A webinar discussing the costs associated with building an internet of things solution with various LPWAN technologies: LTE-M, NB-IOT, Ingenu, Sigfox, and more. Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) solutions are also considered.
3. Agenda
• Elements of Cost
• Network and Wireless Technology Options
• Use Case Examples:
• Asset Tracking with GPS
• Asset Tracking with Bluetooth
• Meter Reading
• Smart Building (Thermostat)
4. Before we begin…
This webinar is about how to think about cost.
We are not making firm claims about actual costs. Just notional ones.
Use the thinking and methods presented here to build your own models.
5. Have a question or
comment?
Live Chat
Question not answered?
forum.link-labs.com
6. Who is Link Labs?
• IoT Technology Company – based in Maryland, USA
• Build and integrate complex industrial and enterprise IoT systems.
• Focused on location: www.AirFinder.com
• LTE Cat-M1, Symphony Link (LoRa), and Bluetooth Low Energy
• Interested in how we can help? webinar@link-labs.com
7. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
8. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
Electrical Schematic
PCB Layout
Modular vs. ”Chip-Down”
Multiple “Spins”
Form Factor Considerations
Antenna Selection
Component Selection
DFM and DFT
Engineering Outsourcing:
$10 - 30,000 USD
Prototype Spin:
$100-200 / each
9. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
Look and Feel
IP Rating
Shock and Vibration
Heat Management
Connections
Batteries
Antennas
Engineering Outsourcing:
$20 – 100K USD
Mold Development:
$5– 20K USD
10. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
Linux vs. RTOS vs. Bare
Kernel Development
Boot Loader
Flash Variables
Firmware Updates
Test Modes
Debug Modes
Logging
Engineering Outsourcing:
$10 – 100K+ USD
11. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
Platform vs. DIY
Cloud Hosting
IAAS
Frameworks
Scalability
Requirements Management
MVP
Engineering Outsourcing:
$10 – 100K+ USD
12. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
Supply Chain
Sourcing
Assembly
13. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
EMI
Usability
Unit Testing
Edge Cases
14. Elements of Cost
• Development Costs
• Hardware Design and Prototyping
• Industrial Design and Mechanical
Engineering
• Firmware Development
• Software / Application Development
• Design for Manufacturing
• Testing
• Certification
FCC / IC
ETSI
UL
Carrier
$3,000 - $100,000+
15. Elements of Cost
• Manufacturing Costs
• Contract Manufacturing
• Lead Times / EOL
• Unit Testing
• Boxing and Shipping
• Warehousing
• Distribution
16. Elements of Cost
• Operational Costs
• Demos and Pilots
• Installations
• Support and Troubleshooting
• Returns and Repairs
• Connectivity Costs
23. Technology Snapshot
NB-IOT
• How is this different?
• Cat- NB1
• 200 kHz
• Max 144 kbps uplink
• Half Duplex
• Chipsets could be slightly less than LTE-M1
• Trials in EU and China
24. Technology Snapshot
SIGFOX
• Narrowband psuedo-DBPSK (MSK)
• Hundreds of Uplink Channels
• Completely Asynchronous
• Transmit 3 times and hope
• Limited Downlink
• Uses “Stock” UHF RF Chips
• Limited US Coverage
25. Technology Snapshot
LoRaWANTM
• Based on LoRa PHY Technology
• Asynchronous Uplink
• “Dumb” Gateway, “Smart” Cloud
• Hybrid Business Model – Carrier + DIY
The LoRa® name, LoRa® logo and LoRaWAN™ are trademarks of Semtech Corporation or its subsidiaries in the U.S. and/or other countries.
28. Ingenu
• 2.4 GHz CDMA Technology
• Deployed in some parts of US
• Good LPWAN Features
• Limited supply of modules
• Legacy Technology
• Corporate / Company Risk
29.
30. Technology Snapshot
Symphony Link
• Uses LoRa Hardware
• Different Protocol Stack
• Synchronous / Slotted
• Quality of Service
• 100% Acknowledgements
• Repeaters
• Firmware-over-the-air
• Multicast/Control
• Auto-provisioning
• No cloud needed
31. Cost to Connect
Module Connectivity Infrastructure
LTE-M $10-15 $3-5 / mo for 1MB
NB-IOT $7-12 <$1 /mo for 100kb
Sigfox $5-10 <$1 / mo
Ingenu $10-15 ?
LoRaWAN Public $9-12 $1-2 / mo
LoRaWAN Private $9-12 $0.25 / mo $500
Symphony Link $15 $0.25 / mo $500
32. Use Cases
• Asset Tracking with GPS
• Asset Monitoring with Bluetooth
• Meter Reading
• Smart Building
• Consumer Monitor Device
33. Asset Tracking with GPS
• Hardware (@10K):
Battery $5
Case $5
MCU $1.50
GPS System $6
PCB/Misc $5
Assembly $4
Packaging $3.5
------------
$30.00 (No Radio)
• Total costs with radio:
LTE-M $45.00
NB-IOT $42.00
Sigfox $40.00
LoRaWAN $42.00
• Connectivity (3 year):
Assume 1 positon per 15 minutes
LTE-M $144
NB-IOT $200
Sigfox $36 (Too many xmit)
LoRaWAN $36 (Too many xmit)
• Development- $200K
• Loaded cost per unit/ mo @ 3 years:
LTE-M $5.80
NB-IOT $7.28
Sigfox $2.67 (Too many xmit)
LoRaWAN $2.72 (Too many xmit)
Note: Firmware, Control, Network
35. Asset Monitoring with Bluetooth +
Symphony Link
• 500 Sites
• 100 Sensors per Site
• 50,000 Sensors
• $10 BLE Sensor Cost
• $500 Gateway Cost
• $15 / mo per Gateway
• $200K Development
• $0.68 / mo / sensor
36. Meter Reading
• Hardware (@10K):
Battery $5
Case $5
MCU $1.50
PCB/Misc $5
Assembly $4
Packaging $3.5
------------
$24.00 (No Radio, no sensor)
• Total costs with radio:
LTE-M $39.00
NB-IOT $36.00
Sigfox $34.00
LoRaWAN $36.00
• Connectivity (3 year):
Assume 1 Message per Day
LTE-M $108
NB-IOT $27
Sigfox $36
LoRaWAN $36
• Development- $200K
• Loaded cost per unit/ mo @ 3 years:
LTE-M $4.64
NB-IOT $2.31
Sigfox $2.50
LoRaWAN $2.56
Note: Firmware, Control, Network
37. Smart Thermostat
• Hardware (@10K):
Case $5
Screen $7
MCU $1.50
PCB/Misc $5
Assembly $4
Packaging $3.5
------------
$26.00 (No Radio)
• Total costs with radio:
LTE-M $41.00
NB-IOT $38.00
Sigfox $36.00
LoRaWAN $38.00
• Connectivity (3 year):
Assume 1 Message per 15 min
LTE-M $144
NB-IOT $200
Sigfox (Too many xmit) $36
LoRaWAN $36
• Development- $200K
• Loaded cost per unit/ mo @ 3 years:
LTE-M $5.69
NB-IOT $7.17
Sigfox $2.56 *
LoRaWAN $2.61 *
Note: Firmware, Control, Network
38. Conclusions
• Module costs are <5% of loaded cost.
• Data usage is largest variable cost.
• Some networks are not available.
• One-to-many architectures can save most $
