The duty cycle should be taken into account each time you send. It’s not some hourly or daily total, so you cannot send 36 seconds and then be quiet for the remaining hour. Instead, from the specifications:
The LoRaWAN enforces a per sub-band duty-cycle limitation. Each time a frame is transmitted in a given sub-band, the time of emission and the on-air duration of the frame are recorded for this sub-band. The same sub-band cannot be used again during the next Toff seconds where:
The duty cycle is meant to lower the chances that two nodes send simultaneously. (Which would cause collisions and data loss if that happens.) However, if each node would use the maximum 1% duty cycle (assuming they would never send simultaneously with some other nodes, and would do perfect channel-hopping using 8 channels), then a gateway could only support 800 nodes! (Okay, a bit more if nodes happen to use different spreading factors, but far less as nodes send randomly.)
In other words: the maximum duty cycle is the absolute minimum time a node needs to be quiet between two messages. But on average, you should be far below the maximum duty cycle.
The TTN Fair Access Policy nicely summarizes 1. and 2. by limiting air time to 30 seconds per node per day.
Thanks for your answer. I have more questions.
Assuming:
Sub-band (868 – 868.6) have 3 channel A,B,C and DC=1%
I have 50 nodes. Node1 just transmitted a 0.5 s long frame on one default channel 1. (Sub-band) will unavailable for 49.5s with only node1 or all of 50 nodes ? 2. 0.5s and 49.5s is calculated by node1 or Gateway?.
I think that: Node1 know payload of data, SF,… => it will know 0.5s and it will not transmit until 49.5s next. Did i correct ?
And can node1 know auto transmitting on another channel in other sub-band ?
2.I am not sure how this works.
For sure it is not calculated by the gateway. The node has to do this. As far is I understand some nodes will automaticly obay the duty cycle (build in by the company who made it). Other nodes wil require you to do that, if you write your own software for the node, a library may do this for you.
As a per-channel duty cycle limit is easier to implement, you can also divide the sub-band duty cycle over the number of channels in that sub-band. So for example, in a sub-band with 8 channels and a duty cycle of 1%, each channel has a duty cycle of 1/8% (that’s 0.125%).
This method is also implemented by the RN2483 module, and as a result, instead of seeing the no_free_ch when you send too quickly after the first message you can send multiple messages before all 8 channels are “blocked” and the duty cycle is enforced.
The figure below shows enforcement on those same two bands, but enforced per channel
No. With a per-channel duty cycle implementation, all channels in the same subband are given their own (smaller) maximum duty cycle, not affected by activity on any of the other channels:
So for example, in a sub-band with 8 channels and a duty cycle of 1%, each channel has a duty cycle of 1/8% (that’s 0.125%).
(In the image: if channel 1 is the only channel in the first sub-band, and channel 2 and 3 are the only channels in the second sub-band, and both sub-bands have the same maximum duty cycle, then both channel 2 and channel 3 will have to wait for at least 2 × 4 = 8 time units, because the second sub-band then has twice as many channels as the first sub-band. Or, if the second sub-band has, say, 8 channels, then each of channels 2 through 9 needs to wait for at least 8 × 4 = 32 units after sending. All regardless of any activity on any of the other channels.)
I am using ABP. So Can i use same frequency for multiple channel.Because i just have one frequency (868850000) for my gateway.
Should the dutycycle be less than 1% for all channels
No. Even when lowering the maximum duty cycle for each of the duplicate channels, the RN2483 might then quickly transmit on the same frequency like explained in the image above, which is an abuse of the regulations.
Please beware that the maximum duty cycle is really that: a maximum, to keep the network going, as we all share the same frequencies. You shouldn’t use it to push your usage to the limits. On average, you should be far below the maximum.
If you say that you use the frequency 868.85, that means you’re in the g2 band (868.7 – 869.2) which has a maximum duty cycle of 0.1%. If you would have 3 channels between 868.7 and 869.2, you’d have to share that 0.1% with the three channels, giving you a per-channel duty cycle limit of 0.033%.
I am using 865Mhz frequency in RN2483 Module because that frequency is only allowed in our place.(868Mhz is not in free range).
The default channels (0-2) are set to frequency 868Mhz and cannot be changed. Is it necessary to change the frequencies for default channels to 865 or is it ok to leave it to 868 Mhz.
If it needs to be changed then how to change. Because RN2483 module doesn’t allow to change the frequency of default channels(0-2).
I don’t think it really matters, if you follow the Fair Access Policy you will probably never send messages directly after each other.
If you do need to send multiple messages right after each other a per channel implementation will be faster. Since you can send on the 2nd while the first is still waiting. But that will only be faster if the number of messages you want to send is equal or lower to the number of channels in the band.
Else, if you send a message every few minutes, the only difference it will give is the implementation you have to do. Thus it would be your own judgement which is easier to implement. (If it is not already implemented by the chip/library you use.)