The new Telenor IoT Test Lab located in Karlskrona, Sweden, was introduced in spring 2024 and seeks to serve as a way of supporting customers in understanding how their IoT devices perform before being deployed across various applications.
Testing is a vital part of any development project, and in cellular IoT, it is essential to ensure the device will perform reliably in various environments and conditions before it is shipped. Thorough IoT device testing before deployment allows customers to reduce time to market, improve test coverage, and identify issues early, preventing costly troubleshooting once large numbers of products have reached the market.
Since the early days of IoT, many new and advanced connectivity technologies have emerged, such as LTE-M, NB-IoT, and 5G, offering enhanced coverage, improved energy efficiency, and greater data throughput. However, these new features also introduce complexity and more scenarios where profiling and tuning of settings are required to achieve optimal performance for the customer’s specific use case.
The Test Lab is equipped with a Faraday radio cage specifically tuned for testing different networks. It provides access to the four Nordic Telenor operators—Telenor Sweden, Telenor Norway, DNA (Finland), and Telenor Denmark—in one location. The lab features advanced steering and control systems that allow control of the available operator, access technology, and even signal levels, enabling the simulation of most network scenarios in a controlled and repeatable manner.
Testing is always tailored to each customer’s individual needs and can be conducted either on-site or remotely by sending devices to the Telenor IoT test manager. Telenor also offers automated long-term testing.
In addition to its technical capabilities, Telenor provides experienced test managers to support the planning of tests, analyse test results, and offer solution suggestions for any issues that arise during testing.
Typical test scenarios that Telenor IoT customers can verify in the Test Lab include:
- 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 quickly does it recover?
- Does the device follow the GSMA recommendations regarding efficiency guidelines?
- How energy efficient is the device under various network conditions and signal strengths?
- How will the device handle different roaming scenarios?
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