NB-IoT bridges the gap between mobile comms technologies and short-range wireless technologies, such as Bluetooth and Wi-Fi. This means that an eLTE or NB-IoT chip can be added to the manufacturing terminal, so that the chip can transmit data generated by the terminal, thus enabling manufacturing data to be collected and commands issued.
As it requires only 200kHz of bandwidth and is less susceptible to interference than other unlicensed spectrum LPWA solutions, NB-IoT can easily run adjacent to existing cellular networks in the manufacturing environment. Also, as it operates in the licensed spectrum, it benefits from all the security and privacy features of mobile networks, such as support for user identity confidentiality, entity authentication, confidentiality, data integrity, and mobile equipment identification.
Read the full article in DPA's March issue