Deep Orbital Pulse modular gateway

System architecture

Deep Orbital Pulse is a modular gateway for connecting instruments and actuators to a remote monitoring system. Its distinguishing feature is a pair of sliding-module slots, allowing the interface hardware to be specified around the measurement task. A farm installation can combine local wireless devices with wired instruments, rather than adopting a separate communications unit for every sensor type.

The gateway performs a different role from the instrument. Soil water content, rainfall and irrigation flow are measured by connected devices; Pulse provides their configured communications path. The supported commands, electrical characteristics and firmware integration of each instrument determine whether a connection also supports control.

Hardware configuration and interfaces

The Deep Orbital product page lists cellular communications, Wi-Fi, LoRa, GPS, an OLED display and programmable interfaces including SDI-12 and RS485. The purchasable kit must be specified more narrowly. The Pycno configuration lists a modem choice, regional LoRa frequency and separate left and right sliding modules. Dummy modules seal unused slots; they do not provide measurement inputs.

The listed module options include a flowmeter interface and a two-port SDI-12 interface. This makes Pulse a particularly useful candidate for a farm combining water metering with compatible environmental instruments. An SDI-12 port exchanges addressed commands and digital readings; the instrument still requires compatible power, command handling and measurement interpretation. A flowmeter connection requires its pulse output and scaling factor to match the supplied module.

RS485 specifies the electrical signalling layer. Integration with a Modbus instrument additionally requires matching serial settings, register addresses, data types and units. The general product description should therefore be distinguished from the exact modules supplied. A displayed example of a module is not evidence that it is included in the selected kit.

The Pycno Soil Mini provides a compact moisture and electrical-conductivity measurement option. Its listing identifies a Pulse UART sliding module for the UART version and a Pulse RS485 sliding module for the RS485 version. These are variant-specific connections; module selection and availability should be confirmed with the soil-sensor specification.

Power supply and installation

Pulse incorporates a front solar panel. The manufacturer describes support for a larger external panel where wired peripherals require additional power, and USB-C charging for indoor applications. The display and navigation buttons provide local access to status information such as battery condition and signal strength.

The complete energy requirement includes the gateway, instrument excitation, measurement time, modem activity and any connected equipment. A solar panel's rated output does not establish the energy available during a shaded winter day. Installation design should account for panel orientation, cable losses, battery capacity and the duty cycle of every powered peripheral.

The mounting position must accommodate solar exposure and communications. Antenna height, terrain, vegetation and the receiving device affect the local radio link, while cellular reception depends on the selected modem and operator. A connectivity specification cannot replace a survey at the intended mounting point.

Soil and weather monitoring

The SKY WS station provides a documented route to add local weather measurements to a Pulse installation. The listed LoRa variants require a Pulse gateway and explicitly exclude Terra Masters. Regional frequency selection is therefore part of the weather-system specification.

Pycno Terra represents a different soil-network architecture: a Terra Master provides cellular upload and compatible Nodes depend on a Master. Combining soil and weather information in one management workflow does not establish that every device shares the same radio infrastructure. Where Terra is already installed, its Master/Node configuration should remain explicit when a separate Pulse and SKY installation is added.

Pycno's software platform provides charts, rule-based alerts, growing degree-day and chilling-hour calculations, crop disease models and spreadsheet export. These functions provide a useful analytical layer for a compatible monitoring installation. Instrument identity, units and original sampling times remain necessary for interpreting combined records, and availability of each function should be established for the supplied service.

Alternative architectures

Pulse is well suited to installations expected to expand from a single measurement into soil, weather or water monitoring using selected interfaces. Other gateways and loggers are appropriate where direct analog measurement, a programmable local acquisition sequence or a standard LoRaWAN network is the primary requirement.

Campbell Scientific CR350 is a measurement-and-control logger with analog inputs, SDI-12 and independent RS232/RS485 ports. It stores data and runs a user-defined program locally. The selected communications option, external power system and enclosure form part of the installation.

Milesight UG65 and MultiTech Conduit AP 300 connect LoRaWAN end devices to network and application services. Their sensors remain separate end devices. UG65 offers an embedded network server; AP 300 provides indoor LoRaWAN connectivity with Ethernet-only and regional cellular versions. Neither architecture establishes compatibility with an arbitrary proprietary LoRa sensor.

Automation and data continuity

The Pulse product page describes rules for controlling connected devices. For an irrigation application, the required sequence includes the initiating measurement, output action and independent confirmation by flow, pressure or valve state. The electrical output and actuator interface must be specified together, including any external relay or dedicated controller.

Remote rules, local rules and manual operation are distinct operating modes. The supplied configuration should identify where the rule executes, its response to stale measurements and its behaviour during a communications outage. Local storage capacity, recovery of original timestamps and export access should be confirmed for the firmware and service package.

Development of gateway architectures

Field monitoring has progressed from local measurement registers to electronic data loggers and remote telemetry. Modular gateways combine selected instrument interfaces with communications hardware in one assembly. This development changes how observations reach an application, while retaining the instrument-specific requirements for excitation, command handling and calibration.

Terminology

Sliding module

A replaceable interface unit fitted to one of the gateway's two expansion slots.

SDI-12

A serial interface for addressed environmental instruments that exchange commands and measurement data.

LoRa and LoRaWAN

LoRa is the radio modulation technology; LoRaWAN specifies a network protocol and associated device/server architecture.

Pulse factor

The volume represented by each output pulse from a meter, used to calculate accumulated flow.

Can Pulse replace a measurement logger?

It can serve a configured monitoring installation when the required instruments and functions are supported. A logger with dedicated analog measurement terminals and a local measurement program addresses a different acquisition requirement. The gateway comparison explains these distinctions.

Does a LoRa radio establish compatibility with LoRaWAN devices?

No. Compatibility depends on the protocol and supplied firmware as well as radio frequency. The Pulse listing's LoRa designation should not be treated as confirmation of LoRaWAN support.

Which specification is needed for a mixed farm installation?

A model-specific schedule covering each instrument, module, modem, regional frequency, power supply, mounting arrangement and software service defines the complete system. The Pulse product page describes its architecture, while the kit configurator identifies selectable components.