Company brings end-to-end security to Series SoCs

In addition, the nRF5 SDK for IoT uniquely allows developers to commission Bluetooth Smart end node 'things' to an IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart network easily from a smartphone app. The SDK also enables the firmware of Bluetooth Smart things to be updated or have application functionality upgraded in-the-field from the Cloud using standard IP for file transfer.

"Security is one of the main concerns in most IoT applications," says Pär Håkansson, Product Marketing Manager, Nordic Semiconductor. "This means not only having an encrypted data link but also ensuring end-to-end native and interoperable IP-based security between the Cloud service and the end-node Bluetooth Smart thing is in place to make sure data is not compromised.

"In addition, making sure the router communicates with the right IoT node in a simple fashion can be a difficultas IoT nodes and routers typically have no real user interface," continues Håkansson. "The nRF5 SDK for IoT solution includes a simple method for commissioning nodes to the router using a mobile phone app.The downloadable release includes an example Android phone app and a daemon to run on the router to support the commissioning process." 

The nRF5 SDK for IoT is a complete IPv6-ready IP Suite that runs exclusively on Nordic's market-leading nRF52 Series Bluetooth Smart Systems-on-Chips (SoCs). The nRF52 Series is suitable for battery-powered IoT applications thanks to its Cortex M4-F CPU, industry leading RF performance and power efficiency, large memory, and rich peripheral set.

These features enable the nRF52 Series SoC to run a full IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart 'stack' with the added security and support for upgradability today's IoT applications require. In addition, the nRF52 Series SoC's ultra low power consumption ensures multiyear operation for battery-powered IoT products.

The nRF5 SDK for IoT supports the proven banking-class IPs for security such as Transport Layer Security (TLS) or Open Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) and Datagram Transport Layer Security (DTLS) enabling end-to-end security to both Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) and User Datagram Protocol (UDP)-based communication for IoT applications running IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart.

"With the nRF5 SDK for IoT, Nordic is bringing additional important building blocks to its IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart offering," says Håkansson. "This includes bringing IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart to the security level the market requires while creating a simple model for commissioning Bluetooth Smart end-nodes to routers. The SDK also enables our customers to update and upgrade their products in the field to support new features in the ever-evolving landscape of the IoT using standard IPs for file transfer."

Nordic's IPv6 over Bluetooth Smart stack enables end-to-end IP based communication including large-scale, distributed, cloud-connected, heterogeneous network deployments relevant to smart home, industrial, and enterprise automation applications, logistics, access control and Cloud services. Such deployments can be completely agnostic to the fact the 'last mile' technology is enabled by Bluetooth Smart wireless technology, enabling a direct communication between the service and the thing.

In addition, native IP means that Bluetooth Smart things can communicate with each other via 'headless' routers and the Internet. It also means that a Bluetooth Smart thing can communicate with things using other IPv6-enabled wired or wireless technologies, such as Wi-Fi, Ethernet, ZigBee IP and Thread, to form a heterogeneous network.