Broadcom accelerates IoT development
August 2014 – The diversity of applications in the marketplace for the Internet of Things (IoT) has caused the development world to start from multiple places in order to bring products in the space to market. Companies are starting at the cloud level, app level, sensor level, communication level and processor level to build a design to address a problem. To address this mixed bag of options, Broadcom has brought a new development solution to market. The development kit is the newest member of its Wireless Internet Connectivity for Embedded Devices (WICED™) family and is designed to enable developers to rapidly prototype ideas for IoT applications.
The Broadcom® WICED Sense development kit is an all-in-one IoT prototyping kit that contains their BCM20737 Bluetooth Smart SIP module, five MEMS sensors and a software stack that is Bluetooth 4.1 compatible. The low power MEMS systems are:
- Gyroscope to enable motion control, gaming and GPS
- Accelerometer to enable impact recognition and vibration monitoring
- E-compass to enable map rotation, position detection and motion activated applications
- Barometer for altimeter, weather station equipment and smart watches
- Humidity and temperature for home automation products, air conditioning, heating and ventilation
In addition to the sensors the development kit has a Micro USB interface, secure Over-the-Air (OTA) download capability so firmware can be centrally updated, support for iBeacon Technology, integrated software for connection to NFC tags, security including encryption, decryption, certificates, verification and privacy algorithms, and support for up to eight (8) simultaneous Master/Slave connections. By using the Broadcom WICED base technology all of these features come in a unit that is already certified by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), Conformité Européenne (CE) and TELEC. The development kit has support for both iOS and Android OS. There are also third parties such as Electric Imp that have their own RTOS that will work with these sensors and provide a different sensor and software library.
The unit is a true plug and play to start. The $19.95 MSRP of the device is designed to let anyone start developing using their cell phone. The user can simply unbox the WICED Sense kit, download the WICED Sense application to their smartphone and then pair the two devices using Bluetooth Smart in order to start experimenting with sensor technology like direction, humidity, speed and atmospheric pressure. The units are available now from distributors and other outlets that supply Braodcom parts.
One goal is help emerging standards such as Home Kit, HealthKit, Apple Car Play, Android Weaer, Google Fit, Android Auto, RIS, Nest Thtread, and Wink work together to help the IoT market. The WICED dev kit supports these standards development group as well WiFi Alliance, Bluetooth SIG, Allseen Alliance and the Industrial Internet Consortium. The Broadcom approach is to have the IoT ecosystem work together so the rapid development solution is all-inclusive, pre-integrated and pre-tested. This allows the developer to focus on the software application solution and end up with a prototype that can be live demo’d and tested and will pass the standard certifications.
