Overview of 3GPP Release 14 Enhanced NB-IoT

In 3GPP LTE Release 13, Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IoT) was standardized for providing wide-area connectivity for massive machine-type communications for IoT. In LTE Release 14, NB-IoT was further developed to deliver enhanced user experience in selected areas through the addition of features such as increased positioning accuracy, increased peak data rates, the introduction of a lower device power class, improved non-anchor carrier operation, multicast, and authorization of coverage enhancements. In this article, we provide an overview of these features introduced for NB-IoT in LTE Release 14. An analysis is given on the applicability of these features and their benefits to enhance the NB-IoT radio access technology.