An Expanded IoT Role for RDK-B?

Originally published by Broadband Technology Report

The cable industry's RDK-B software platform may soon underpin Internet of Things (IoT) and smart city networks. pureIntegration is working with semiconductor vendor Semtech (NASDAQ:SMTC) to develop a commercial integration of a LoRaWAN-based solution on RDK-B.

The LoRaWAN specification, from the LoRa Alliance, is a global, open standard low power wide area network (LPWAN) solution for Internet of Things (IoT) and smart city initiatives. It is intended to enable battery operated sensors and devices to communicate updates at very low data rates over long ranges and periods of time.
RDK-B is the cable industry's Reference Design Kit software platform specifically for broadband services. The original RDK focused on video platforms such as set-top boxes; RDK-B, the broadband version, was introduced last May.

The LoRaWAN specification is one of several wireless technologies we are working with to deliver IoT and smart city solutions," said Chris Kocks, director of pureIntegration's IoT Practice. "Regional and global IoT solutions require hybrid wireless network options in many cases. It means integrating low-power solutions on the same platform with low-latency high-data (think high vehicle-to-vehicle communication) applications. It might also mean crossing over to 5G cellular or satellite networks depending upon the use case or best path for communication in a specific region of the world."
LoRa Technology is a two-way wireless RF platform designed to enable LPWANs for IoT applications. Use cases include agriculture monitoring, public safety, building and infrastructure management, smart cities, asset tracking and others.