low cost, small dimensions and low requirements for maintenance of base stations "STRIZH" allow large-scale deployment of IoT networks in large areas, including along automobile and railways for transport applications... This scenario is envisaged by the Roadmap of the Digital Economy of Russia program, as well as a number of industrial programs related to improving the efficiency of infrastructure management and transport safety.

End devices

Today in Russia solutions based on NB-IoT technology are being offered by Megafon and Teleofis.

As of December 1, 2017, there are no NB-IoT devices from Megafon in the public sale. The Teleofis website presents not ready-made "smart" devices, but data collection and transmission devices (DRC) with NB-IoT support. The sensor or meter must be connected to the USPD by wires through external interfaces.

Water meters SVK 15-3-2 with "STRIZH" radio modem

Operating experience proves that wired connections complicate the installation process and reduce the reliability of the solution: the reed switch of a cheap meter will fail, the contact will go away, the electrician will confuse it, or the residents will intentionally cut it off.

Teleofis plans to sell USPD in 2018. Before implementation, it is necessary to check: whether the cellular operator at the client's site supports NB-IoT technology.

"STRIZH" sells ready-to-use devices out of the box. Meters and sensors with built-in XNB radio modules do not differ in installation and commissioning from standard traditional devices without communication.

It is not required to connect the USPD and call the service technicians - the installation of a “smart” meter or “STRIZH” sensor takes 3-5 minutes.

Output

In order to become really mainstream, the solution must be as simple, ready-made and wireless as possible.
So far, the NB-IoT devices available on the market are made in the form of “semi-finished” modems and do not seem to be reliable solutions.
STRIZH supplies ready-made wireless devices that work in any XNB network right out of the box.
To install the "STRIZH" metering devices, a regular plumber or electrician of the management organization is enough.

End device cost

DRC RTU102m-NB1 from Teleofis

The price of the NB-IoT radio module (directly the chip plus the strapping) starts at 900 rubles, in large-scale quantities, the price can probably be reduced.

The price of RTU102m-NB1 DRC with NB-IoT support is 4,900 rubles. To this figure it is necessary to add the costs of integration with the meter and the cost of the actual water meter with a pulse output. The total cost of the solution is about 6,000 rubles for 1 water metering unit.

Retail price of the water meter with XNB-radio modem "STRIZH" - 2 030 rubles. The sale of the first STRIZH solutions for remote metering of utility resources began in 2014. After 3 years, almost 200,000 devices were sold and installed.

Output

The market for "smart" automation is sensitive to the cost and rise in the cost of end devices: an increase in the cost of a sensor even by 50 rubles, produced in a million series, will entail corresponding expenses. This is especially critical for decisions related to housing and communal services.

By the end of 2017, there are no ready-made devices with NB-IoT support on sale. USPD is expensive due to the high cost of "hardware" and the lack of well-established large-scale production.
The appearance of NB-IoT devices, comparable in price with devices from other manufacturers, is expected not earlier than 2019-2020.

Mass production of the chips, on the basis of which the STRIZH radio module was created, had a positive effect on the cost: they are 3-4 times cheaper than chips for NB-IoT.

The difference in the cost of components is reflected in the cost of finished devices. The low price of the STRIZH radio module ensures the low cost of IoT solutions, including tens of thousands of autonomous devices.

The ideal scenario for using "STRIZH" is stationary and mobile applications on territories or facilities where deployment of low-speed telematic networks is required with high requirements for signal penetration and end device autonomy.

The development of our own LPWAN-chip "STRIZH", which combines a transceiver and a microcontroller. Creation of your own chip will simplify and make the production of STRIZH devices as cheap as possible.

Autonomy

The range of signal transmission rates in NB-IoT networks varies from 20,000 to 250,000 bit / s. The radio signal power of NB-IoT devices is 23 dBm or 200 mW. At the same time, manufacturers declare a 10-year autonomy of devices. Experts estimate that a battery with a capacity of 7 to 15 Wh will be required to ensure a 10-year device life, taking into account temperature fluctuations.

The energy-efficient XNB protocol from STRIJ sends messages at a rate of 100 bits per second in a 100 Hz bandwidth. Low speed and narrowband signal provide a good communication budget.

The STRIZH devices transmit radio signals with a power of up to 25 mW. This is 8 times less than the power emitted by the NB-IoT radio modem.

