LoPy and containers

[Kongduino]

I was wondering whether anyone has made attemps to communicate with LoPy (and LoRa in general) from inside a container, particularly reefer containers. Most probably, when I say container, most people see a big steel box and scream "Farraday cage!". Yessir. However, reefer (aka refregirated containers) need insulation, and are usually made of a metallic frame and walls of fiberglass, 5 to 10 cm think. Not much of a Farraday cage here I think. On Twitter, people at Pycom suggested to put the antenna outside, which might or might not be possible/desirable.

Has anyone one tested this?

Cheers

[jmarcelino]

@Kongduino
Are you sure it's just a metal frame? All the reefer containers I saw have food grade metal walls at least inside (stainless steel) for robustness and easy cleaning. But there are probably different kinds.

The next question is the insulation foil backed? If so you'll have problems.

Then of course comes the properties of the insulation foam itself, i.e. is it conductive (remember conductive foam is a radiation absorbent, used to line walls of RF test chambers)

Sounds very challenging to me.

[Kongduino]

@jmarcelino Thanks for your answer!
There are indeed different kinds. The fiberglass containers I saw didn't have much metal, except for the frame and rear part -- the refrigeration unit.. But the foam indeed could be a problem. I guess I am going to have to enlist the help of a shipping company to let me do quick tests...

A big challenge indeed. But quite interesting.

Cheers