Bluetooth and Wi-Fi are crucial in the internet of things, or widely written as Internet of Things (IoT) applications. Bluetooth technology is preferred in IoT applications for its low power consumption, widespread adoption, and robustness. Whereas Wi-Fi in these applications enables data exchange among devices and with cloud servers. This facilitates real-time monitoring and control of devices. IoT applications are performing exceptionally well across industries with advancements in these wireless connectivity systems. Advancements such as Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 6E are taking IoT applications to the next level of performance in recent times.
This article discusses the role of both in transforming IoT connectivity, with a special insight into the application of Bluetooth 5.3 and Wi-Fi 6E by Synaptics’s new IoT solution.
Wi-Fi 6E in Internet of Things Applications
Each IoT device has its own application, application case, and environment. Some devices require high-temperature environments to work, such as sensors mounted on an engine. Some work in low temperatures, such as smart water installed in a house’s basement. Other IoT devices can be mounted on concrete walls, and some are attached to the human body to measure vitals. Similarly, each wireless technology has its own benefits and challenges. One must keep in mind the application and use case while selecting a wireless technology for an IoT device. In this article, we will learn about the benefits of integrating Wi-Fi 6E technology into IoT devices.
Wi-Fi 6E was launched in 2021 according to the IEEE 802.11ax specifications, two years after the launch of Wi-Fi 6 in 2019. It is an extension of version 6, which opened the 6 GHz frequency band. Both versions have dense modulation schemes with 1024-QAM and OFDMA (orthogonal frequency-division multiple access). Wi-Fi 6E unlocks up to 9.6 Gbps of speed with reduced sub-carrier spacing. Below are some advantages of using Wi-Fi 6E in IoT devices.
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Lower Power Consumption and Longer Batter Life
Wi-Fi-connected IoT devices are connected to a power supply. However, some devices and applications are powered using a battery for their lifetime; these can be rechargeable or single charge batteries. Wi-Fi 6E uniquely conserves battery through Target Wake Time (TWT). TWT is used by many IoT devices by turning off their Wi-Fi radio in times of no transmission. It also helps determine when the Wi-Fi needs to be active. This increases battery life by saving battery power.
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Improved Data Rates
Wi-Fi 6E has a maximum data rate of 9.6 Gbps. It offers faster data rates, shorter download times, and enhanced data browsing and transfer. This reduces battery consumption and ensures high performance where multiple devices are connected.
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Amplified Frequency Bands
This new and improved Wi-Fi technology has a 6Ghz frequency band, which enables higher data rates for closer devices. Wi-Fi 6E also supports lower frequencies and offers a longer range when the device is away from the transmitter.
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Lower Latency
As the functionality of IoT devices often depends on latency, the lower latency of 6E Wi-Fi makes it a preferable choice for many devices. It leverages MU-MIMO, allowing multiple users to simultaneously communicate in downlink or uplink. Also, the OFDMA technology enables various devices to share the same channel and communicate faster.
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MU-MIMO and Beamforming
MU-MIMO directs spatial streams to multiple users simultaneously. This improves network efficiency. MU-MIMO allows 6E to perform in congested environments with good data rates. On the other hand, beamforming creates a stream of data in a specific direction to a device.
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Stronger Network Security Protocol
As mentioned earlier, Wi-Fi connects multiple devices and users simultaneously. This raises privacy and security concerns. Wi-Fi 6E adds WPA3 protocol with WPA2 and WPA to improve multi-factor encryption and authentication.
Benefits of Bluetooth 5.3 in IoT Applications
Bluetooth 5.3 is the latest and world’s most deployed wireless IoT connectivity. The following are the key features of Bluetooth 5.3 that offer greater reliability, improved user experience, and energy efficiency for IoT device makers or application developers-
- Connection Sub-Rating: This feature of Bluetooth 5.3 helps implement a more efficient transmission process to reduce delayed transitions. It switches between high and low duty cycle modes in an improved and faster way. Applications such as smart medical devices have such faster transitions.
- Enhanced Periodic Advertising: The AdvDataInfo (ADI) field in this Bluetooth connectivity is launched in periodic advertising. In cases of no changes in advertisement data, unnecessary processing on the nodes is observed. But with the ADI field in the packet header, the node can drop the packets in the chain and process other received transactions.
- Improved Encryption Key Size Control: Robust security is crucial for end-user requirements in IoT applications such as door locks, portable medical devices, access control, and more. Bluetooth 5.3 improves the encryption key control between the Host and Controller to protect IoT applications and devices from cyberattacks.
- Enhanced Channel Classification: The channel classification feature enables the peripheral device to inform the central device about the required channel map based on radio frequency conditions. After that, the central device comes to an optimal channel map. It can improve the overall wireless performance.
The Launch of SYN43711 by Synaptics
This tech news informs us about the recent integration of Wi-fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 into IoT solutions of Synaptics Incorporated.
Synaptics Incorporated has recently announced the launch of the SYN43711, a system-on-chip that will expand Synaptics’s wireless connectivity solutions for the IoT. SYN43711 is a combined SoC, comprising Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3 for deploying high-performance IoT applications in industrial, consumer, and enterprise systems. The Wi-Fi sensing uses proprietary algorithms to analyze channel stat information and detect human presence, motion, gestures, movements, and location. It also supports Bluetooth 5.3 with low energy audio, unlocking concurrent Bluetooth connections and audio streams, including AuracastTM.
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