BLE and energy harvesting development boards - 21 February 2018 - EBV Electrolink

BLE and energy harvesting development boards
21 February 2018, Computer/Embedded Technology

ON Semiconductor has released two new boards, or shields, further extending its recently launched Internet of Things (IoT) Development Kit (IDK) platform’s capabilities. With the addition of two new shields that include Bluetooth low energy technology and smart passive sensors (SPS), customers are now able to create diverse and unique use cases that target smart home/building, smart city, industrial automation and mHealth applications.

The Bluetooth low energy shield features the recently launched RSL10 multi-protocol Bluetooth 5 certified radio System-on-Chip (SoC). With the industry’s lowest deep sleep current and receive power, the RSL10 enables manufacturers to create IoT devices with extended battery life. The small form factor of the RSL10 delivers the ultra-compact, cost effective end designs demanded by low-power IoT sensor networks. By integrating the Bluetooth low energy shield with the IDK, customers get a complementary choice of connectivity for extending reach, and sensing and actuator options, including lighting and motors.

The SPS shield extends the IDK to capture data from ON Semiconductor’s battery-free wireless sensors that measure temperature, moisture and pressure. The sensors are ideal for industrial and other applications with hard-to-access areas where zero maintenance is a necessity, and battery replacement is a challenge. Pairing the SPS shield with the IDK enables rapid prototyping of IoT applications that require battery-free sensing and wide-area or local connectivity and actuation options.

Both new shields expand the configurable, modular options for sensing, actuation and wired/wireless connectivity of the IDK, thereby giving application designers complete flexibility agnostic of the communication protocol chosen. They offer rapid and easy start-up of projects right out of the box, allowing developers to deliver data directly into the cloud, thereby enabling value-added services, including analytics.

IDK shields are supplied with full documentation including complete design schematics, PCB layouts and Gerber files to facilitate rapid transition of designs from concept, through development and into production. The industry standard interfaces ensure that current and future modules from ON Semiconductor and other vendors can be seamlessly integrated into designs while the simple ‘cut-and-paste’ approach to end product design reduces R&D time, expense and risk.

For more information contact EBV Electrolink, +27 (0)21 402 1940, capetown@ebv.com, www.ebv.com