The Swiss Interest Group for Wifi HaLow (IEEE 802.11ah) has started its activities during 2023. It aims to bring together parties with interest in the Wifi HaLow technology, that conforms to the EU & CH frequency regulations.

In June 2024, a 1st Swiss Wifi HaLow Workshop was held in Bern, with presentations of the results from:

• a master student project from 2021 at FHV in Dornbirn
• a master student project from EPFL, TCL in Lausanne
• a range test with HaLow devices from Anjielosmart
• several contibutions from industry and academia

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In January 2025, the „2nd Wifi HaLow in Europe Workshop“ has been organized by ZHAW in Winterthur.

3rd Wi-Fi HaLow in Europe Workshop

on Friday, 6.2.2026:

• 13:30  Doors open
  Location: Schwarztorstrasse 31, Bern 2nd floor (GLUE AG)
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• 13:40  – 14:00 Welcome and Intro: 
  „Challenges & Opportunities for an IoT-Adapter for real-time Energy Data„
  GEAG/gPlug.ch, Hermann Hüni
  
  Abstract: All new smart-meters (SM) deployed by Swiss DSO provide a local information interface (CII) to instantly deliver the measured values with a frequency of up to 1 Hz to a connected IoT-adapter. SM are often installed in inconvenient locations, but the data can easily be transmitted by WiFi to a more convenient place. Since Wifi on 2.4 GHz has only a very limited range within concrete buildings, a longer wireless transmission-range technology with a sufficient data-rate and low energy consumption is strongly desirable. The challenges faced and the opportunities available with Wifi HaLow for real-time energy data will be shown.
  
  Bio: Hermann earned EE and CS degrees at HTL in Biel and EPF in Lausanne. He has been engaged in object oriented software engineering, has co-founded the SW company GLUE in Bern as well as initiated the PV-energy producing company Gantrisch-Energie. He also started gPlug.ch to provide IoT-adapters with the open-source firmware Tasmota for the various types of Swiss SM’s local interfaces.
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• 14:00 – 14:30: „WiFi HaLow Analysis and PCB-Design„
  BFH, Lorenzo Bergamini
  
  Abstract: This project examines Wi-Fi HaLow from a practical perspective. The focus is on the circuit design and PCB design of a Wi-Fi HaLow-enabled prototype based on the FGH100M radio module with the Morse Micro MM6108 chip. The radio module is connected on an ESP32 on the custom PCB and on a Raspberry for the AP mode functionality. The performance of the devices is validated with the official MM iperf test. This PCB will serve as a basis for further firmware development and experiments.
  
  Bio: Dr. Lorenzo Bergamini is a professor at TI department of Bern University of Applied Sciences (BFH), specializing in embedded systems and IoT. He holds a PhD in Computer Science from Sapienza University of Rome and has extensive experience in wireless communications, low power devices and embedded software development. His teaching focuses on microcontroller programming, embedded Linux, and communication technologies.  He is currently part of the I3S research institute of the BFH.
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• 14:30 – 14:50: „Experiences from developing a Wi-Fi HaLow shield for an ESP32 Board„
  ZHAW,  Luciano Sarperi
  
  Abstract: In this project we developed a CH/EU compliant flexible Wi-Fi HaLow (802.11ah) plugin module for the ESP32 controller, which allows assessment of the Wi-Fi HaLow performance in realistic IoT scenarios.
  
  Bio: Luciano Sarperi has been a lecturer for wireless communications at Zurich University of Applied Sciences (ZHAW) since 2017 and a Professor since 2024. His research interests include IoT wireless systems, wireless localization and software defined radio applications.
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• 15:00 – 15:15 Coffee break
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• 15:15 – 15:45 „WiFi Halow for Self-Sustainable Wireless Sensor Nodes„
  ETHZ, Nicolas Schärer
  
  Abstract: As self-sustainable wireless sensor nodes become essential for new applications, current protocols like BLE and LoRa still face significant range or throughput limitations. This presentation explores WiFi HaLow as a solution, analyzing the performance of MM6108 and Newracom NRC7394 modules. We demonstrate the technology’s relevance and limits through two energy-harvesting use cases: wind turbine blade monitoring and air quality sensing.
  
  Bio:  Nicolas Schärer received the M.Sc. degree in electrical engineering and information technology from INSA Rennes, France, in 2022. He is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree with the D-ITET Center for Project-Based Learning (PBL), ETH Zürich, Switzerland, where he explores low power communication technologies, including WiFi HaLow. From 2019 to 2022, he was an Application Support Engineer Intern with STMicroelectronics, working on Hybrid G3-PLC (Narrowband Power Line Communication and 868 MHz RF). His research interests include hardware–software co-design, ultra-low power embedded systems, and their application in demanding environments.
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• 15:45 – 16:45 Demos & interoperability lab session with all devices:
  
  • GEAG:  HaLowLink2 dual WiFi (2.4 GHz/subGHz) from Morse Micro (MM)
  • BFH:    Quectel/MM6108 module based IoT device: STA with ESP32 and AP with raspi
  • ZHAW: Newracom NRC7394 based IoT devices: (STA + AP) with ESP32
  • ETHZ:  MM6108 and Newracom NRC7394 devkit based IoT devices (STA + AP)
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• The HaLow IoT challenge: 
  1. Will all participating STA devices communicate with a single Wifi HaLow AP @ 1 MHz BW and be able to send a data telegram of 1 kB/s, while respecting EU/CH regulations?
     
  2. Will a single AP in the center of this concrete building [1] allow communication with all STA with a stable 1 Mbps over UDP or TCP trough multiple walls and over multiple floors?
     
     [1]: 20’000 m³: 55 m x 20 m, 5+1 stories tall, +2 stories underground
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• 16.45 Closing remarks. Next steps. End of the event

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Interested people may register for participation by sending an email with their full name and affiliation to the following address: IG-HaLow@glue.ch

The presentations are available from here:

• gPlug: Challenges & Opportunities for an IoT-Adapter for real-time Energy Data
• BFH: WiFi HaLow Analysis and PCB-Design
• ZHAW: Experiences from developing a Wi-Fi HaLow shield for an ESP32 Board
• ETHZ: WiFi Halow for Self-Sustainable Wireless Sensor Nodes