An Advanced IoT Framework for Long Range Connectivity and Secure Data Transmission Leveraging LoRa and ASCON Encryption

Jul 6, 2026

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A cost-effective IoT communication framework delivers long-range connectivity and secure data transmission for resource-constrained devices by combining Raspberry Pi Pico microcontrollers, LoRa RYLR896 radio modules, and ASCON authenticated encryption. ASCON provides encryption and authentication in a lightweight, memory-efficient design, supporting secure key negotiation via pre-shared keys and a key exchange protocol. Two environmental sensors (AHTx0 and BME280) stream data to an ESP32 receiver. Experiments evaluate SNR, RSSI, power consumption, and memory usage, and include local CSV storage when Wi‑Fi is unavailable.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages7

Reading Time18 min

Introduction

IoT communication needs and security requirements

LoRa for long-range, low-power connectivity

ASCON lightweight authenticated encryption

Proposed framework and prototype design

Device architecture and components

Sensor integration and data transmission

Key exchange and encryption approach

Performance evaluation

Communication metrics (SNR, RSSI)

Resource metrics (power, memory)

Local storage for offline scenarios

2023 IEEE World AI IoT Congress (AIIoT) | 979-8-3503-376 1-7/23/$31.00 ©2023 IEEE | DOI: 10. 1 109/AIIoT58121 .2023. 10174401 An Advanced IoT Framework for Long Range Connectivity and Secure Data Transmission Leveraging LoRa and ASCON Encryption Mohammad Nooruddin Ingram School of Engineering Texas State University San Marcos, USA[m.nooruddin58@txstate.edu](m.nooruddin58@txstate.edu) Damian Valles Ingram School of Engineering Texas State University San Marcos, USA [dvalles@txstate.edu](dvalles@txstate.edu) Abstract—In the rapidly evolving Internet-of-Things (IoT) landscape, the need for long-range communication and robust security measures has become paramount. This paper presents a cost-effective and innovative IoT communication framework utilizing Raspberry Pi Pico microcontrollers, LoRa RYLR896 radio modules, and ASCON-based encryption to facilitate secure and efficient data transmission between resource-constrained devices. The affordability of the Raspberry Pi Pico, LoRa RYLR896, and ESP32 microcontroller make the proposed solution highly accessible and economically viable for widespread deployment. The strengths of ASCON, the NIST-selected lightweight cryptographic standard, are leveraged, providing both encryption and authentication in a single, memory-efficient container, outperforming traditional AES in IoT applications. The system is implemented with a key exchange algorithm that employs pre-shared keys and a key exchange protocol to securely negotiate encryption keys between devices. The approach incorporates two environmental sensors, the AHTx0 temperature sensor and BME280 atmospheric pressure sensor, to continuously monitor and transmit data to a central receiver using an ESP32 microcontroller. The performance of the proposed framework is evaluated through comprehensive experiments, concentrating on crucial communication metrics such as Signal-to-Noise Ratio (SNR), Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI), power consumption, and memory usage. The findings demonstrate the reasonable performance of the communication framework for IoT applications. Furthermore, the system features a built-in local data storage mechanism for circumstances where Wi-Fi connectivity is unavailable, such as rural areas, saving the sensor data as CSV files on the ESP32 microcontroller. Keywords—IoT, LoRa, ASCON, ESP32, Raspberry Pi, Encryption, Hash, Authentication, Security, environmental sensors I. INTRODUCTION The Internet-of-Things (IoT) has emerged as a transformative technology, connecting numerous devices, and facilitating real-time communication, data exchange, and control over various applications [1] . The increasing demand for long-range, low-power, and secure communication between IoT devices has driven the development of new communication protocols and cryptographic solutions [2] . Among the various communication technologies, LongRange (LoRa) technology has emerged as a promising solution for long-range and low-power IoT applications due to its outstanding performance in terms of range, power consumption, and reliability [3] . Moreover, the rapid expansion of IoT networks has created an urgent need for lightweight cryptographic algorithms capable of providing secure communication while consuming minimal resources [4][5] . Recent advancements in lightweight cryptography have led to the development of ASCON. This extremely efficient, authenticated encryption algorithm has been selected as the standard by the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) [6] . ASCON is specifically developed to suit the requirements ofIoT devices with limited processing power and memory [7] . It offers encryption and authentication in a special package, providing enhanced security compared to traditional AES, which requires additional authentication mechanisms [8] . This paper proposes a cost-effective and intelligent IoT framework integrating LoRa communication and ASCON encryption advantages to provide secure an

FAQs

What components does the proposed IoT framework use to enable long-range and secure communication?

The framework uses Raspberry Pi Pico microcontrollers, LoRa RYLR896 radio modules, and ESP32 microcontrollers, with ASCON-based encryption for secure transmission between devices.

How does the framework provide encryption and authentication for IoT devices?

It leverages ASCON, an authenticated encryption standard designed for limited processing power and memory, and integrates a key exchange mechanism using pre-shared keys to negotiate encryption keys securely.

Which metrics are used to evaluate the framework’s performance?

Performance is assessed using communication metrics such as SNR and RSSI, along with power consumption and memory usage.

Jul 6, 2026

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