Design and Implementation of a Bidirectional Long-Range Communication System for Disaster Management Applications

Notice

This is an unedited manuscript accepted for publication and provided as an Article in Press for early access at the author’s request. The article will undergo copyediting, typesetting, and galley proof review before final publication. Please be aware that errors may be identified during production that could affect the content. All legal disclaimers of the journal apply.

Year : 2026 | Volume : 16 | 02 | Page :
By

Shravani Pimpodkar,

Yogesh Nazarkar,

Nandini Dhole,

Tulsi Patil,

Geetanjali Suryawanshi,

  1. Student, Department of Electronics and Telecommunication, RMD Sinhgad School of Engineering, Warje, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  2. Student, Department of Electronics and Telecommunication, RMD Sinhgad School of Engineering, Warje, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  3. Assistant Professor, Department of Electronics and Telecommunication, RMD Sinhgad School of Engineering, Warje, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  4. Student, Department of Electronics and Telecommunication, RMD Sinhgad School of Engineering, Warje, Pune, Maharashtra, India
  5. Student, Department of Electronics and Telecommunication, RMD Sinhgad School of Engineering, Warje, Pune, Maharashtra, India

Abstract

In times of natural disasters like earthquakes, floods, landslides and cyclones, the normal communication lines are frequently cut, thus reducing the ability of the affected people and the relief team to communicate vital information. Cellular networks and Internet-based communication systems could be compromised in the event of a loss of power, damage to infrastructure or network congestion. Thus, it is necessary to have a communication system that will be dependable, low power, and infrastructure independent that can function during an emergency. This paper introduces the design and development of a bidirectional communication system for disaster management and emergency communication based on LoRa technology. The proposed system utilizes an ESP32 microcontroller as the brain and a LoRa transmitter-receiver module for long-range wireless data transfer. It features a built-in Neo-6M GPS module for real-time location and a keypad for setting and sending personalized messages. Transmitted and received messages, device status and location information are displayed by an OLED display. Also, there is an SOS button provided for sending out alerts instantly and the user’s location. The system is also solar powered to eliminate reliance on traditional electrical systems in remote and disaster areas. The transmitted data (messages, GPS coordinates) is also uploaded to the cloud platform ThingSpeak if the internet connection is available, which allows data to be stored, displayed and monitored remotely. The proposed system is a cost effective, energy efficient, and resilient communication system that can be used to support emergency response operations in challenging environments. The system integrates long-distance communication, location tracking, disaster emergency alert, and solar energy power support, allowing for better situational awareness, collaboration among users, and effective disaster response and recovery.

Keywords: LoRa, ESP32, Disaster Management, Emergency Communication, GPS Tracking, IoT, Solar Power, ThingSpeak, Long-Range Communication.

How to cite this article: Shravani Pimpodkar, Yogesh Nazarkar, Nandini Dhole, Tulsi Patil, Geetanjali Suryawanshi. Design and Implementation of a Bidirectional Long-Range Communication System for Disaster Management Applications. Journal of Communication Engineering & Systems. 2026; 16(02):-.
How to cite this URL: Shravani Pimpodkar, Yogesh Nazarkar, Nandini Dhole, Tulsi Patil, Geetanjali Suryawanshi. Design and Implementation of a Bidirectional Long-Range Communication System for Disaster Management Applications. Journal of Communication Engineering & Systems. 2026; 16(02):-. Available from: https://journals.stmjournals.com/joces/article=2026/view=250528

