Get your farm connected
Having IoT sensors installed on your farm is a great way to create a seamless and efficient farm management experience. But its success depends in part on the connectivity available on your property.
Here, we explain what the different connectivity options are, highlighting the benefits and disadvantages of each, to help you make a more informed decision about the options available to you.
Different connectivity options
3G/4G Connectivity
- Each sensor/device needs its own SIM card.
- Monthly data package needs to be loaded onto the SIM card.
- Lower setup cost since no tower or gateway are required.
- More expensive in the long run because of the monthly payments for the SIM cards.
- Quite limiting on the number of sensors you can use.
When to use 3G/4G Connectivity?
- When using a video surveillance camera.
- When installing less than 2-4 sensors with no plans to scale up.
LoRa
- No SIM card needed, which means no monthly payments.
- A tower, including a gateway and an antenna, and an IoT router need to be installed on your property, which will cost around AUD $4,000 once-off.
- This is a wireless technology that can cover a range of up to 15km radius, with battery life lasting over 10 years.
- Your homestead still needs to have internet connectivity and be within 15km of the tower to be able to transmit the data from the tower to the IoT gateway installed in your homestead, to the cloud.
- The tower does not need to be in line of sight to your farm or homestead as the signal/connectivity can go through hills, mountains, trees, or any topography that may be in the way.
- An unlimited number of sensors can be connected simultaneously.
- Better in the long run as it won’t be as costly as with 3G/4G connectivity.
When to use LoRa?
- If you want to connect more than 3-5 sensors and want the solution to be scalable in the future.
- If your land doesn’t have consistent 3G/4G connectivity.
Satellite
- Works similarly to the 3G/4G options, as each sensor needs a SIM card, with a data package, which incurs a monthly fee.
- Information derived from the sensors are then transmitted to the cloud and into our app/platform directly without going through a router.
When to use Satellite?
- When even your homestead battles with 3G/4G connectivity.
- When your homestead is not located on your farm.
- For certain vehicle tracking sensors.
Meeting your requirements
Farmdeck sensors work with any technology, so if you have a preference, and your land allows for it, our team can work with the connectivity option of your choice. We are also able to recommend the best type for your farm taking into consideration your unique requirements.