STMicroelectronics and Jorjin Technologies announce the certification of the dual-radio modules that combine Sigfox wireless-network technology with Bluetooth low energy (BLE). Jorjin’s WS211x Sigfox/BLE modules employ ST’s BlueNRG-1 BLE System-on-Chip (SoC) and the S2-LP sub-1GHz RF transceiver. This enables the modules to deliver dual RF connectivity and extend battery lifetime, targeting coin-cell -operated or energy-harvesting IoT applications.
The modules are fully programmable devices exploiting ultra-low power Arm Cortex-M0 technology embedded in the BLE SoC to act as independent IoT connectivity nodes. The combination of BLE with Sigfox’ low-power wide-area network (LPWAN) provides benefits such as firmware update over-the-air, which is not possible with conventional ‘Sigfox-only’ modules. Other benefits of having an IoT device connected both remotely through the Sigfox network and locally through BLE include the possibility to modify device settings during installation or maintenance, or to trace assets, which often change their position inside an area covered with BLE beacon stations.
Evaluation boards for the WS211x modules employ the Arduino interface and are compatible with ST’s Arduino shield boards featuring MEMS motion sensors, environmental sensors, or Time-of-Flight (ToF) ranging sensors. An SDK is available from Jorjin as well as an AT command list for testing the modules’ BLE and Sigfox functions. For more data, visit Jorjin and STMicro.