BLUETOOTH LOW ENERGY: DROP-IN SINGLE MODE MODULE

Within two months of the official adoption of Bluetooth low energy by the Bluetooth SIG, Insight SiP launches a complete and working Bluetooth low energy System-in-Package (SiP) module solution that requires minimal RF expertise to employ. The drop-in module measures just 8 x 12 x 1.4 mm in size and integrates a Nordic Semiconductor nRF8001 Bluetooth low energy single mode connectivity-on-chip solution, plus antenna, crystal and all supporting passives

The Insight SiP ISP091201 is a completely self-contained Bluetooth low energy SiP module that includes Nordic's µBlue^TM ("MicroBlue") nRF8001 connectivity-on-chip solution integrating the radio (see "About µBlue" below), baseband and software stack (Bluetooth low energy PHY, Link layer and Host), plus an integrated antenna, 16MHz crystal and 15 supporting passive components. The module measures just 8 x 12 x 1.4mm.

The ISP091201 is also designed to be fully compliant with FCC and CE EMC requirements and requires no other external supporting components beyond an inexpensive external 8-bit microcontroller (from any vendor and used to run the upper Profile and Application layers of the Bluetooth low energy stack) and on-board 3V power source.

The module is housed in a QFN, LGA package and is miniaturized enough to fit into highly space constrained applications such as watches, health and fitness sensors (e.g. pedometer, heart-rate-, blood pressure- and glucose-monitors), remote controls and key fob-style proximity detectors.

The module is based on Nordic's proven µBlue reference design which was made available to selected customers in November 2009 [2]. Nordic has also developed a master single mode emulator that allowed Insight SiP to test the communication link of its module. As a result, the module requires minimal engineering overhead in order to incorporate it into a product as a fully functional wireless connection.

The Bluetooth low energy part of Bluetooth Version 4.0 specifies two types of implementation, single mode and dual mode. Single mode chips consume only a fraction of the power of Classic Bluetooth, allowing the short-range wireless standard to extend to coin cell battery applications for the first time.

Because Bluetooth low energy wireless technology is an interoperable standard, the ISP091201 SiP module will be able to communicate with both single mode Bluetooth low energy chips from other manufacturers, and dual mode Bluetooth low energy chips that are likely to become a de facto feature in almost all new Bluetooth-enabled cell phones and computers. (See "About Bluetooth low energy" below.)

"Product developers don't need extensive RF experience to design-in our module into their first Bluetooth low energy product," explains Diana Moncoqut, the Marketing and Sales Director at Insight SiP. "This is particularly relevant given that Bluetooth low energy is expected to grow ultra low power wireless into brand new markets and applications where engineers may not have previous experience of RF engineering."

"Nordic pioneered the 2.4GHz ultra low power wireless sector with its family of nRF24xxx proprietary products," comments Geir Langeland, Nordic Semiconductor's Director of Sales & Marketing. "Our first single mode µBlue solution is an extension of this heritage into the standards-based interoperable market sector, so we are extremely proud that our chip is included within the first single mode Bluetooth low energy module to come to market - just 8 weeks after the standard was adopted by the Bluetooth SIG."

REFERENCES
1. http://tinyurl.com/ybtdkmz
2. http://tinyurl.com/y9k33wo

About Bluetooth low energy wireless technology
Bluetooth® low energy wireless technology is a hallmark feature of the Bluetooth Core Specification Version 4.0. The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) - the organization charged with driving development of Bluetooth wireless technology and bringing it to market - adopted Bluetooth Version 4.0 in December 2009.

Bluetooth low energy will encourage rapid deployment of ultra low power (ULP) wireless by providing a technology that is widely interoperable. Moreover, Bluetooth low energy-equipped products will be able to communicate with mobile phones and PCs featuring "dual mode" Bluetooth transceivers, opening up a whole new range of possibilities. In summary, Bluetooth low energy is a ULP wireless solution featuring:

• Ultra low peak, average and idle mode power consumption;
• Ultra low cost plus small size for accessories and human interface devices (HIDs);
• Minimal (if any) cost and size addition to cell phone handsets and PCs;
• Global, intuitive and secure multi-vendor interoperability. 

