Overview

Helium a is a decentralized wireless network built around WHIP on a purpose-built blockchain with a native token. At the basic level, Helium is a cryptocurrency-powered decentralized wireless network for "internet of things" devices. Decentralization in software-level networks is scaling up fast, but physical networks are taking long to adopt decentralization because they often require specialized hardware to function. The Helium network is a solution to this. It represents the decentralization of physical networks, which are more complicated to decentralize.

About the Helium Network

The Helium network encompasses a blockchain, a protocol token and a wide-area wireless networking system. The blockchain runs on a new kind of proof, called Proof-of-Coverage and a consensus protocol called the Helium Consensus Protocol. The key components of the network include:

Proof-of-Coverage 

Proof-of-Coverage allows miners to prove they are providing wireless network coverage.

Helium Network 

The helium blockchain network is designed specifically to service WHIP and provide a system for authenticating and identifying IoT devices, providing cryptographic guarantees of data transmission and authenticity.

Helium Consensus Protocol

Helium Consensus Protocol is a novel consensus protocol that combines an asynchronous Byzantine fault-tolerant protocol with identities presented via Proof-of-Coverage to create a high throughput, permission-less, censor-resistant system.

WHIP

WHIP is an open-source and standards-compliant wireless network protocol designed for low-power IoT devices across large areas. WHIP protocol runs on existing commodity radio chips available from dozens of manufacturers and doesn't require any proprietary technologies or modulation schemes.

Proof-of-Location 

Helium employs WHIP to outline a system for interpreting an IoT device's physical geolocation. This eliminates the need for expensive and energy-intensive satellite positioning hardware. This configuration enables proof-of-location, in which IoT devices can make immutable, secure, and verifiable claims about their location at a given point in time, which are recorded in the blockchain.

DWN

DWN represents a decentralized wireless network (DWN) that provides wireless access to the Internet for IoT devices by way of multiple independent miners. Within this network, the devices are the hardware with a radio chip and WHIP-compatible firmware. The network's miners provide wireless coverage to the network by bridging the WHIP with routers and the internet applications. In exchange, the miners receive HNT tokens. Devices spend the HNT tokens to pay the Miners, who send data to and from the Internet. Devices' private keys are stored in commodity key-storage hardware, and public keys are stored in the blockchain.

Helium's Consensus Mechanism 

Helium network uses a combination of proof-of-coverage and proof-of-serialization. Proof-of-Coverage proves the veracity of miners in a physical space, and proof-of-serialization ensures that miners are accurately representing their time in relation to others on the network. Then this proof is used to achieve consensus on a blockchain network.

Key Features

It connects to anything.

The Helium Network is the world's largest and most rapidly expanding contiguous wireless network in history.

Open Source 

It is based on open source technology and is run by an open alliance.

Scalable and cost-effective

It is a way to avoid paying for expensive cell contracts. A sensor on Helium can cost cents to run for a year.

LORAWAN-compatible

For streamlined development, it supports thousands of existing sensors, chipsets, and MCUs.

Use Cases

Enterprise solutions

The network provides secure, ubiquitous, and affordable wireless connectivity to enterprise devices connected to the network.

Roaming

LoRAWAN networks can use the Helium network to increase coverage density without the cost of additional gateway infrastructure. They can combine coverage and provide more connectivity for compatible sensors and devices.

Helium-powered vertical solutions

The network ecosystem hosts a range of vertical solutions built on Helium across use cases like smart agriculture, smart cities, environment monitoring, smart water monitoring, supply chain and logistics.

Founder

Amir Haleem, CEO & Co-Founder at Helium. Previously, he has served as CTO & Co-Founder at Diversion, Inc.