WiMeCOM is a Moroccan project funded by the Institut de Recherche en Energie Solaire et Energies Nouvelles (IRESEN), where INESC-ID is a partner together with the Moroccan Foundation for Advanced Science, Innovation and Research (MAScIR), the Institut National des Postes et Télécommunications (INPT), the Green Energy Park (GEP) and Tronico Atlas.

The overall objective of the WiMeCOM project is to develop hybrid wireless and wired smart metering solution.

The Communication Networks group of INESC-ID is collaborating specifically on modelling and optimization of a smart metering communication network solution integrating the Long Range Wide Area Network (LoRaWAN) and Power Line Communication (PLC) technologies.

In the context of this project, INESC-ID hosted Ms Souhaima Stiri (M.Sc.) from MAScIR and INPT, during July 2019.

Her mission was to collaborate with the Researcher António Grilo to integrate the LoRaWAN and PLC models into an optimization framework based on a Multi-Objective Genetic Algorithm.

This algorithm will be used to find suitable trade-offs between communication quality and the cost of the communications infrastructure. Feedback from real pilot deployments will later be used to refine the model and transform it into a powerful and reliable tool that can be used by Distribution System Operators (DSOs) for deployment planning.

More information about the project here.