Irdroid Bridges the Worlds of Infrared and LoRaWAN Communications with New Transmitter Kit

Infrared communications specialist Irdroid has launched a device that aims to considerably extend the range at which such devices can be controlled — by bridging infrared to LoRaWAN long-range, low-power radio access networks like The Things Network.

"The LoRa IR Transmitter Kit is a long range infrared transmitter development kit that allows you to transmit infrared signals by using the LoRaWAN technology and connect to The Things Network Cloud," Irdroid explains of its latest creation. "The Kit is useful in situations where you have a network of infrared controlled displays and players that need remote control, but there is no internet connection available nearby.

"Every kit is programmed (The Pronto codes are stored in the EEPROM) with the desired PRONTO HEX codes prior to installation on site. The IR codes then can be executed by accessing The Things Network MQTT API and send commands for executing a particular IR code."

Based around the Semtech SX1276 LoRa transceiver in either 868MHz or 433MHz frequencies to cover various national spectrum allocations, the kit promises up to a 10km line-of-sight range, low power consumption, and support for both up- and downlink messaging. The kit is comprised of an Arduino Uno board pre-loaded with demo application, a LoRa Shield, and the Irdroino Shield — the latter providing high-powered infrared LEDs.

The LoRa IR Transmitter Kit is now available from Irdroid's Tindie store, priced at $42 per unit; the company has also published the hardware design files and software source code on its GitHub repository under the GNU General Public License 3.