BLE SoC targets intelligent automotive applications

8th June 2016

Nat Bowers

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Designed for connected car intelligent automotive applications and wireless in-car charging, the nRF51824 BLE SoC has been introduced by Nordic Semiconductor. Under-the-hood systems could also benefit from Bluetooth wireless functionality, because this would enable manufacturers to reduce the cost and weight of traditional cable looms to offer simpler factory assembly, maintenance and replacement, as well as increased fuel economy.

The nRF51824 is qualified to the automotive AEC-Q100 stress test qualification for ICs and delivers the same flexible feature range and performance as Nordic's highly successful and field-proven nRF51822 BLE SoC (256kB Flash and 16kB RAM variant) upon which the nRF51824 is based.

John Leonard, Product Marketing Manager, Nordic Semiconductor, commented: "The world of automotive is evolving rapidly towards the emergence of the connected car and connected in-car ecosystems. This will expand from Bluetooth enabled smartphones and tablets being wirelessly linked to in-car user interfaces and audio systems to having a vast array of other factory-fitted elements being made wirelessly controllable and configurable.

"This will lead to connected in-vehicle ecosystems that contain 'swarms of wireless sensors' for driving experience enhancement, safety and diagnostics. Examples will include intelligent seats, intelligent steering wheels, remote keyless entry systems, intelligent mirrors, infotainment systems and intelligent accident or incident proximity reporting. It also brings exciting opportunities for after-market equipment suppliers to deliver innovative in-car systems that communicate with each other and with smart mobile devices. The nRF51824 is the world's most powerful automotive qualified BLE SoC and as such is very well suited to these application demands."

Leonard says that the list of potential connected car features and benefits is also unlikely to end there: "Wireless in-car charging of smart mobile devices is probably going to be one of the most popular connected car features of them all," he continued. "This is why the nRF51824 also includes support for Nordic's nRF5 SDK for AirFuel (a major wireless charging standard) which together with the Nordic S130 SoftDevice supports charging of multiple devices on a single charge surface."

The nRF51824 is sampling now and is supplied in a 6x6 48-pin QFN package.