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Evaluation kit supports energy harvesting embedded controller

Fri, Nov 01, 2019

For the development of battery maintenance-free IoT equipment, Renesas Electronics has introduced the RE family, which encompasses the company’s current and future line-up of energy harvesting embedded controllers. The RE Family is based on Renesas’ proprietary Silicon on Thin Buried Oxide (SOTB) process technology. SOTB is claimed to dramatically reduce power consumption in both active and standby states, eliminating the need for battery replacement or recharging.

Following the introduction of the RE01 microcontrollers, the first of the RE family, the RE01 Group evaluation kit is now available to allow users working with the RE01

Hiroto Nitta, senior vice president, Head of SoC Business, IoT and Infrastructure Business Unit at Renesas, said: “We hope this will accelerate the spread of IoT equipment powered by energy harvesting.”

The RE01 evaluation kit includes an evaluation board with an RE01 embedded controller, an interface for the energy harvesting device and a rechargeable battery interface. There is also an Arduino-compatible interface for easy expansion and evaluation of sensor boards and a Pmod connector to expand and evaluate wireless functionality. There is also a low power memory in pixel (MIP) LCD expansion board so that users can evaluate display functions faster. The kit also contains sample code and application notes that serve as references for power management design that eliminates the need for battery maintenance, and driver software that supports CMSIS, Arm’s Cortex Microcontroller Software Interface Standard. Sample code for low power ADCs, digital filter and fast Fourier transform (FFT) routines, 2D graphics MIP LCD displays, and secure boot and secure firmware update functions for improved security are available.

The kit can be used to adopt energy harvesting based on RE01 Group devices at the system level and will accelerate the development of equipment that does not require battery maintenance.

IAR Embedded Workbench for Arm which can use the high efficiency IAR C/C++ compiler, and e2 studio (note 2) which can use the free GNU compiler are available as the developmental environment.

The RE01 evaluation kit is available now.

http://www.renesas.com

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Absolute pressure sensor delivers calibrated data for navigation

Fri, Nov 01, 2019

A compact MEMS-based absolute pressure sensor by Würth Elektronik eiSos measures 2.0 x 2.0 x 0.8mm. The Wsen-Pads measures pressure in the range between 26 and 126kPa. Its output data rate can be selected between one and 200Hz. The sensor contains an ASIC and a temperature sensor. This means the output values are already calibrated.

The Wsen-Pads absolute pressure sensor offers the possibility of preparing the measured data for various applications using integrated algorithms that can be activated in such a way that the programming workload for a connected controller is greatly reduced. The measured data can be read out via a standard I²C interface. The I²C interface is extended by an additional interrupt pin whose function can be modified by the user. An application example is using the pressure sensor as an altimeter. The high resolution means the sensor can provide information that enables the position of individual floors in buildings to be mapped for an indoor navigation system. Wsen-Pads is slim, making it suitable for mobile devices. The low power operation means it is possible to supply it with batteries or even energy via energy harvesting.

The piezo resistive sensor is specified for an industrial temperature range from -40 to +85 degrees C. Würth Elektronik also offers a tailored evaluation board.

The sensor is available from stock without a minimum order quantity.

Würth Elektronik eiSos is a manufacturer of electronic and electromechanical components for the electronics industry. The company is one of the largest European manufacturers of passive components and is active in 50 countries. Production sites in Europe, Asia and North America supply a growing number of customers worldwide.

The product range includes EMC components, inductors, transformers, RF components, varistors, capacitors, resistors, quartz crystals, oscillators, power modules, wireless power transfer, LEDs, sensors, connectors, power supply elements, switches, push-buttons, connection technology, fuse holders and solutions for wireless data transmission.

http://www.we-online.com

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White label NFC chip can be used on premium goods

Fri, Nov 01, 2019

Now available with a white label chip called Smartrac OTP, the Circus Pro NFC inlays or tags have been developed and manufactured by Smartrac as a cost-effective option for secure product authentication in premium consumer packaged goods (CPG), industrial components, retail, cosmetics and healthcare, as well as branded pharmaceutical products.

