A Low-Cost Solution for Assets Location Tracking Based on LoRaWAN Networks

This paper presents a cost-effective solution for vertical asset tracking designed to reduce Capital Expenditure (CAPEX) and Operational Expenditure costs (OPEX) by accommodating a certain tolerance level for geolocation precision. The collaborative effort between academia and industry, initiated by the partnership between Lisbon School of Engineering and CTT, aims to track small cargo postal containers in postal carrier operations. To meet the cost requirements, the authors emphasise affordable container devices in terms of CAPEX and OPEX. To achieve this, the proposed approach suggests using LoRaWAN devices without integrating the Global Navigation Satellite System or Global System for Mobile Communications. This lowers device complexity, battery consumption and avoids telecommunication fees from cellular operators. However, successfully implementing the solution entails developing and evaluating an asset location and tracking infrastructure. The study introduces tailored algorithms and strategies, yielding promising results with geolocation algorithms achieving a precision of 92.7%, with a median distance deviation of approximately 1 km.