The Internet of Things proves that small things can have massive impact. Sensors that fit into the palm of your hand can provide real-time environmental data capable of consistently saving your business time and money.

What is an IoT Sensor?

Internet of Things (IoT) sensors are small devices that collect and share data gathered from their surroundings within a technological ecosystem. Sometimes the sensor can act on the data immediately or the data can be sent to an IoT gateway that aggregates and sends the data where it needs to go for further action and analysis.

What does LPWAN mean?

Low-power wide area networks, also known as LPWAN, are networks designed to facilitate long-range communication between technological devices at low bit rates. They are the connectivity option of choice for most IoT sensors, because they offer wide area coverage at low power consumption, making them less costly to both use and run.

What are LoRaWAN IoT sensors?

There are a number of traditional wireless sensor protocols that enable connectivity between  the sensors and thes to gateway: –Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Zigbee, and Z-Wave are someall exampless of this. In recent years, with the development of LPWANs, standards have started to shift to better accommodate the ever-growing number of connected devices being used in commercial settings.

LoRaWAN® is benefitted by its long range, deep penetration, and extended battery life. LoRaWAN standards are maintained by the LoRa Alliance, an open, non-profit association dedicated to promoting and supporting their global adoption.

The ability for these sensors to provide ultra long range communications  to industry standard gateways is one of their biggest benefits. For example, MultiTech offers LoRaWAN IoT sensors as part of their Radio Bridge family of products including:, which includes:

• Wireless temperature sensors designed to accurately detect ambient air temperatures both indoors and out
• Wireless proximity sensors that provide high accuracy proximity detection with open architecture for flexible integration
• Wireless push button sensors that can be used as wearables, remote controls, or for emergency response and other button-push applications
• Wireless movement sensors that use ultra-sensitive internal accelerometers to detect movement or utilization of critical assets and react accordingly
• Wireless leak detection sensors that use probes to detect the presence of water and alert the network to divert potential catastrophe
• Wireless industrial sensors designed for industrial standards such as 4-20mA current loops, digital inputs, vibration and beyond

How can LoRaWAN IoT sensors be used?

LoRaWAN IoT sensors low power consumption and long range transmit capabilities allow them to be used in a broad range of applications.

Here are some common use cases:

• Smart buildings. Modern offices, retail spaces, and factories can all benefit from smart building technology, including: temperature and humidity monitoring of critical rooms or assets, water leak detection to minimize leaking water or flood damage, motion detection to track utilization of high cost assets and more.
• Server room maintenance. Leak detection sensors can communicate automatically over wireless networks to notify IT managers when a leak is found in their liquid cooled server room, saving both precious data and precious dollars. Temperature sensing can ensure that critical IT equipment stays within its recommended operating ranges.
• Drug management. Readmission rates can be reduced and health outcomes improved via smart drug management and medication tracking using IoT sensors. Automated temperature monitoring of stored medications may improve medicine safety, effectiveness and compliance.
• Emergency response. Wireless push button sensors can be used in healthcare settings to allow nurses and caregivers to be alerted and respond to emergency patient needs in real time.
• Wind monitoring and control. Being able to monitor wind and solar energy generation in real time can prevent downtime and disruption, reducing risk and cost.
• Supply chain management. The right network solutions can help with shipment verification, remote monitoring of product storage, and the efficiency of logistical operations. That in turn leads to fewer shipping delays, less product loss, and happier customers.

The benefits of using LoRaWAN IoT sensors are vast and unique to each industry they serve. All business applications of this technology lead to improved response time, improved compliance, decreased network downtime, performance data gathering, and ultimately–cost savings.

Check out MultiTech’s wireless LoRaWAN Sensor catalog for a closer look at this efficiency-boosting technology.