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Murata’s Type 2AB UWB Bluetooth modules are available from Rutronik

Mon, Oct 10, 2022

Small, wideband modules by Murata combine low power consumption and accurate results for compact, battery powered IoT devices.

The Type 2AB UWB + Bluetooth Low Energy wideband modules measure 10.5 x 8.3 x 1.44mm. They use short range radio frequency technology to enable a wide range of applications including healthcare, wearables, smart lighting, smart factory, real time locations systems (RTLS), asset tracking and digital payments.

The modules integrate a Nordic IC nRF52840 which is claimed to improve design flexibility and reduce product development time by eliminating external MCUs. There is a 256kbyte RAM and 1Mbyte flash memory, a 250nA deep sleep mode with Bluetooth Low Energy function and a three-axis sensor for motion detection. It also integrates a reference clock for UWB (ultra wideband) and MCU.

The module’s PCB mounting area is significantly reduced compared to the layout of separate UWB and BLE ICs, said Rutronik. The design also supports additional component integration. The regulatory-certified module is also claimed to minimise development time for adding UWB functionality into end products.

The multi-antenna design consists of three antenna ports available on the component, one for Bluetooth Low Energy and two for UWB for the phase difference of arrival (PDoA) function.

The connectivity module has an operating temperature of -40 to +85 degrees C and a voltage of 2.5 to 3.6V. It also supports channels five and nine for global deployment. Transmit power, antenna delays and frequencies are calibrated for each device.

Rutronik Elektronische Bauelemente was founded in 1973 and is an independent family-owned company and is a broadline distributor. Rutronik is represented worldwide with 80 offices and provides customer support in Europe, Asia and the USA.

The company’s product portfolio includes semiconductors, passive and electromechanical components as well as embedded boards, storage and displays and wireless products.

Rutronik offers specific products and services tailored to automotive, embedded, power and smart applications and the company provides technical support for product development and design-in, research area, individual logistics and supply chain management as well as comprehensive services.

http://www.rutronik.com

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Explorer kits help develop cm-precision wireless comms products

Fri, Oct 07, 2022

Two development kits, scheduled for launch early next year, will bring precision positioning and wireless communications technology to engineers developing products that need cm-level positioning accuracy, said u-blox.

Both explorer kits will include the full gamut of u-blox technology and software required.

The XPLR-HPG-1 and XPLR-HPG-2 explorer kits include an open MCU, precision GNSS positioning with real-time kinematic (RTK), dead reckoning, cellular, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth communications, together with the necessary antennas.

The kits are designed to integrate seamlessly with complementary u-blox services, such as PointPerfect GNSS augmentation service, and the ubxlib software component which operates across u-blox products and services particularly during component evaluation and prototyping.

The explorer kits will assist engineers working in areas such as micro-mobility and low-speed robotics, helping them build, test and demonstrate early proofs of concept more quickly and accelerate overall time-to-market, said u-blox.

The modular XPLR-HPG-1 kit will be based around the wireless MCU in the u-blox NORA-W106; it has Wi-Fi and Bluetooth LE capabilities. This will give engineers flexibility to adjust solutions, using Mikroe Click boards which have a variety of u-blox modules. The kit will include three Click boards, each incorporating the ZED-F9R high-precision RTK GNSS module, the LARA-R6001D LTE Cat 1 module (for global coverage and with built-in MQTT client) or the NEO-D9S L-band correction data receiver module.

Engineers can purchase others, based on the needs of the application. The kit’s source code will include example software for the Espressif IoT Development Framework (ESP-IDF), based on ubxlib software components.

The compact XPLR-HPG-2 will have the same module choices as the XPLR-HPG-1 option but with the NINA-W106 which has MCU, Bluetooth LE and Wi-Fi capabilities.

This blend of technologies in a single explorer kit will give designers the ability to achieve cm-level positioning in a variety of scenarios, said u-blox. The GNSS receiver provides an initial position reading, which is then refined using correction data from the PointPerfect service, delivered using L-band satellite signals, as well as cellular and/or Wi-Fi communication.

Both the XPLR-HPG-1 and XPLR-HPG-2 explorer kits will be available from u-blox in early 2023.

http://www.u-blox.com

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Nordic Semiconductor supports Matter 1.0 in nRF Connect SDK

Fri, Oct 07, 2022

The latest version of Nordic Semiconductor’s unified software development kit brings support for all features of 1.0 version of Matter over Thread.

