Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT


BLE module featuring direction finding

25 November 2019 Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT

u-blox has built its new NINA B4 Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) module series upon Nordic Semiconductor’s recently announced nRF52833 chip. The module enables a number of Bluetooth features including Bluetooth long range, Bluetooth mesh, and Bluetooth direction finding. The module is fully tailored to the needs of applications in the connected industry, smart homes, buildings, and cities, asset tracking, and eHealth.

The main highlight of the NINA B4 series is Bluetooth’s new direction finding feature, a key component of the Bluetooth v5.1 specification that brings the benefits of high-precision positioning to indoor applications. 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 metre-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 u-blox NINA B4 enables wireless mesh networks, which offer robust communication between large numbers of connected devices, extending the reach of messages by relaying them from node to node until they reach their destination. By simplifying the control of groups of devices, mesh networks are well suited for applications such as smart lighting systems in cities and buildings, which further benefit from the module’s enhanced operating temperature range (up to 105°C).

Featuring Bluetooth long range, the NINA B4 series is ideal 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, common in production plants or on factory floors.

The NINA B4 series comes with the u-blox u-connect software, simplifying the integration of Bluetooth into new and existing products by providing an easy-to-use interface to configure the connectivity required.

NINA B4 further stands out for its powerful Arm Cortex-M4F MCU with an open CPU architecture, allowing customers to run their own applications right on the module. Supporting Zigbee and Thread, the first members of the NINA B4 family come with an internal PCB antenna, or alternatively, with a U.FL connector for an external antenna of choice.


Credit(s)



Share this article:
Share via emailShare via LinkedInPrint this page

Further reading:

Industrial Ethernet time sensitive networking switch
RS South Africa Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
The ADIN3310 and ADIN6310 are 3-port and 6-port Gigabit Ethernet time sensitive networking (TSN) switches with integrated security primarily designed for industrial Ethernet applications.

Read more...
When it comes to long-term reliability of RF amplifier ICs, focus first on die junction temperature
Altron Arrow Editor's Choice Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
When considering the long-term reliability of integrated circuits, a common misconception is that high package or die thermal resistance is problematic. However, high or low thermal resistance, by itself, tells an incomplete story.

Read more...
Automotive-grade digital isolators
Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
The NSI83xx series of capacitive-based isolators from NOVOSENSE Microelectronics offer superior EOS resilience and minimal power noise susceptibility.

Read more...
Why bis means business for LTE Cat 1 IoT connections
NuVision Electronics Editor's Choice Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Tomaž Petaros, product manager IoT EMEA at Quectel Wireless Solutions explains why the market for Cat 1bis IoT connections is getting busy.

Read more...
Wi-Fi in 2025: When is Wi-Fi 7 the answer?
iCorp Technologies Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Wi-Fi 7 introduces multi-link operation and lower latency, a game-changing feature that allows devices to transmit and receive data across multiple frequency bands simultaneously to significantly reduce network congestion.

Read more...
Bluetooth Lite SoCs purpose built for IoT
NuVision Electronics Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
Whether it is enabling predictive maintenance on industrial equipment, tracking assets in dense environments, or running for years on a coin cell battery in ultra-low power sensors, developers need solutions that are lean, reliable, and ready to scale with emerging use cases.

Read more...
LTE Cat 1bis module
Otto Wireless Solutions Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
The A7673X LTE Cat 1bis module from SimCom is engineered to meet the growing demands of the IoT industry, offering exceptional performance and seamless integration.

Read more...
Track with precision
Electrocomp Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
KYOCERA AVX provides innovative antennas for cellular, LTE-M, NB-IoT, LoRa, GNSS, BLE, UWB, Wi-Fi, and future Satellite IoT.

Read more...
Wi-Fi 7 front-end module
RF Design Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
The Qorvo QPF4609 is an integrated front end module designed for 802.11be systems that has integrated matching, which minimises layout area.

Read more...
Multi-channel downconverter
Vepac Electronics Telecoms, Datacoms, Wireless, IoT
The Downconverter from Crane Aerospace is a converter that operates from 2 to 18 GHz and delivers a noise figure of 11 dB with an attenuation range of 25 dB.

Read more...