Introduction
The Internet of Things (IoT) continues to evolve and as systems grow in scale new challenges become apparent. For example, how do you efficiently increase the scale and coverage of IoT networks whilst maintaining functionality, how do you replace battery powered devices when the batteries have lost charge? Such challenges are becoming apparent as IoT systems mature. There are many computer communication networks and protocols, including cellular (3G, 4G and 5G), BLE, WiFi etc. each having their own pros and cons. The one thing they have in common is they are centrally controlled and any increase to the size and scale of the network requires human intervention. In contrast, the Wirepas Mesh network is a decentralized wireless communication protocol designed for large-scale IoT applications. Where traditional networks rely on a centralized infrastructure such as routers and gateways, Wirepas enables every device in the network to act as a router, allowing a decentralised scalable, self-organising, low power network.
As a Wirepas Mesh network is low power it means for some key components of the network we can alleviate the use of batteries. Lightricity has developed ‘Anchors’ powered by indoor light. The energy harvester powered anchors offer a reliable, sustainable solution removing the need, and cost, of replacing batteries as explained below.