How Existing Cellular IoT Devices Reach Satellite Networks Today

Traditional satellite connectivity has been prohibitively expensive and constrained by proprietary hardware and legacy protocols. This has had far-reaching consequences: limited connectivity not only restricts economic, recreational, and educational opportunities but can also be a critical factor in life-or-death situations where emergency services are delayed or unavailable.

‍
Most LTE-M and NB-IoT devices today were built for terrestrial networks. That makes sense — until you need coverage offshore, deep in a forest, or across international borders where cellular infrastructure gets spotty.  Coverage gaps can be both macro and micro.  Here's the good news for device makers: if your device runs on Sony Altair's ALT1250 chipset, it can already connect to Skylo's commercially available satellite network that is now operating in 36 countries worldwide. The collaboration between Sony Semiconductor Israel (Sony) and Skylo makes Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) capabilities commercially available today.

The Coverage Gap Problem

Traditional IoT works well where cellular networks exist. But significant gaps remain — oil and gas pipelines, energy transmission lines, remote agricultural areas, maritime shipping routes, mining operations, and emergency response zones. Geographic gaps in coverage limit what's possible. For example, asset tracking stops at the cell tower's edge. Environmental monitoring skips the places that need it most. Emergency services lose connectivity in rural areas. Cellular networks are inherently designed for where people live, yet 85% of the earth surface lacks terrestrial connectivity. For applications that need truly global connectivity, hybrid solutions that combine satellite with terrestrial connectivity can drastically expand the opportunity. Beyond the enhanced opportunities in expanded coverage, device vendors desire to ship globally without the potential limitations of network coverage. This simplifies and optimizes their supply chains to maximize the impact for their customers.

‍
NTN Integration: Why The Sony+Skylo Partnership Works

Sony's Altair ALT1250 provides a comprehensive hardware foundation with its dual-mode LTE-M/NB-IoT chipset featuring a dedicated integrated user MCU, embedded GNSS for location applications, and integrated SIM (iSIM). This enables single-profile operation for both terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks. The chipset's ultra-low power design achieves microampere-range average current consumption, optimized for long-lasting battery-operated devices. This enables years of battery life for always-reachable tracking applications and more than 15 years of continuous operation in smart metering applications. Reliable global cellular and satellite communication is maintained even in challenging RF environments through standard 23dBm transmission power with Power Class 3 (PC3) implementation.

Skylo provides the network infrastructure and services to make global NTN connectivity practical and commercially successful. Instead of designing separate products for different coverage scenarios, a singular ALT1250-based hardware platform handles both terrestrial and satellite connectivity through Skylo's network.  Embedding Skylo connectivity into an iSIM with a single profile that contains both terrestrial and non-terrestrial networks, extends the range of out-of the box connectivity for solutions based on ALT1250.  This unlocks new regions, territories, use cases and monetization options.

The ALT1250's OneSKU design philosophy extends to NTN support. Device makers can build one product that adapts to various networks based on availability: terrestrial cellular (TN - Terrestrial Network), Skylo satellite (NTN - Non-Terrestrial Network), or hybrid connectivity (TN+NTN). Adding NTN support to existing ALT1250-based devices expands their geographic reach and utility significantly:

• NTN support enables users to connect devices anywhere satellites can reach for complete, uninterrupted geographic coverage.
• Communication continues even when terrestrial networks fail, providing fallback connectivity.
• Assets can be followed through areas with different cellular standards, enabling true cross-border tracking on a global scale.
• Sensors can be placed where terrestrial infrastructure isn't practical, allowing remote deployment in previously inaccessible locations.

‍
Key Strategies for NTN Integration

Successfully extending existing NB-IoT devices to support NTN requires several adjustments:

• Protocol modifications: NTN introduces higher latency of seconds vs. 10s of milliseconds with terrestrial NB-IoT networks and therefore does not support connection oriented TCP protocol. This increased delay is further exacerbated by the Doppler shift caused by the rapid relative motion between the satellite and the ground device, requiring advanced compensation techniques at both ends to maintain signal integrity. Additionally, bandwidth constraints on satellite links often restrict overall throughput, while signal fade due to atmospheric conditions, obstacles, or even satellite movement can lead to intermittent connectivity and necessitate retransmissions, all contributing to the overall perceived latency and impacting data delivery performance. Therefore, utilizing Non-IP Data Delivery instead of UDP can still reduce bandwidth costs and improve performance by streamlining data transmission over these inherently complex satellite links.  Applications need to account for this and can reduce bandwidth consumption and improve performance over satellite links.
• Power consumption optimization: Satellite communications typically require longer transmission times and more complex link acquisition processes. Sony’s Altair ALT1250 addresses this challenge with industry-leading ultra-low power consumption that significantly extends battery life even during satellite operations. Its advanced power management capabilities ensure devices operate efficiently whether connecting via terrestrial networks or Skylo's satellite network.
• Antenna considerations: The ALT1250 supports the specific frequency bands utilized by Skylo services, including 3GPP Standard NTN bands: B252 (S-band, 2GHz), B255 (L-band, 1.6GHz ) and B256 (S-band, 2GHz). A typical LTE antenna is capable of supporting both TN and NTN, though, depending on your current design performance, antenna optimization for these bands might be needed.
  Software updates: Firmware needs to handle handoffs between terrestrial and satellite networks, manage power consumption during longer transmission cycles, and optimize for satellite link characteristics. This control is in your hands.
  ‍

