4-2019

RF & Wireless
Fully-featured SoC Supporting
Bluetooth 5.1
Bluetooth and Wi-Fi
Connectivity Software
u-blox has announced that it is expanding
its connectivity software offering.
In addition to the established uconnect-
Xpress, previously known as u-blox
connectivity software, the offering
now also includes u-connectScript. The
extended software series differentiates
the company’s offering by further simplifying
wireless Bluetooth and WiFi
device development, enabling embedded
script applications in the module
while reducing complexity and cutting
time to market.
u-connectXpress, the first pillar of the
uconnect series for more than 15 years,
has grown into the most extensive software
tool for integrating WiFi and Bluetooth
connectivity into devices. Comprising
over 130 standard and u-bloxspecific
AT commands, uconnectXpress
lets developers configure device connectivity
without having to write and
test complex code.
uconnectScript, the second pillar of
the uconnect series, is the new offering
aimed at further speeding up embedded
device development. It is based on the
JavaScript programming language,
widely adopted and with a short learning
curve. uconnectScript uses simple
syntax to allow device developers to
quickly embed Bluetooth applications
right onto the module without requiring
extensive experience in embedded
systems programming. Developers write
their applications using u-blox’ integrated
development environment (IDE) or
any other text editor of their choice.
■ u-blox AG
info@u-blox.com
www.u-blox.com
Nordic Semiconductor announces the introduction
of the nRF52811 System-on-Chip
(SoC), a fully-featured connectivity solution
that supports Bluetooth® 5.1 Direction
Finding and a range of popular low
power wireless protocols for applications
such as gateways for smart home and industry
products. The SoC expands Nordic’s
highly popular nRF52 Series platform by
adding a device that combines the low cost
of Nordic’s baseline nRF52810 SoC with
the multiprotocol support of Nordic’s midrange
nRF52832 and advanced nRF52840
SoCs. The nRF52811 is also the first product
in the Nordic low power wireless range to
support Bluetooth 5.1, which adds Direction
Finding to the high throughput, long
range, and enhanced coexistence capabilities
of Bluetooth 5.
The Nordic nRF52811 SoC includes a multiprotocol
2.4 GHz radio (featuring 4 dBm
output power with -97 dBm sensitivity (at
1 Mbps in Bluetooth 5 mode)), 64 MHz,
32-bit Arm Cortex M4 processor, and 192
kB Flash and 24 kB RAM memory. The
nRF52811 SoC also includes a wide range
of analog and digital interfaces.
The nRF52811 SoC is an ideal connectivity
chip for applications that feature a companion
microprocessor. Examples include
home and industry gateways that demand
low power wireless support for Bluetooth 5,
Thread, and Zigbee smart applications such
as those used with smart light networks,
HVAC, and security systems. The SoC is also
a good choice for cost-constrained Bluetooth
beacon applications requiring Bluetooth 5
technology’s extended range or employed
as part of a Direction Finding system.
The nRF52811 SoC’s Bluetooth 5.1 Direction
Finding enables positioning solutions
to not only rely just on received signal
strength indicator (RSSI), but also the actual
direction of a signal. This improves accuracy
significantly and opens up new applications.
There are two types of methods
for determining direction, angle of arrival
(AoA), where the direction of the received
signal is calculated, and angle of departure
(AoD), where the direction of the transmitted
signal is calculated. Direction finding
can operate in either two or three dimensions
depending on the selected design complexity
and antenna array. The nRF52811
SoC is the ideal choice as a transceiver for
both the AoA or AoD scenarios. Bluetooth
5.1 hardware functionality is built-in to the
nRF52811 SoC.
The nRF52811 SoC will be produced in a
6 x 6 mm QFN48 package with 32 GPIOs,
a 5 x 5 mm QFN32 with 17 GPIOs, and a
2.5 x 2.5 mm wafer level CSP32 with 15
GPIOs. All packages are compatible with
those of the nRF52810 SoC enabling reuse
of the same PCB layout.
■ Nordic Semiconductor ASA
www.nordicsemi.com
Low-PIM Coaxial Cables
Fairview Microwave, Inc. has released a new
series of low-PIM coaxial cable assemblies
in standard and custom lengths that are ideal
for distributed antenna systems (DAS) and
are available with same-day delivery. The
over 100+ standard configurations that make
up Fairview Microwave’s new line of low-
PIM coaxial cable assemblies deliver PIM
levels of less than -160 dBc. These highquality
cables provide excellent SWR and
low insertion loss. They are 100% PIM and
RF tested with the PIM results marked on
the cables. These cables are constructed of
flexible, lightweight UL910 plenum-rated
74 hf-praxis 4/2019