Supporting Smart Farming through Bandwidth Adaptation in Satellite Communications

Access to the Internet is a crucial enabler for many of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. Unfortunately, a significant part of the world's population is left behind due to the lack of access to a reliable and affordable Internet connection. Satellites have the potential to impact the current market of Internet services significantly. In particular, Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellites promise high-bandwidth without compromising latency. They can be employed in 5G Non-Terrestrial Networks (e.g., IoT connectivity, connected autonomous driving, communication in rural areas, and more). Smart farming and precise agriculture (even remotely controlled), especially in underdeveloped areas, are compelling use cases for LEO satellites. In these scenarios, high bandwidth and low latency are required to facilitate both quick transmission of images/videos and prompt remote control of drones, tractors, actuators, etc. This study compares different TCP protocols based on their performance over satellite communication in a smart farming case study. It also proposes and analyzes a solution leveraging on a limited buffer size to maintain a high throughput while lowering per-packet delays.