A Versatile Cellular-IoT Prototyping Platform with Self-powering Capabilities and Preloaded Global Data for Out of the Box Connectivity

Conexio Technologies are ready to launch their new IoT development kit powered by a Nordic nRF9160 system in package (SiP) which features an ARM cortex M33 application processor. The device can be used for building cellular-connected electronic projects such as asset tracking applications, smart wearables, smart farming, weather monitoring, smart meter monitoring, etc. It supports LTE-M, GPS, NB-IoT, and supports a global range of LTE bands.  The device also comes with 250 SMS and half a gigabyte of global data which is usable in over 100 countries with a validity of 10 years making it a fast and convenient tool to use right out of the box.

GPIOs and other Features for a Stand-alone Operation

The board features 26 mixed-signal user-programmable GPIOs for interfacing different sensors and actuators. The board has an inbuilt accelerometer, temperature, and humidity sensor apart from the GPS and cellular connectivity, it also features Energy Harvesting circuitry with MPPT functionality capable of recharging Li-ion or NiMH batteries by connecting up to 7 solar cells with the device making it a complete stand-alone package in itself. The pin-out diagram is given below.

The board also features 2 external U.FL antennas for GPS and LTE-M/NB-IoT connectivity, The external antenna makes it possible to weatherproof the device by enclosing it in a weatherproof box, only leaving the antennas outside. The stratus has a Micro-USB port for serial connectivity and 10 pin header for programming through J-Link and CMSIS-DAP. The OS on the board is Zephyr RTOS, and to make product development easier, Conexio has also developed an extension for Visual Studio Code and the company also promises to provide all the examples and VSC code extensions when the campaign starts in CrowdSupply.

The company also has an add-on Stratus shield for easing the interfacing of sensors and other peripherals with the Stratus module. The shield abates the need for soldering and reducing the number of wires required for interfacing sensors, actuators, or displays with the status. Thus, simplifying the connection process.

The features of the Conexio Shield are:

• 1 x micro BUS: add-on board standard from Mikroe, allowing connection to over 800+ click boards.
• 2 x Sparkfun Qwiic connector: SparkFun’s Qwiic Connect System, allowing to connect over 100+ Qwiic products.
• 1 x Grove I2C connector: Grove is a modular, standardized connector prototyping system by Seeedstudio.
• 1 x 2 Pin JST connector for plugging the solar panel input.
• 1 x user-programmable LED
• 3.3 V operating voltage

So, if you are interested in this board, you can check their website for more information. The project will soon go live on the Crowd Supply page and opt for notifications about the campaign

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