Fixed gateway tower vs mobile or vehicle gateway¶
Question¶
For LPWAN backhaul from a large parcel, do you invest in a fixed mast / tower gateway with wired or stable uplink, or rely on a vehicle-mounted gateway that bridges when present?
Criteria¶
| Criterion | Fixed tower / barn gateway | Mobile / vehicle gateway |
|---|---|---|
| Coverage | Persistent RF hearability if sited well | Intermittent; good for sweeps or herding workflows |
| Backhaul | Fiber/cellular fixed (if available) | Hotspot or return to yard Wi‑Fi |
| SPOF | Lightning, power, theft at remote shed | Crash, forget to enable, battery |
| OPEX | Internet + power + maintenance climb | Fuel, human time, mount wear |
| Best when | Always-on telemetry (tanks, pumps, gates) | Periodic rounds; mesh gap-fill |
Tradeoff summary¶
- Fixed wins for 24/7 situational awareness; mobile wins for sparse coverage extension without tower CAPEX.
- Split sites: a fixed gateway at
SITE_FARMmay still need VPN or MQTT toSITE_HOMESTEAD—seeField telemetry reference architecture — homestead + 120-acre farm.
Links¶
LoRaWAN vs Meshtastic for fixed farm telemetryLoRa, MQTT, and gateway bridgesGateway architecture — fixed tower vs vehicle vs mesh(title in backlog P2 #17—this page implements the comparison)
Tower safety, zoning, and guying are out of scope—use qualified installers.