Performance Evaluation of LoRaWAN Networks for Smart Water Metering

The increasing need for efficient water management in smart cities has driven the adoption of Low-Power Wide-Area Network (LPWAN) technologies, with LoRaWAN emerging as a leading solution for smart water metering. This study presents a comprehensive performance evaluation of LoRaWAN networks in large-scale smart water metering deployments, focusing on the real-world case of over 30,000 smart water meters installed in Paphos, Cyprus. The analysis investigates key LoRaWAN parameters such as Spreading Factor (SpFact), Received Signal Power (ESP), Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), and Mean Packet Error Rate (MeanPER), assessing their impact on network performance in different environments. The observed differences in signal performance across free space, covered, and under-ground conditions highlight the critical impact of environmental constraints on network reliability. The findings provide valuable insights into optimizing SpFact selection, minimizing packet collisions, and improving energy efficiency for large-scale smart city applications.