The Circus Pro NFC inlays or tags can be embedded into physical products or packaging to provide real-time tag and message authentication based on cryptographic algorithms. The OTP IC generates one time password values based on hash-based message authentication codes as published by the Internet Engineering Task Force (IETF RFC 4226). To comply with an array of individual customer requirements, the chip supports a choice of digital verification services for secure product authentication and the delivery of exclusive digital content.

All Circus Pro inlays and tags enable customers to easily and securely verify product authenticity with their smartphones.

The Circus Pro range includes Circus Dura, Circus Flex, Circus On-Metal and Circus Tamper Loop NG inlays and tags. Smartrac’s Circus Pro NFC inlays and tags and Circus Pro Flex wet inlays with OTP ICs are available now.

Smartrac specialises in RFID products and IoT solutions, providing both ready-made and customised offerings. Its portfolio is used in animal identification, automation, automotive, brand protection, customer experience, industry, library and media management, logistics, retail and supply chain management.

Smartrac has global Research & Development Centers, production and sales network, and its IoT solutions platform Smart Cosmos. Smartrac received ARC Quality Certification from Auburn University’s RFID Lab for the design and manufacturing of its RFID inlays.

http://www.smartrac-group.com

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Bluetooth low energy module from u-blox includes direction finding

Thu, Oct 31, 2019

Features such as direction finding, long range and operation up to +105 degrees C make up the u-blox NINA-B4 series of standalone modules. They are designed for indoor positioning applications and for deployments in harsh environments.

The u-blox NINA-B4 Bluetooth low energy modules are based on Nordic Semiconductor’s recently announced nRF52833 chip. The module enables Bluetooth long range, Bluetooth mesh, and Bluetooth direction finding for applications in the connected industry, smart homes, buildings, and cities, asset tracking, and healthcare.

Bluetooth’s new direction finding feature, part of the Bluetooth v5.1 specification, brings the benefits of high precision positioning to indoor applications, says u-blox. NINA-B4 is the first u-blox module designed to act as both a transmitter and a receiver in angle of arrival (AoA) and angle of departure (AoD) direction finding and indoor positioning applications.

In AoA-based implementations, stationary beacons equipped with multi-antenna arrays determine the angle of arrival of signals emitted by a tracking device to pinpoint the tracker’s location with sub-meter level accuracy. When AoD is used, the tracking device triangulates its position by calculating the angle of departure of signals from the stationary Bluetooth beacons’ multi-antenna arrays.

The NINA-B4 enables wireless mesh networks for robust communication between large numbers of connected devices. The networks relay messages from node to node and, by simplifying the control of groups of devices, can be used in smart lighting systems in cities and buildings. These applications also further benefit from the module’s enhanced operating temperature range (up to +105 degrees C).

Bluetooth long range is also a feature for the NINA-B4 series, making it suitable for deployments in harsh environments, e.g. to enable wirelessly connected and configurable equipment. Long range not only increases the distance that Bluetooth signals can travel in undisturbed environments, it also makes communications more robust and reliable in unfavourable ones, such as in production plants or on factory floors.

The NINA-B4 series is supplied with u-blox u‑connect software. It provides an interface to configure the required connectivity to integrate Bluetooth into new and existing products.

There is also a powerful Arm Cortex-M4F microcontroller with an open CPU architecture. This allows customers to run their own applications right on the module. Supporting Zigbee and Thread, the first members of the NINA-B4 family have an internal PCB antenna, or alternatively, are supplied with a U.FL connector for an external antenna of choice.

Samples of the NINA-B4 will be available in December.

http://www.u-blox.com

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Evaluation kit supports energy harvesting embedded controller

Absolute pressure sensor delivers calibrated data for navigation

White label NFC chip can be used on premium goods

Bluetooth low energy module from u-blox includes direction finding

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