Smart Cities

Smart STM32 wireless module increases productivity says ST

Fri, Oct 21, 2022

The STM32WB5MMGH6 wireless module by STMicroelectronics provides a subsystem for wireless communications for industrial applications using Bluetooth Low Energy, Zigbee and Thread standard and comes with free-to-use protocol stacks. Alternatively, developers can use other proprietary protocols.

At the heart of the module is STMicroelectronics’ STM32WB55 MCU which has an Arm Cortex-M4 core for application-level processing and a Cortex-M0+ dedicated to managing the integrated radio, which safeguards real-time performance in both domains, explained ST.

The MCU’s on-chip RAM is advantageous when running the Thread protocol, added the company. 

The module can be used in wireless communication and control of devices such as remote sensors, smart door locks, PC accessories including printers, and infrastructure equipment like network gateways and smart building controllers.

The module integrates the antenna and its matching circuitry, together with all the required passives and timing crystals. Pre-certifications for EMC, Bluetooth LE 5.3, Zigbee 3.0 and OpenThread simplify the mandatory testing and product-level approval processes for users, claimed ST, which saves development costs and accelerates time to market.

The STM32WB5MMGH6 module can be integrated into continuous monitoring systems to enhance the maintenance of industrial equipment and avoid unexpected failures and downtime. It has been used by prescriptive and predictive maintenance company, I-care, with its Wi-care sensors in a wireless and continuous asset monitoring system. When combined with I-see, the company’s cloud-based and AI-driven analytical platform, it provides a complete maintenance industry 4.0 solution, allowing users to visualise equipment status and plan maintenance schedules, said I-care.

“Choosing a wireless module instead of engineering a chip-down solution is the fastest way for developers to complete their projects,” said Hakim Jaafar, general manager – BLE/802.15.4 MCU, STMicroelectronics. 

The STM32WB5MMGH6 module is in production now and supported by ST’s 10-year product longevity commitment, which ensures long-term availability of parts for industrial applications.

Product designers working with the STM32WB5MMGH6 module can use the STM32 microcontroller development ecosystem that includes free tools, for example the STM32CubeMX configurator and software, such as the STM32CubeWB MCU package. This package provides essential embedded-development resources, including production-ready MISRA C and ISO/TS 16949-compliant hardware abstraction layer (HAL) and low-layer APIs, FatFS file system, FreeRTOS, communication-protocol stacks, and code examples.

http://www.st.com

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Nvidia ROS release prepares for autonomous mobile robots

Thu, Oct 20, 2022

The latest Isaac ROS software release has been announced at ROSCon and includes new cloud / edge to robot task management and monitoring software for autonomous mobile robot (AMR) fleets.

The software consists of individual packages (GEMs) and complete pipelines (NITROS) for hardware accelerated performance. 

It also adds Mission Dispatch and Client functionality. This is an open-source CPU package to assign and monitor tasks from a fleet management system to the robot. It integrates a cloud native micro service which can be integrated as part of larger fleet management systems, explained Nvidia.

Dispatch and Client communicate uses VDA5050, an open standard for communications designed specifically for robot fleets with messages transmitted wirelessly over the IoT protocol MQTT. 

Mission Dispatch is a containerised micro-service available for download from NGC, or as source code on Isaac GitHub, and can be integrated into fleet management systems.

Mission Dispatch has been verified to interoperate with other open source ROS 2 clients, including the VDA5050 connector developed by OTTO Motors and InOrbit AI.

Mission Client is compatible with ROS 2 Humble and available as a package in Isaac

ROS GitHub and pre-integrated with the Nav2 navigation stack to assign and track

navigation and other tasks on the robot.

“As mobile robot deployment in the real world accelerates, interoperability is becoming increasingly critical,” commented Ryan Gariepy, CTO at OTTO Motors. “Bridging VDA5050 with ROS2 as an open-source community will promote innovation in fleet management solutions while allowing robot makers to focus on differentiation.”

There is also FreeSpace segmentation, a hardware accelerated package for producing a vision AI based occupancy grid in the proximity of the robot to be used as an input to the navigation stack.