Use Cases and Real-World Success

NTN integration opens up a variety of new use cases, and companies are already successfully deploying these capabilities:

• Maritime logistics companies can now track shipping containers across oceans where cellular coverage doesn't exist. 75% of the globe is covered with water, which results in vast expanses of uncovered areas. An NTN integration allows companies to monitor shipping containers and valuable assets as they approach hundreds of nautical miles from ports, decreasing the risk of asset loss in vulnerable cargo transit zones
• Agricultural operations are able to monitor soil conditions and equipment in remote farms. With satellite-enabled devices, organizations can ensure that they have continual coverage and reliable connectivity to monitor crops and livestock, track soil moisture, and have access to data across broad land areas. Farmers having access to the data can enable them to take corrective action right away decreasing the risk of stunting optimal plant growth or animal illness enabling them to reduce risk while increasing yield and scalability.  
• Utility companies can deploy a single smart meter SKU and ensure that those meters have even in areas without cellular coverage.Also during catastrophic events such as an earthquake or hurricane, cellular connected meters that lose coverage can switch to Satellite and report on abnormal usage such as a gas or water leak, enabling the utility to shutoff valves and prevent further disasters. This enables them to have data insights and dramatically reduce risk. Utilities can have access to uninterrupted, ubiquitous and reliable data.
• Emergency services are able to ensure communication availability during disasters. Often, cellular coverage lapses during severe weather or other emergency situations. Equipping emergency services with satellite-enabled devices means that they will always have access to critical communication. This ensures that they can better assist those in danger and stay safe themselves.
• The Oil & Gas industry can benefit from ubiquitous and reliable connectivity in the most remote and challenging environments where traditional cellular or wired infrastructure is absent. This enables continuous monitoring of critical assets like pipelines, wellheads, and remote storage tanks, facilitating real-time data collection for pressure, temperature, flow rates, and environmental conditions, which is crucial for preventative maintenance, leak detection, and operational efficiency. Furthermore, it supports enhanced safety by allowing lone worker communication and emergency response capabilities in isolated fields, ensuring that personnel can always connect for critical alerts or assistance, thereby minimizing risks and optimizing remote operations across the vast and often unserved landscapes of oil and gas exploration and production.
• Skylo's Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) service provides essential, contiguous and continuous connectivity for the diverse and often geographically dispersed assets within the broader energy industry, including renewable energy farms (solar, wind), remote grid infrastructure, and utility networks. This enables critical real-time data transmission from isolated solar panels, wind turbines, substations, and transmission lines, facilitating predictive maintenance, optimizing performance, and ensuring grid stability across vast, unserved territories. Beyond operational efficiency, Skylo's NTN enhances safety and security by supporting continuous surveillance and emergency communication for field personnel in hazardous or inaccessible locations, ultimately empowering intelligent energy management and resilience across the entire generation, transmission, and distribution spectrum.

Conclusion

Extending NB-IoT devices to incorporate Non-Terrestrial Network capabilities significantly expands their operational reach and unlocks new use cases, new revenue streams, and new insights. By considering application layer protocol adaptations, antenna optimization, and software updates developers can ensure seamless operation in both terrestrial and non-terrestrial environments. This can significantly increase the addressable market for NB-IoT devices.

‍

Get started now by evaluating Skylo Certified ALT1250 based NTN Evaluation Kits (EVKs):

• Quectel BG770A-SN: Digi-Key, Mouser
• Murata Type 1 SC: Monogoto, Mouser, Arrow, Future
• Semtech HL7810: Digi-Key
• Semtech HL7812: Digi-Key

‍

A dual mode, LTE-M/NB-IoT Terrestrial and Non-Terrestrial (NTN) solution, based on Sony’s Altair ALT1250 chipset, is available and commercially shipping to the mass market.

The combination of Sony Altair’s 1250 chipset and Skylo’s global standards based, Non-terrestrial network, allows device manufacturers to simply add this new connectivity medium to their hardware, expanding their footprint, capabilities, customer impact and revenue.

‍