References

  1. Murata KT, Mizutani K, Muroyama Y, Yamamoto K, Muranaga K, Mizuhara T, Pavarangkoon P, Kobayashi K. LoRa Communication Maps of Medium-Sized Rural City in Japan via Community Bus Services. In2019 IEEE Intl Conf on Dependable, Autonomic and Secure Computing, Intl Conf on Pervasive Intelligence and Computing, Intl Conf on Cloud and Big Data Computing, Intl Conf on Cyber Science and Technology Congress (DASC/PiCom/CBDCom/CyberSciTech) 2019 Aug 5 (pp. 1054-1059). IEEE.
  2. Muthumari M. Design and realization of radio communication using LoRa & XBee module for an e-Bike. In2018 IEEE International Conference on Computational Intelligence and Computing Research (ICCIC) 2018 Dec 13 (pp. 1-4). IEEE.
  3. Misran N, Islam MS, Beng GK, Amin N, Islam MT. IoT based health monitoring system with LoRa communication technology. In2019 International Conference on Electrical Engineering and Informatics (ICEEI) 2019 Jul 9 (pp. 514-517). IEEE.
  4. Villarim MR, de Luna JV, de Farias Medeiros D, Pereira RI, de Souza CP, Baiocchi O, da Cunha Martins FC. An evaluation of LoRa communication range in urban and forest areas: A case study in brazil and portugal. In2019 IEEE 10th Annual Information Technology, Electronics and Mobile Communication Conference (IEMCON) 2019 Oct 17 (pp. 0827-0832). IEEE.
  5. Adelantado F, Vilajosana X, Tuset-Peiro P, Martinez B, Melia-Segui J, Watteyne T. Understanding the limits of LoRaWAN. IEEE Communications magazine. 2017 Sep 8;55(9):34-40.
  6. Springer A, Gugler W, Huemer M, Reindl L, Ruppel CC, Weigel R. Spread spectrum communications using chirp signals. IEEE/AFCEA EUROCOMM. 2000 May 19:166-70.
  7. Kucherov D, Berezkin A, Onikienko L. Detection of signals from a LoRa system under interference conditions. In2018 International Scientific-Practical Conference Problems of Infocommunications. Science and Technology (PIC S&T) 2018 Oct 9 (pp. 437-441). IEEE.
  8. Rawat AS, Rajendran J, Ramiah H, Rana A. LORA (Long Range) and LORAWAN technology for IoT applications in Covid-19 pandemic. In2020 International Conference on Advances in Computing, Communication & Materials (ICACCM) 2020 Aug 21 (pp. 419-422). IEEE.
  9. Michaelis J, Morelli A, Hernandez L, James D, Freeman J, Suri N. LoRaWAN testing for military communications in urban environments. In2021 IEEE 7th World Forum on Internet of Things (WF-IoT) 2021 Jun 14 (pp. 885-890). IEEE.
  10. Li Z, He T. LongBee: Enabling long-range cross-technology communication. InIEEE INFOCOM 2018-IEEE Conference on Computer Communications 2018 Apr 16 (pp. 162-170). IEEE.
  11. Vivek B, Arulmurugan A, Maheswaran S, Shafiq IM, Mohanaprasad S, Praveenkumar P. Smart-Child Tracking System with LoRa and GPS Technology. In2024 15th International Conference on Computing Communication and Networking Technologies (ICCCNT) 2024 Jun 24 (pp. 1-7). IEEE.
  12. Ojo MO, Adami D, Giordano S. Experimental evaluation of a LoRa wildlife monitoring network in a forest vegetation area. Future Internet. 2021 Apr 29;13(5):115.
  13. Fahmida S, Jain A, Modekurthy VP, Ismail D, Saifullah A. RTPL: A real-time communication protocol for LoRa network. ACM Transactions on Embedded Computing Systems. 2024 Dec 10;24(1):1-31.
  14. Babayiğit B, Doğan F. LoRa Communication Evaluation Based Building Density in Ankara City. In2022 International Congress on Human-Computer Interaction, Optimization and Robotic Applications (HORA) 2022 Jun 9 (pp. 1-4). IEEE.
  15. Jatiyoso HB, Riadi MF, Atturoybi A, Mardamsyah A, Tjahjadi H. Development of PIR sensor-based security system and IoT-based esp-32 wrover cam module for monitoring military headquarters and vital objects. Jurnal Mandiri IT. 2025 Jul 27;14(1):191-7.
  16. Rahman HU, Ahmad M, Ahmad H, Habib MA. LoRaWAN: state of the art, challenges, protocols and research issues. In2020 IEEE 23rd international multitopic conference (INMIC) 2020 Nov 5 (pp. 1-6). IEEE.
  17. Kamarudin MC, Ayob A, Hussain A, Ansari S, Abdolrasol MG, Saad MM. Review of LoRaWAN: Performance, Key Issues and Future Perspectives. J. Kejuruter. 2024 Mar;36(2):407-18.
  18. Setiawan B, Putra ES, Siradjuddin I, Junus M, Dewatama D, Wiyanto S. Study of LoRa (Long Range) communication for monitoring of a ship electrical system. InJournal of Physics: Conference Series 2019 Dec 1 (Vol. 1402, No. 4, p. 044022). IOP Publishing.
  19. Adi PD, Maulana YY, Huda MK, Adiprabowo T, Prihantoro C, Kurniadi DP. Improved transmission of LoRaWAN in terrestrial networks and satellite assist communication. In2025 4th International Conference on Electronics Representation and Algorithm (ICERA) 2025 Jun 12 (pp. 81-85). IEEE.
  20. Katsiri E, Karasoulas C, Keroglou C. Towards Dense Indoor Environmental Sensing with LoraWAN. In2023 18th International Workshop on Cellular Nanoscale Networks and their Applications (CNNA) 2023 Sep 28 (pp. 1-5). IEEE.
Ahead of Print Subscription Review Article
Volume 16
02
Received 19/05/2026
Accepted 23/06/2026
Published 02/07/2026
Publication Time 44 Days

Login

My IP

PlumX Metrics