LoRa Alliance Expands Certification Program with Addition of Relay Testing and New Authorized Test Lab in Brazil

The LoRa Alliance, the global association of companies backing the open LoRaWAN standard for the internet of things (IoT) low-power wide-area networks (LPWANs), made multiple announcements related to expanding and enhancing the LoRaWAN Certification Program.  The updates are intended to demonstrate the maturity of the LoRaWAN Certification Program and provide OEMs multiple approaches to certify their devices, meeting market requirements for tested devices. Achieving certification also allows products to be featured in the LoRaWAN Marketplace, an online resource where end users can research and find where to purchase certified products and services.

Updates that will be available as of June 2024 include new capabilities designed to streamline the process and make certification faster and easier:

• Addition of LoRaWAN Relay feature testing as part of end-device certification;

• Accreditation of DEKRA’s Atibaia, Brazil, facility as a LoRa Alliance Authorized Test Lab (ATL), the first ATL in Latin and South America;

• The launch of the LoRaWAN Web Certification System (LWCS), which now automates the certification process; and

• Introduction of LoRa Alliance member self-testing of end devices.

Addition of the Relay feature to LoRaWAN Certification testing strengthens LoRaWAN Certification by ensuring that end devices are compliant with the feature as defined in the LoRaWAN standard. Relay is a critical feature for utilities and satellites in particular to amplify and extend the reach of LoRaWAN signals, enabling communication over greater distances and through obstacles like buildings and terrain that can impede direct communication between end devices and gateways/base stations. Introducing LoRaWAN relays into a network architecture allows for easy expansion and scalability without the need for additional gateways. Relay certification testing adds to the program’s rapidly growing number of optional feature tests, such as firmware updates over the air (FUOTA) and static context header compression (SCHC), all of which are designed to ensure certified devices are fully compliant with all aspects of the LoRaWAN standard.

The authorization of DEKRA’s Atibaia, Brazil, facility (near São Paulo) means that members no longer must ship products outside of the continent, which offers time and cost savings when seeking LoRaWAN Certification. The move will support the area’s rapidly growing membership and is intended to promote increased device manufacturing in the region.

The LoRa Alliance’s new Web Certification System (LWCS) is seen as a major step forward in terms of reducing paperwork and simplifying the certification process. Creation and use of an LWCS account provides seamless digital communications between the member certifying, the ATLs and the LoRa Alliance, reducing human error and unnecessary administrative time by automating the certification process. LWCS supports traditional certification via an ATL, certification by similarity and certification by self-testing.

The new Member Self-Testing Program gives LoRa Alliance members the option to become authorized to self-test their own devices and submit the test results directly to the LoRa Alliance to request device certification. Allowing members to conduct the testing themselves is intended to streamline the device certification process and decreases time to market for new certified devices while maintaining the highest standards of quality and performance. To ensure the quality of the program, the LoRa Alliance will continuously audit capability for authorized members.

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