Video data collection for training AI perception models uses new GEMs on the Nvidia Jetson AGX Orin platform measured at two 1080p stereo cameras at 30frames per second (more than 120frames per second total) to reduce the data footprint by a factor of 10x in the H.264 video encode and decode packages for compressed video data recording and playback.

http://www.nvidia.com

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Latest PIC microcontrollers add Bluetooth LE connectivity

Thu, Oct 20, 2022

Adding wireless connectivity to a product can be hampered by the cost and complexity of system design since it is generally added as part of the larger application, said Microchip Technology. The company addresses this with the introduction of its first Arm Cortex-M4F-based PIC microcontroller family which integrates Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) functionality directly into one of a system’s most basic components, supported by one of the industry’s most comprehensive developer ecosystems.

The PIC32CX-BZ2 family includes SoC devices and regulatory-certified, RF-ready modules. There is Bluetooth Low Energy coupled with Zigbee stacks and over the air (OTA) update capabilities. There is also a 12-bit ADC, multiple timer / counters for control channels, an on-board encryption engine and a broad set of interfaces to touch, CAN, sensor, display and other peripherals. 

The 1Mbyte of flash memory supports large application codes, multi-protocol wireless stacks and OTA updates. The packages are AEC-Q100 Grade 1-certified with an operating temperature up to 125 degrees C.

For development support there is Microchip’s MPLab Harmony 32-bit embedded software development framework. MPLab Code Configurator integration enables developers to quickly begin prototyping with the PIC32CX-BZ2 development board using drag-and-drop auto code generation. There are application code examples hosted on GitHub and linked through MPLab Code Configurator and MPLab Discover. There are also reference design packages and wireless design check services. Customers with little to no RF expertise can benefit from Microchip’s WBZ451 modules, said the company. These are pre-certified and feature an optimised on-board RF design. 

In addition to the MPLab Code Configurator, the MPLab Harmony v3 framework includes an ecosystem of debuggers, programmers, virtual sniffer and compilers. 

The PIC32CX-ZB2 family is in-stock and available now. PIC32CX1012BZ25048-I and PIC32CX1012BZ25048-E SoCs ship in a 7.0 x 7.0mm 48 QFN package. The WBZ451PE-I and the WBZ451UE-I modules are supplied with an on-board PCB antenna and a U.FL connector.

http://www.microchip.com

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NXP packs wireless and wired connectivity into a single OrangeBox 

Wed, Oct 19, 2022

Wireless and wired connectivity within a vehicle, including V2X (vehicle to everything), secure car access, radio and Wi-Fi technologies, are integrated into a single connectivity domain controller.

The OrangeBox development platform simplifies access to integrated connectivity technologies through one software platform to reduce costs and streamline development, said NXP.

OrangeBox integrates a variety of NXP wireless technologies, from broadcast radio, Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth, to secure car access with Ultra-Wideband (UWB) and Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) and 802.11p-based V2X. It is a single, security- enhanced, modular development platform that provides a unified interface between the vehicle’s gateway and its wired and wireless technologies for V2X communications.

OrangeBox unifies current and emerging external wireless interfaces, for infotainment to advanced safety features, for example, into a single, security-enhanced connectivity domain controller, which connects to the secure vehicle gateway through NXP high-speed Ethernet. It is designed to reduce effort for development teams, while optimising the movement of data across multiple communication interfaces. Importantly, it also enables consistent security protection to be applied to all data traffic entering the car and eases the deployment of V2X and cloud applications such as over-the-air (OTA) updates for software-defined vehicles.

Designed as a modular platform, OEMs and Tier 1s can use OrangeBox to adapt to regional requirements for cellular connectivity and V2X and enable in-field updates to keep up with changing technologies, said NXP.

“By consolidating automotive wireless technologies into a centralised domain controller with a high- speed connection to the vehicle gateway, we are creating a single pathway for the vehicle to seamlessly connect to the rest of the world,” said Dan Loop, vice president and general manager for automotive edge processing, NXP. “Not only can this help to reduce costs and streamline development, it addresses a critical piece of the puzzle for data-enriched vehicles that require centralised, secure connectivity,” he added.

The central processor of the OrangeBox is an i.MX 8XLite applications processor running a unified Linux-based software platform to manage the automotive wireless connectivity. There is an NXP Gbit Ethernet connection to the central vehicle gateway to allow other automotive systems to access integrated wireless connectivity.

The OrangeBox automotive development platform is expected to be available in the first half of 2023. 

http://www.nxp.com

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