Evaluation and development of wireless monitoring systems for an autonomous sailboat

Abstract

In this study, the performance of the Long-Range (LoRa) communication and 3DR Radio Telemetry modules was evaluated. The suitability of these two communication options was assessed for the application on an autonomous sailboat prototype. The communication range and power consumption of each module are the primary factors for selection. The test results found that LoRa technology can send data stably with a range of up to 10.5 km, while the 3DR Radio Telemetry module can only send data stably up to 300 m. The LoRa technology consumes 9.56 Wh of electrical energy per day for the autonomous sailboat application, while the 3DR Radio Telemetry consumes 11.07 Wh of electrical energy per day. It was decided that LoRA technology would be implemented on the autonomous sailboat.