Average indicators of power consumption at the same time: up to 10 μA - in the "sleep" mode and up to 50 mA - in the transmission mode (estimate according to the upper bar).

Output

When comparing NB-IoT and XNB technologies from the point of view of end device autonomy, the latter looks much more preferable.

High transmission speeds reduce the battery life of the end devices - the higher the speed, the more power the NB-IoT radio consumes.

As of December 1, 2017, less than 11 months have passed since the start of testing NB-IoT solutions, and it's too early to talk about the real battery life in NB-IoT devices.

The confirmed autonomous operating life of XNB-counters "STRIZH" as of December 1, 2017 is 4 years. The first “smart” devices have already been in operation in residential areas of Moscow and Perm for so long.

The XNB protocol is optimal for telemetry pickup applications requiring long-term autonomous operation. For example, resource meters or other sensors installed in hard-to-reach places: basements, risers of apartment buildings and underground parking lots.

Technology development in Russia

Prototypes of NB-IoT devices from Megafon

Network equipment supporting NB-IoT is manufactured outside of Russia by Qualcomm and a number of other large foreign vendors.

Thus, Megafon's cellular networks: base stations, software and BS control system are at least half built on the equipment of a Chinese vendor.

The STRIZH technology, including hardware and software, is entirely domestic: base stations are assembled in Moscow, end devices are manufactured at our own facilities, as well as at factories of Russian partners.

The company's servers are located in Russia. Work is underway to introduce encryption into the system in accordance with GOST.

Since 2014, "STRIZH" has been creating and applying Russian information Technology and ensures their competitiveness at the international level.

Developed and implemented by "STRIZH" solutions for the Internet of Things fully comply with the main provisions of the "Strategy for the Development of the Information Society in the Russian Federation for 2017-2030", approved by the President.

Output

Building a network infrastructure on foreign hardware and software is unsafe for both technical and political reasons. And since operators tend to put part of the cost of equipment into its subsequent maintenance, cellular IoT networks can significantly rise in price in the next 3 years.

"STRIZH" consistently implements the Strategy program, replacing imported equipment, software and electronic component base with Russian counterparts, which are not inferior, and in many respects superior to foreign developments.

Network subscription fee

In cellular networks, the subscription fee is regulated by the operator. There are already precedents in Russia when tariffs increased with the growth of traffic. For housing and communal services, a subscription fee of 50 rubles from 1 device is a significant item of additional costs that affects the payback.

The STRIZH network is deployed on inexpensive base stations. The client becomes the "master" of its own network. The cost of the "STRIZH" solution is optimized due to the unlicensed broadcasting range and inexpensive equipment.

As part of the current commercial policy focused on the housing and utilities sector, no subscription fees are charged to small and medium-sized customers.

When building a network federal level, the business model is likely to involve a subscription or equivalent.

Output

The subscription fee for M2M traffic and the likelihood of its increase restrain large businesses and organizations that cannot depend on mobile operators: state companies, the defense sector, developers with thousands of utility metering devices.

The ability to deploy your own networks without a monthly fee will allow large companies, and small organizations implement projects on the STRIZH. In case of introduction of a monthly fee during the deployment of the federal network "STRIZH", its size will be an order of magnitude lower in comparison with the tariffs of cellular operators.

Summary

As of December 1, 2017, Russia knows about 4 pilot NB-IoT networks. All of them are deployed by the second largest Russian cellular operator Megafon, and all are in test mode.

The first commercial implementations should be expected only by the second half of 2018. And preparation for production and certification of ready-made "smart" devices will most likely shift the implementation timeline to 2019-2020.

It will take another 2-3 years to fully launch NB-IoT in certain regions. Network deployment will begin with the most cost-effective solutions with the highest subscriber density - in large cities.

Benefits and Features of NB-IoT

Benefits

Availability of infrastructure in large cities: the user does not "bother" with the deployment of stations.
High data transfer rates: can be used for applications with traffic levels from 20,000 to 250,000 bps.
Low latency of signal transmission (latency) up to 1 second from the moment of triggering to notification in the personal account. On busy networks, delays can be up to 3 seconds.

The ideal use case for NB-IoT is stationary and mobile applications in urban areas with high bandwidth requirements and relatively tolerant of penetration and autonomy.

