30 October 2009
ZigBee based transmissions use only 100µJ of harvested energy
Jennic claims its JN5148 32bit wireless microcontroller has the capability to perform multiple packet transmissions from 100µJ of energy, harvested from an electromechanical switch.
The announcement reveals the possibilities of ZigBee communications with extremely low energy consumption.
The JN5148 has been designed to carry out system startup and initialisation, followed by a succession of packet transmissions to increase the probability of packet delivery to the receiver.
Jimi Simpson, product marketing at Jennic, said: "Utilising the limited and instantaneous energy from an electromechanical switch harvester presented many design challenges. By optimising system initialisation speeds and developing an enhanced communications infrastructure to support energy constrained sensor nodes, Jennic's engineers ensured sufficient energy was left over for a minimum of three packet transmissions to increase the probability of packet delivery to the receiver. The JN5148 totally hit the mark, consuming what in essence equates to an average of 7mA at 2V for 7ms, the 100µJ budget."
The demonstrator is suitable for applications such as home automation and commercial building automation lighting solutions, where wireless, battery free light switches will control the lighting within the building.
Simpson noted: "The solution, being IEEE802.15.4 standards based, enables the technology to be applied to ZigBee, 6LoWPAN and our proprietary JenNet solutions. Our Proxy Server Router approach is the real enabler for energy harvesting sensor nodes and is a key component of our Green Power architecture." He added that Jennic's commitment to green powered solutions is the first in a series of planned product releases by the end of the year.
The JN5148 wireless microcontroller integrates a 32bit risc cpu core with mixed signal peripherals and an IEEE802.15.4, 2.4GHz transceiver. The 98dB link budget supports indoor communication over distances of up to 50metres. It offers current consumption of 15mA when transmitting, 17.5mA when receiving, and 200nA in sleep.
Author
Chris Shaw
Supporting Information
Websites
http://www.jennic.com
Companies
NXP Laboratories UK Ltd
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