Optimum LoRaWAN Configuration Under Wi-SUN Interference.

Smart Utility Networks (SUN) rely on the Wireless-SUN (Wi-SUN) specification for years. Recently, however, practitioners and researchers have also considered Low-Power Wide-Area Networks (LPWAN) like LoRaWAN for such applications. With distinct technologies deployed in the same area and sharing unlicensed bands, one can expect these networks to interfere with one another. This paper builds over a LoRaWAN model to optimize network parameters while accounting for the interference from other technologies. Our analytic model accounts for the interference LoRaWAN receives from IEEE 802.15.4g networks, which form the bottom layers of Wi-SUN systems. We also derive closed-form equations for the expected reliability of LoRaWAN in such scenarios. We set the model parameters with data from real measurements of the interplay among the technologies. Finally, we propose two optimization algorithms to determine the best LoRaWAN configuration given a targeted minimum reliability level as a restriction. The first algorithm maximizes communication range given a constraint on the minimum number of users, and the second maximizes the number of users given a minimum communication range. We validate the models and algorithms through numerical analysis and simulations. The proposed methods are useful tools for planning interference-limited networks with requirements of minimum reliability.