Weathering the Challenge of Long-Range Data Communications

As climate variability intensifies, industries across the board are recognizing the critical role of real-time and historical climate data in decision-making. From precision agriculture, to smart city infrastructure, to meteorological services, many different industries are realizing the value in climate data, and have become especially reliant on granular weather insights to adapt to rapidly shifting environmental patterns. In farming, for instance, even a 1°C increase in average temperature can reduce wheat yields by up to 6%, while erratic rainfall disrupts planting cycles and increases the risk of crop failure. Monitoring humidity levels is equally vital, as high humidity during pollination windows can reduce corn yield potential by up to 10%. These factors make localized, sensor-based climate monitoring an essential tool for modern precision agriculture.

In smart city development, climate data is no longer just a planning tool—it’s foundational for operational safety and sustainability. Urban centers now integrate sensors to monitor wind speeds, temperature spikes, and precipitation rates to manage traffic, public transportation, and emergency services more efficiently. For example, sudden rainfall exceeding 20 mm in an hour can overwhelm drainage systems, leading to localized flooding. Likewise, wind gusts over 30mph can impact power lines and traffic signals. By embedding sensors in crosswalks, buildings, and transit hubs, cities can respond dynamically to environmental changes, ensuring safer, more resilient infrastructure.

However, beyond gathering data, an important factor is being able to communicate the data effectively to user databases, especially across long distances. Farm fields may have sensors anchored in isolated areas, and cities with weather sensors equipped to smart street lights will undoubtedly have a vast area to cover in the metropolitan area. While cellular data can certainly be an effective tool in many applications, it can be costly and not always available in certain areas where signal towers aren’t reaching necessary areas. For applications like these, alternative communication protocols are necessary

OMRON is teaming up with KS Technologies to bring state of the art weather sensors to the market, with an add-on to bring sensing data to the LoRa network. By combining two great engineering teams, they’ve created a package that is not only able to capture key climate data, but also transmit that data over long distances, reaching up to 10 miles away in ideal conditions.

Webinar Overview:

Join us for our webinar on July 24th, where members of both OMRON and KST will share their developments and discoveries of these products, going over key industry needs and how these upcoming product releases can bring major change to the weather tracking industry.

Key Highlights:

• Industry trend – IoT Communications & Climate Concerns
• Weather Tracking Solutions
• Lora Connectivity

Webinar Title: Weathering the Challenge of Long-Range Data Communications

Date: Thursday, July 24th 2025

Time: 11:00am CST / 12:00am EST / 9:00am PST

Register Today!

Presenter: Main Speaker: Cary Horan, Business Development Manager, OMRON Electronic Components

Guest Speaker: Bob Kressin, President & CEO, KS Technologies

Cary Horan attended Georgia Institute of Technology where he obtained his Bachelor of Science degree in Mechanical Engineering. He is currently the Business Development Manager for OMRON, serving as America’s technical contact for OMRON’s diverse sensor product offerings. He has expertise in the manufacturing field, including IoT, Smart City and Agriculture applications.

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