The technology operates in the globally accepted 2.4GHz Industrial, Scientific & Medical (ISM) band. It features a physical layer bit rate of 1Mbps over a range up to 15 meters.

This specification allows two types of implementation, dual mode and "single mode". In a dual mode implementation, Bluetooth low energy functionality is integrated into an existing Classic Bluetooth controller. Additionally, manufacturers can use current Classic Bluetooth technology (Bluetooth V2.1 + EDR or Bluetooth V3.0 + HS) chips with the new Bluetooth low energy stack, enhancing the development of Classic Bluetooth-enabled devices with new capabilities.

Single mode chips, which will enable highly integrated and compact devices, will feature a lightweight Link Layer (LL) providing ULP idle mode operation, simple device discovery, and reliable point-to-multipoint data transfer with advanced power-save and secure encrypted connections at the lowest possible cost. The LL provides a means to schedule Bluetooth low energy traffic between Classic Bluetooth transmissions. Profiles will include support for a variety of low power devices such as HIDs, sensors, and sports watches.

Ultra low power consumption is critical to Bluetooth low energy's success. Because the technology is optimized for devices requiring maximum battery life instead of a high data transfer rate, it consumes between 1 and 50 percent of the power of Classic Bluetooth technology. Single mode devices will be expected to run for many months or even years on standard coin cells (for example, CR2032, 3V lithium devices). The chips will typically operate with low duty cycles, entering ULP idle and sleep modes, to wake up periodically for a communication "burst".

Dual mode chips will typically cost little (if anything) more than the Classic Bluetooth chips they will replace and are targeted at digital "hub" products such as mobile handsets and computers.

Dual mode Bluetooth chips will share much of Classic Bluetooth technology's existing functionality and radio in a single die. Moreover, because dual mode devices will use parts of Classic Bluetooth technology's hardware, power consumption is ultimately dependent upon the Bluetooth implementation. For example, while connecting to a single mode device (without utilization of Classic Bluetooth technology) the dual mode device will enjoy the low-power consumption advantages of Bluetooth low energy. However, in other implementations, dual mode devices may not enjoy all the benefits and possibilities outlined in the latest Bluetooth Version Core Specification 4.0 for Bluetooth low energy.

Nordic Semiconductor was an early member of the Nokia-led Wibree Alliance, the organization that started the development of an interoperable ULP wireless standard in October 2006. That organization merged with the Bluetooth SIG in June 2007. Nordic has therefore played a key role in the development of Bluetooth low energy since the start, and continues to play an important role through its work as a Bluetooth SIG associate member company.

About µBlue
µBlue will be a range of single mode Bluetooth low energy solutions based on a single chip architecture integrating radio, baseband, and microcontroller with fully embedded Bluetooth low energy software stacks. By providing a complete solution, µBlue will significantly ease the effort and cost for manufacturers to make Bluetooth low energy wireless-enabled products. This high level of integration, tiny chip size and low external component count makes ¼Blue ideal for size-constrained applications like watches and wearable sensors. µBlue will also be made available in a number of targeted application variants to suit the specific requirements of products in various market segments.

µBlue will provide a true ultra low power (ULP) wireless solution with peak currents low enough to support standard coin cell battery operation and microampere average current. This means that µBlue will drastically expand the range of applicable application areas where manufacturers can take advantage of Bluetooth wireless connectivity as well as deliver an improved user experience in existing applications. While classic Bluetooth solutions typically require rechargeable batteries and weekly charging cycles, µBlue will support applications that use non-rechargeable batteries, such as coin cells, and that therefore need to deliver months to years of battery lifetime to avoid end user frustration. Applications that use classic Bluetooth today - like Bluetooth enabled watches and remote controls - can benefit on both battery lifetime and cost by migrating to µBlue Bluetooth low energy wireless technology.

The ULP consumption of µBlue does not come with a compromise on radio performance. µBlue is built on Nordic Semiconductor's latest class-leading ULP 2.4GHz radio technology and is therefore expected to deliver best-in-class sensitivity and blocking performance from launch. Combined with the robust adaptive frequency hopping of Bluetooth low energy, µBlue will provide excellent co-existence performance in the presence of other 2.4GHz radios such as Wi-Fi and classic Bluetooth.

