Understanding LoRaWAN Gateways
We’ve studied the end devices a bit, let's now focus on the gateways through which messages pass from the end devices to the network server, and vice versa.
Gateways pick up LoRaWAN packets that are sent wirelessly by an end device. They also send data packets back to the device from the network server. A key functionality of these gateways is that they demodulate the received signals to a binary data buffer, often referred to as a packet, which is sent via its backhaul (i.e., the gateway’s connection to the Internet via an Ethernet, Wi-Fi, or Cellular connection). The gateways receive messages from an end device (called uplinks), along with the following metadata for each uplink:
- Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI)
- Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR)
- Time-of-arrival (TOA)
- Frequency channel
- Data rate
Upon receipt of an uplink message and its respective metadata, the gateway forwards the message to the network server.
Watch the following video for more information.
(Time: 3:10 minutes)