Open Manufacture: How We Tested the Long-Range Communication of SenseCAP T1000 

#Special Updates: Here at Seeed, we’ve been working on developing industrial IoT products since 2018. And in this series of Open Manufacture blog posts, we will show you some behind-the-stage scenes of how these products are tested to meet the industry standards. In the previous weeks, we shared about how we optimized the GPS Antenna for our SenseCAP T1000 LoRaWAN Tracker to Achieve 99%+GPS Pinpointing. And this blog will focus on the testing for long-range communication of SenseCAP T1000 LoRaWAN Tracker.

SenseCAP T1000  is a compact LoRaWAN® tracker that utilizes GNSS/Wi-Fi/Bluetooth for precise indoor & outdoor location tracking. Since LoRaWAN is a Low Power Wide Area Networking (LPWAN) communication protocol designed to wirelessly connect the sensor node to the Internet, you might be wondering what the wide-area or long-range is when it comes to the SenseCAP T1000 LoRaWAN Tracker. Wonder no more, because we’re about to reveal it in this open manufacturing blog, where we’ll show you how we tested its long-range communication capabilities at nearly twice the recommended range.

Evidence can be, that we sent 100 data packets from the tracker to the gateway to see how many packets are successfully received by the gateway. Our test began from Point A at our R&D office in Shenzhen where we installed our M2 gateway to Point B in Shenzhen Bay Park, which is approximately 9.5 km away.

To simulate real-world usage scenarios, we put the SenseCAP T1000 to the test in different positions, mimicking how it would be used in everyday situations. We carefully observed the device’s performance, collecting data for each scenario. Here’s what we discovered:

	Scenario	Distance	Data Reception
1	Raised by hand.	9.5Km	100%
2	Hanging in front, facing the gateway	9.5Km	99%
3	Hanging in front, back facing the gateway	9.5Km	83%
4	Placed directly on the grass.	9.5Km	1%

1. Raised by hand: In this scenario, where the device was held in hand, we achieved a remarkable 100% data reception where the data were successfully received without any issues.

2. Hanging in front, facing the gateway: When the T1000 was suspended in front of the gateway with its front side directed towards it, we achieved an impressive 99% data reception rate. It performed exceptionally well in this configuration.

3. Hanging in front, back facing the gateway: Here, with the T1000 hanging in front but with its back turned to the gateway, we observed an 83% data reception rate. This slight drop in performance can be attributed to the human body obstructing the signal, which is a common challenge in such scenarios.

4. Placed directly on the grass: Placing the device directly on the ground had a significant impact on performance, with only 1% of the data successfully received. This result indicates that the ground interference severely limits the device’s signal transmission.

The testing conditions we used were actually quite challenging for the T1000:

– We tested the device at a distance of 9.5km, nearly double the recommended communication range of 5km. This longer distance presented a more demanding scenario for the device.

– Additionally, we only had one gateway installed, which meant that the T1000’s signal coverage was limited to one direction. In practice, the tracker will communicate with multiple LoRaWAN gateways positioned in various locations and orientations.

Our testing has shown that the SenseCAP T1000 excels in most real-world scenarios, providing reliable data reception. The minor drop in performance when the device’s back is facing the gateway is expected to improve in actual usage, where multiple gateways will ensure comprehensive coverage. We are confident that the SenseCAP T1000 is well-equipped to meet your long-range communication needs in a variety of real-world scenarios.

Last but not least, we’ve been shipping out most of the orders from our Kickstarter Campaign. If you haven’t got your SenseCAP T1000 yet, pre-order yours today and embark on a new era of long-range communication and tracking.

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