Why Connectivity Is the Number One Challenge for Remote Locations
Before you can monitor, send alerts, or intervene remotely, you must be connected. This is straightforward in urban areas where fiber, ADSL, and 4G coexist. It’s a real challenge at rural or remote industrial sites.
Typical constraints:
- No landline available.
- Limited or variable 4G coverage depending on the carrier.
- Limited power supply (or solar power only).
- Equipment located in basements or utility rooms with significant signal attenuation.
- Requires a 24/7 connection for monitoring.
The good news: 4G connectivity with multi-carrier M2M SIM cards solves 95% of the issues faced by remote sites in metropolitan France.
Comparison of Technologies for Remote Locations
How to Improve 4G Coverage on Site
1. Multi-carrier SIM An M2M SIM that automatically tests all available carriers and selects the best signal. In France, Orange, SFR, and Bouygues have overlapping coverage areas: a location outside Orange’s coverage area may be covered by SFR.
2. External directional antenna Mounted on the roof or exterior wall, pointed toward the nearest cell tower. Typical gain of 10–15 dBi. Compatible with SMA connectors on industrial gateways. Low-loss coaxial cable (LMR-240 or LMR-400) for lengths > 5 m.
3. Local 4G Repeater Amplifies the signal received outdoors and redistributes it indoors via an indoor antenna. Effective for buildings with high signal attenuation (metal, reinforced concrete). Must comply with ARCEP regulations (power limits, operator registration).
4. NB-IoT For simple, low-frequency data (meter readings, level measurements), NB-IoT offers better in-building penetration (an additional -20 dB compared to standard 4G) and a battery life of 5 to 10 years. Nationwide coverage on the Bouygues and Orange networks.
Sizing Connectivity Based on Usage
| Use | Required Data Transfer Rate | Recommended Technology |
|---|---|---|
| Meter reading (once per hour) | < 1 MB/month | NB-IoT or LoRaWAN |
| Modbus monitoring (5-minute measurements) | 10–50 MB/month | 4G LTE Cat-1 or Cat-4 |
| Remote VPN access (1 hour/week) | 200 MB–1 GB/month | 4G LTE Cat-4 or Cat-6 |
| OTA firmware update | 100–500 MB/month | 4G LTE Cat-4 |
| Video stream (HD camera) | 5–50 GB/month | 4G LTE Cat-12 or 5G |
The Eziwan Approach
The Eziwan Gateway features an LTE Cat-4 modem (150 Mbps downlink), two M2M SIM slots, and an SMA connector for an external antenna. It is compatible with Eziwan multi-carrier M2M SIM cards to optimize coverage at each site.
Via the Eziwan Cloud: monitoring of the network signal for each gateway (RSRP, RSRQ, active carrier), alerts in case of signal degradation, and centralized management of the SIM fleet.
Learn more: remote site monitoring, industrial 4G router, and multi-carrier M2M SIM.