Norwegian firm Telenor IoT has opened a testing facility for IoT devices in Karlskrona, Sweden, to help companies understand how their connected IoT products behave before deployment.

Testing is an important component for any development project, and in cellular IoT it is crucial to be confident the device will be reliable in as many different environments and conditions as possible before it is shipped. With thorough IoT device testing before deployment, users can reduce time to market, improve test coverage and find issues early to prevent costly troubleshooting later when massive number of products have already reached the market.

Since the early days of IoT many new and advanced connectivity technologies have been developed, for example LTE-M, NB-IoT and 5G, providing enhanced coverage, and improved energy consumption and data throughput. However, the new features also add complexity and more scenarios where profiling and tuning of settings are required to extract the optimum performance for the use case.

The Telenor IoT Test Lab is equipped with a Faraday cage tuned for testing of different networks. It provides access to the four Nordic Telenor operators – Telenor Sweden, Telenor Norway, DNA (Finland) and Telenor Denmark – in one location. It has steering and control systems allowing control of the available operator, access technology and even signal levels, allowing simulation of most network scenarios in a controlled and repeatable way.

Testing is always tailored to each user’s needs and can be carried out either on-site or remotely by sending devices to the Telenor IoT test manager. Telenor can also offer automated long-term testing.

In addition to technical capabilities Telenor has experienced test managers to provide support in planning the tests, analysing test results and providing suggestions for any issues that might arise during the testing.

Typical test scenarios that can be verified in the lab are:

• At what radio signal level does the device disconnect from the network? How does the device behave if the primary network temporarily disappears? Does it switch to another technology or operator? How fast does it recover?
• Does the device follow the GSMA recommendations regarding efficiency guidelines?
• How energy efficient is the device in various network conditions and signal strengths?
• How will the device handle different roaming scenarios?

For more information about the lab, visit iot.telenor.com/offering/iot-services/test-lab.