Credit: Arrow
Arrow Electronics has extended its SmartEverything family with the Tiger board, featuring the NXP Semiconductors Kinetis KW41Z multi-protocol wireless MCU for extremely low-power connected devices.
Ready to kick-start development, the Tiger board provides an ideal platform for products like smart door locks, portable healthcare technology, wearable sports monitors, RF remote controls, wireless computer keyboards and mice, gaming controllers, security access-control systems, smart energy products, and networking equipment. Arduino connectors give users flexibility to add extra value-added features to their designs, and the Kinetis KW41Z’s integrated security features, which include a hardware AES-256 cryptographic accelerator and a True Random Number Generator, help to keep data and assets safe.
Featuring the efficient Arm Cortex-M0+ core, the Kinetis KW41Z wireless MCU contains both a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) v4.2 radio and an IEEE 802.15.4 radio, and can run multiple wireless protocols concurrently. Added to this, the Tiger board also has built-in WiFi to further extend the connectivity options available to users: it can support a smart end-node application bridging WiFi to Thread or BLE; it can be used in equipment to be controlled locally by a smartphone, such as in-home smart lighting, or remotely as part of a Cloud-connected network; or it can function as a small gateway. In addition, BLE can be used for easy commissioning of products to an IEEE 802.15.4 mesh network.
With -95dBm typical BLE sensitivity and -100dBm typical generic FSK (at 250kbit/s) sensitivity, both radios enjoy a strong RF link budget to maximise communication range and immunity to interference. By integrating a buck-boost DC/DC converter capable of operating from 0.9 to 4.2V, the Kinetis KW41Z MCU also ensures low peak current in receive and transmit modes to help extend battery life.
