Hi,
I recently dug into the potentials of the NB-IOT network allowing iot devices to directly make use of cellular communication. With the release of the new nrf9160 containing functionality to use the NB-IOT, my interest in the subject went from 0% to 100%. My knowledge about this area is almost equal to zero, but reading about it made me ask myself: "it must be possible to make it smaller and more efficient for usage in mass-produced products". I red some articles and watched some presentations on Nordic's youtube channel where the technology is discussed. One thing mentioned in all sources is that there is always the need of an internal power source. But if the iot device does not need to do any processing while idle and only use small amounts of energy to just transmit data using energy from a remote source, could it be done without to many drawbacks?
My question is: Is there any possible way to make use of the NB-IOT network with backscattering? Like a normal RFID tags work. Since the NB-IOT is on the low frequency between 200-900khz (this is probably incorrect), the range of the backscatter from an antenna could be able to reach longer distances (long enough distance to communicate with cellular towers?).
When using the NB-IOT you need to have a UICC / Simcard and some kind of subcsription with a telecompany providing the network. But if it is possible to replace the chip from an rfid tag with a special built sim card, could it be possible to connect it to the network? The function of this device is only to transmit small amounts of data used for tracking or other purposes.
This is not an urgent matter, but a fun question that somebody probably have asked before :)