Features:

subscription fee for traffic;
the risk of unilateral changes in the terms of cooperation: an increase in the monthly fee;
complete dependence on the operator and its infrastructure;
lack of ready-made end devices: the modem-counter link is unreliable;
inability to deploy a private network;
the presence of SIM-cards in volumes from 100 devices causes confusion on the client's side;
relatively low autonomy: you will have to change the battery or provide constant power;
expensive infrastructure and licenses for frequencies when deploying a new network in a sparsely populated area, for which the user pays in the form of a monthly fee;
the cost of modems and metering points is above the industry average;
lower sensitivity index and, as a consequence, worse signal penetration;
the presence of shadow spots in the coating;
long TTM (time to market) solutions: the announced solutions will have to wait for 1 year or more;
foreign technology from foreign vendors (information security).

These features lead to the fact that NB-IoT will certainly receive some application in cities with a population of more than 100-300,000 people. In cities with a smaller population, at the request of large customers, it is possible to build an NB-IoT network in 6-9 months. Road and rail coverage probably won't be a priority.

Most Attractive NB-IoT Applications:

retail and banks: vending machines, cash registers, ATMs;
medicine: wearable devices, remote monitoring;
security systems: alarm, equipment control;
consumer electronics.

Advantages and features of the "STRIZH" technology

Benefits

Cheap base stations: from 86 650 rubles, which are deployed anywhere in 2 hours.
Low cost of network ownership (power supply, transit channel) - from 400 rubles. per station per month
Wide territorial coverage: up to 10 km in the city, 40 km. in an open area.
White spots are easily "covered" by inexpensive mini base stations.
High density of devices: up to 1,000,000 devices per station per day.
Effective coverage of sparsely populated areas, roads and railways with mobile or stationary BS.
High penetrating power makes it possible to interrogate devices from basements, risers, cabinets, which is critical for accounting resources in housing and communal services.
High autonomy of devices: up to 10 years from the built-in battery.
The ability to deploy private and closed networks without a monthly fee.
Does not require licensing, is freely used anywhere in the Russian Federation.
No license costs are passed on to the subscriber
Ready-to-use, integrated plug-and-play devices and complete solutions.
The cost of chips is lower - the cost of devices is lower.
Vertical LPWAN communication platform: from protocol to custom application.
Fast time to market solutions: 3 weeks for a prototype, 2 months for a finished product.
100% domestic technology: import prediction, safety, export potential.

The ideal scenario for using "STRIZH" is a quick and inexpensive deployment of private or public networks with a high density of stationary or mobile devices in any territory, regardless of the commercial interests of traditional cellular operators.

Features:

Baud rate: 100/1000/9600 bps, suitable for applications with low bandwidth requirements: meter and sensor telemetry.
Higher latency: up to 3-5 seconds from the moment of triggering to the display of data in your personal account.
The unlicensed range - higher probability of interference - is effectively leveled out due to the narrow-band approach and high link budget (174 dBm).

"STRIZH" is ideal for use in the following industries:

Housing and utilities and power engineering: dispatching and resource accounting.
Transport telematics: cargo monitoring, waste disposal, "digital railroad".
Control of buildings and objects: smoke detectors, access, temperature, leaks.
Agrarian sector: monitoring in vast areas of agricultural fields, warehouses, greenhouses.
The need to deploy a network where there is no coverage is not a barrier for STRIZH, since the infrastructure is available even for a small customer.

In this brochure you will learn:

what is NB-IoT;
detailed comparison of XNB and NB-IoT;
differences in equipment levels: base stations, end devices;
how much does it cost to deploy a network on XNB and NB-IoT;
prospects for the development of technologies in Russia.

Download material

Fill out the form below and we will send you the material by mail.

Specifications	XNB from "STRIZH"	NB-IoT by 3GPP
Origin of technology	Russian	Foreign
Functionality	It is possible to build private / local and public networks	Cellular operator networks only
frequency range	868.8 MHz (no licensing required) 500 kHz bandwidth. (Implementation at other sub-GHz frequencies is possible)	Licensed: uplink 890-915 MHz, downlink 935-960 MHz
Channel bandwidth	100 Hz	180 kHz
Communication channel budget	174 dBm	164 dBA
Speed \u200b\u200brange	100/1000/9600 bps	20,000 bps - 250,000 bps (channel rate, information can be found below)
BS receiver sensitivity	High, -150 dBm (for 100 bps)	Low, -127 dBm (for 20,000 bps)
Communication range in the city	Up to 10 km or more

It might be helpful to read: