Evaluating Signal Quality and System Performance in NB-IoT Communications An Empirical Analysis Using the SIM7020 Module
Main Article Content
Keywords
NB-IoT, signal quality, SIM7020 module, CSQ, RSSI
Abstract
The expansion of the Internet of Things (IoT) has created a need for reliable and fault-tolerant communication networks. However, ensuring consistent signal quality and power efficiency has proven to be challenging. This study evaluated the performance of Narrowband IoT (NB-IoT) communications using the SIM7020 module connected to a Raspberry Pi 4 Model B, focusing on signal quality across indoor, outdoor, urban and rural areas. Supervised machine learning for indoor localisation based on Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) has been introduced, for example, to enhance NB-IoT performance. However, this and other approaches have encountered difficulties in mobile and obstructed environments, including signal attenuation, connectivity variability and increased power consumption.
The objective of this study was to analyse NB-IoT signal strength and power consumption, providing guidance for deploying real-time communication IoT applications. Empirical data was analysed to understand the RSSI and Cellular Signal Quality (CSQ) in different locations. Signal quality in urban and outdoor environments was prone to fluctuations due to mobility and interference, whereas rural areas had weaker but more consistent signals. Indoor environments suffered from significant signal attenuation. The results emphasise the importance of improved handover mechanisms and adaptive deployment strategies to ensure reliable connectivity across various IoT applications.
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References
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Tsanousa, A., Xefteris, V.-R., Meditskos, G., Vrochidis, S., & Kompatsiaris, Y. (2021). Combining RSSI and accelerometer features for room-level localization. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 21. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21082723
Xu, J., Yao, J., Wang, L., Ming, Z., Wu, K., & Chen, L. (2018). Narrowband internet of things: evolutions, technologies, and open issues. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 5, 1449–1462. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2017.2783374
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Althobaiti, O. S., & Dohler, M. (2021). Narrowband-internet of things device-to-device simulation: An open-sourced framework. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 21. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21051824
Badi, A. M., & Mahgoub, I. (2021). ReapIoT: Reliable, energy-aware network protocol for large-scale internet-of-things (IoT) applications. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 8, 13582–13592. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2021.3066531
Barellini, A., Bracci, B., Licitra, G., & Silvi, A. M. (2023). Time domain analysis of NB-IoT signals. Applied Sciences. https://doi.org/10.3390/app13042242
Basu, S. S., Sultania, A. K., Famaey, J., & Hoebeke, J. (2019). Experimental performance evaluation of NB-IoT. 2019 International Conference on Wireless and Mobile Computing, Networking and Communications), 1–6. https://doi.org/10.1109/WiMOB.2019.8923221
Chen, J., Hu, K., Wang, Q., Sun, Y., Shi, Z., & He, S. (2017). Narrowband internet of things: implementations and applications. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 4, 2309–2314. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2017.2764475
Chen, J., Shi, J., Chen, X., Wu, Y., Qian, L., & Huang, L. (2018). Technologies and applications of narrowband internet of things. International Conference on Machine Learning and Intelligent Communications. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-00557-3_54
Dangana, M., Ansari, S., Hussain, S., & Imran, M. A. (2022). NB-IoT performance analysis and evaluation in indoor industrial environment. 2022 IEEE 95th Vehicular Technology Conference: (VTC 2022-Spring), 1–7. https://doi.org/10.1109/VTC2022-Spring54318.2022.9860792
de Oliveira, G. R. M., Storck, C. R., & Duarte-Figueiredo, F. (2019). SoftH: soft handover multicriteria mechanism. Proceedings of the 34th ACM/SIGAPP Symposium on Applied Computing. https://doi.org/10.1145/3297280.3297519
Herrnleben, S., Ailabouni, R., Grohmann, J., Prantl, T., Krupitzer, C., & Kounev, S. (2020). An IoT network emulator for analyzing the influence of varying network quality. International ICST Conference on Simulation Tools and Techniques. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-72795-6_47
Ji, H., Miao, L., & Dong, J. (2018). Indoor environment remote monitoring system based on NB-IOT. IOP Conference Series: Materials Science and Engineering, 452. https://doi.org/10.1088/1757-899X/452/2/022162
Lahoud, C., Ehsanfar, S., & Moessner, K. (2023). An experimental comparison of LoRa versus NB-IoT over unlicensed spectrum using software defined radio. 2023 Joint European Conference on Networks and Communications & 6G Summit, 652–657. https://doi.org/10.1109/EuCNC/6GSummit58263.2023.10188278
Lin, Y.-B., Tseng, H.-C., Lin, Y.-W., & Chen, L.-J. (2019). NB-IoTtalk: A service platform for fast development of NB-IoT applications. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 6, 928–939. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2018.2865583
Maduranga, M. W. P., & Abeysekara, R. (2021). Supervised machine learning for RSSI based indoor localization in IoT applications. International Journal of Computer Applications. https://doi.org/10.5120/IJCA2021921305
Mahenthiran, P., & Muruganadam, D. (2024). Handoff performance analysis of PMIPv6-based distributed mobility management protocol-urban scenario. Concurrency and Computation: Practice and Experience, 36(11), e8010. https://doi.org/10.1002/cpe.8010
Malarski, K. M., Thrane, J., Bech, M. G., Macheta, K., Christiansen, H. L., Petersen, M. N., & Ruepp, S. (2019). Investigation of deep indoor NB-IoT propagation attenuation. 2019 IEEE 90th Vehicular Technology Conference (VTC 2019-Fall), 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1109/VTCFall.2019.8891414
Matz, A. P., Fernández-Prieto, J.-Á., Bago, J. C., & Birkel, U. (2020). A systematic analysis of narrowband IoT quality of service. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 20. https://doi.org/10.3390/s20061636
Nardis, L. De, Caso, G., Alay, Ö., Neri, M., Brunström, A., & Benedetto, M.-G. Di. (2023). Positioning by multicell fingerprinting in urban NB-IoT networks. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 23. https://doi.org/10.3390/s23094266
Pinem, M., Aqsa, D. M., Sinulingga, E. P., & Suherman, S. (2019). Long term evolution (LTE) handover parameter optimation. Proceedings of the Proceedings of The 2nd International Conference On Advance And Scientific Innovation, ICASI 2019, 18 July, Banda Aceh, Indonesia. https://doi.org/10.4108/eai.18-7-2019.2288543
Rahman, A. A. M. M., Hossain, S., Tuku, I. J., Hossam-E-Haider, M., & Amin, Md. S. (2016). Feasibility study of GSM network for tracking low altitude helicopter. 2016 3rd International Conference on Electrical Engineering and Information Communication Technology, 1–5. https://doi.org/10.1109/CEEICT.2016.7873158
Roosipuu, P., Annus, I., Kuusik, A., Kändler, N., & Alam, M. M. (2023). Monitoring and control of smart urban drainage systems using NB-IoT cellular sensor networks. Water Science and Technology: A Journal of the International Association on Water Pollution Research, 88 2, 339–354. https://doi.org/10.2166/wst.2023.222
Ruepp, S., Mateo, A. C., Malarski, K. M., Thrane, J., & Petersen, M. N. (2018). Internet of things connectivity in deep-indoor environments. 2018 9th International Conference on the Network of the Future, 96–100. https://doi.org/10.1109/NOF.2018.8597871
Sadek, R. A., & Elbadawy, H. M. (2022). Towards IoT era with current and future wireless communication technologies: An overview. 2022 39th National Radio Science Conference, 1, 343–353. https://doi.org/10.1109/NRSC57219.2022.9971196
Stusek, M., Maek, P., Dvořák, R., Dinh, T. Le, Mozny, R., Zeman, K., Ometov, A., Cika, P., Mlynek, P., & Hosek, J. (2023). Exploiting NB-IoT network performance and capacity for smart-metering use-cases. 2023 15th International Congress on Ultra Modern Telecommunications and Control Systems and Workshops, 193–199. https://doi.org/10.1109/ICUMT61075.2023.10333294
Tian, Y., & Wang, Y. (2020). Street lamp intelligent monitoring system design based on NB-IoT technology. Journal of Physics: Conference Series, 1617(1). https://doi.org/10.1088/1742-6596/1617/1/012003
Tsanousa, A., Xefteris, V.-R., Meditskos, G., Vrochidis, S., & Kompatsiaris, Y. (2021). Combining RSSI and accelerometer features for room-level localization. Sensors (Basel, Switzerland), 21. https://doi.org/10.3390/s21082723
Xu, J., Yao, J., Wang, L., Ming, Z., Wu, K., & Chen, L. (2018). Narrowband internet of things: evolutions, technologies, and open issues. IEEE Internet of Things Journal, 5, 1449–1462. https://doi.org/10.1109/JIOT.2017.2783374
Yau, C.-W., Jewsakul, S., Luk, M.-H., Lee, A. P. Y., Chan, Y.-H., Ngai, E. C.-H., Pong, P. W. T., Lui, K.-S., & Liu, J. (2022). NB-IoT coverage and sensor node connectivity in dense urban environments: An empirical study. ACM Transactions on Sensor Networks, 18, 1–36. https://doi.org/10.1145/3536424
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Published
Jun 29, 2024
Article Details
How to Cite
Hendricks, W., & Kabaso, B. (2024). Evaluating Signal Quality and System Performance in NB-IoT Communications: An Empirical Analysis Using the SIM7020 Module. Journal of Telecommunications and the Digital Economy, 12(2), 115–138. https://doi.org/10.18080/jtde.v12n2.955
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Telecommunications
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