Taoglas and Embedded Works Partner to Optimize Coverage and Revenue for Helium’s Crypto-Miner Hotspots
BARCELONA, Spain – Feb. 28, 2022 – Taoglas®, a leading provider of advanced technology for a smarter world, today announced a partnership with Embedded Works to provide its industry-leading antennas for Embedded Works portfolio of Helium Network crypto–mining gateways. This industry-first partnership highlights how the best-performing antennas in the industry can increase revenue for Helium crypto–miners.
Helium miners serve a dual role of being a source of crypto-currency revenue as well as gateway to connect Internet of Things (IoT) devices. To earn Helium Network Token (HNT) crypto-currency, users simply install a Helium Hotspot “miner” such as Embedded Works’ KST Affinity Enterprise Helium Gateway which will help build out the world’s largest LoRaWAN network on the Helium blockchain. To maximize HNT rewards, miner owners need to improve their “Proof-of-Coverage” and witness beacons which can be done by using higher performing antennas installed at optimum locations.
Embedded Works selected and tested the Taoglas Barracuda OMB.915 8dBi omni-directional antenna for use with its Helium miners and saw significant performance enhancements over other vendors’ antennas.
“When we put up the Taoglas high gain outdoor antenna, we got an extra 10 km range — helping our miner improve Proof-of-Coverage and witnesses. Considering that the Helium network is adding 80,000 Hotspots each month, that extra coverage could easily translate to significant extra HNTs per month for a user, especially in urban areas such as the Bay Area.” – Andy Do, Embedded Works President and CEO
The Taoglas Barracuda is ideal for rooftops, poles and other high, outdoor places where Helium crypto-miners frequently install their antennas to maximize coverage. Featuring an integrated bracket for easy installation on poles and walls, the Barracuda has a UV-resistant, IP65-rated fiberglass housing that’s more durable than traditional whip antennas. The antenna also has wind resistance up to 241 km/h and a ruggedized N-type female connector.
With a sturdy 1475 x 70 mm form factor, the Barracuda OMB.915 covers the US915 MHz LoRaWAN band. The collinear dipole array provides up to 8 dBi peak gain and high efficiency, as well as an omnidirectional radiation pattern that’s uniform in the azimuth to achieve long-distance coverage. That’s key for wringing maximum performance out of even minimal signals.
Taoglas offers 30 compatible Helium antennas and recently added six standard Helium cable kits, with TGC-200 and TGC-400 cables available in 1m, 5m and 10m lengths as standard. Through the Taoglas Cable Builder, customized cable assemblies can also be built and shipped in as little as 24 hours.
“Embedded Works’ side-by-side comparison of the Taoglas Barracuda is yet another real-world example of how a great and high-performing antenna makes all the difference. In the case of Helium, that difference can be measured multiple ways, from additional revenue for crypto-miners to a larger, more comprehensive network for the people who depend on it for connectivity.” – Dermot O’Shea, CEO of Taoglas