Weartech-Comms / Bluetooth / Wireless

Embedded designs can be delivered to market quicker, and with the ability to develop user interfaces, using the PSoC 4 programmable SoC, says Cypress Semiconductor.
The chip has a 32bit ARM-Cortex-M0 core, adding up to 256kbyte flash memory, 98 general purpose I/Os, 33 programmable analogue and digital blocks, a USB device controller, and a CAN interface. The PSoC 4 L-Series delivers up to 13 programmable analogue blocks including four high-performance op amps, four current-output DACs, two low-power comparators, a 12bit SAR ADC and dual CapSense blocks with up to 94 capacitive-sensing channels. The analogue blocks enable engineers to create on-chip, custom analogue front ends to support new end-product features, without increasing product costs, size or power consumption, says the company.

Distributor Mouser Electronics now stocks TDK’s SESUB-PAN-D14580 Bluetooth v4.1 module. This compact, Low Energy (LE) micro module is the world’s smallest module for Bluetooth Smart devices, says the company. The 3.5 × 3.5 × 1mm module is based on the company’s proprietary Semiconductor Embedded in Substrate (SESUB) technology, which is claimed to result in a reduction of 60% in size, compared to modules using discrete components. The single-mode module’s footprint and low current consumption make it ideal for battery-powered wearable devices where small size, light weight, and low power consumption are essential, points out the distributor.
The module integrates a Dialog Semiconductor DA14580 Bluetooth 4.1 chip, 32bit ARM Cortex-M0 microcontroller, and DC/DC converter onto a thin substrate, along with all peripheral circuitry including a 16MHz crystal, inductor, and capacitor. All I/O from the substrate layers are routed to a BGA footprint on the module’s bottom surface. Interfaces include UART, SPI, and I2C, to implement connectivity.
The low-power module requires a voltage supply of 3.0V, and consumes only 5.0mA when transmitting, 5.4mA when receiving, and 0.8µA in standby mode. Output power is rated at 0dBm (typical), with a communication range of 10m, depending on line of sight and antenna characteristics.

More lifestyle coaching than mere wearable devices, Cloudtag has launched its Cloudtag Track frictionless, wearable device, developed in collaboration with imec, the nanoelectronics research centre.
The fitness tracker combines fitness and health monitoring with design, it says, for fitness and the care, cure and prevention cycle by providing immediate access to medical data and personalised feedback.
imec developed algorithms for the medical technology company’s wearable sensor devices that enable accurate monitoring of physiological parameters. Cloudtag Track is its first wearable multi-sensor device. It is light and small, yet integrates a proprietary algorithm that retrieves physiological parameters with what the company claims is “an exceptionally high level of accuracy”. The algorithm recognises activity, measures energy expenditure, heart rate and other physiological data.

Smartphones and wearables can be used to authenticate IoT devices, home-automation applications, and secure data storage via Bluetooth Smart technology. STMicroelectronics and ClevX, an IP developer for portable storage and mobile device manufacturers have announced what they believe is the world’s first DataLock-secured encrypted portable storage media with Bluetooth Smart wireless user-authentication.
For the first time, users can interact with secure portable storage (full-disk, XTS-AES 256bit encryption) from smartphones or wearable devices where all user data on the drive is encrypted and can be locked or unlocked using single- or multi-factor authentication. The technology is suited for healthcare, home automation and security, secure-access control systems, and portable data storage.
Luca Difalco, VP of marketing, STMicroelectronics’ Americas region said: “While we’re demonstrating the capability in an easy-to-use hardware-encrypted secure USB-Drive, the elegance and versatility of the solution is provided by an application that we can add to our BlueNRG device to make lock-down security accessible via Bluetooth Smart.”
The two companies have reference designs for secure portable storage media, including flash, hard-disk, and solid-state disk drives. They use ST’s Bluetooth Smart chips (BlueNRG) and low power STM32L0 MCUs and are immediately available for licensing and partnerships, including both ST/ClevX-based hardware and firmware in addition to the related smartphone and wearables apps.
The reference designs are OS-host agnostic. USB drives with the DataLock BT technology operate across all computer platforms and embedded systems while providing various easy-to-use security layers (including a wireless lock/unlock mechanism, phone as an authentication factor, phone + PIN, or phone + PIN + userID/location/time). The reference designs support USB Remote Management, for corporate deployments and remote password resets, drive disabling and erasing, and successful implementation of corporate-wide policies.
Lev Bolotin, Founder/CEO, ClevX, LLC notes: “Using ST and ClevX technologies, the DataLock BT Security solution protects data on a USB. . . Consumers, healthcare workers, mobile professionals, and corporations can improve their productivity and security on-the-go by using their phones to authenticate themselves to their USB drives and change security options, as required.”