Difference between Lora Module and COM.LoraWan



  • Hi!

    I basically want to pick up water flow measures (every 5-10 s). As the place where the measure is taken doesn´t have wifi, I want to send the data to the nearest place with wifi (300m - 2km max) through a LoRa module. I am pretty new to this so basically as far as I understand I would need:

    2 M5Stack, one for sending and another for recieving.
    2 LoRa modules.

    But I see there are different modules.

    Whats the difference between the Lora868 Module: https://m5stack.com/collections/m5-module/products/lora-module-868mhz

    And the COM.LoraWan Module: https://m5stack.com/collections/m5-module/products/com-lorawan-module-868mhz-asr6501

    Thanks in advance!



  • Hola @sinzapatillas

    COM.LoRaWAN is a LoRaWAN communication module in the M5Stack stackable module series, supporting node-to-node or LoRaWAN communication. The first is only point-to-point and LoraWan allows you to connect to the network.

    Here is a link to an article by Philip Stewart to make it clearer to you.
    M5Stack COM.LoRaWAN Using UIFlow

    Regards
    Carles



  • @carles-b

    Thanks! But I don´t quite understand. If I use the point-to-point (two Lora868) communication, I can send data from one M5 (the one that captures the data in the place with no internet connection) to the other M5 (the reciever, that is located in the house with wiFi) through LoRa. This way, I can upload the data to the network using the wiFi connection of the house.

    In regard to the post you embbeded.. as far as I understand, the COM.LoRaWAN allows me to connect to The Things Network. But for that I need to buy a TTN Gateway and place it nearby. This is way more expensive than the point to point communication I mentioned before (200$ vs around 60$).

    So... what is the benefit of using TTN instead of the two M5stack connected to each other? I get that one gateway can recieve data from multiple devices, but if theres only one device then I don´t see the benefit.

    Thanks in advance!



  • @sinzapatillas

    If you do not want to view the data on your computer or mobile phone, none of the data will be displayed on your computer or mobile phone.

    Regards
    Carles



  • @sinzapatillas

    Take a look at this lesson to see if this Lora module is right for you.

    Recards
    Carles



  • @carles-b
    The point is to send the data from a place without wifi to a place with wifi so it can upload to a service that allows me to access and download the data remotely and graph the data... So I can visualize it/download it from any place I want.

    I will make the question easy. If I use the Lora868 (the one from the tutorial you just sent me)... can the reciever upload the data to a service though its wiFi (built in a Raspberry Pi or another service like Cayenne..) so I can visualize the data online? Or I need the COM.LoRaWan for that.



  • @sinzapatillas
    I don't know, I am not an expert in Lora. But you talk about a distance of (300m - 2km max) and the article, without external modification, is 20m if I remember correctly.

    Regards
    Carles