FRESHDATA Relay
A LoRaWAN relay built to the LoRa Alliance® TS011 specification. Its defining capability is semantic scheduling and filtering — deciding which packets are worth forwarding, and in what order.
FRESHDATA Relay implements the LoRa Alliance TS011 relay specification. On top of standard relay forwarding, it applies semantic scheduling and filtering on the same hardware — improving data freshness (Age of Information) and network capacity relative to standard relay operation.
Semantic Scheduling & Filtering
The capability that separates FRESHDATA Relay from a plain TS011 relay
Filtering
The relay evaluates each uplink before forwarding it. Packets that carry no new information — redundant or superseded readings — are dropped at the relay instead of consuming airtime on the gateway link.
Scheduling
Remaining packets are ordered by Age of Information under a token budget. When airtime is scarce, the data whose freshness matters most is transmitted first rather than in arrival order.
Effect
Fewer packets on the air per end-device and more concurrent flows supported at the same token budget — without changing the LoRaWAN air interface or the network server.
Two Devices, Full Coverage
FRESHDATA Extender serves already-deployed networks; FRESHDATA Relay serves standards-compliant ones. Both run the same semantic scheduling core.
| FRESHDATA Extender | FRESHDATA Relay | |
|---|---|---|
| Architecture | Proprietary tunneling relay | LoRa Alliance TS011 standard relay |
| Compatibility | Backward compatible — works with LoRaWAN end-devices already in the field | Interoperable with any TS011-compliant end-device and network server |
| Semantic scheduling & filtering | Yes | Yes |
| Typical use | Extending coverage on an existing deployment without touching end-devices | New or multi-vendor deployments built on the standard |
Measurable Results
Verified against the TS011 specification and measured under a token budget
- 100% TS011 1.0.1 compliance Relay prototype
- +50% More equal flows supported Under the same token budget
- 1+ Proposal to LoRa Alliance New queue scheduling
How Relaying Works
The TS011 Wake-on-Radio (WOR) sequence between end-device, relay and network server
-
WOR preamble
The end-device sends a Wake-on-Radio preamble carrying the uplink channel and data rate.
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CAD & WOR-ACK
The relay detects the preamble during a Channel Activity Detection check, wakes, and replies with a synchronized WOR-ACK.
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Relayed uplink
The end-device transmits its encrypted LoRaWAN frame to the relay on the agreed channel.
-
Forwarding
The relay forwards the frame to the gateway and network server over the dedicated port (
LA_FPORT_RELAY).
Security & Management
Standard TS011 encryption model and MAC command set
End-to-end security
- End-device payloads stay encrypted with their original AppSKey and NwkSKey.
- Relay-to-server encapsulation uses the relay's own session keys.
- The relay cannot read or modify end-device payload contents.
Remote configuration
ForwardLimitReq/Ans— sets the forwarding limit that prevents packet looping.NotifyNewEndDeviceReq/Ans— notifies the server when a new end-device pairs with the relay.EndDeviceConfReq/Ans— configures channel and data-rate limits per device.
Technical Specifications
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Specification compliance | LoRa Alliance® TS011 1.0.1 relay specification |
| Scheduling | Semantic scheduling and filtering with Age of Information (AoI) aware queueing under a token budget |
| Radio transceiver | Semtech SX1261 / SX1262 / LR11xx compatible transceivers with CAD support |
| End-devices per relay | Up to 16, configurable via network server MAC commands |
| Encapsulation port | Dedicated LA_FPORT_RELAY |
| Network server compatibility | ChirpStack, The Things Network (TTN), Actility ThingPark, Senet, AWS IoT Core |
Evaluating a relay deployment?
Contact our engineering team for the FRESHDATA Relay hardware and firmware details.
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