A Review of Energy Harvesting Techniques for Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWANs)

Peruzzi, Giacomo; Pozzebon, Alessandro

doi:10.3390/en13133433

Cited by 40 publications

(27 citation statements)

References 91 publications

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“…IoT nodes (in particular low-power ones) can be powered by a wide number of clean sources [8], which can ensure a durable lifecycle for any energy storage element and reduce maintenance interventions. One of the most exploited is obviously the solar one.…”

Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Providing Energy Self-Sufficiency to LoRaWAN Nodes by Means of Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs)-Based Energy Harvesting

et al. 2021

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The aim of this paper is to present the viability of an energy-harvesting system prototype, based on thermoelectric generators (TEGs), to be embedded in a Long-Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN)-based wireless sensor node, allowing continuous quasi-real-time data transmission even for low temperature gradients and for frequent transmissions. To this end, an RFM95x LoRa module is used in the system. The energy management of the entire node is achieved by exploiting a nano power boost charger buck converter integrated circuit, which allows power extraction from the energy-harvesting source and, at the same time, regulates the charging/discharging process of a Li-Po battery that supplies the wireless node. The first phase of the project was dedicated to understanding the electrical characteristics of the TEG. A series of tests were performed to study the open circuit voltage, the current and the power generated by the TEG at different temperature gradients. Following this first phase, tests were then set up to study the charging/discharging process of the battery by changing two crucial parameters: the temperature between the faces of the TEG and the frequency of the transmissions performed by the transceiver. Experimental results show a positive balance for the battery charging at different conditions, which suggests two important conclusions: first of all, with high temperature gradients, it is possible to set relatively high transmission frequencies for the LoRaWAN module without discharging the battery. The second important consideration concerns the operation of the system at extremely low temperature gradients, with a minimum of 5 °C reached during one of the measurements. This suggests the usability of thermoelectric energy-harvesting systems in a wide range of possible applications even in conditions of low temperature gradients.

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Section: Related Workmentioning

confidence: 99%

Providing Energy Self-Sufficiency to LoRaWAN Nodes by Means of Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs)-Based Energy Harvesting

et al. 2021

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“…Wireless sensor networks are becoming increasingly important, supported by several trends of digitalization [ 1 , 2 , 3 ]. Different trends towards the Internet of Things (IoT), Industry 4.0 and 5G networks address massive sensing and implicitly admit to have wireless sensors delivering measurement data directly to the web in a reliable and easy manner.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Energy-Aware System Design for Autonomous Wireless Sensor Nodes: A Comprehensive Review

Kanoun

Bradai

Khriji

et al. 2021

Sensors

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Nowadays, wireless sensor networks are becoming increasingly important in several sectors including industry, transportation, environment and medicine. This trend is reinforced by the spread of Internet of Things (IoT) technologies in almost all sectors. Autonomous energy supply is thereby an essential aspect as it decides the flexible positioning and easy maintenance, which are decisive for the acceptance of this technology, its wide use and sustainability. Significant improvements made in the last years have shown interesting possibilities for realizing energy-aware wireless sensor nodes (WSNs) by designing manifold and highly efficient energy converters and reducing energy consumption of hardware, software and communication protocols. Using only a few of these techniques or focusing on only one aspect is not sufficient to realize practicable and market relevant solutions. This paper therefore provides a comprehensive review on system design for battery-free and energy-aware WSN, making use of ambient energy or wireless energy transmission. It addresses energy supply strategies and gives a deep insight in energy management methods as well as possibilities for energy saving on node and network level. The aim therefore is to provide deep insight into system design and increase awareness of suitable techniques for realizing battery-free and energy-aware wireless sensor nodes.

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“…Low energy consumption is of particular importance in the case of pressure-based leak detection where the optimal, most sensitive sensor positions are often located in the periphery of a WDS [ 10 , 20 ], where no external power source is available and energy-harvesting [ 21 ] might not be a viable option. Particularly in these cases, a key aspect of the operation of low-power monitoring devices is the trade-off between the device configuration (sampling and transmission rates) required for fast and reliable leak detection, the available battery capacity and required minimum device runtimes.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessing the Potential of LPWAN Communication Technologies for Near Real-Time Leak Detection in Water Distribution Systems

Pointl

Fuchs-Hanusch

2021

Sensors

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While low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) technologies have been studied extensively for a broad spectrum of smart city applications, their potential for water distribution system monitoring in high temporal resolution has not been studied in detail. However, due to their low power demand, these technologies offer new possibilities for operating pressure-monitoring devices for near real-time leak detection in water distribution systems (WDS). By combining long-distance wireless communication with low power consumption, LPWAN technologies promise long periods of maintenance-free device operation without having to rely on an external power source. This is of particular importance for pressure-based leak detection where optimal sensor positions are often located in the periphery of WDS without a suitable power source. To assess the potential of these technologies for replacing widely-used wireless communication technologies for leak detection, GPRS is compared with the LPWAN standards Narrowband IoT, long-range wide area network (LoRaWAN) and Sigfox. Based on sampling and transmission rates commonly applied in leak detection, the ability of these three technologies to replace GPRS is analyzed based on a self-developed low-power pressure-monitoring device and a simplified, linear energy-consumption model. The results indicate that even though some of the analyzed LPWAN technologies may suffer from contractual and technical limitations, all of them offer viable alternatives, meeting the requirements of leak detection in WDS. In accordance with existing research on data transmission with these technologies, the findings of this work show that even while retaining a compact design, which entails a limited battery capacity, pressure-monitoring devices can exceed runtimes of 5 years, as required for installation at water meters in Austria. Thus, LPWAN technologies have the potential to advance the wide application of near real-time, pressure-based leak detection in WDS, while simultaneously reducing the cost of device operation significantly.

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A Review of Energy Harvesting Techniques for Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWANs)

Cited by 40 publications

References 91 publications

Providing Energy Self-Sufficiency to LoRaWAN Nodes by Means of Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs)-Based Energy Harvesting

Providing Energy Self-Sufficiency to LoRaWAN Nodes by Means of Thermoelectric Generators (TEGs)-Based Energy Harvesting

Energy-Aware System Design for Autonomous Wireless Sensor Nodes: A Comprehensive Review

Assessing the Potential of LPWAN Communication Technologies for Near Real-Time Leak Detection in Water Distribution Systems

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