The latest version of the nRF Connect SDK (software development kit) brings developers support for the Connectivity Standard Alliance’s standard, which is emerging as an industry changing standard for smart home device interoperability, said the company.

“Nordic has played a major role in the Matter initiative since the very beginning, so we are pleased to introduce the nRF Connect SDK with full Matter over Thread support,” says Krzysztof Loska, a technical product manager with Nordic. “This support is ready for Matter 1.0 adoption and allows developers to get started immediately on Matter over Thread development using Nordic’s nRF52840 and nRF5340 SoCs,” he added.

nRF Connect SDK is a scalable and unified development tool for building products based on Nordic’s nRF52 and nRF53 Series SoCs, the nRF91 Series SiP (system in package and the recently announced nRF7002 Wi-Fi 6 Companion IC. The nRF Connect SDK 2.1.0 includes full Matter over Thread and also adds experimental support for Matter over Wi-Fi for the nRF5340 SoC in combination with the nRF7002 Companion IC.

The company released nRF Connect SDK 2.1.0 before Matter 1.0 was formally adopted and will soon release an nRF Connect SDK 2.1.X to provide bug fixes and small improvements in Matter over Thread. Nordic advised that customers can continue using nRF Connect SDK 2.1.0 to conform to the Matter 1.0 specification following some minor manual updates. Matter over Wi-Fi will be raised from experimental to full support when the nRF7002 enters volume production.

Matter is a connectivity standard that forms a common language to bring together disparate ecosystems and enables smart devices from different makers to work in harmony.

The standard uses a common application layer and data model that delivers interoperability between devices allowing them to communicate with each other – regardless of the underlying network protocol or ecosystem. It is built on market-proven technologies using Internet Protocol (IP). Matter runs on Wi-Fi, Thread and Ethernet network layers and uses Bluetooth LE for commissioning.

Nordic was awarded a Thread 1.3 certification badge for the nRF Connect SDK earlier this year. Thread 1.3 is a pre-requisite for Matter over Thread and the certification can be inherited by customers for their own products.

https://www.nordicsemi.com/

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GLF Integrated Power offers two versions of AEC-Q100 grade load switch ICs

Fri, Oct 07, 2022

Two versions of the I_QSmart IC load switches are offered by GLF Integrated Power. The AEC-Q100 qualified ICs have a wide temperature range, with one version featuring true reverse current blocking.

The GLF1111Q and GLF1200Q low power load switches are rated for a wide temperature range (-40 to +125 degrees C). The GLF1111Q provides industry-leading, battery-saving leakage current of 2nA, typical, said GLF.

The GLF1200Q features a true reverse-current blocking, which prevents a backup power source from being discharged when an input node is shorted. The GLF1200Q, therefore, works all of the time regardless of on or off state.

Applications for the GLF1111Q and GLF1200Q include infotainment and cluster display systems, diagnostic systems, passive entry / start systems, customer premise equipment (CPE), face recognition systems and intelligent cockpit and autonomous driving applications.

Both the GLF1111Q and GLF1200Q I_QSmart devices are packaged in a SOT-23-5L and offer easy visual inspection of solder joints. Both ICs also feature integrated slew rate control that limits inrush upon turn on, therefore minimising the effects of voltage droop.

Each load switch IC supports a wide input voltage range of 1.5 to 5.5V. A single device can therefore be used in a variety of voltage rail applications, helping to simplify inventory management, said GLF. Both ICs are also offered with an optional output discharge switch.

“The GLF1111Q and GLF1200Q address the ever-expanding, evolving range of automotive electronic systems that require a high-performance load switch with a wide-ambient operating temperature range to assure reliable, long-term operations,” explained Eileen Sun, president and CEO at GLF Integrated Power.

GLF integrated Power is a fabless semiconductor company based in Santa Clara, California, USA. It was founded in 2013 in response to the IoT, portable and wearable ‘revolution’. The company supplies efficient, small, silicon power control and protection ICs and has developed IP that enables cost-effective, efficient and differentiated power management solutions.

http://www.glfipower.com

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Murata’s Type 2AB UWB Bluetooth modules are available from Rutronik

Explorer kits help develop cm-precision wireless comms products

Nordic Semiconductor supports Matter 1.0 in nRF Connect SDK

GLF Integrated Power offers two versions of AEC-Q100 grade load switch ICs

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