Semtech Wires Cook Islands with LoRa Wireless RF

Sometimes we get so wrapped up in if we CAN do something, we forget to consider if we SHOULD do it. In other news, Semtech Corporation, a supplier of analog and mixed-signal semiconductors, has announced that its LoRa Wireless RF technology has been deployed in the remote South Pacific Cook Islands.

This network is the second deployment in the South Pacific by IoT network and software providers KotahiNet and Loriot that also deployed the LoRaWAN-based IoT network in New Zealand. Both networks enable a wide range of smart city, agriculture, metering, environmental, consumer and industrial applications.

“Rolling out a LoRaWAN network in the Cook Islands was a natural fit for us,” said Vikram Kumar, Director, KotahiNet. “We’ve already proven the effectiveness of LoRa technology in New Zealand where our network is being rapidly rolled out, covering over half the population in a matter of months. The coverage includes some very remote rural areas, where LoRa-based sensors and gateways provide excellent coverage while using very low power to ensure sensor batteries last several years without needing to be replaced. The population in the Cook Islands is much smaller than New Zealand, but the people there still have many of the same needs for smart technology. By working with Bluesky Cook Islands and using network operations services from Loriot and LoRa technology from Semtech, we were able to quickly and economically implement a secure, standards-based network that will benefit the people of this region for years to come.”

Working with telecom service provider Bluesky Cook Islands, KotahiNet has deployed the LPWAN in northern Rarotonga, the largest island in the chain, covering about a quarter of the island. The plan is to expand the network to the rest of the main island before deploying it to the other islands of the country. This public LoRaWAN-based network provides the Cook Islands with a smart sensing infrastructure, allowing businesses and government organizations to collect and analyze environmental data, and make intelligent decisions about their business operations and scarce island resources.

“The collaboration between KotahiNet and Loriot to implement a public, LoRa-based LPWAN for the Cook Islands and other regions in the South Pacific is an excellent example of how companies in the LoRa Alliance can work together to deploy IoT solutions in even the most remote places,” said Marc Pegulu, VP and GM, Wireless and Sensing Product Group, Semtech. “The value of having a standards-based approach to building a LPWAN is that you can quickly set it up anywhere using hardware and software that is secure, interoperable, and works the way you expect, whether you’re in a dense urban area or a distant rural outpost.”