The first offering in the µBlue range will include the nRF8001, a single mode Bluetooth low energy slave solution ideal for applications like watches, mobile phone peripherals, remote controls, and sensors. More detailed specifications and pricing indications will be supplied at the official product launch.

About Insight SiP
Insight SiP is a fabless company that provides design and packaging solutions for highly integrated systems based on a System-in-Package (SiP) approach. Insight SiP leverages its unique team expertise, particularly in the RF domain, to serve the market of highly integrated wireless solutions and to support client integration and miniaturization projects while respecting their design and cost objectives. Insight SiP was created by a group of experienced RF component and module professionals to serve the expanding market for highly integrated solutions. The three founder members of the company, Chris Barratt, CTO, an RF SiP industry expert, Michel Beghin, CEO, and Marc Vodovar, President, have a combined experience of the RF market in excess of 80 years.

About Nordic Semiconductor ASA
Nordic Semiconductor is a fabless semiconductor company specializing in ultra low power (ULP) short-range wireless communication. Nordic is a public company listed on the Norwegian stock exchange.

Nordic provides RF silicon solutions including:

• Highly integrated RF silicon
• Sophisticated and flexible development tools
• Application specific communication software
• Complete reference designs

The company's innovative range of wireless solutions includes:

• The nRF24LE1^TM single-chip, ultra-low cost and power, fully integrated 2.4GHz transceiver with radio, microprocessor, flash memory and MultiCeiver^TM technology supporting up to six simultaneous wireless devices (also available in a lower cost, one time programmable (OTP) variant, the nRF24LE1 OTP);
• The nRF24L01+^TM ultra-low cost and power 2.4GHz transceiver with MultiCeiver technology supporting up to six simultaneous wireless devices;
• The nRF24LU1+^TM single chip 2.4GHz transceiver with full-speed USB, microcontroller and flash memory enabling ultra-compact USB dongles for wireless peripherals (also available in a lower cost, one time programmable (OTP) variant, the nRF24LU1+ OTP);
• The nRF24AP2^TM ultra low power 2.4GHz transceiver for wireless communication with Dynastream Innovation's production-proven interoperable low-power network protocol, ANT^TM, and ANT+^TM managed network platform;
• The nRF24E1^TM and nRF24E2^TM low cost transceivers paired with an industry standard 8051 MCU core, and leading peripherals to create complete low cost SoCs for 2.4GHz operation;
• The nRF24Z1^TM single-chip solution for CD quality wireless audio streaming at up to 16-bit, 48-kHz resolution;
• The nRF905^TM single-chip multiband radio transceiver for the 433, 868 or 915MHz ISM bands;
• The nRF9E5^TM low-cost, single-chip solution with fully integrated RF transceiver for the 433, 868 or 915MHz ISM bands.

Nordic Semiconductor's nRF24xxx range of 2.4GHz transceiver and transmitter devices are aimed at applications including PC peripherals (wireless keyboards/mice/multimedia controllers), game controllers, intelligent sports equipment and wireless audio (for example, MP3 and portable CD player wireless headphones and wireless PC speakers). The latest nRF24L01+ family is targeted at ultra-low cost and power applications such as wireless desktops and intelligent (for example, wristwatch-based) sports equipment.

Nordic is an associate member of the Bluetooth SIG, and has contributed core expertise in ultra low power (ULP) RF design to Bluetooth® low energy wireless technology (formerly ultra low power Bluetooth). Bluetooth low energy is a short range RF communication technology featuring ultra low power consumption, a lightweight protocol stack and simple integration with Bluetooth chips. It is a hallmark feature of the latest Bluetooth Core Specification Version 4.0. The technology will support the next generation of RF communications by opening up many new opportunities for ULP wireless data links between suitably equipped mobile handsets or computers and small (typically coin cell) battery-powered devices such as sports, wellness, and medical health sensors.

Nordic's products are all manufactured in state of the art semiconductor process technologies through strong, long-term relationships with world-best manufacturing facilities. Sales are primarily made through a carefully selected worldwide distribution network. The company has offices in Trondheim and Oslo, Norway, the US (west coast), Hong Kong, Korea, Japan, Taiwan, and the Philippines. Nordic is listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange (OSX: NOD). All operations are managed according to the ISO 9001:2000-approved quality assurance system.
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